Q:

Advice on how to use previous exams to study

I have two big (graduate) exams in mid-January (one in D. Geometry and the other one in Algebra) and I'm not sure how to study for them. I have access to all the previous exams (more than 10 of each), but I don't know what's the best way to use them: should I solve them as if they were homework (using books and all the resources I have at hand) and take notes throughout the way or as if they were exams, having studied everything before.
Since many of you are teachers it'd be interesting if you could share your experience regarding how do you think students learn more, by doing homework or just studying a lot for an exam.  (I know this isn't a black or white thing, but maybe one of the techniques is better.)

A:

I would use a combination: start by working though them, one at a time, the most recent first (that one is likely to be the most relevant). Work though each exam as if it were an exam at first. Once you have finished one, you sit down with your books and work through each problem (including those you solved) with the books and notes, to clarify everything you might have had problems with, as well as discover anything you may have overly complicated the first time you tried to solve it. Don't revise before trying to solve the problems: trying to solve them immediately tells you what your problem areas are, and working through them with the notes afterward lets you spend the most time on the areas where you are actually struggling, instead of spending time revising stuff that you already know. It is important to keep in mind that the best way to study is usually not to do as many questions as possible, but to make sure you completely understand each one as you go along.

