Economics A* Revision advice
Importance of the specification:
Making/ using notes which align with the specification is critical to understanding the entirety of
the course. This will make sure there are no gaps in your knowledge and you are in the best
position to score highly and not be thrown off in the exam.
For this I highly recommend downloading the Edexcel A Economics 2015 Specification here
Whilst creating your own notes or using mine, use the specification as a checklist.
Active recall:
One thing which really helped me with memorising content and has been proven to work is
active recall. This doesn’t require a lot of planning or thought. Once you’ve made all your notes
(or read through mine), you should be familiar with the content enough to follow these steps
1. Grab a blank sheet of paper or a whiteboard and choose the applicable specification
point (ie. 1.2.1- Rational Decision Making)
2. Using the bullet points as prompts write down everything you can remember from your
notes in a black pen.
3. Then, only once you’ve exhausted everything you could possibly recall, you can look at
your notes and see what you’ve missed- this is the important part
4. Using another colour, add in the pieces of information/ errors you missed (the only way
you can improve is by finding your weaknesses).
5. Take some cue cards or use a digital flashcard creator (Quizlet or Anki) and create
‘question-answer’ formatted cards according to your errors.
6. Continue this for each specification point and importantly, go over those flashcards
multiple times (this is how you master the content)
Essay Planning:
For 25 markers, essay planning is essential. The best way to do this is using past paper
questions and examiner reports feedback. This will help shed light on mistakes you might be
making. I personally would bullet point essay plans (2 KAA, 2 evaluation points + conclusion
judgement) onto flashcards.
Structure:
Introduction- define key words or concepts in the question
Importance of the specification:
Making/ using notes which align with the specification is critical to understanding the entirety of
the course. This will make sure there are no gaps in your knowledge and you are in the best
position to score highly and not be thrown off in the exam.
For this I highly recommend downloading the Edexcel A Economics 2015 Specification here
Whilst creating your own notes or using mine, use the specification as a checklist.
Active recall:
One thing which really helped me with memorising content and has been proven to work is
active recall. This doesn’t require a lot of planning or thought. Once you’ve made all your notes
(or read through mine), you should be familiar with the content enough to follow these steps
1. Grab a blank sheet of paper or a whiteboard and choose the applicable specification
point (ie. 1.2.1- Rational Decision Making)
2. Using the bullet points as prompts write down everything you can remember from your
notes in a black pen.
3. Then, only once you’ve exhausted everything you could possibly recall, you can look at
your notes and see what you’ve missed- this is the important part
4. Using another colour, add in the pieces of information/ errors you missed (the only way
you can improve is by finding your weaknesses).
5. Take some cue cards or use a digital flashcard creator (Quizlet or Anki) and create
‘question-answer’ formatted cards according to your errors.
6. Continue this for each specification point and importantly, go over those flashcards
multiple times (this is how you master the content)
Essay Planning:
For 25 markers, essay planning is essential. The best way to do this is using past paper
questions and examiner reports feedback. This will help shed light on mistakes you might be
making. I personally would bullet point essay plans (2 KAA, 2 evaluation points + conclusion
judgement) onto flashcards.
Structure:
Introduction- define key words or concepts in the question
