How we used AI to summarise 200 pages of a textbook

We had 200 pages to read for a social studies exam and three days to do it. So we tried using AI to summarise the material. Here is what we learned.

The problem: too much to read, too little time

Most upper-secondary students recognise the situation. The textbook is thick, exams are getting closer and there is not enough time. Reading everything from cover to cover is often unrealistic, especially when you are studying several subjects at once.

How we used AI

We uploaded textbook chapters and asked AI to summarise the most important concepts, arguments and connections. Each 20–30-page chapter became a summary of about one page. But we did not stop there. We used the summaries as a starting point for flashcards and quizzes.

What worked well

AI was good at identifying key concepts and organising the information. It saved us hours of reading and gave us a clear overview. The summaries were especially valuable in fact-heavy subjects such as history and social studies.

What we had to be careful about

AI summaries do not replace understanding. We noticed that very little stuck if we only read the summary without actively working with the information. The solution was to combine summaries with active recall, testing ourselves on the content instead of just reading it.

We also made sure to double-check facts. AI can sometimes oversimplify or miss nuances that your teacher expects you to understand.

Our best tip

Use AI as a first step, not the only step. Summarise the material, create flashcards from the summary and test yourself with quizzes. That combination gave us much better results than simply trying to read everything.