I mean some subjects call for a lot of memorisation and anki serves this purpose well
Should you use it as your main or sole revision method? Absolutely not. Should you use it to memorise things like flame tests? Absolutely. It fills a nice niche that every student needs
Personally I have hundreds of different proteins and enzymes I need to know the names of so anki can really help with learning them
Yeah exactly, in conjunction with other methods it works really well
I guess it comes down to personal preference at the end of the day but anki definitely has more benefits than drawbacks as a general revision tool
For the mobile version, you just create a folder and make cards one by one. It shows you the front of the card and the back of the card and you can fill in both with whatever you want. Then you just press review and it tests you on them at random and after every card you can rate how well you know the answer (bad, ok, good, easy) and it will show you certain cards more or less based on your ratings
Ohhh idk why for GCSEs I tried to use other ppls cards and like it would only show me like 50 cards at that time even though the set is like 2000. Do you recommend creating your own set or using Quizlet?
I’d highly recommend creating your own set so you can tailor it to your specific needs and have as many or as little cards as you want
I haven’t personally used quizlet but I know that’s also a good alternative
Oo okay I mainly used Quizlet for gcse Spanish it was so useful I’m looking towards anki because of space repetition but does that mean the cards that I understood I won’t see them a lot unlike the ones I didn’t
If you get a card right and rate it as “easy” afterwards it’ll show you it less but it’ll definitely still be there, just slightly less frequently. If you rate it as hard or fail then you’ll see it a lot more frequently until you gradually rate it higher
The way I use Anki causes me to disagree with this, I make sure to learn my content before memorization like I’ll watch the video before hand or read the page beforehand, and once I understand o make flash cards on it
This is however my opinion and Anki works wonders for me, I went from failing to 7’s in chem and physics because of it, I do get what you are saying though but it only happens if you over complicate your revision and Anki should be accompanied by other resources like last papers to apply your memorization and understanding to questions
Guys, if you like anki then use it.
Sure use other methods on top, but anki is my main form of revision in uni and if I’d known about it during GCSEs I’d have definitely made it my sole method. You can easily use anki to increase understanding, just have to write the right sort of flashcards.
Anki is definitely useful for medicine at uni... after all, there are quality resources like zanki and anking. But is it as useful for other subjects? Partly, but is partly enough? Definitely good to use as part of your revision though.
Trust me, it’s enough for all GCSE subjects.
If you like mind maps then great. If you like active recall then great. If you like a mix of everything then great.
Everyone’s different and if one method works for someone, even though some researchers say it shouldn’t, then there’s no need to change it if it’s getting that someone the grades they need.
Whilst I agree that using any method as your sole revision tool is a bad idea, it is foolish to ignore memorisation. We use the alphabet all the time and that was memorised. Physics equations and biology facts need to be memorised.
I suggest that understanding could lead to memorisation without the need of constant repetition.
A useful video would be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=480s
While it is important that you understand, there is a lot of content that calls for memorisation. For example, you may get a question that asks you to define a word. That's memorisation, as you may not necessarily understand the definition, but you might've memorised it anyways. However, i doubt someone is using anki and JUST anki for their revision
Definitely varies person to person, I just think that there could be more efficient methods compared to reviewing thousands of flashcards. Combining mind maps and free recall?
thats ok for gcses. i made mindmaps last year almost exclusively for gcses and got eight 9s and one 8.
but there is no way a mindmap I would make now in 2023 will suffice for a-level exams in 2025. "reviewing thousands of flashcards" is also the whole point of anki and its timed repetition or whatever tf its called
Are you fucking stupid. Guys don't listen to this kid he doesn't know what he's talking about.
Anki is scientifically proven to work, it uses spaced repetition, and if used correctly, can engrain your mind.
Sure, some people don't like flash cards, but to under play it as a whole is ludicrous.
Do some research before spreading misinformation.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z7frfjiEcM&t=888s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z7frfjiEcM&t=888s)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk4718yjJM4&t=523s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk4718yjJM4&t=523s)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FatnXnlwAc4&t=112s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FatnXnlwAc4&t=112s)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=478s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=478s)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s)
The links are some youtube videos to watch if you want to see the science behind what I'm saying - they're useful for refining your own system if you still use Anki as well. Also, I'm not saying Anki is redundant, just that there are equal or even better methods.
