The most common barrier to success encountered by college students is a lack of effective techniques for study and exam preparation. If you are one of the vast majority of students whose answer to the question, "How do you study for your tests?" is, "I go over my notes," then you need to take a serious look at your study skills. Here are some suggestions to increase your effectiveness as a student.
I.
Day to Day
A.
Take good notes. Very few students leave high school with this skill. College of DuPage's Learning Lab can help you here. Some suggestions and observations.
1.
Always take the notes for a particular class in the same notebook. Spiral bound notebooks were invented because they solved the problem of keeping related information consolidated in one place. Take advantage of this.
2.
Date each entry into your notebook.
3.
It is usually best to keep the notes for different classes separate from each other. Spiral notebooks with built in dividers are excellent for this purpose.
4.
Your notes should contain as complete a record of what the instructor said as possible. Of course, you should not try to write every word spoken, but don't leave out ideas. When you study, your notes should call back to your mind the entire sequence of ideas presented. Take care to spell all new words carefully. It you don't know how to spell a word, ask your instructor to write it on the board. Most will automatically do so for new or difficult terms.
5.
Anything the instructor writes on the board should appear in your notes. If the instructor took the time to write it out, he or she considers it important. You should do the same.
6.
If possible, try to take your notes in some kind of outline form. The organization of ideas is as important as the content of those ideas, especially when it comes to learning the material for an exam.
7.
You might find it useful to have a second color of pen or pencil available for highlighting important ideas or indicating vocabulary.
B.
Be involved in your classes. Don't simply pretend you are a sponge, ready to soak up whatever the instructor says. You are there to learn, not to be taught.
1.
If the instructor is moving too rapidly for you, or if you don't understand what is being said, say something!
2.
Ask questions if you are confused. Confusion is definitely your worst enemy.
3.
If your class includes group activities, participate as fully as you can. Such exercises are done for your benefit, not to provide a break for the instructor.
C.
Review your notes every day. This suggestion is one which we have all heard a thousand times. Unfortunately, most of us never really believe it until we actually try it. Spend 30 minutes or so each evening going over the notes from each class. There are at least two tremendous benefits to be gained from this discipline.
1.
Research has shown that reviewing new material within 24 hours of hearing it increases your retention of that material by about 60%. This means that you will be 60% ahead of the game the next time you walk into class. If you want to significantly reduce the time necessary to prepare for exams, this is the way to do it.
2.
Reviewing material before the next class period enables you to identify points of confusion or omission in your notes, which prepares you to ask the questions you need to ask before the next lecture. Again, confusion is your worst enemy.
D.
It is excellent policy to give high priority to new vocabulary. Language is the most fundamental tool of any subject, and it can seriously handicap you to fall behind in this.
E.
Keep up on your reading. Unlike most high school teachers, many college instructors don't give specific reading assignments. You are expected to go to your text for the reading related to the materials covered in class. Be independent enough to do this without being told.
II.
Using Your Textbook
A.
Don't expect your instructor to give you detailed, page by page textbook assignments. While some may do so, many do not. College teachers are much more likely to expect you to use your own initiative in making use of the text.
B.
In most cases, it will be most useful for you to at least skim the relevant chapters before each lecture. You should receive a course outline/syllabus at the beginning of the quarter, which will tell you the subject for each day. You may receive chapter references (or even page references), or you instructor may expect you to be perceptive enough to refer to the Table of Contents.
1.
When you first approach a chapter, page through it fairly quickly, noting boldface headings and subheadings, examining figures, illustrations, charts, etc., and thinking about any highlighted vocabulary terms and concepts. Also take note of the pedagogical aids at the end of the chapter--study questions, summary, etc.
2.
When you have finished surveying the chapter, return to the beginning and read in more detail. Remember to concentrate upon understanding. Don't simply read through the words. Any words which you don't understand you should look up. If you own the book and intend to keep it, you may want to write definitions of such words in the margins. You may also find it helpful to make observations and other useful notes in the margins. If you don't intend to keep the book yourself, you should carry out similar activities on a page in your class notebook.
3.
On this first trip through the chapter, you should concentrate upon catching the major subjects and points of the material. Also take note of those things which you don't understand. If the lecture on the material doesn't clarify those points, you should ask your instructor to explain.
C.
Following coverage of the chapter's material in class, you should go back to the book and read it again. It will probably be helpful to skim through it first, as you did when you first looked at it. The tables and figures should be more readily read in detail. If you are a truly conscientious student, you will outline the chapter and prepare a vocabulary list of the terms which are pertinent.
D.
At this time you should think seriously about the review and study questions at the end of the chapter. Do your best to answer all fo them as if they were a take-home exam.
E.
You may also want to develop a system of cross referencing symbols to use when comparing your class notes to your notes from the text.
F.
Remember that your instructor will probably not use the same words which you find in the text book. nothing is more frustrating than to discover that what you hear in class is no more than a rehash of what you read in the book. However, if your instructor knows his/her subject, and the author of your text knows his/her subject, the meat of what they say should be the same. NOTE: Nobody is infallible. Your instructor may make mistakes. Don't expect him or her to be more than human.
