How To Actually Study for Trials 
& HSC Exams  

A Practical Guide - Backed by Evidence-Based Research

1. Introduction to this Guide

When  was  the  last  time  you  actually  learnt  how  to  learn?  How, then, are you expected 

to  do  well  in  exams  if  you  haven’t  mastered  the  skill  of  learning?  Surprisingly,  doing 

well  in  exams  doesn’t  all  come  down  to  intelligence.  This  is  a  comprehensive  guide 

written  with  the  support  of  undergraduates  and  state  rankers to help Year 12 and Year 

11 students significantly improve their performance in exams. 

Special  thanks  to  Cambridge  University Medical student, Ali Abdaal and his video from 

which  a  majority  of  this  document  is  modelled  (linked  in  references).  Throughout  this 

guide,  I  will  be  referring  to  research  conducted  by  academics  around  the  world over a 

span of over 100 years.  

2. Popular But Inefficient Techniques

1. Highlighting 

Highlighting  is  considered  an  inefficient study technique by many ranks of researchers. 

I  was  guilty  of  this  in  high  school  and  even  in  university. It makes you feel productive - 

that  you’ve  been  able  to  segment  large  chunks  of  information  into  more  digestible 

sections.  However,  apart  from  the  categorisation  of  information  (a  useful  example 
would  be  picking  out  quotes  for  English  to  refer to in essays) there’s actually not many 

other benefits. You’re not actually retaining information that well!  

Here  is  what  John  Dunlosky,  a  prolific  psychology  professor,  has  to  say  about 

highlighting: 

“On the basis of the available evidence, we rate highlighting and underlining as 

having low utility … highlighting does little to boost performance … it may 

actually hurt performance on higher-level tasks that require inference making” 

An  interesting  fact  Dunlosky  points  out  is  that  highlighting  may  actually  hurt 

performance.  In  reality,  most  of  the  subjects  in  the  HSC  and  Preliminary  courses  (and 

especially  in  university)  DO  require  inference  making!  So  you  can  begin  to  appreciate 

that highlighting is probably not a good idea. 

2. Re-reading 

In  high  school,  I  was  very  guilty  of  this.  I  often  reread  my  notes multiple times to try to 

force  information  into  my  brain.  Not  only  was  this  a  massive  time  investment,  it  never 

actually  guaranteed  I  could  recall  everything  well  enough  for  the  exam  without  further 

self  testing.  Here  is  what  Jeffrey  Karpicke,  PhD  in  Psychology,  had  to  say  about 

rereading: 

 
“A wealth of research has shown that passive repetitive reading produces little or 

no benefit for learning ... Yet not only was repetitive reading the most frequently 

listed strategy, it was also the strategy most often listed as students' number one 

choice, by a large margin.” 

Like  myself,  most  students  I  have  observed  do  this  for  their  own  assurance  -  that 

they’ve  read  over  it  and  therefore  they  feel  as  if  they  have  sufficiently “studied” for the 

topic.  Again,  unless  you  have  developed  the  right  techniques,  retention  of  information 

is most likely going to be quite poor. 

Personally,  rereading  has  only  worked  well  in  pre-reading  materials  before  class  so  I 

have  a  good  idea  of  the  structure  of  content  delivery  -  from  which  I’m able to create a 

framework to categorise all the new information either in my notes or in my mind. 

3. Summarising and Making Notes 

Summarising  and  making  notes  for  exam preparation only works well if you’re ​actually 

skilled  at  summarising  notes​.  Otherwise,  again,  research  indicates  this  is not a great 

idea. This is what professor Dunlosky had to say about summarising notes: 

“On the basis of the available evidence, we rate summarisation as low utility.... It 

can be an effective learning strategy for learners who are already skilled at 

summarising; however, many learners (including children, high school students 

and even some undergraduates) will require extensive training, which makes this 

strategy less feasible.” 

Personally,  summarising  notes  for  me  is  a  great  way  to  help  me  fully  understand 

something  instead  of  rote  learning  the  content.  This  came  in  especially  useful  in  the 

sciences  and  humanities  subjects  such  as  Economics  when  concepts  got  difficult  to 

wrap  my  head  around.  I  would  often  try  to  summarise  the  points  in  the  textbook  and 

various  other  sources  into  my  own  words  and  then  refer  to  these  whenever  I  forgot 

about  it.  However, like Dunlosky states, it is often low utility since there are many notes 

out there and I often required further self testing to help me retain the knowledge well. 

So what is the best way to revise for exams? 

3. The Most Efficient Revision Strategy - Active Recall

 

Active  Recall  is  the  process  of  ​actively  recalling  ​facts  and  information  ​from  ​your 

brain.  Based  on  100  years  of research, it is concluded that humans recalling stuff ​from 

our  brains  instead  of  putting  things  ​into  ​our  brains  is  by  far  the  most  efficient  and 

practical  as  a  learning  technique.  In  simple  terms,  it  is  the  technique  of  constantly 

doing practice tests to enforce your knowledge. 

