📌Flashcard Tip of the Week 

🧠Maximize Your Memory: Strategies for Answering Flashcards 

• Active Recall: you all probably know what active recall is – Consciously recall the answer from memory before flipping the card to your answers. You're forcing your brain to dig up the answer from your memory, rather than just passively receiving the information.  

• Say it out loud . Don't just think the answer, say it out loud. Essentially, you are giving your memory a double-dose of the information 

• Write it Down:  It feels like it takes forever, right? But here's the thing: writing the answer down is like telling your brain, "Hey, this is important". It would be best for you to write down the most high-yield knowledge and learning objectives in your particular lecture on a physical paper to remember them in a long term. 

• Visualization: Our brains are really good at imagining, better than what most people may expect. Use this to your advantage with your flashcards. Let's say you're studying physiology cards on membrane transport: Imagine it as a busy subway station. Proteins act like ticket gates, selectively allowing passengers (ions, molecules) onto trains (cells) based on their tickets (charge and size). Do this before you answer the related cards and I ensure you will still remember it even after your exams. 

Whether it's actively recalling an answer, saying it aloud, writing it down, or painting a mental picture, each technique can enhance your understanding and memory. The more you engage with your flashcards, the more familiar it becomes, and the easier it is to remember them during exams.  

🗞️Flashcard News 

Is Anki More Than Just Hype? Study Says Yes! 

A recent cohort-control study from the Boonshoft School of Medicine has shown that using Anki, a flashcard app utilizing spaced repetition, can significantly boost academic performance in medical students. 

The study enrolled 130 first-year medical students in an Anki training program, where they were taught how to use Anki effectively for their studies. Among the participants, 78 students used Anki for at least one exam, while 52 did not use the app for any exam.

The results were striking: Anki users scored significantly higher across all four exams. The biggest boost was seen in the Comprehensive Basic Science Exam (CBSE), where Anki users scored 12.9% higher on average.

The study concluded that Anki usage is associated with an increase in standardized examination scores, making it a powerful tool for medical students preparing for exams. The researchers suggest that the active retrieval and spaced repetition techniques used in Anki can enhance the learning and retention of biomedical knowledge, which is crucial not only for examinations but also for effective clinical care.

🥊Flashcard News 

Due Card Notifications? 

Do you get so busy during the day that sometimes you just forget to do your cards? Being distracted by another notification from your friend and left your pile of unfinished flashcards behind? Or just don’t want to do your Anki. We’ve all been there, maybe you just need a little nudge to help you stay on top of your study goals. 

The Need: 

Learning and memory research underscores the importance of regular, spaced repetition for long-term knowledge retention. Notifications that alert you to the number of flashcards due each day can serve as a valuable tool to maintain a consistent study rhythm, by reminding you of your daily study goal. 

 The Pros: 

1. Consistency: Receiving a daily reminder can help maintain a regular study schedule, enhancing the effectiveness of spaced repetition. 

2. Motivation: Seeing the number of cards due can act as a motivational push, encouraging you to tackle your study goals for the day.

3. Planning: Knowing your flashcard count can aid in managing your time effectively, allowing you to plan study sessions around your schedule.

 Implementation Ideas: 

1. Customizable Alerts: Allow users to customize when and how they receive notifications, catering to individual study habits and schedules.

2. Progress Tracking: Include a feature that tracks your progress, showing the number of flashcards studied and remaining for the day. 

3. Snooze Option: Include a snooze feature for those times when you can't study immediately but don't want to forget. 

Final Thoughts: 

While the idea of the daily flashcard due notifications is promising, it's crucial to ensure that the feature is implemented in a way that complements users' study habits, rather than becoming a source of stress or distraction. With thoughtful design and user feedback, this feature could be a valuable addition to the app, enhancing the effectiveness of studying with flashcards. As with any tool, it's all about how you use it.  

👾Community Blog of Students

This is our community corner! Here, we share ideas, swap study techniques and learn from each other’s experiences.  

I will share mine first, being a med student is like being on a roller coaster. There's lots to learn and it feels like there's never enough time. But, just like everyone else, I get the same 24 hours in a day. I saw a post the other day saying, “you have enough time, you just don't have enough focus." 

I realized it's not about finding more time. It's about making the most of the time we have. And for me, flashcards have been a game-changer. 

Flashcards help me break down big, scary topics into bite-sized bits. With a tool like Anki, I can decide how many cards I want to do each day. This way, I don't get overwhelmed. I just focus on finishing my cards for the day. 

With my flashcards and 24 hours in a day, I'm taking this med school ride one step at a time. It's not always easy, I slacked off one day and I have to do 600 cards the other day. But, it's totally worth it! We’d also like to hear more from other brilliant students as well on mentalities, lessons, or study techniques you think is worth sharing! Drop us an email, we are excited to learn from your experiences and share them with our community.

Special thing brewing - Xon

We've got something special brewing. Introducing Xon - think of it as the future of flashcards. Merging Anki's power with Quizlet's user-friendliness, Xon promises an unmatched learning experience. From collaborative flashcard creation to real-time syncing across devices, from a focus on relational learning to our unique Xon Neural Network - it's not just an Anki alternative; it's a revolution. Get a sneak peek here. And yes, our beloved PDF2Anki plays a pivotal role, enabling flashcard creation in mere minutes. Learning is evolving, and with Xon, you're always ahead.