The No-Fail Flashcard Study Technique: Fast Learning - Minimal Time

Here is a great way to study and memorize with almost no effort!

Since I am studying to renew my technical certifications and my wife is back in school, I thought I’d share with you my successful flashcard study technique.  Arguably, for many people, myself included, flashcards are one of the best ways to learn and study.  They are fast, portable, and if made properly help you learn difficult subjects almost automatically....

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Comments

[John]

I've used HandyCards on my PPC. There are several of these programs out there.

Either way flash cards are a powerful learning tool.

[Brad Isaac]

I've used Handycards too. It's a really nice app. But recently the old fashioned index cards are what I am using these days.

[JasonJ]

I'm very interested in this topic and other learning tools and tips that other people have adopted or designed.

I'm currently studying for some certifications and am looking at everything possible to help me make this easier.

My material is an online training course and so I'm not face to face with the trainer.

I've been meaning to, for over 4 years, get into MindMapping. Has anyone else looked into this method?

I'm also keen to use any tools that I can on my laptop OR PocketPC so grateful for any advice anyone could offer.

[Brad Isaac]

Jason, yes, Mindmapping is a good way to get ideas and organize your thoughts. But I wouldn't consider it a good way to learn stuff. It is, however a good way to take notes. Here's a little bit of what I've written about it.

[hawran]

Hello, thank you for this tip, I will try it and prove what you said here.
It's almost like SUPERMEMO technique - which is very useful for learning languages. more info is here - supermemo.com

[Holger]

The best flashcard software I found for the PC is VTrain (http://www.vtrain.net/home.htm). The cardbox-technique for repetition is really unique and very efficient!

[webmanoffesto]

Teacher's Pet has a useful tool for quickly converting a list of questions and answers into printable flashcards

http://snipurl.com/swyw
http://perso.orange.fr/sitasima/word_processor/teachers_pet.htm

•Single-sided Flashcards Maker:
Put a vertical list of words, sentences and/or images in a blank Word document and this macro will turn them into a sheet of large or small flashcards for classroom use or private study.

[Brad Isaac]

Is it just me or does that Supermemo software look like it would take weeks to learn how to use?

[John]

I agree, Brad. I've looked at SuperMemo in the past and it has always looked difficult to me.

[Mike Zillion]

Flash cards and mind mapping are both excellent tools. I use the freeware utility Freemind to transform dull outlines of my law school classes into exploded visualizations, laid out in two dimensions, with each topic flowing organically from the center. Remembering where a topic appeared on the tree lets me call up an image of related topics more easily.

[AW]

I like flashcardexchange.com. It very easy to use and has great features. The downside: it costs $20 money to use all the features.

[Brad Isaac]

@Mike - That sounds like a good application for Mind Mapping. Do you find it aids your memory?

[Kept]

I find the following technique effective:

1) Take about 20 flash cards.
This is a number I find good for me but
for another person it might be 15 or 25.
2) Look at each question and guess the answer.
If it's right set the card aside.
If it's wrong put the card back on the
bottom of the deck.
3) When all the cards have been set aside,
shuffle the cards and go through the
complete deck again.
4) Repeat step 3 until you can go through
the whole deck 3 times in a row without
a single mistake.
5) Move on to the next set of 20 cards.
6) Review the sets the next day using the
same procedure.
7) Review again after 3 days, a week, 3
weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months,
1 year, etc.

If some answsers give a particular problem, write out the answer 10 times. If need be read more about that topic till it clicks.

Wherever possible try to picture the answer in your head.

[Mr. Nemo]

"Right way: A flashcard that has "Who was the main actor in Mission Impossible" - answer on other side: Tom Cruise."

Bad example -- because the correct answer is "Peter Graves", to anyone who regularly watched the TV show that the movies are named after. Nyah nyah nyah.

[Brad Isaac]

Ok, you got me Mr. Nemo. In my own defense MI2 (the movie) was on TV last night.

[Pascal Venier]

A very nice post! I also use flashcards for learning languages, but using a computer software.

I would very strongly disagree with you Brad when you say that "I wouldn't consider it [Mind Mapping] it a good way to learn stuff." I think that much to the contrary this is one of the best way to assimilate the material you want to learn. Mind Mapping forces you to synthesize the mass of materials you need to assimilate. In so doing it provides you with a forces you to engage you brain and to be involved in a process of active learning. I always recommending it to my students at the university. It is a great complement to using flashcards.

[Brad Isaac]

Hey Pascal,

I meant to say mindmapping isn't a good way to memorize stuff. At least it's not efficient in my opinion. But if you think I'm wrong, maybe I'm missing something. Do you use it for memorizing?

There are some very good tips people are leaving here. :) Anybody else have some they can share?

[Alex]

Some Z software compared to Supermemo:

FullRecall

Pauker

The idea is pretty much the same. Still, though Supermemo is difficult to learn, in the long run - it works best. But that's as far as software is concerned...

[April]

Thanks for the tip! I forgot about using flashcards. I did use them years ago and they worked really well. I actually still have the flashcards. I took a Danish language test after 6 years of not speaking Danish (I was only in Denmark a year) and got full credits on the test. It was awesome, I got 25 credits and a minor in Danish.

[LittleFish]

I have used Supermemo for six months, I have more than 10,400 flashcards and I've remembered most of them. Supermemo is an awesome program, my fluency in Japanese is attributed to it.

[Brad Isaac]

April, that is an impressive flashcard outcome! thanks for sharing.

LittleFish, 10,400?!?! Ok, you've convinced me. I need to try this program.

[Richard Bryant]

I'll admit to bias right up front :-) I'm the author/publisher of WinFlash Educator (the most-awarded program in the flashcard category), not mentioned so far in this thread. Educator is as effective (or more so, depending on the algorithm you use) as SuperMemo, much easier to learn (many of our customers are SuperMemo refugees) and we have partnering arrangements with both HandyCards and Flashcard Exchange, so you can save a few $ by buying either or both at the same time as Educator. Please visit our site to learn more if you're interested in pursuing the flashcard approach.

[Jimmy]

Consider that your aim is to learn faster... and you are considering software to help.
Flashcard software is one type of study software, Educator being an excellent example (won the award at Edu-Soft.org this year), another is Mapping software e.g. Mindmanager, another is information gathering software e.g. one note and then there are hybrids e.g. RecallPlus.

Suggest if your information doesn't fall clearly into Q-A or similar formats that one of the other types of study software might be a better choice OR use a hybrid.

[Brad Isaac]

Jimmy, thanks for the post. Those look like some good titles. I'll check em out