What if I told you there’s a secret that the best learners already know?

The “secret” is called active recall.

What is active recall and why does it work?

Apparently, it’s the secret behind actually remembering things (not just pretending you do before a test). Scientifically speaking, it’s a “learning method that strengthens long-term memory by forcing the brain to retrieve information from your memory instead of passively reading notes”. 

That’s the boujee scientific way to explain it. But let’s be honest. You just sit there, staring into space, trying really hard to remember something you definitely should know. 

And the key is not to stop searching until you’ve got it. No matter how much you want to peek at your notes or give up. That’s what makes it one of the most effective ways to study and remember. And honestly? It can feel annoying, pointless, and slightly like suffering - been there, done that.

My teacher once came up with a really good metaphor: active recall is like fishing. You have to fish for that information. And just like with real fishing, the fish don’t just jump straight onto your hook, you have to wait for them and be patient.

Wow… that was a lot of fish talk. I did not expect to turn studying into a fishing documentary, but here we are. Let’s return to active recall now and look at some examples.

Examples of active recall (outside of studying):

-When someone asks you what you had for dinner yesterday and your mind just goes completely blank. It takes a good amount of time to recall it.

-When you walk out of a mall and suddenly have no idea where you parked. To be honest, a slightly stressful moment.

-When you see a book you’ve read and try to remember the plot.

Examples of active recall (in a studying context):

-Closing your book, not looking at your notes and trying to answer some questions about the text.

-Learning from your mistakes, because you recall what you did wrong last time and correct it now.

-Reading a chapter, then closing the book and rewriting as much as you remember.

How to use it?

Now, let’s get to the important question: how do you actually use it?

A simple way to start is this:

• Read your material

• Close your book or notes

• Ask yourself questions about the topic

• Answer from memory

• Check your answers and correct mistakes

The most important part is to repeat this process later, not just once. That’s what helps the information stay in your memory. This is just one way to use active recall, but there are many study methods based on it, such as:

-flashcards

-blurting

-practice questions

-self-testing

-SQ3R and PQ4R methods

This is just one way to use active recall, but there are also study boosters. Methods that are effective on their own, but are even more beneficial when paired with active recall. These are:

-the Feynman technique (teaching others)

-spaced repetition

-interleaving

-mind mapping

For example, you could use the Feynman technique while looking at your notes, but it becomes much more effective when combined with active recall. After learning a topic, you can try teaching it the next day without looking at your notes. This way, you are both recalling the information and explaining it, which strengthens your understanding even more.

Here is an overview of active recall:

Preparation: Depends on what method you use, but most of them don't require much preparation before hand.

Time: Depends on the method, but also on the capacity of the material you're learning and how difficult it is for you.

Efficiency: Is proven to be one of the most efficient ways to study. Way better than highlighting, rereading and passively copying notes.

Annoying: Could feel challenging and far to difficult at first, but trust me - it's worth it!

Result: You're grades, efficiency and overall feeling will skyrocket.

Common mistakes with active recall

1) If studying with active recall feels too comfortable… you’re probably doing it wrong. It should feel at least a tiny bit mentally challenging - that shows you’re really trying to retrieve information. Not feeling challenged is often because you look at your notes too quickly without even trying to fish for them. If you just give up and look at your notes too quickly you won’t actually be using active recall, because the whole point of this is to RECALL what you just read or learned. Otherwise I’ve basically been talking about nothing this whole time. 

2) Not trying to understand the topic, but just memorizing it word by word. Trying to copy information exactly just makes things harder. It’s much more effective to understand the idea and explain it in your own words. That way, even if you forget a specific word, you can still be able to explain the concept.

3) Trying to use active recall on something you don’t even understand yet? Yep, that’s not going to work. The material you start blurting out should feel clear and understandable. Otherwise you’re just guessing instead of actually remembering. 

4) And finally, recalling something once usually isn’t enough. You need to revisit it for it to actually stick. Of course, it depends on the person and the topic, and in some cases (like blurting), one strong session can already be effective.

Now that we’ve talked about what active recall is and how to use it, here’s my personal experience with it. 

My experience with it

At first, it honestly felt like my brain had just…poof. I would sit there thinking, I just read this - HOW do I not remember anything? It was so difficult not to look at my notes or get caught up with my thoughts. To my surprise, I got through with my first active recall learning session and after that it got much better. Things just take time. Now that I’ve tested different methods for different subjects, I’m here to share what actually works (and what doesn’t).

This was just an introduction to active recall, and in my other posts I’ll be breaking down different methods one by one - testing them, analysing them, and giving my honest feedback.

So the secret is finally out. Now it’s up to you to stop rereading and start recalling!