If you are wondering what study aids may best best to help learn all the material for the BCBA/BCaBA exam, its best to know what kind of learner you are and go from there. First and foremost, there isn’t a one size-fits-all formula or solution. While there are empirically validated learning processes, like Bloom’s taxonomy, for example, it may not be right for you. For the purpose of focusing on tools, lets discuss SAFMEDS and flashcards to help you to decide which one would be best for you.

Any sort of a study card is a more portable and condensed study tool. It’s also very convenient. We already have textbooks and journal articles with the comprehensive explanations and the supportive research. We have the PTB Study Manual (aka, the other “White Book”) to consolidate all the information in the literature. But with the cards, you get a more focused study activity. They are not designed or ever intended to be used instead of the literature. They should be used to supplement the comprehensive and more intensive activity.

SAFMEDS, which is an acronym for “say all fast minute each day shuffled”, typically require rote definitions and therefore, rote memorization. This is great for those who are good at, and benefit from, rote memorization. This is a well researched process, with a defined procedure to ensure that you do it right, such as a “fill in the blank” format, having short definitions, using small cards, timing the practice.

The problem is that some may misuse the SAFMEDS, which results in not truly understanding what they are memorizing. It is fundamentally a rote definition without context. Using SAFMEDS effectively requires that you have a high level understanding of ABA as a science and the exam content. You can offset by writing your own definitions. That’ll ensure an understanding of the content prior to memorization. In that case, creating the SAFMEDS content is also a learning activity.

Flashcards are a great solution for people who need context, individualized language, visuals, pneumonic devices. Flashcards provide learning with salient notes. With flashcards, you tend to have a larger sized card that leaves room for all of that nuance. The call to action is putting the ABA language into your own, brief words, surrounded by whatever effects will support your type of learning– things like lists, examples, doodles. Since the flashcard content is individualized, the exercise of creating the card is a study activity in its own right.

Finally, there is a third option. This is something new that PTB developed called FlashMEDS. The PTB FlashMEDS combine the rote definition of SAFMEDS with individualized active-learning of flashcards. It’s the best of both worlds for those who need rote clinical language with nuanced individuality. PTB FlashMEDS have rote SAFMEDS definitions on a small portion of the card, but since the card is the size of flashcards, there’s plenty of room left over for the individualized effects. This is a great solution if you want the textbook language coupled with your own salient extras.

With any of these tools, it’s important to be running through all of the cards repetitively. If you need a more variety, you can do a combo of any of these options. These tools are not mutually exclusive. You can choose more than one.

So there you have it. Three pretty solid activities, all of which also require repetition and time. I hope this helps you choose the one, or the ones, that are best for you.

Happy studying.

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