April 1, 2022

How can I improve my study skills with mind mapping?

by Gareema Bangad posted in Education, Tips & Facts.

All practices followed by human beings keep changing perpetually, and with the added push of technology, things are only bound to change faster. This has also been proven in the education industry. Educational institutions have come a long way from using blackboards and whiteboards, to now using digital interfaces to teach, and the pandemic has been a huge catalyst for this change. Then why not change the way we learn and remember things as well?

Mind mapping, especially digital mind mapping, has been gaining publicity across the world. It has been proven to be a great way to make notes in order to improve students’ memory and prioritise information. In this article, find out how it can improve your overall study skills quickly and easily.

What is traditional note making?

Traditionally, the note making process involves writing down numerous paragraphs which are full of plain text about any topic. This is known as a linear or list style of making notes. It can seem like a dull idea and might not be agreeable to learn or revise from.

Why are linear notes bad?

The main reason why linear notes don’t sound much agreeable is because they lack creativity and excitement that the human brain requires to remember something for a long time. Making notes in list form force you to isolate pieces of information and don’t allow you to make connections between your ideas. You might find the monochrome texts boring and avoid reviewing your notes.

What is mind mapping?

A mind map is a visual map of your ideas, laid out in a radial format around a central thought. To use mind mapping for study, simply take the central subject and then organise your notes around this point. It involves using many visually pleasing and colourful features that will help you learn anything more effectively.

Various templates in mind mapping can help you improve your study skills.

What are the benefits of mind mapping while studying?

• Remember your notes – Mind maps consist of appealing visual elements like images, coloured and curved branches that add emphasis and ensure that your brain will retain the information for longer.
• Save vital time – You can save so much time while studying by only noting down the key words. This way, while writing essays or studying for exams using mind maps, recalling the most important bits becomes much easier.
• Generate ideas – Just creating mind maps can help you with generating more ideas. When presented with visual information, your brain actively makes links between ideas, adds connections, puts thoughts in order and generates further creative ideas.
• Natural thinking process – Mind mapping replicates our natural thinking process, so it becomes easier for ideas to simply flow from your brain, onto the page. This adds fun to the ever so boring process of studying.

Mind mapping as study skills

Mind mapping is a versatile tool which improves most aspects of studying like:

• Essay Planning
• Essay Writing
• Studying for Exams
• Generating Creative Ideas
• Solving Problems
• Brainstorming for Group Study
• Creating and Making Presentation

How could digital mind mapping improve my study skills?



Digital mind mapping provides more functionality and allows working in groups.

Digital mind maps consist of a multitude of easy-to-use features and tools which can improve your study skills:

• Image and icon libraries – the option to add images, icons and emoticons enhance your visual magnetism towards your notes.
• Save and endlessly edit – never lose your vital revision aids and continuously update them as your knowledge becomes more detailed,
• Highlight branches and create relationship arrows – make connections between ideas even more explicit to reinforce your learning.
• Expand and collapse functions – a common tool found in digital mind maps which act as a great way to test yourself or your friends on key information by hiding then revealing nuggets of knowledge.
• Branch notes – mind maps work best when only keywords are on their canvases but with digital mind maps additional information and even useful web links can be included for further reference without disrupting your visuals.
• Sharing – producing an amazing mind map makes you want to share it with others. In the digital world this couldn’t be easier – you can export your content to formats like PDF, MS Word, images or with mind map apps like Ayoa, you can actually collaborate with others for free in your mind map together!

Summary

Studying isn’t just learning facts and pouring them out on the answer sheets anymore, it needs to be more creative and long lasting than it was in the traditional approach. As we have now gathered, the brain doesn’t respond well to the linear note taking process and finds it tiresome. Mind mapping, and especially digital mind mapping, can help make this process more intriguing and fun using various colourful and visually appealing features which will definitely make you feel excited about studying.

So start making notes using mind maps and see for yourself if it makes any difference in your attitude towards studying!

Is there any other way you can think of making studying more fun? Tell us how you managed to concentrate on studying before using mind maps.