How do the more successful learners use past paper questions to deepen their learning?

Four steps for learning from a past-paper question.

Explore the four steps ↓Download the full guide (PDF) ↓

A related piece of evidence

Bar chart of ideas recalled: restudy versus attempted recall. At five minutes, 81% versus 75%; after two days, 54% versus 68%; after one week, 42% versus 56%. — Roediger and Karpicke (2006), Experiment 1, reported group means. Read the original study. View the chart at full size.

An attempt can help learning last

In this experiment, university students studied prose passages, then either restudied them or tried to recall what they could. After five minutes, the attempted-recall group scored 75% against 81% for restudying: six percentage points lower. After two days, that group scored 68% against 54%, and after one week 56% against 42%: 14 percentage points higher at both intervals.

The contrast is the interesting part. Attempted recall did slightly worse almost immediately, but better after a delay. That gives us a reason to use the pause before checking an answer to see what we can still work out for ourselves.

A practical approach

Putting the four steps into practice.

Make your thinking visible first. Then use the scheme to find what needs to become clearer.

Step 1

Have a go first

Choose a past-paper question and work on it before opening the mark scheme. Write down your reasoning, even if it is incomplete. If you get stuck, mark where you are unsure and try a diagram, an equation or a different starting point.

Step 2 · Discuss

Talk it through together

Explain your approach to a friend and ask how they approached the question. Explore any differences. After a break, try it again for yourself. The aim is to develop your own explanation, not to borrow theirs.

Step 3

Compare carefully

Read the scheme alongside your answer. Which ideas did you have? Which links in the reasoning did you leave unstated? Was the Physics wrong, or was your wording unclear? Note what you need to practise next, as well as the marks you earned.

Step 4

Write it again

Put the question and scheme aside. After a few days, return to the question and write a clear, complete answer from memory in your own words. For a calculation, show your steps. Ask your teacher or tutor to check for ambiguity, especially if you understand the Physics but find it difficult to express on paper.

Download the full guide (PDF) ↓

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