Revising with others

There is a great deal to be said for working with your peer group when revising - whether with just one other student or in a group, on the phone or online. Module forums are good places to pick up tips and ideas from other students and tutors, and many modules have tutorials or day schools before the exam where you can make contact.

Study groups

Working with other students can help you keep the revision process in perspective. You can share revision material and plans. Listening to how other students approach their revision can expand you understanding of the topics because everyone brings their own ideas and their own ways of comprehending the topics. You may find that one person is good at devising a manageable revision timetable while another has valuable ideas about content for a tricky past exam question.

Working together to produce condensed revision notes or to brainstorm answers to questions is particularly fruitful. What one person forgets, another may remember. You are not in competition with other students taking the exam, so sharing revision is not cheating.

Tips on running a study group

It's worth setting up a plan in advance for a group revision session so you don't waste time together deciding what to cover. Below is a study group planner form (RTF, 63KB) you could fill in and circulate. You could download it or just copy it. Add extra columns or rows to suit your group, fill it in and either attach it to an email or print copies off to hand out at the end of the previous meeting.

• Get everyone to prepare a topic for discussion - it's a great way to make you think.
• You can develop your own questions about the module, share them in the group, and ask each other as practice.
• Swap review notes on the module - but check that they are right and that there are no gaps. The group could collaborate to develop notes on difficult topics.

Games and quizzes

These work well in group work, or even when you're on your own. Try 'Just a minute!' Talk on a topic as best you can for one minute (without repeating or hesitating or getting off the point).

Teaching as a revision technique

One of the most successful ways to learn something is to teach it. To teach someone else about a process or topic you first need to understand it well, so this is an effective way of checking what you know.

Select a topic that you need to revise and try teaching it to a friend or fellow student, or even to an imaginary person. The thinking you need to do to work out how you would explain a topic to someone else is very effective revision. You will quickly identify where gaps lie in your knowledge and understanding, and find the topics that you need to focus on for the exam or end-of-module assessment.

Even if you can't meet other students, you can still get help from people who don't know anything about the subject, if they're willing.

• Explaining something to them helps you get it clear in your own mind.
• You can tell them 'What I've learned today'.
• They can ask you short questions from exam papers or that you've developed.