How to Study Difficult Subjects

​So you're pretty happy with the way you've been studying: your schedule is rock-solid, your friends are your best allies, and you're taking regular breaks to maximise your brain power!

But in the back of your mind you're dreading that one difficult subject. You know the one!

Whether its maths, biology, or physics, there's always one pesky subject that gets your heart racing and your palms sweating...and not in a love-at-first-sight kind of way!

Before you start panicking, just know that like all the other muscles in your body your brain can be trained and pumped to take on even the most difficult of subjects.

Here's how to do it:

Understanding concepts and learning new ideas is not just about cramming information or memorising details. After all, your mind is not a computer, so there is just so much it can retain on its own.

The way the human mind remembers is by organising information in a way that makes it easier to recall.

The strategy is to organise facts and information into interconnected ideas, thus making a web of relationships between information that'll be easy to remember when you need it.

Basically you're linking ideas together to see the whole picture, instead of just its parts.

The first step is to gather all the information you have on the subject - the information you were given piece by piece in lectures, textbooks, and notes - and slowly fit the small pieces into a recognisable structure you'll be able to pull from your mind no matter what the question on your exam paper.

You can then find and memorise the links that make the assembled structure. By focusing on the links, you'll be able to remember the rest without much effort.

 

Some people are good at memorising formulas, others are good with historical dates, and others still feel more at ease with concepts.

That's OK, we're all different!

The key is to find the method that'll make it easier for you to remember almost anything.

For some it could be making up metaphors to compare a complex idea to a simple one. Coming up with analogies can help you find logical relationships between pieces of information. If, for instance, you're trying to memorise the structure of the human brain, comparing its sections with the parts of your computer can make it easier to remember.

For others, it could be visualising a concept. Coming up with vivid pictures, feelings, and images that relate information together can do wonders for your memory! If, for instance you need to memorise a map, you can visualise yourself drawing it to remember which country goes where.

Another tried-and-tested method is to find someone who doesn't understand the topic and teach it to them. By forcing yourself to make things simple and clear for someone else, you're actually making things memorable for yourself!

For example, instead of memorising the difficult economic concept of Opportunity Cost as: " the cost of any activity measured in terms of the value of the next best alternative forgone", you can explain to someone that it is the cost of not being able to spend your resources on one thing because you've already spent them on something else: "if you spend your Saturday night doing homework, the opportunity cost is that you can't spend that time going to the movies".

Whichever the method, there's sure to be one just for you!

Finding a way to remember information is one thing, but making sure you've accurately understood the information is another thing.

Getting some feedback on your learning can take multiple forms: for subjects like maths or physics you can test yourself thanks to on-line resources or using some of the exercises in your textbook.

For less obvious subjects such as history, economics, or literature, you'll need to discuss with people who have some knowledge in these fields. This could be your parent, a family friend, or even your teacher. Find some time to talk to them about the subject to check if you've understood the concepts correctly.

If it's a language you're learning, find a foreign friend and ask him to check your vocabulary, pronunciation, or writing.

Remember, the important thing is not getting the answers right, but looking up what you got wrong and learning the correct answer!​

Reading lots of books on lots of different subjects is always good!

Even when you're not sure how this will relate to a specific subject, having general knowledge in many different fields is always an extra that can make the difference.

First, having a general understanding of many topics gives you a lot more flexibility in finding patterns and metaphors in new topics. The more you already know, the easier it is to learn.

Second, varying your sources of knowledge allows you to gain perspective on different points of view. Sometimes a particular book will not say things clearly enough or will have condensed the information for you, making it more difficult to understand. Reading several books can help you find alternative explanations, concepts, or even facts!

As you can see, there's no such thing as a "difficult subject", since there are many ways to make your studying easier!

 

Happy Studying!