Is reading aloud or in head more effective for revision?

Just wondering what your opinion is on this?
Is it better to read aloud or in your head when revising?

I would say reading aloud, you're actively saying the words as well as hearing them, so you're more likely to remember them.

Reply 2

chickenonsteroids

17

I prefer to scream my revision notes. Especially when reading poems.

In all seriousness, I prefer reading in my head

Reply 3

DrSnakeLaser

It can help but so can drawing pictures of your revision notes. It's just personal preference really.

Reply 4

ray_charlene

9

If u can memorise the lyrics of a song just listening to it once or twice, go for the reading aloud bit.
Im currerntly looking for app which reads out word documents in Android and my PC.

Reply 5

SnoochToTheBooch

17

when I read out loud I find I don't pay any attention to the meaning of the words, it's just a distraction.

Reply 6

lucas13

15

I'd say reading aloud but it depends on the person.

Reply 7

ummm

16

I find reading out loud more effective (combined with focused concentration as well). Whenever I read stuff in my head, none of it really registers. I'll read a page, then not really have a clue what I just read (except from when I know the content inside out already and am just reviewing, in which case, reading in my head seems to work better). :smile:

Reply 8

DMed

15

Everyones different. I personally find reading out loud, or discussing with someone else works for me.

I always found reading aloud more useful when revising. Chanting things aloud over and over usually helped makes things stick in my mind.

Reply 10

3PL

1

It really depends. And it's important what you're studying for. I learned to read a little bit earlier and I like reading "in my head". It's faster and when I read out loud it's monotonous (okay that's deffinately wrong but i'm too lazy to check it) when I read in my mind it's different. It's better to cover up more information, but if you have only one-two lessons it's better out loud.

Reply 11

leogirl1992

1

Original post by ummm

I find reading out loud more effective (combined with focused concentration as well). Whenever I read stuff in my head, none of it really registers. I'll read a page, then not really have a clue what I just read (except from when I know the content inside out already and am just reviewing, in which case, reading in my head seems to work better). :smile:

This is similar to how I study. I prefer to read out loud as reciting to myself over and over again help me remember better.

I read the notes my teacher gave me so I am quite lucky. Make sure you are completely focused if not you will only hear your voice but you dunno what you are reading.

Reply 12

xXxnoora95xXx

2

read aloudddd :biggrin:

Reply 13

beautifulbigmacs

19

I prefer to read in my head rather than alloud because I find that reading alloud in itself can distract me.

I definately think both methods are valid as different methods will probably work for different types of learning style :smile:

Reply 14

The Revision Guy

What you're talking about is a theory called spreading activation. Saying information out loud is supposed to improve recall.

I recently experimented with speaking the answers to flashcards and checking how many I remembered compared to normal. It actually made me worse, because it took far longer to say the answers than it did just to read them.

Flashcards are already an active form of revision though - it may work better compared to just reading.

Explaining concepts to other people is a great way to revise. Something about having to put information in context and forcing myself to understand it so I could communicate it to others helped me a lot. It also made me aware of things that I only thought I understood.

Reply 15

username533239

17

Original post by rgray

Just wondering what your opinion is on this?
Is it better to read aloud or in your head when revising?