High and Low Utility
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High & Low Utility
PRACTICE
A Creating phrases, songs or lists to recall information
B Spacing practice out – revisiting topics every few weeks
C Writing summaries of information
D Teaching someone else the topic
E Writing out explanations of complex ideas
F Re-reading notes
G Moving from topic to topic while revising – snacking rather than bingeing
H Reading whilst highlighting key terms
I Practice tests
J Turning information into images
DUNLOSKY - PRACTICE TECHNIQUES
He then compared each study technique against the outcomes (results) of the students using them...
His study categorised the revision habits of 1000's of students into one of 10 different "study techniques"
...leading to a list of study techniques most likely to lead to success in exams.
The techniques which were most effective were labelled "High Utility", while less effective techniques were "Low Utility"
The following list shows the 10 study techniques from Dunlosky's study.
Currently listed in no particular order..
Review the list and see if you can put them in the correct order.
"High Utility" techniques at the top
"Low Utility" techniques at the bottom
Now review the list in the correct order...
Did you manage to get some in the correct order?
.. or did you manage to identify the top 3?
ie. the "Highest Utility" Techniques?
I Practice tests
B Spacing practice out – revisiting topics every few weeks
H Reading whilst highlighting key terms
D Teaching someone else the topic
A Creating phrases, songs or lists to recall information
E Writing out explanations of complex ideas
G Moving from topic to topic while revising – snacking rather than bingeing
J Turning information into images
F Re-reading notes
C Writing summaries of information
DUNLOSKY - PRACTICE TECHNIQUES
‘Low Utility’
techniques.
These are useful at times, particularly to organise and review information during the year
However, these are the least effective techniques for exam revision
‘High Utility’
techniques.
These two techniques have the strongest association with good exam performance
We recommend using these techniques as much as you can in the build up to exams
‘Moderate Utility’
techniques.
These techniques can be quite successful, and recommended at the start of your revision period
Educational Researcher - Dougles Barton, discusses another study taken from the revision habits of GCSE Students..
The majority of students are just reading over notes, the week before their exams..
11% of students are doing practice exams..
This correlates with the students who go on to achieve grades 7-9 in their GCSE's
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Make a quick analysis of which techniques you use
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Which ones are you routinely doing a lot of?
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Which ones do you try ‘rarely’ or ‘never’?
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Choose one technique that is moderate or high utility and try and break it down into steps.
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What things might you have to do in what order to use the technique effectively?
FINAL THOUGHTS
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We’re not saying that you should abandon all low-utility tasks.
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These tasks work well in the early stages of revision, when you’re collecting and organising your material.
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The problem comes when we continually use these approaches all the way up to the exam.
-
As the exam draws nearer, you need to be trying out the high-utility revision tasks.
-
By incorporating more high utility strategies into your revision, you’ll make more progress in the same amount of time, getting more out of each session by making it harder.
-
High utility strategies aren’t always easy, and they don’t always feel comfortable… but they drive you forward faster than the low utility strategies.
-
Aim for a healthy balance!
High & Low Utility
PRACTICE
Now review the list in the correct order...
Did you manage to get some in the correct order?
.. or did you manage to identify the top 3?
ie. the "Highest Utility" Techniques?
I Practice tests
B Spacing practice out – revisiting topics every few weeks
H Reading whilst highlighting key terms
D Teaching someone else the topic
A Creating phrases, songs or lists to recall information
E Writing out explanations of complex ideas
G Moving from topic to topic while revising – snacking rather than bingeing
J Turning information into images
F Re-reading notes
C Writing summaries of information
DUNLOSKY - PRACTICE TECHNIQUES
‘Low Utility’
techniques.
These are useful at times, particularly to organise and review information during the year
However, these are the least effective techniques for exam revision
‘High Utility’
techniques.
These two techniques have the strongest association with good exam performance
We recommend using these techniques as much as you can in the build up to exams
‘Moderate Utility’
techniques.
These techniques can be quite successful, and recommended at the start of your revision period
FINAL THOUGHTS
-
We’re not saying that you should abandon all low-utility tasks.
-
These tasks work well in the early stages of revision, when you’re collecting and organising your material.
-
The problem comes when we continually use these approaches all the way up to the exam.
-
As the exam draws nearer, you need to be trying out the high-utility revision tasks.
-
By incorporating more high utility strategies into your revision, you’ll make more progress in the same amount of time, getting more out of each session by making it harder.
-
High utility strategies aren’t always easy, and they don’t always feel comfortable… but they drive you forward faster than the low utility strategies.
-
Aim for a healthy balance!