MAKING A PLAN
A written plan ensures that you consolidate
your learning by recalling information at
regular intervals. This is especially important
for studying, but is essential for any information
that you wish to retain long-term. The best time
to review information is one hour after the initial
learning. You should then review it a day after
the initial learning, then a week, then a month,
then three months, and finally every six months
afterward. Mark these dates in your planner and
make them part of your personal action plan.
60
Applying Memory Techniques
Maintaining Retention
and Recall
U
p to 80 percent of all information
learned is lost within 24 hours.
Reviewing information is crucial to high
retention and good recall. If you do this
at the correct times, you reduce the total
number of reviews required.
REVIEWING INFORMATION
To maximize learning you must review the new
information before the level of recall drops too
far. In the first 24 hours, the brain is playing
with the new information, connecting it with
existing information. This means it is relatively
easy to recall during that period. Once this
process is finished, the level of recall quickly
drops. To prevent this from happening, you
must review information regularly. This ensures
that the brain continues to access the new
information, assessing it and recalling it in detail.
•
Most new information is lost
within one day if you do not go
over it an hour after learning it.
•
Only by reviewing at regular
intervals will you maintain
long-term recall.
•
As you become proficient
at memorizing and recalling,
you will feel confident enough
to set new targets.
At a Glance
Reviewing
Put reminders in
your planner on the
appropriate dates for
reviewing information
you need to memorize
long-term.
●
Review new information
regularly—once or twice
is not enough to commit
it to long-term memory.
FOCUS POINT
Checks plan
on PDA
SETTING NEW GOALS
Maintaining high recall builds your confidence
in your memory, which in turn encourages you
to continue your learning path. As memory
techniques become a part of your life, you
can use quiet times to review information or
memorize new information. This will become
a habit rather than a chore. As you devote
more time to memorizing and recalling,
you will want take on new challenges.
When you set these higher goals, you
can update your personal action plan.
Maintaining Retention and Recall
61
Updating your action plan
As you become more efficient at memorizing,
you will find yourself ready to set new targets.
Review your action plan accordingly.
THE PATTERN OF RECALL
The graph shows your learning pattern
and the best times to review new
information. The first curved line shows
recall immediately after learning. It starts
at 80 percent and rises because the brain
is associating the new information with
data it already has. However, without a
review, recall then drops quickly to about
20 percent. So, a review is necessary before
recall drops below 80 percent, i.e., after
one hour. The second line shows recall
after the first review, a day later. Recall
stays at about 40 percent unless it is
reviewed again, a week later. With
reviews at one, three, and six months,
it stays at about 80 percent.
Writes new
goal into
action plan
1 hour
1 day
1 week
1 month
3 months
Recall %
Frequency of reviews
100
80
60
40
20
0
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