On doing practice tests, Dunlosky says: 

 

“...we rate practice testing as having high utility. Testing effects have been 

demonstrated across an impressive range of practice-test formats, kinds of 

material, learner ages, outcome measures, and retention intervals. Thus, practice 

testing has broad applicability. Practice testing is not particularly time intensive 

relative to other techniques, and it can be implemented with minimal training.” 

Below,  I  have  briefly  outlined  two  studies  ​performed  70  years  apart  that  provide 

solid  proof  that  this  method  of  learning  is  most  advantageous,  especially  for 

examination  preparation  where  you  have  a  short  amount  of  time  to  prepare  massive 

information recall. 

Study 1: Spitzer 1939  

(​https://www.gwern.net/docs/spacedrepetition/1939-spitzer.pdf​) 

Two groups of students (Group A and Group B) were each given a set of instructions. 

Group  A  (Control  group):  Students  were  told  to  learn  a  set  of  material  and  were  then 

given  a  test  either  a  day  or  a  week  later.  Obviously,  the  subgroup  who  did  their  test  a 

day later performed much better than those who did theirs a week later. 

 
Group  B: Students were told to learn a set of material and unlike Group A, were given a 

practice  test  at  the end of the study session. Their results were interesting. No matter if 

they  sat  their  actual  test  a  day  later  or  a  week  later,  they  performed  far  better  than 

everyone in Group A! 

Conclusion:  Just  having  a  revision  test  after  their  study  session  improved  their  marks 

by 10 - 15%! 

Study 2: Karpicke & Blunt 2011 

(​https://science.sciencemag.org/content/331/6018/772.full​) 

4  groups  of  students  were  told  to  study  in  the  following  ways  before  sitting  a  test  the 

following week: 

- Group A: Study once 

- Group B: Study 4 times 

- Group C: Study and then draw a mind map 

- Group D: Study and then do a self test afterwards 

Conclusion:  Although  Group  B,  who  studied  4  times,  clearly  performed  better  than 

both  Group A, those who studied once, and Group C, those who made mind maps, the 

results  of  Group  D,  those  who  took  a  simple  test  after  their  study,  performed 
considerably  ​better  than  any  of  the  other  groups  (and  achieved  this  much  more 

efficiently than the group that studied 4 times!) 

I  hope  these  two examples (chosen out of hundreds of other studies) demonstrates the 

superiority and efficiency of Active Recall over other very common study methods. 

4. Practical Strategies Incorporating Active Recall

 

Relevance  to  HSC  and  Preliminary:  Before  we  get  into  the  three  strategies  below,  it 

is  important  to  understand  that  each  subject  in  the  HSC  and  Preliminary  course  has 

their  own  unique  way  of  learning.  If  you  don’t  identify  these  early  on,  you’ll  find  it 

difficult  to  excel  and  often,  like  I  did,  not  understand  why  I  was  doing  poorly  despite 

‘understanding all the concepts’ or ‘studying everything’. For the subjects I studied: 

1. Mathematics  corresponded  with  the  amount  of,  complexity  of,  and  types  of 

questions I had been exposed to prior to the exam. 

2. Economics  was  based  on  my  understanding  of the concepts and contemporary 

information and how I applied that into my essays and writing. 

3. Sciences  were  based  on  how  well  I  understood  the  concepts,  theories  and 

practical  assessment  processes.  This  was  based  on  the  depth  and  amount  of 

knowledge I was able to recall in exams. 

 
Once  you  have  this  information,  you  should  already  be  able  to  build  strategies  around 

your  findings  that  will  greatly  improve  your  marks.  Now  let’s  dive  into  how  to  actually 

incorporate Active Recall into our study regime. 

1. Anki Flashcards (apps) 

Anki  flashcards  is  a  free  app  (for  laptops  and  phones)  where  you  can  very  quickly 

create  a  quiz  on  any  subject  you  are  learning.  It  was  created  based  on  the  Active 

Recall  and  Spaced  Repetition  concepts,  featuring  timed  intervals  based  on  which 

questions you are able to get correct and incorrect in the quiz you create. 

It  is  very  useful  if  you  have  just  studied  a  very  heavy  piece  of  content,  and/or  need  to 

quickly create a quiz when you are learning content without breaking your focus. 

Download it free here: ​https://apps.ankiweb.net/  

Other apps that are popular for making flashcards include Quizlet and BrainScape. 

2. The “LEAP” HSC & Trials Preparation Technique 

In  the  HSC,  the  most  obvious  way  of  implementing  Active  Recall  may  seem  to  be just 

doing  past  papers.  Although  it  is  a  way  to  actively  test  yourself  on  a  preset number of 

topics,  to  be  fully  confident  of  doing  well  you  must  test  yourself  on  the  topics  and 

concepts  that  YOU  are  personally  weak  at.  Many  students  rely  on  doing  a large range 
of  past  papers  from  various  years  to  test  their  knowledge.  This  relies  on  the  past 

papers  actually  having  the  right type of questions in them so that you are tested on the 

right  topics.  Although  this  may  work  with  Mathematics,  other  subjects  such  the 

Sciences  (where  there  was  a  syllabus  change)  and  Economics  (which  is  based  much 

more on contemporary information), doing past papers won’t be as useful. 

