For M28 students taking IB exams in May 2028, with DP1 beginning in August 2026.
Yes, you can highlight your textbook, but selectively and as the first step in active study. Highlighting alone is weak because recognizing an important sentence is not the same as recalling, explaining, or applying its meaning without help.
For DP1 students, effective highlighting study means selecting essential ideas, then converting them into questions, diagrams, flashcards, or practice responses. Here is how to make that transition without adding unnecessary work.
Why highlighting alone is a weak study method
Highlighting is primarily a selection activity: you identify important information while it remains visible. Your brain does not have to retrieve it independently.
This can create an illusion of learning. A highlighted passage feels familiar when reread, but familiarity does not demonstrate that you can explain it or use it under assessment conditions.
A major review of learning techniques rated highlighting and underlining as having relatively low utility because their benefits were inconsistent. Practice testing and distributed practice, meaning learning across separate sessions, received high utility ratings. Highlighting is not necessarily useless, but it should not be mistaken for learning itself.
Marking too much compounds the problem. When half a page is coloured, central concepts become difficult to distinguish from examples and supporting detail.
When highlighting can help
Highlighting is useful when selecting text requires careful judgement. Read a short section first, identify its central idea, then mark the smallest phrase that will help you locate it again.
Useful targets include:
- precise definitions
- important stages in a process
- contrasts between theories or concepts
- conditions, exceptions, or limitations
- evidence supporting an argument
- formulas and the meaning of their variables
Do not highlight unfamiliar terminology simply because it looks important. First establish what it means and how it connects to the topic. Otherwise, you are marking confusion rather than resolving it.
A better textbook method for DP1 students
Use four stages: preview, read, select, retrieve. Highlighting belongs in the selection stage, not at the end of your learning process.
1. Preview the section
Scan headings, diagrams, key terms, and end-of-section questions. Write one question that the section should answer.
Before reading about enzymes, for example, ask: “How do temperature and pH affect enzyme activity?” A specific question gives your reading a purpose.
2. Read before highlighting
Read one or two paragraphs without marking anything. Ask what the passage explains and how it connects to your lesson.
Delaying selection helps you judge which information matters. If you cannot summarize the passage, reread or seek clarification before highlighting it.
3. Select very little
Mark only the words needed to recover the idea. There is no official IB highlighting percentage; if most of the page is coloured, your selection is probably too broad.
A simple system is sufficient:
| Colour or mark | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Yellow | Core concept or definition |
| Blue | Evidence or application |
| Pink | Limitation or exception |
| Question mark | Point needing clarification |
These colours are suggestions, not requirements. Avoid a complicated code that takes more attention than the material itself.
4. Close the book and retrieve
Cover the page and explain the idea aloud, sketch the process, or answer your preview question from memory. Then reopen the text, compare your response, and correct omissions or misunderstandings.
This is active recall. Unlike rereading, it exposes what you cannot yet explain independently. RevisionDojo’s guide to IB study techniques that work explains how to combine recall with spaced practice.
Turn highlights into revision tasks
Transform each important selection into something you must produce without the source:
- Definition: create a question asking for the term’s meaning.
- Process: draw the stages and explain their connections.
- Argument: identify a claim, evidence, counterargument, and judgement.
- Formula: define the variables, state its conditions, and solve a problem.
- Comparison: explain similarities, differences, and their significance.
Avoid copying every highlighted sentence into notes. Reproducing wording does not necessarily require understanding, whereas explaining relationships reveals gaps.
Revisit these tasks after a delay. The guide to memorizing IB Computer Science definitions illustrates recall with spaced repetition. Advice on studying for IB exams without burning out can help you keep that routine manageable.
Apply the method to different IB subjects
In History, select a cause and supporting evidence. Then explain the causal chain and compare its importance with another factor, rather than memorizing an isolated statement.
In Biology, highlight a definition or condition affecting a process. Draw the process from memory, then attempt an application or data-based question.
In English A, choose short quotations supporting particular interpretations. Practise analysing the writer’s choices and effects rather than memorizing quotations without context.
In Mathematics, select restrictions, definitions, or decision rules instead of complete worked solutions. Cover the example and attempt a new problem. RevisionDojo’s guide to combining mathematics practice with active recall develops this approach.
These activities support thinking and self-management, both part of the approaches to learning described in the official IB Diploma Programme overview.
A realistic 20-minute study session
Use this suggested routine for a short textbook section, adjusting the timings to its difficulty. Spend two minutes previewing the material and choosing a question, then six minutes reading for understanding. Use another two minutes to select essential phrases, rather than marking continuously as you read.
Spend the next six minutes answering your question and completing one related task with the book closed. Use the final four minutes to check your work, correct errors, and choose what to revisit in your next session.
Record a specific difficulty, such as “I confused competitive and non-competitive inhibition,” rather than writing “revise enzymes.” This makes the next session purposeful. If the passage proves too difficult, reduce the amount you cover and resolve the misunderstanding first; finishing a page matters less than being able to explain its central idea accurately.
Common mistakes and a practical check
Avoid highlighting before understanding, colouring whole pages, overcomplicating your code, and never testing yourself afterward. Time spent marking a textbook is not a reliable measure of progress.
At the end of a session, ask: “What can I now explain or solve without looking?” If the answer is unclear, choose one highlighted idea and test it immediately. Keep using your textbook for explanations and context, but make retrieval the check on learning.
Conclusion
Highlighting works best as preparation for active recall, explanation, and application. Select sparingly, test yourself, correct mistakes, and revisit the material later.
RevisionDojo can support this routine through Study Notes, Flashcards, and practice resources. Start with one topic and turn its essential ideas into questions you can answer independently.