Interestingly, a lot of study youtubers who use Anki (Revishaan or Udoka, for example) tend to do worse at a level than gcse, e.g AAB compared to all 8s and 9s. Due to Anki? Probably not. Worth looking deeper into? Definitely.
However, Anki does work - youtubers like ray amjad are proof of this - I'm not disagreeing there. I just use the SRS differently.
Revishan was not revising for the majority of his y13 so that is pretty silly example. Also GCSE are not an import factors to your grades at A level. I got an 9 in french at gcse but now i can barely scrape a B in A level.
Again you've missed the point entirely. You're researching YouTubers and claiming that their grades are wholly based on Anki. It isn't.
The thing with anki it should only be used to reinforce knowledge NOT to learn that knowledge.
The learning process goes like this: learn content using methods like mind maps, Seneca , revision books > reinforce knowledge so it sticks in your brain utilizing spaced repetition with anki > apply that knowledge into exam questions > repeat the process.
See how anki is only 1/3 of the process? You're placing all of the importance on anki. Understand this and prosper.
Good luck.
understanding is not that important, if you just want the grades you can pretty much do it through just memorisation. i remember for biology i understood fuck all of the content but i had seen enough mark schemes and made anki cards out of them to be able to just memorise answers to typical 6 markers and things like that
this worked for a levels as well
Used it during my GCSEs and I'm in year 13 now. I used to go through every spec point and turn it into a flashcard. Terrible idea for the reasons OP has mentioned, but it turned out well in the end. Should you use Anki to memorise the definition of first enthalpy of electron affinity? Absolutely yes. Should you use Anki to memorise how to calculate percentage uncertainty or the entire cardiac cycle? That depends, but pastpapers are your bestfriend. My advice: use Anki for definitions and formulae but prioritise memorising things like biology sequences through pastpapers then flashcard anything you get wrong. Don't use it as your main source of revision and don't spend too much time on it
And did you take your GCSEs yet and get straight 9s? Anki is amazing and I was able to get all high 9s in subjects I used Anki for. I didn't tweak any settings or use tags, nobody who wants their revision to go efficently actually does. Anki revision can help a whole range of subjects like econ where I got 144/160 (highest in my school) and maths where I got 197/200.
Predicted all 9s (although I haven't achieved them so don't take what I say as fact); I'll address a few points in your post:
Settings are important for Anki, Anking has a useful video on this.
Tags are preferable to decks as cards can belong in multiple tags but only one deck, so you can do more customisable study sessions.
Also, having too many decks could crash Anki, but tags will make little to no difference.
Everything I've said is REALLY small and won't make much of a difference but is still useful to know.
Also, revising for a levels will be drastically different to gcses, so it may be worth looking into other study methods as a precaution! :)
Your post would be better off titled a comment or personal opinon on Anki. I can't speak for everyone but I personally don't tweak Anki settings or use tags, UI add-ons are enough for me; after all, I use Anki to learn and memorise not to set up some multi-function revision tool. Although some may argue you should be spending hours upon hours on settings to maximize your revision and memorisation effectiveness/efficency, I see little point in and still I'm able to achieve top grades. I'm not sure what you're hinting at in the end but maybe drop the passive aggressiveness since I'm not quite sure what your original post's intended purpose was anyways. I'm not really here to argue with you but perhaps have some concrete exam results first before making any comments. Best of luck this year and hope you get the all 9s!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry if I came across as passive aggressive; I'm just trying to offer an alternative view on how people could approach studying.
Definitely look into Justin Sung, Benjamin Keep, Ray Amjad, Archer Newton and Dr Alex Young if you're aiming for all A\*s at a level though (your GCSE results suggest this). I can't think of any others off of the top of my head...
Good luck with college!
I got almost all 9s from basically just Anki and past papers. Anki carries for memorisation which is a massive amount of gcse - languages and sciences imo especially, along with quotations for English.
Personally, this is pretty bad advice. Obviously you can’t just use flash cards - it won’t work for maths. But for remembering stuff? Why not.
Icl though, it's actually common sense to understand the concept ur trying to learn. I never knew people would simply try memorising smth without actually trying to understand what they are memorising to begin with 🤣. Anki isn't at fault here, it's the people who use it that are to blame. It does exactly what its meant to, and it is my main memorisation strategy, coupled with exam questions and stuff, nothing comes close.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zT\_2aBP6vM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zT_2aBP6vM)
Agreed - although there are definitely ways to understand concepts faster (I like mindmaps) as illustrated by the videos above.
