Experts’ tips for board candidates: Study but don’t overdo it, take breaks to unwind
Times of India | 17 February 2025
Kolkata: Even as board exams commence and students face a gruelling month-long schedule, psychiatrists and experts warn against the dangers of ‘overlearning' and anxiety, which, they point out, can prevent students from producing their best.
Taking breaks and taking time off studies to unwind can make the brain's recalling centre function better and improve exam performance significantly, they said.
"One vital piece of knowledge that is rarely disseminated is the danger of overlearning. While learning and repeated rehearsals can strengthen synaptic connections, overdoing it could saturate the brain's ability to retain and recall the learned material. If our memory can be thought of as a box filtering necessary information into it, overlearning clogs the filter," said Pragya Priya Mandal, counselling psychologist at Monoshij – a mental health unit of Techno India Group.
Short outings after days of studying can actually help relieve stress, even between exams, said Mandal. "The breaks and time spent with family and friends lower stress hormones and boost the secretion of happy hormones. And that lays the foundation for better focus and a calmer mind, enhancing more active learning," she said.
Overlearning or studying without rest can reduce the brain's ability to consolidate memory and apply the learned material, said head of neurology and vice-president of Institute of Neurosciences Kolkata Hrishikesh Kumar. "If one studies five hours at a stretch, then the things studied in the last hour are rarely turned into long-term memory. The brain needs time to consolidate ‘new memory' which is replayed automatically by it and retained on a long-term basis. Even after one stops studying, the lessons keep reverberating in the brain. If you keep cramming, this won't happen." he added.
Using the ‘Pomodoro Technique' of studying different subjects for short periods rather than one for a long time can help to retain the learned matter better and check stress levels, said psychologist Soumya Mukherjee. "Taking short breaks can lead to better performance. It's seen that those who study without a break find it difficult to learn and memorise," she said. She added that moving around for 5-10 minutes after every 20-25 minutes of studying leads to better assimilation and memory retention.
"Imagine having to constantly study with nothing else to do for days on end. It may lead to mental fatigue, anxiety, and inevitably, a sense of isolation. It is just as crucial for parents to watch out for the key indicators of anxiety and mental fatigue," said Mandal.