There  is  a  Trials  and HSC study methodology, called LEAP, which is a perfect, working 

example  of  the  Active  Recall  method  in  action  which  you  can  be  a  part  of  yourself. 

From the start of Term 3, ​every week ​you should: 

1. Sit  a  HSC  style  exam  paper  designed  for  the  current  year’s HSC (or even to the 
style  of  your  school’s  Trial  exams),  or  a  past  paper  from  your  school or another 
school 
2. Mark  your  exam paper, with the help of a teacher, tutor or friend, to identify your 
weaknesses 
3. Create  and  attempt  more exam-style questions on topics that you are struggling 
with 
4. Repeat these steps every single week 
 

LEAP is designed for all student types to do well in, including: 

a. If you’re struggling really badly and need a really good leg up 

b. If you’re doing okay but want to do really well 

c. If you’re already doing really well but want to top your school or the state 
 

The  LEAP  methodology  was  created  by,  and  is  hosted  at,  Project  Academy  in 

Chatswood,  Sydney  each  year.  Last  year,  the  program  produced  ​FIFTEEN  ​post-Trials 

rank  1sts  in  subjects  in  schools  like  North  Sydney  Boys,  Fort  Street  High,  Chatswood 

High and more (not to mention the number of Top 10 rankings). 

During Project Academy’s LEAP program, every week you receive: 

1. A  ​HSC  exam-style  paper​,  designed  by  teachers  and  state  rankers,  based  on 

this year’s HSC or on your school’s Trials 

2. Access  to ​at least one tutorial ​session (1 tutor with up to 4 students) where you 

can  take  full  advantage  of  the  tutor  by  getting  them  to  create  PERSONALISED 

exam style questions to target your weaknesses 

a. You  can  book  in  ​unlimited  tutorials  every  week  with  different  tutors,  all 

included in the program 

3. Access to LEAP-specific iPad ​applications​, including: 

a. 24/7 online access to designated tutors 

b. Custom-made  apps  with  almost  every  single  school’s  trial  assessments 

from  previous  years  to  help in your preparation (a goldmine if you want to 

do as many past papers as possible) 

 
The  average  student  at  Project  Academy  typically  improves  their  mark  by  10  -  20  % 

depending on the subject (from beginning to end of the program). 

Enrolments  have  opened  for  a  start  in  the  first  week  of  the  coming  holidays  so  make 

sure  you  secure  a spot if you’re interested. All classes usually fill up within a few weeks 

of enrolments opening: ​www.projectacademy.com.au/leap2019/  

3. Teaching Other Students 

You  may  have  heard  of  this  technique  before,  so  why  is  it  included  in  here? Someone 

may  have  told  you  the  reason  as  “teaching  is  the  best  way  to  learn”  …  and  I  agree! 

Based  on  the  concept  of Active Recall, in order to teach someone, you have to be able 

to  not  just  recall  information,  but  also  understand  it  enough  to  break  it  down  to  teach 

someone.  The  very  act  of  teaching  another  student  is  an  Active  Recall  exercise  since 

you  are  exercising  ​actively  ​recalling  facts  and  information  ​FROM  ​your  brain,  which 

strengthens those muscle links that improve memory! 

Lastly,  an  exam  is  essentially  like  a  dumb  student  asking  you  probing  questions,  and 

you’re  teaching  them  specific  pieces  of  content  you  have  learnt.  Doesn’t  this  mean  if 

you’re  able  to  teach,  it’s  the  ultimate  indicator  you  know  your  content  and  do  well  in 

this test? 

 
5. Scientific Research Papers
 

1. Dunlosky et al 2013 - [Improving Students’ Learning With Effective Learning 

Techniques: Promising Directions From Cognitive and Educational Psychology. 
- PubMed - NCBI] (​https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26173288​) 
2. Spitzer 1939 - ​https://www.gwern.net/docs/spacedrepetition/1939-spitzer.pdf  
3. Abdaal 2018 - ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukLnPbIffxE  
4. Karpicke & Blunt 2011 - 
https://science.sciencemag.org/content/331/6018/772.full  
5. For a more comprehensive list, feel free to reach out at 
enquiries@projectacademy.com.au  

6. Concluding Remarks
 
Now  that  you  know  the  basics  of  how  to  actually  study  for  your  HSC,  it’s  time to start 

practising!  Have  a  go,  try  out  these  techniques,  and  find  what  works  best  for  you. 

Good luck! 

Thank you for reading 

This guide was written with​ ​ ♥​ ​by the Project Academy team. If 
you would like to access more resources, trial our weekly 
classes and personalised tutorials for 3 weeks, fill out the 
contact form here: ​www.projectacademy.com.au/contact