In education, cramming is the practice of working intensively to absorb large volumes of information in short amounts of time. It is often done by students in preparation for upcoming exams, especially just before them. Usually the student's priority is to obtain shallow recall suited to a superficial examination protocol, rather than to internalize the deep structure of the subject matter. Cramming is often discouraged by educators because the hurried coverage of material tends to result in poor long-term retention of material, a phenomenon often referred to as the
spacing effect
The spacing effect demonstrates that learning is more effective when study sessions are spaced out. This effect shows that more information is encoded into long-term memory by spaced study sessions, also known as ''spaced repetition'' or ''spac ...
. Despite this, educators nevertheless widely persist in the use of
superficial examination protocols, because these questions are easier to compose, quicker (and therefore cheaper for the institution) to grade, and objective on their own terms. When cramming, one attempts to focus only on studies and to forgo unnecessary actions or habits.
In contrast with cramming,
active learning
Active learning is "a method of learning in which students are actively or experientially involved in the learning process and where there are different levels of active learning, depending on student involvement." states that "students partici ...
and
critical thinking are two methods which emphasize the retention of material through the use of class discussions, study groups and individual thinking. Each has been cited as a more effective means of learning and retaining information as compared to cramming and
memorization
Memorization is the process of committing something to memory. It is a mental process undertaken in order to store in memory for later recall visual, auditory, or tactical information.
The scientific study of memory is part of cognitive neuros ...
.
Prevalence
In
Commonwealth countries, cramming usually occurs during the
revision week
Revision week is a period in the UK and other Commonwealth countries preceding examinations in high schools, higher education institutions, and military colleges. In American colleges, this period is known as a Reading Period. Generally, this ...
(week before exams), also known as "
swotvac" or "stuvac".
As a study technique
H.E. Gorst stated in his book, ''The Curse of Education'', "as long as education is synonymous with cramming on an organized plan, it will continue to produce mediocrity."
Generally considered an undesirable study technique, cramming is becoming more and more common among students both at the secondary and post-secondary level. Pressure to perform well in the classroom and engage in extracurricular activities in addition to other responsibilities often results in the cramming method of studying. Cramming is a widely used study skill performed in preparation for an examination or other performance-based assessment.
Most common among high school and college-aged students, cramming is often used as a means of memorizing large amounts of information in a short amount of time. Students are often forced to cram after improper time utilization or in efforts to understand information shortly before being tested. Improper time management is usually the cause for last-minute cramming sessions, and many study techniques have been developed to help students succeed instead of cramming.
School performance
Teaching students to avoid last-minute cramming is a large area of concern for education professionals and profit for educational corporations and businesses. Learning and teaching study techniques that enhance retention as opposed to learning for a single examination is one of the core issues that plagues colleges and university academic advisors, and also adds to the stress of academic success for students. Ideally, proper study skills need to be introduced and practiced as early as possible in order for students to effectively learn positive study mechanisms.
According to
William G. Sommer
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...
, students in a university system often adapt to the time-constraints that are placed upon them in college, and often use cramming to perform well on tests. In his article, ''Procrastination and Cramming: How Adept Students Ace the System'', he states "Many students outwardly adapt to this system, however, engage in an intense and private ritual that comprises five aspects: calculated procrastination, preparatory anxiety, climactic cramming, nick-of-time deadline-making, and a secret, if often uncelebrated, victory. These adept students often find it difficult to admit others into their efficient program of academic survival."
[{{cite journal , last=Sommer , first=W. G. , title=Procrastination and Cramming: How Adept Students Ace the System , journal=]Journal of American College Health
The ''Journal of American College Health'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed public health journal covering college health. It was established in 1952 as the ''Journal of the American College Health Association'', and obtained its current name in 1982. ...
, volume=39 , issue=1 , year=1990 , pages=5–10 , doi=10.1080/07448481.1990.9936207 , pmid=2365930
See also
*
Active learning
Active learning is "a method of learning in which students are actively or experientially involved in the learning process and where there are different levels of active learning, depending on student involvement." states that "students partici ...
*
''Cram'' (game show)
*
Cram school
*
Critical thinking
*
Rote learning
Rote learning is a memorization technique based on repetition. The method rests on the premise that the recall of repeated material becomes faster the more one repeats it. Some of the alternatives to rote learning include meaningful learning, ...
*
Spaced repetition
Spaced repetition is an evidence-based learning technique that is usually performed with flashcards. Newly introduced and more difficult flashcards are shown more frequently, while older and less difficult flashcards are shown less frequently i ...
*
Study skills
References
External links
Crammingon
wikiHow
wikiHow is an online wiki-style publication featuring how-to articles on a variety of topics. Founded in 2005 by Internet entrepreneur Jack Herrick, its aim is to create an extensive database of instructional content, using the wiki model of ope ...
Cramming Techniqueso
TestTakingTips.com Penn State UniversityCram My Brainprovides free cramming software and offers foreign language support (requires Adobe Flash)
Academic slang
Learning methods
Student culture