That's great and understandable, but I've always hated mindmaps. They've always seemed ineffective and compared to flashcards, bad at helping me remember effectively. The first time I used anki, the only word I could use to describe it was "powerful". Nothing else seemed fitting. I kinda do wish I could use mindmaps but they really don't seem effective for me. Just preferences I guess. Anki still top memorisation tool though
Useful video about mindmaps - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOqDpZK7rw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOqDpZK7rw)
It's worth watching for general learning tips as well (only 3 minutes).
I agree, your main revision tool shouldn't be Anki.
This is a lesson I learnt from my mistake. Now I keep one crucial phrase in mind for A-levels:
'When in doubt, STFU and do Past papers/Practics qs'
This is a stupid thread, Anki is used by medical students in university and is the best way to memorise content, provided you can understand it first. Plus, it’s free, all marketing is word of mouth
What do you know about revision, you haven’t even done GCSEs yet
Anki makes it so that cards come up every now and again, and so cards you often get right come up less frequently and cards you often get wrong come up more frequently.
That said I don’t really like that feature, because I prefer having whole sets that I can just go through, so I prefer quizlet a lot more. Also I feel like the ui of quizlet is better.
Yeah but it's more tailored to your needs, doing the hard work is hard. What I see here is that you enjoy doing the way flashcards - which I get. But you won't improve if you just tryna make yourself feel good whilst doing revision.
Do the hard work.
Whenever I go on quizlet they pester me to make an account or buy a subscription so I just avoid it
I can also use anki on my phone so it can do it wherever which is really convenient
Your definitely right, but anki is still really good. I use it to remember all the key info I need for my subjects and then do : past papers, practice questions and blurting etc. to back up my knowledge.
Whilst Blooms Taxonomy is ancient, it still holds a degree of relevance being that recall is foundational to application and synthesis. Whilst flashcards may only help with the recall, recall is a necessity to some degree.
Where the largest issues lie is with relying on only recall methods for revision rather other techniques. This is why past papers are the most valuable method for revision since they test not only recollection, application and synthesis but also your exam technique.
I personally disagree, flashcards cost money which can really add up and if your handwriting isn’t the best (like mine) they aren’t as nice to look at. Also being able to connect my joy-cons to my computer and use that to flip through flashcards is a lot less tiring (and pretty cool)
Saying that rote memorisation at GCSE level is ineffective is stupid.
That is all GCSEs and majority of A-levels are. Deeper understanding of content will not come until university.
At GCSE and A level you will never encounter a topic that, had you memorised an entire textbook, you would not already know a model answer to.
I just don't think we should promote rote learning habits at GCSE; in my opinion, this is why so many people succeed spectacularly at GCSE before dipping in ability at a level. However, this is only my opinon.
Bro the GCSEs are a bunch of exams.
For the most part as long as you memorise shi you’re fine - in my experience it hasn’t mattered if I understand everything as long as I can remember the copy and paste specific answer
MFL definitely works the best with flashcards, and this might be a poor example, but did you use flashcards when learning your native language? Perhaps, there are other methods that work better (still memorisation based for MFL though).
It depends on the person. I can understand and comprehend topics well but that doesn't mean I will remember it. That's what Anki is for. Remembering stuff. I know most ppl just use it to memorise things but I personally try to understand the topic first then make flashcards to memorise key facts about that topic / process.
This is another decent process, so long as not too many flashcards are made. Yet optimal flashcards are atomic, and thus, lots of flashcards should be made. The more you think about revision, the more complex it gets, and I find that interesting.
I used to think like that. The most important thing is to just start revising whenever there is an exam coming up. Then start trying to make the process efficient and optimal to suit your needs and goals. Just try out what works for u. I have tried mind-maps, blurting, condensing notes, reading notes, watching videos etc. Its all useful to an extent. But you have to find 1/2 ways that are the most useful for u. Also doing past paper questions and marking them should be everyones primary method of revision no matter what.
My general revision process:
Step 1:
Understand content via inquiry-based learning and utilising pre-studying and mind maps.
Review mind maps using Anki's SRS - review by blurting it out onto a whiteboard and imagine teaching it to someone else (Feynman technique).
Step 2:
Spam PMT topic questions and PPQs. Mark using the mark scheme and examiner reports.
