Study Tools: Note Cards Part 2

Being stuck on a plane for several hours recently I've put some more thoughts into how to use note cards to study.  Check out my previous thoughts on note cards for a starting point.  

When I was first studying for Network+ I would label each card with the portion of the exam the information relates to.  I would put the Objective number (i.e. 1.8 for DNS information) in the upper right hand corner of the front of the card.  I kept them all grouped by Objective.  Since then, I have dropped the Objective number from the card just to see how it changes how I use the cards.

An example of the front of my note cards with the Objective.

The advantage I have found in having the Objective is it allows me to study specific portions.  This is great because I can target my studying to areas that I am not doing as well in.  Of course, the trick is figuring out where your weakness is.  The Sybex books generally contain a CD with bonus content (practice exams, note cards etc.) which I have used to figure out where I'm weak.  There are also some practice exams online, the problem is you never know if they're all that accurate.

And the back

The problem I have found in having the Objective on the card is it distracts me from the information on the card.  Instead of focusing entirely on the question or answer, I am also thinking of the Objective number.  None of the exams I have taken have ever made mention of the Objective number during the exam.  Many exams will give you a readout of the areas you missed at the end.  They don't tell you the answers, or even the specific questions you've missed, but they give you the Objective number and a description of that Objective.  e.g. 3.2 Categorize standard connector types based on network media.

In addition to having the Objective on the card (or not!) I have begun to randomize the order I have the cards in.  For Network+ I kept all of the cards grouped by their Objective, all the Objective 1's were in a group, all the 2's in another etc.  For Project+ I kept shuffling the deck as I put together smaller stacks.  Once I could do most of the stack I would shuffle it into the rest of the deck.  I still pull out all of the Stumpers, but I keep them as mixed up as possible.  All the exams I have taken randomize the questions, so you never know which Objective is first.  I figure if I study that way it will make me better on the exam.