Books on Tape

Listening to a tape in which someone reads a book is a great way to take in the information from a book when you’re short on time. You can find books on tape at the library as well as some bookstores and record stores. The advantage of listening to these books is that they are typically a high quality sound with a professional actor reading the script. And you can listen to the content of an assigned reading while you eat lunch, clean your room or even while you’re driving.

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It’s impossible to take great class notes if you don’t go to class. Make sure you make that first class because that’s when the teacher will let you in on the course outline, and their expectations in terms of homework, class assignments and testing. You’ll get a good indication on how the course will be marked.

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College Reading and Study Skill

Every year it seems more and more students fail the reading and study skill parts of college tests. Why is that? It’s simple; many students today have not been properly educated in college reading and study skills. Students are not reading as much as before, thus making it very hard when they get to college. There are some solutions though to this problem and ways to improve on this:

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While thorough notes are a vital part of making good grades, many students do not know how to take notes.  Note taking is not a skill you are born with, but one that you learn. Unfortunately, most instructors assume that previous instructors have taught students how to take good notes.  There are many ways to organize your notes, and the split-page method is one of the most popular.  For more information about learning effective study skills, try our free ebook on how to study.

The split-page method is exactly what it sounds like.  You split the page by drawing a vertical line all the way down the paper.  The line should be located 2.5 to 3 inches from the left-hand side of the paper. 

So, what do you do with the two sides?

Similar to the Cornell method, the split-page method uses the right side of the divided page for recording lecture notes.

Another Method you may want to try, is Mind Mapping.

Do not try to write down every word of the lecture when taking notes.  Doing so requires you to write at full speed, which means you will stop listening to what is being said.  Instead, focus on writing down the main ideas and key points.  Watch for cues from the instructor for important points, and be sure to note anything the professor writes on the board. 

The left-hand side of the page can have one of two uses.  Some students prefer to use the left column for writing down keywords from the notes or questions they may have about the material.  This allows them to cover the notes and use only the keywords as prompts when reciting the information.  If you use the left-hand column for cues and keywords, be sure to write them down as soon as possible after the lecture, while the information is still fresh in your mind.

The more traditional use for the left side is creating an outline of the textbook by writing down keywords and main points, also known as the Outline method of taking notes.  The trick to this method is to keep the information from the textbook and the notes together, and to separate chapters.  With this format, a student is able to study the textbook and the lecture notes side-by-side, without wasting time or losing their train of thought by flipping back and forth between notes and textbook. 

A variation of the split-page method is to divide the page into three columns.  The middle column is used for taking notes in class.  The left-hand column is used for outlining the text.  The right-hand column is used for writing down keywords, cues, and questions the student may have about the material.  This format provides the textbook and notes in one location, and has the added bonus of a cue column.  This allows students to cover the first two columns and use the cues in the third column as memory prompts when reciting the information.

Note taking is not a natural skill, although some people are naturally better at it than others are.  There is a wide variety of methods for taking good notes, and not all methods work for everyone.  The split-page method is easy to learn and easy to use, making it an excellent method for anyone trying take better notes.

College and High School Students will want to try out our free Ebook on How to Study.

Teachers will want to try our Taking Notes Lesson Plan.

Study Sessions

Many students find it hard to start working or work for too long when they do. If you find yourself avoiding starting work or seemingly finding ways out of studying then try to start studying for short periods of 10-15 minutes on a regular basis. This if done properly can help ease you into interrupting your normal daily routine enough to actually get some work done. When you find that you can sit and concentrate (which are skills that need to warmed up by this process as well) for longer periods then change to a full study routine.

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Taking notes is not a skill that comes naturally to many students, but it is also not a skill that is taught in many classrooms. Note Taking is one of the most important study skills for High School Students and College Students. Because note taking is so important to educational success, it is important that students learn proper methods for taking thorough notes. The outline method of note taking is one that will look familiar to many students.
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Taking notes and managing your notes is quite a chore, but essential for any student, whether they are University of High School, or vocational. If you can take notes efficiently, and then reviewing them regularly is an essential study skill and the way to higher grades.

The traditional way to take notes is to write down the main concepts and sub topics as quickly as possible during a lecture and then make corrections later to fill in any gaps.

The problem with this process is it is linear and doesn’t really involve any thinking – it is just a straight recording function, because time is short and generally doesn’t record the interconnections between the concepts you have written down.

Mind Mapping

Mind mapping is note taking technique where words, ideas, are linked linked to and arranged around a keyword or idea. Mind Mapping allows you to generate, visualize, structure and classify ideas, quickly and easily.

Compared to other note taking methods, Mind Mapping generally takes less space and it claims to be a superior method in terms of learning and recall.

However, different methods work better for different people and often paying too much attention to the mechanics of note taking distracts from the content, which is after all the key.

Mind Mapping Software

The ‘inventor’ and also the trademark holder of the term ‘mind map’ is Tony Buzan, who has created software that duplicates the brain’s non-linear thought process.

Visit the Mind Map Website for more information >>>

Learning How to Study Properly

Developing effective study skills is extremely important to learn for many different reasons. Getting the most out of your time is something more of us are trying to learn how to do every day. From all the things that are piled on us as individuals, developing effective study skill is somewhat of a lost art which, once we grasp it, the rewards can last a lifetime. Here are some ways to grow developing effective study skills:

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Lecture notes are an essential part of a successful school career, whether it is high school or university level. It is important that notes are well organized and easy to read. One way of creating perfect lecture notes is to use the Cornell method.

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Math Study Skills: Diagnostic Inventory

Rate your achievement of the following statements by rating yourself 3 for almost always, 2 for sometimes, 1 for almost never, 0 if you have never even thought about doing what the statement says.

Selecting a Math Class

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