STUDY HABITS

DEVELOPMENT

In almost all college courses, if you really don’t like to read, you are in serious

trouble.

Your study habits formed in high school may steer

you toward failure because you’ve never experienced

what it takes to perform at the college level.

That’s why the freshman year is the hardest year

you will ever experience in college.

It takes about one year to learn how to learn

at a college level.

An hour of study is defined as studying for 45 minutes and

a break of 15 minutes.

   If you were offered $1,000,000 to earn an A in a college course, could you

accomplish the goal?

Probably!

Why?

You don’t have to be a genius to graduate from college. You have to work hard, be persistent, and pay attention to details.

These traits are ultimately why a college degree is valuable.

A college degree demonstrates your capacity to learn.

Here are some pointers to help you improve your

study habits…

Survey Before you start your learning

task, read over the major headings and summaries of the chapters in

the textbook. This gives you a feeling for the whole picture and to

what material you should pay attention to while reading the chapters. Research shows that

students who do this make higher grades, and this simple step may be the most powerful thing you can do.

   Reading, underlining, and taking notes: You must always be ahead

of your teacher in your reading.

As you read the material, take written notes and

underline. Use only the left half of the page. Transfer to the right side of the paper

comments your teacher made about the material

during lecture. (The Cornell System!)

    Don’t highlight or underline main points while you read.

Most students make too many marks.

Wait until you've finished a paragraph or section, then

mark.

Research shows that the more different ways you present information to

the brain the easier it is to learn.

In other words,

• hear it

•  see it

•  say it

•  write it

•  practice it

• highlight it

• quiz it (with flashcards, etc.).

Underlining is a skill that must be developed.

The tools of underlining should vary based on

your preference. Use highlighters or colored pens.

One study skills expert recommends red and blue felt tip pens. Use red for extremely important material or to offset important material, and blue for moderately important material.

You should use a pink and yellow highlighter when reading the material the second time.

The 3"x5" card system

Using the colors of red and blue, make 3"x5" cards, putting the vocabulary of the course, long lists of items, experiments, and lecture items on the cards. Key words should be written in red.

Put one theory, concept, or vocabulary word per card.

The biggest problem with textbooks and lecture notes is that we cannot separate

the material that we know from the material that we do not know.

Because of this, we waste hours studying what we already know, rather

than concentrating our valuable time on what we do not know.

Writing the material stores the information in the brain in a way that is not normally used.

On the back of the card, write the definition of the material on the front.

After numbering the cards so you can put them back in order later on, you should start studying the cards until you feel

you know the material.

Now turn the cards over and try and answer your fill-in-the-blanks

orally. If you get the questions right,

place the material into a "I know this material” stack. Now continue working on the

material that you don't know until you can

answer the questions on all the cards.

  The process of reading and deciding if the material is important enough to be

underlined increases memory for that material. It is the decision and thinking that

creates the memory.

   RereadIf you are not comprehending an idea,

go back and reread.

Restate difficult ideas in your own words. Say the idea again in a different way.

READ to the end.

Don’t get discouraged and stop reading.Ideas can become clearer the more you

read. When you finish reading, review to see what you have learned, and reread

those ideas that are not clear.

Audio optionThe more different ways that the

material to be learned can be experienced, the easier it is to

remember the material. If you have time, read the material that you have underlined to a tape recorder. Then

play back and listen to it.

Overlearning:

The more you overlearn the material, the easier it is to take a test with confidence

and in a relaxed manner. In addition, the more you overlearn something, the longer you will

remember it.

Do rote memory tasks and review, especially details,

just before you fall asleep.

   Study with a friend.

Quiz each other, compare notes and predict test questions.

What are the colors of the rainbow

– in order?

Chunking: An effective way to simplify and make information more

meaningful. For example, suppose you wanted to remember the colors in the visible spectrum (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet); you would have to memorize seven "chunks" of

information in order. But if you take the first letter of each color, you can spell the name "Roy G. Biv", and reduce the

information to three "chunks".

Acronyms and Acrostics: (for information involving key words)

An acronym is an invented combination of letters. Each letter is a cue to an idea you need to remember. Example: BRASS is an acronym for how to shoot a rifle--Breath, Relax, Aim, Sight, Squeeze.

An acrostic is an invented sentence where the first letter of each word is a cue to an idea you

need to remember. Example: EVERY GOOD BOY DESERVES FUN

is an acrostic to remember theorder of G-clef notes on sheet

music--E, G, B, D, F.

Applications of private speech (saying this stuff to yourself, either silently or out loud) in learning include; 

•memorizing vocabulary by saying the words out loud

•appreciating poetry by "dramatizing"  it

•editing papers by reading the text aloud

• talking through math problems to arrive at solutions

Other Really Great Tips…

"I'm Gonna Stay Up All Night 'til I Get This"Avoid Mental Exhaustion. Take short breaks often when studying. Before a test, have a rested mind. When you take a study break, and just before you go to sleep at night, don't think about academics. Relax and unwind, mentally and physically. Otherwise, your break won't refresh you and you'll find yourself lying awake at night. It's more important than ever to take care of yourself before an exam! Eat well, sleep, and get enough exercise.

"This Stuff Is So Dry, I Can't Even Stay Awake Reading It"

Attack! Get actively involved with the text as you read. Ask yourself, "What is important to remember about this section?" Take notes

or underline key concepts. Discuss the material with others in your class. Study

together. Stay on the offensive, especially with material that you don't find interesting, rather than reading passively and missing

important points.

"I Guess I Understand It" Test yourself. Make up questions about key sections in notes or reading. Keep in mind what the professor has stressed in the course. Examine the relationships between concepts and sections. Often, simply by changing section headings you can generate many effective questions. For example, a section entitled "Bystander Apathy" might be changed into questions such as: "What is bystander apathy?", "What are the causes of bystander apathy?", and "What are some examples of bystander apathy?"

Set aside a specific time to study.

Many students find it easiest to go home, have something to eat, then study right away, but if you have other activities at that time you'll need to find what works for you.

Study every day.

If you don't have assignments to do, take a

few minutes to review topics that you find

hardest. This may sound like a drag, but it's good to get into the habit of doing

it every day.

Don't do other things while you are studying. This includes watching TV,

fixing a snack, and talking on the phone. Some people claim they can

study better with music playing. That's a matter of personal preference. If it's just quiet

background music that doesn't make you want to play the drums on your

books, it's probably not too distracting.

Finally, ask for help if you need it.

Teachers and friends are usually willing to go over something with you

again if you didn't quite get it the first time.