Excerpts from the book ‘Exam Warriors’ by PM Narendra Modiji.
Thorough revision is both necessary and helpful. Sharpens what you have learnt and also helps recall concepts systematically and easily.
In your day-to-day lives, the habit of being organized about ‘small’ things such as keeping your school bag, shoes and uniform in their proper places not only helps in retrieving them later but also trains the mind to be methodical. This training of the mind will help to systematically store information and retrieve it.
Whenever you are studying, identify the topics where pre-exam revision will be essential.
There are multiple ways to revise and recall concepts with ease.
Writing down the key points is a good way to revise.
Some young friends might like to use mind mapping to organize what they have learnt. Some may make attractive short forms, acronyms and formulas. Recall haw you remembered the colours of the rainbow with the word ‘VIBGYOR’.
Debating and discussing particular topics may be a useful tool for revision. Back in the day, when I held organizational responsibilities in my political party, we would divide ourselves into different teams (some would act like opposition spokespersons), each of which would approach an issue through a different prism. This way, we could assess how prepared we were and also understand the areas in which we needed improvement.
At times, others can give us substantive feedback on where we are lagging behind. I have another anecdote to share, this one from my schooldays. Being part of a school play, I had to deliver a particular dialogue which, for some reason, I was struggling with. The director of the play got impatient and said he would be unable to direct me if I kept saying the dialogue in that manner.
Naturally, I thought I was doing it perfectly, so I found it perplexing that the director would say this about me. The next day, I asked him to act like me and show me what I was doing wrong. In a matter of seconds, I realized where I was going wrong and was able to improve myself.
I am told that after the day’s play, sportspersons go back to the drawing board and watch clippings not only of their own game but also that of the opposing team. This helps them improve.
There are many more ways of smart revision that can be extremely helpful. Pick the ones that suit you best and keep revising, smartly and regularly.
ACTIVITY: Given one the next page is an example of a mind map. Likewise, you can make a mind on a topic of your choice.
When you finish, share it with your Study buddies and also see their
Mind maps for a fresh perspective
Use highlights, symbols,
Codes, arrows for easier
Navigation and understanding
Let there be flow
Flow typically is showcased
With thick lines at
The centre and thin
Lines further out
You can draw images
But don’t hold thoughts due
To style. You can tidy later
Each point of the idea can
Be showcased in colour
Branches under each point
Can carry the same colour
Gather the information
You may need along with
Relevant stationery
Write your
Topic/Idea
In The Centre
Use blank sheets in
Landscape format
Use a colourful image or
symbol to represent the
topic in the centre.
2 THINKOF THE MAIN POINTS
RELATED TO THE TOPIC
Each point on the idea can
Become a branch of the mind map
Keywords of that topic can be
Used to make the branch longer
Start from the 12 o’clock position and
Move clockwise to write the topics.
