Chapter 13

Learning and Preparing for Exams with Mind Mapping

In This Chapter

Learning a technique in four steps

Study Mind Maps specially for pupils and students

Further examples

Many books on learning strategies and techniques describe Mind Mapping as a visual learning technique. In fact, generating and structuring Mind Maps can be useful when you prepare for exams too.

Mind Mapping helps here in two ways:

It makes memorising and retaining information easier.

It helps you to understand content and identify connections better.

This is achieved mainly by the graphic form of Mind Maps and the highly individual nature of the technique, involving the use of key words and visual elements.

Preparing for Exams

Many people prepare for examinations by reading books and marking relevant passages with highlighters. Using marker pens does help you to find the relevant places more quickly, but

You must always have the same source material to hand in order to find the information you need.

You haven’t processed the source text in your head, as you would by making notes and expressing what you’ve read in your own words.

Processing material and expressing what you’ve understood in your own words play a particularly import role in learning and preparing for examinations.

In this chapter I introduce a multi-stage procedure that enables you to prepare for examinations using Mind Maps. It can be applied to books and to classes, lectures or presentations.

The procedure consists of the following steps:

1. Taking your Mind-Mapping notes

2. Entering your own thoughts

3. Revising regularly

4. Explaining your Mind Maps to others

I explain these steps in detail in this section.