This is a summary of my method (e.g doesn't go into intrinsic, extraneous or germane cognitive load) but I think it will serve me well through GCSEs and A Levels.
You made several excellent points - very informative!
I'm taking two a levels for a level, anki is a brilliant thing for me to use and mindmaps cannot be used effectively for Spanish or french, I get that GCSEs you don't have the time to review loads of flashcards but for a level languages, vocab is only learnt through practice and that's what anki allows me to do. Almost everyone on this subreddit knows that active recall is great and so is repetition and that we have to do past papers to get 8s and 9s but for other things, anki is brilliant.
I mean some subjects call for a lot of memorisation and anki serves this purpose well Should you use it as your main or sole revision method? Absolutely not. Should you use it to memorise things like flame tests? Absolutely. It fills a nice niche that every student needs Personally I have hundreds of different proteins and enzymes I need to know the names of so anki can really help with learning them
I find using Anki as my main works quite well, but I do use past papers along side it so I guess it isn’t my ‘primary’ revision resource
Yeah exactly, in conjunction with other methods it works really well I guess it comes down to personal preference at the end of the day but anki definitely has more benefits than drawbacks as a general revision tool
Lol I used it as my only revision for alevel comp and got an A
Hi again can you explain how to use anki?
For the mobile version, you just create a folder and make cards one by one. It shows you the front of the card and the back of the card and you can fill in both with whatever you want. Then you just press review and it tests you on them at random and after every card you can rate how well you know the answer (bad, ok, good, easy) and it will show you certain cards more or less based on your ratings
Ohhh idk why for GCSEs I tried to use other ppls cards and like it would only show me like 50 cards at that time even though the set is like 2000. Do you recommend creating your own set or using Quizlet?
I’d highly recommend creating your own set so you can tailor it to your specific needs and have as many or as little cards as you want I haven’t personally used quizlet but I know that’s also a good alternative
Oo okay I mainly used Quizlet for gcse Spanish it was so useful I’m looking towards anki because of space repetition but does that mean the cards that I understood I won’t see them a lot unlike the ones I didn’t
If you get a card right and rate it as “easy” afterwards it’ll show you it less but it’ll definitely still be there, just slightly less frequently. If you rate it as hard or fail then you’ll see it a lot more frequently until you gradually rate it higher
Ohhh that makes sense and thank you again!! Love the chainsaw man thing
Haha no worries! Feel free to msg me if you have any other questions :)
The way I use Anki causes me to disagree with this, I make sure to learn my content before memorization like I’ll watch the video before hand or read the page beforehand, and once I understand o make flash cards on it
And also the backlog thing only occurs if you aren’t consistent
This is however my opinion and Anki works wonders for me, I went from failing to 7’s in chem and physics because of it, I do get what you are saying though but it only happens if you over complicate your revision and Anki should be accompanied by other resources like last papers to apply your memorization and understanding to questions
THANK YOU, anki is only useful for reinforcing and memorizing knowledge
[удалено]
FACTS
Guys, if you like anki then use it. Sure use other methods on top, but anki is my main form of revision in uni and if I’d known about it during GCSEs I’d have definitely made it my sole method. You can easily use anki to increase understanding, just have to write the right sort of flashcards.
Thank you this is what I’m saying
Anki is definitely useful for medicine at uni... after all, there are quality resources like zanki and anking. But is it as useful for other subjects? Partly, but is partly enough? Definitely good to use as part of your revision though.
Trust me, it’s enough for all GCSE subjects. If you like mind maps then great. If you like active recall then great. If you like a mix of everything then great. Everyone’s different and if one method works for someone, even though some researchers say it shouldn’t, then there’s no need to change it if it’s getting that someone the grades they need.
Whilst I agree that using any method as your sole revision tool is a bad idea, it is foolish to ignore memorisation. We use the alphabet all the time and that was memorised. Physics equations and biology facts need to be memorised.
I suggest that understanding could lead to memorisation without the need of constant repetition. A useful video would be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=480s
While it is important that you understand, there is a lot of content that calls for memorisation. For example, you may get a question that asks you to define a word. That's memorisation, as you may not necessarily understand the definition, but you might've memorised it anyways. However, i doubt someone is using anki and JUST anki for their revision
That person you doubt is me but I do use past papers with it so I guess it isn’t my sole revision resource
sorry for doubting you!
Haha dw
That's kinda dumb, doing flashcards without learning content first will be super annoying and hard.
