4.  How would taking notes for my different psychology classes in pens of different colors help me to study?
 

Any college student could have a few courses in the same subject area. If a different color pen is used to take notes for each class, then it studying for exams in those classes will be easier.

Some people with exceptional memory use a mnemonic device to help them remember long lists of information. For each piece of information presented, they use a distinct picture in their mind to remember it by; this is known as visual imagery.

For the student who is studying for examinations in two or three different psychology courses, visual imagery can be useful. When taking notes, the student uses a certain color ink exclusively for that subject. For example: all child development notes are in green, all personality notes are in red and all cognitive psychology notes are in blue.

After studying the color-coded notes, the student is faced with the examinations. When taking each exam, the correct ad applicable information is easily recalled because the information studied was given further distinction with color. This helps the organization and storage of information in the memory and makes correct and total recall easier.

Many studies demonstrate that color-coding notes within one subject or one lecture can be very helpful. The color could signify importance or designate various sub-categories. For any student with many classes to manage, color-coding across all subjects makes for easier recall on exams. It helps you to recall not just your cognitive psychology notes in blue but all of your cognitive psychology notes in blue.
 

Prepared by:
Cliff Chamberlin
Yasheenya Jackson
Merridith Meade
Kristyn Shorter
UNC
Intro to Cognitive Psychology
(Psyc 20, Section 6)
 
 
 

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