To study lecture slides, turn each important idea into a question, answer with the slides closed, then reopen the relevant slide to check your reasoning. Keep the questions you missed for your next session. This gives you evidence of what you can explain on your own.
If a slide looks familiar but you cannot explain its diagram, you have found a place to work. You do not need to restart the entire lecture.
Start with the lecture’s learning objectives
Read the objectives, assignment instructions, and any exam guidance from your instructor. Use these to decide which parts of the deck deserve practice. A slide’s length or visual design does not tell you how important it is.
For a biology lecture on enzymes, the objective might be to explain how changing substrate concentration affects reaction rate. Your task is to interpret that relationship, rather than reproduce every bullet.
Separate the deck into a few small topics. If the slides are mostly images or incomplete phrases, add the corresponding lecture notes or assigned reading. A slide deck may be a cue for the lecture rather than a complete explanation.
Turn one topic into three kinds of question
Use questions that make you produce an answer:
- Explain: Why does the reaction rate eventually level off?
- Interpret: What does this part of the graph represent?
- Apply: What might change if the amount of enzyme increased?
These are illustrative questions, not a prediction of your exam. Follow your course’s terminology and scope.
Avoid prompts that give away the answer. “Explain why enzymes become saturated” contains more help than “Explain why this curve levels off.” Both can be useful, but the second is a stronger check once you have learned the concept.
For a quantitative course, include an actual problem. For a diagram-heavy course, redraw or label a blank figure. Choose the representation because it serves the content and assessment, and use accessible alternatives when needed.
Close the slides before answering
Write a short explanation, sketch the relationship, or solve the problem without looking. Then compare your attempt with the course material. Mark the missing step precisely: “I remembered saturation but could not explain what limits the rate.” That note tells you where to return.
This is retrieval practice: trying to bring learned material to mind before checking it. A systematic review of classroom experiments supports its use across varied educational settings. It does not mean that every question or every attempt is equally useful.
If you cannot start, use a small cue or study one example first. An empty page is information, but spending the whole session staring at it is not the goal.
Repair the gap, then try a changed question
Reopen the relevant slide and its supporting notes. Find the sentence, diagram, or worked example that addresses your missing step. Explain that part in your own words.
Now change the question slightly. If you only repeat the original wording, you might remember the answer without understanding the relationship. Change the graph, condition, or example while staying within the course content.
Keep a small record:
| Topic | What I could do | What needs another attempt |
|---|---|---|
| Enzyme-rate graph | Describe the axes | Explain the plateau without a cue |
| Inhibitor comparison | Recognize the examples | Explain the difference from memory |
Use AI to ask about the slides
When AI use is allowed in your course, try this with material you are permitted to upload:
Use this lecture material to ask me one explanation question at a time. Wait for my attempt. Check it against the source, identify the missing reasoning, and offer one hint before giving a full answer. Say when the slides do not contain enough information.
Check generated questions and feedback against your instructor’s material. A confident AI response is not an answer key.
Jotverse lets you bring course material into a tutor context and work through questions with guidance. Start with one lecture and one topic rather than trying to cover an entire semester at once.
Create a tutor from your lecture material and use your first session to explain one idea without the slides open.
Common questions
Should I make a flashcard for every slide?
No. Make prompts for important concepts, relationships, and skills. A slide may need several questions or none, depending on the learning objectives.
What if I only have the slides?
List the ideas the deck leaves unexplained. Check assigned readings or ask your instructor for clarification. Do not treat generated explanations as proof of what was taught.
For planning across several sources, see how to turn lecture slides, notes, and a syllabus into a study plan. For a short practice routine, try a 30-minute study session.
Research behind this guidance
Retrieval practice has broad support in Agarwal, Nunes and Blunt’s classroom research review (2021). The question routine above is a practical adaptation, not a tested Jotverse intervention. Use examples or instruction first when the content is new.