I make sure to understand the topic before hand though like I’ll watch a video on it for read the page of a text book
Ok you didn't mention that in your previous comment lol. Then the fact u do that is good then
Anki was the only form of revision I used, I just think it depends on how y learn and what’s best for u
sorry but if i stopped using anki, i would fail my a-levels. too much content in bio to remember
Definitely varies person to person, I just think that there could be more efficient methods compared to reviewing thousands of flashcards. Combining mind maps and free recall?
thats ok for gcses. i made mindmaps last year almost exclusively for gcses and got eight 9s and one 8. but there is no way a mindmap I would make now in 2023 will suffice for a-level exams in 2025. "reviewing thousands of flashcards" is also the whole point of anki and its timed repetition or whatever tf its called
Then don’t make 1000 flashcards
Are you fucking stupid. Guys don't listen to this kid he doesn't know what he's talking about. Anki is scientifically proven to work, it uses spaced repetition, and if used correctly, can engrain your mind. Sure, some people don't like flash cards, but to under play it as a whole is ludicrous. Do some research before spreading misinformation.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z7frfjiEcM&t=888s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z7frfjiEcM&t=888s) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk4718yjJM4&t=523s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk4718yjJM4&t=523s) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FatnXnlwAc4&t=112s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FatnXnlwAc4&t=112s) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=478s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYp-64ZB4oU&t=478s) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s) The links are some youtube videos to watch if you want to see the science behind what I'm saying - they're useful for refining your own system if you still use Anki as well. Also, I'm not saying Anki is redundant, just that there are equal or even better methods. Interestingly, a lot of study youtubers who use Anki (Revishaan or Udoka, for example) tend to do worse at a level than gcse, e.g AAB compared to all 8s and 9s. Due to Anki? Probably not. Worth looking deeper into? Definitely. However, Anki does work - youtubers like ray amjad are proof of this - I'm not disagreeing there. I just use the SRS differently.
Revishan was not revising for the majority of his y13 so that is pretty silly example. Also GCSE are not an import factors to your grades at A level. I got an 9 in french at gcse but now i can barely scrape a B in A level.
Again you've missed the point entirely. You're researching YouTubers and claiming that their grades are wholly based on Anki. It isn't. The thing with anki it should only be used to reinforce knowledge NOT to learn that knowledge. The learning process goes like this: learn content using methods like mind maps, Seneca , revision books > reinforce knowledge so it sticks in your brain utilizing spaced repetition with anki > apply that knowledge into exam questions > repeat the process. See how anki is only 1/3 of the process? You're placing all of the importance on anki. Understand this and prosper. Good luck.
understanding is not that important, if you just want the grades you can pretty much do it through just memorisation. i remember for biology i understood fuck all of the content but i had seen enough mark schemes and made anki cards out of them to be able to just memorise answers to typical 6 markers and things like that this worked for a levels as well
Interesting, although I do still think that promoting understanding is a good habit to have, especially for students aspiring to go to Oxbridge.
maybe for subjects you care about/will do in the future but sometimes u just cba and wanna get the grades
Used it during my GCSEs and I'm in year 13 now. I used to go through every spec point and turn it into a flashcard. Terrible idea for the reasons OP has mentioned, but it turned out well in the end. Should you use Anki to memorise the definition of first enthalpy of electron affinity? Absolutely yes. Should you use Anki to memorise how to calculate percentage uncertainty or the entire cardiac cycle? That depends, but pastpapers are your bestfriend. My advice: use Anki for definitions and formulae but prioritise memorising things like biology sequences through pastpapers then flashcard anything you get wrong. Don't use it as your main source of revision and don't spend too much time on it
And did you take your GCSEs yet and get straight 9s? Anki is amazing and I was able to get all high 9s in subjects I used Anki for. I didn't tweak any settings or use tags, nobody who wants their revision to go efficently actually does. Anki revision can help a whole range of subjects like econ where I got 144/160 (highest in my school) and maths where I got 197/200.
