Too much info on Critcal Pass cards for memorization? Forum

[fearless16]

Wondering if anyone can discuss his or her use of CP cards to memorize? Did you condense the cards into shorter outlines or just use the cards themselves to memorize in the final weeks? Thanks, all, for your help.

[THE_U]

I bought them and used them for like 2 days.

Better off just reading/outlining the CMR, considering that the CP flash cards are almost word for word the same thing, only without the useful exam tips that the CMR has.

[juniormint33]

I have these cards and find them utterly useless for exactly the reason mentioned in your subject line. Better off making your own shorter versions with Quizlet or an equivalent.

[StaceyS]

I just bought these instead..people said they were better in terms of not so much info...front and back concise topics.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/073550 ... 6F6JP2R29Y

[Bexy73]

I really tried to be a flashcard person last July and I found that I just didn't have the time to spend going through them. Instead, I worked MBE questions and wrote out a ton of practice essay questions. For me, actually having to recall and use the rule helped much more than trying to remember rules by rote. I passed in IL, so take this advice for what it is worth.

Good luck.

[kraeton]

Guess we're all different. I'm not a huge fan of Critical Pass... because i think they're too short and not comprehensive enough, but I completely get your point.

What I do though is make a digital flashcard but I have multiple questions in the front, and inevitably the back gets filled with uh.. pages worth of content. The questions are essentially used to trigger my memory acting as a guide, but I don't like the idea of separating sub-sections too sparingly. For example, the front of my card will have "DEFEASIBLE FEES, then some triggering questions." I don't like making multiple flashcards for every single species of defeasible fees.

It forces me to basically be able to give a lecture on the topic if need be.

My method's a bit extreme, but it help me see how all the little pieces form the macro-structure of the entire subject. If i get asked a misc. question from a sub-sub topic of a sub-topic of a chapter in an MBE subject, i'll just get confused even more.

That's just me though.

Also, i've been out of law school for a # of years now, so i seriously don't remember diddly squat, especially in some subjects where the professors basically lulled me to sleep until i awake days before the exam.

[Neve]

I would go through 2-3 sets of the Critical Pass flashcards followed by a practice set of questions every day. I would also highlight/annotate them and jot down mnemonics on them.

The flashcards are essentially a condensed version of the CMR so it's good to use with BARBRI. Here's a referral link with a $10 discount for the cards: http://criticalpass.refr.cc/6CV5GXR

[fearless16]

Thanks, Neve. Essentially what I've been doing. I don't want to hunt around for materials when I have these.

[Neve]

Thanks, Neve. Essentially what I've been doing. I don't want to hunt around for materials when I have these.

Welcome.

Guess we're all different. I'm not a huge fan of Critical Pass... because i think they're too short and not comprehensive enough, but I completely get your point.

What I do though is make a digital flashcard but I have multiple questions in the front, and inevitably the back gets filled with uh.. pages worth of content. The questions are essentially used to trigger my memory acting as a guide, but I don't like the idea of separating sub-sections too sparingly. For example, the front of my card will have "DEFEASIBLE FEES, then some triggering questions." I don't like making multiple flashcards for every single species of defeasible fees.

It forces me to basically be able to give a lecture on the topic if need be.

During the beginning of bar study, I attempted to make my own flashcards by hand. I had always done this for exams during my second and third year and found that I learned best - and received great grades - from this method. However, this did not translate well into bar study. You have to have passable knowledge on around 20 different subjects for a 2-3 day closed book exam. It's unlikely that you took all 20 subjects in law school and even if you did, you probably won't remember them when the bar comes. There's a reason why bar exam study programs and study aids, like Critical Pass and AdaptiBar, exist. It's to break down massive amounts of information into digestible amounts; digestible amounts that you can master by rinsing and repeating.

You don't need to be a world-class expert on Con Law to pass the bar exam; you aren't giving a lecture on it. And I certainly think it is a massive waste of time to make flashcard sets for all these different subjects when you can obtain professional study aids.

[lawst_]

I was a second time taker in February and used Critical Pass to prepare for February (but didn't use Critical Pass for last July). Overall I found the cards to be worth the money I paid because they came in handy to take to work and study during lunch, and especially handy for studying with friends. I used Skype and sometimes met with friends at the library to study, and it was really nice to have a set of cards to quiz each other.

That said, I think there's too much information to memorize on most of the cards and I also didn't like how some of the cards combined multiple topics into one card (for example, I would've preferred a separate card for character evidence in a civil case vs character evidence in a criminal case, not just 1 card on both).

I think one of the best things about the cards is they're easier to read and break down things a little simpler than the CMR does. I found myself getting too distracted with the CMR because it went into depth about a lot of topics, or provided too much information on exceptions and random points of law that are never tested. Critical Pass gives you the bones of what you need to know, even if it may be too much to memorize word for word.

[Neve]

I think one of the best things about the cards is they're easier to read and break down things a little simpler than the CMR does. I found myself getting too distracted with the CMR because it went into depth about a lot of topics, or provided too much information on exceptions and random points of law that are never tested. Critical Pass gives you the bones of what you need to know, even if it may be too much to memorize word for word.

I think it's difficult to memorize anything "word for word" for the bar exam. There's simply too much information - that's why most states curve the test and the passing score is the law school equivalent of a C. With repetition, I was able to get the Critical Pass cards down cold (albeit not word for word). Critical Pass cards are excellent to use with the CMR since they "follow" the CMR's outlines. As Lawst said, they are the bones and the CMR is the flesh.

[KirbyKager]

I also agree that there is too much info on the Critical Pass cards, however I still found them very helpful to get a general base of the MBE down. One word of caution, I found in some instances that the Critical Pass cards were inconsistent with the Convisor Mini Review. There is a thread somewhere on this board that illustrates some of the instances where this occurs. If it is still there, a simple search of the board should get you there.