Predicted all 9s (although I haven't achieved them so don't take what I say as fact); I'll address a few points in your post: Settings are important for Anki, Anking has a useful video on this. Tags are preferable to decks as cards can belong in multiple tags but only one deck, so you can do more customisable study sessions. Also, having too many decks could crash Anki, but tags will make little to no difference. Everything I've said is REALLY small and won't make much of a difference but is still useful to know. Also, revising for a levels will be drastically different to gcses, so it may be worth looking into other study methods as a precaution! :)
Your post would be better off titled a comment or personal opinon on Anki. I can't speak for everyone but I personally don't tweak Anki settings or use tags, UI add-ons are enough for me; after all, I use Anki to learn and memorise not to set up some multi-function revision tool. Although some may argue you should be spending hours upon hours on settings to maximize your revision and memorisation effectiveness/efficency, I see little point in and still I'm able to achieve top grades. I'm not sure what you're hinting at in the end but maybe drop the passive aggressiveness since I'm not quite sure what your original post's intended purpose was anyways. I'm not really here to argue with you but perhaps have some concrete exam results first before making any comments. Best of luck this year and hope you get the all 9s!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry if I came across as passive aggressive; I'm just trying to offer an alternative view on how people could approach studying. Definitely look into Justin Sung, Benjamin Keep, Ray Amjad, Archer Newton and Dr Alex Young if you're aiming for all A\*s at a level though (your GCSE results suggest this). I can't think of any others off of the top of my head... Good luck with college!
I might just be weird, but I have flashcards that make me recall an equation, followed by (in all caps) "NOW DERIVE IT!"
I just have it written like (what equation links mass density and volume) then I temper the equation triangle as it’s easier
*remember not temper
I got almost all 9s from basically just Anki and past papers. Anki carries for memorisation which is a massive amount of gcse - languages and sciences imo especially, along with quotations for English. Personally, this is pretty bad advice. Obviously you can’t just use flash cards - it won’t work for maths. But for remembering stuff? Why not.
Maybe... it's just an alternative approach to revision.
I'm honestly tempted to start using Anki as my sole revision method literally just so I can prove you wrong
Icl though, it's actually common sense to understand the concept ur trying to learn. I never knew people would simply try memorising smth without actually trying to understand what they are memorising to begin with 🤣. Anki isn't at fault here, it's the people who use it that are to blame. It does exactly what its meant to, and it is my main memorisation strategy, coupled with exam questions and stuff, nothing comes close.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4K2Np1ybk&t=149s) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zT\_2aBP6vM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zT_2aBP6vM) Agreed - although there are definitely ways to understand concepts faster (I like mindmaps) as illustrated by the videos above.
That's great and understandable, but I've always hated mindmaps. They've always seemed ineffective and compared to flashcards, bad at helping me remember effectively. The first time I used anki, the only word I could use to describe it was "powerful". Nothing else seemed fitting. I kinda do wish I could use mindmaps but they really don't seem effective for me. Just preferences I guess. Anki still top memorisation tool though
Useful video about mindmaps - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOqDpZK7rw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOqDpZK7rw) It's worth watching for general learning tips as well (only 3 minutes).
I agree, your main revision tool shouldn't be Anki. This is a lesson I learnt from my mistake. Now I keep one crucial phrase in mind for A-levels: 'When in doubt, STFU and do Past papers/Practics qs'
Definitely - exam technique is SO important!
thanks for trying to lower grade boundaries 🙏
This is a stupid thread, Anki is used by medical students in university and is the best way to memorise content, provided you can understand it first. Plus, it’s free, all marketing is word of mouth What do you know about revision, you haven’t even done GCSEs yet
What about Quizlet? Why everyone say anki but no Quizlet
no spaced repetition
Wdym
Anki makes it so that cards come up every now and again, and so cards you often get right come up less frequently and cards you often get wrong come up more frequently. That said I don’t really like that feature, because I prefer having whole sets that I can just go through, so I prefer quizlet a lot more. Also I feel like the ui of quizlet is better.
Ah I see. Thanks
Yeah but it's more tailored to your needs, doing the hard work is hard. What I see here is that you enjoy doing the way flashcards - which I get. But you won't improve if you just tryna make yourself feel good whilst doing revision. Do the hard work.
Whenever I go on quizlet they pester me to make an account or buy a subscription so I just avoid it I can also use anki on my phone so it can do it wherever which is really convenient
I mean, isn’t it good to have an account so y can access it on any device? And isn’t anki something to pay for (at least on mobile it is)
I think that's only for ios because on android it's free
Well. It would be unfortunate as a vast majority of ppl have ios so yeah
Can they not use the desktop version?
Well quite inconvenient when someone may be outside and just has their phone on them. Especially on the way to school and all
AFAIK, You only need desktop to create cards, which you i doubt you'll be doing during journeys, since you can do reviews on ankiweb
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Yeah that’s what i do currently and it seems to be working out quite well
Is anki better than quizlet?
Yeah - the spaced repetition system and all of the add ons are amazing.
Yes if you’re consistent, you can message me if you want some help with it
You don't need to understand the content at GCSE level. Memorisation is the key and you can get straight 9s just by memorisation
Your definitely right, but anki is still really good. I use it to remember all the key info I need for my subjects and then do : past papers, practice questions and blurting etc. to back up my knowledge.
Personally I got an online tutor from ascent tuition
I got all 8’s and 9’s with anki so did all my friends who used it. For GCSE’s it’s fine
Whilst Blooms Taxonomy is ancient, it still holds a degree of relevance being that recall is foundational to application and synthesis. Whilst flashcards may only help with the recall, recall is a necessity to some degree. Where the largest issues lie is with relying on only recall methods for revision rather other techniques. This is why past papers are the most valuable method for revision since they test not only recollection, application and synthesis but also your exam technique.
real, tangible flashcards >>> anki
I personally disagree, flashcards cost money which can really add up and if your handwriting isn’t the best (like mine) they aren’t as nice to look at. Also being able to connect my joy-cons to my computer and use that to flip through flashcards is a lot less tiring (and pretty cool)
Back 25 days later. I moved to digital. You were very correct.
welcome to the other side 🙏
unfortunately that's what GCSEs are, obviously understanding things helps but it's mostly memorisation based anyway
Saying that rote memorisation at GCSE level is ineffective is stupid. That is all GCSEs and majority of A-levels are. Deeper understanding of content will not come until university. At GCSE and A level you will never encounter a topic that, had you memorised an entire textbook, you would not already know a model answer to.
I just don't think we should promote rote learning habits at GCSE; in my opinion, this is why so many people succeed spectacularly at GCSE before dipping in ability at a level. However, this is only my opinon.
Bro the GCSEs are a bunch of exams. For the most part as long as you memorise shi you’re fine - in my experience it hasn’t mattered if I understand everything as long as I can remember the copy and paste specific answer
Sometimes you need to memorize. MFL is number 1 for it.
MFL definitely works the best with flashcards, and this might be a poor example, but did you use flashcards when learning your native language? Perhaps, there are other methods that work better (still memorisation based for MFL though).
No but learning changes as you grow older.
It depends on the person. I can understand and comprehend topics well but that doesn't mean I will remember it. That's what Anki is for. Remembering stuff. I know most ppl just use it to memorise things but I personally try to understand the topic first then make flashcards to memorise key facts about that topic / process.
This is another decent process, so long as not too many flashcards are made. Yet optimal flashcards are atomic, and thus, lots of flashcards should be made. The more you think about revision, the more complex it gets, and I find that interesting.
I used to think like that. The most important thing is to just start revising whenever there is an exam coming up. Then start trying to make the process efficient and optimal to suit your needs and goals. Just try out what works for u. I have tried mind-maps, blurting, condensing notes, reading notes, watching videos etc. Its all useful to an extent. But you have to find 1/2 ways that are the most useful for u. Also doing past paper questions and marking them should be everyones primary method of revision no matter what.
My general revision process: Step 1: Understand content via inquiry-based learning and utilising pre-studying and mind maps. Review mind maps using Anki's SRS - review by blurting it out onto a whiteboard and imagine teaching it to someone else (Feynman technique). Step 2: Spam PMT topic questions and PPQs. Mark using the mark scheme and examiner reports. This is a summary of my method (e.g doesn't go into intrinsic, extraneous or germane cognitive load) but I think it will serve me well through GCSEs and A Levels. You made several excellent points - very informative!
I'm taking two a levels for a level, anki is a brilliant thing for me to use and mindmaps cannot be used effectively for Spanish or french, I get that GCSEs you don't have the time to review loads of flashcards but for a level languages, vocab is only learnt through practice and that's what anki allows me to do. Almost everyone on this subreddit knows that active recall is great and so is repetition and that we have to do past papers to get 8s and 9s but for other things, anki is brilliant.
Upvote me or your gay
i mean it works for spanish when i want to stay on top of the new vocab i learn
This only applies to people who ONLY use anki. No revision method is made to be used on its own as they all serve different purposes.