Reading a textbook is not like reading a novel.  A whole different kind of reading has to be  employed to really understand the material.  To study your books effectively and be ready for your class exams, try the following suggestions.

Ÿ  Don’t just read it; re-read it. You’ll find that the material often gets easier to understand the second time around.  Many people complain that they get confused by textbooks when they read it the first time.  Don’t stress out if you don’t think you’ve grasped it all that first time.  Just take a short rest and then go back to read it again.  And if you still don’t get it, read it a third time. Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe you’re one of those who takes notes in class just because it’s what you’re supposed to do–but then you never look at them after the class.  Or maybe if you do look at them, you find yourself regularly trying to understand what it is you wrote.  Or you wrote it.  If so, you need to overhaul your note-taking skills.  Taking notes should be a learning experience, and the facts you learn should stick with you.  Here are some suggestions for the power note-taker:

1) The first thing you should ask when you begin taking notes is, “What is the instructor’s purpose, and what is the textbook-writer’s purpose?”  This will give you a clue about where the class is going. Read the rest of this entry »

As a student, you have to  take notes for many, if not all, of your classes.  You then use these to study for tests and semester exams.  But there are problems with this method.  For instance, many of us have incomplete notes, and many more take those notes and never again look at them. Read the rest of this entry »

Not every course is as tough as the next. Some require little more than faithful attendance to pass.  This is especially true of many general education courses taken during your freshman year.  But there are others that are killer courses. These are usually the ones that make you memorize a ton of material from lectures, textbooks and your notes. Read the rest of this entry »

In many ways, study skills are synonymous with memory skills.  Your study will only get you better test grades if it leads to your memorizing the material for which you’ll be quizzed.  So let’s take a look at some tips that are sure to improve your memory and make your study time more effective. Read the rest of this entry »

Most of us know how to study for a science or language or social studies / civics course. You simply learn the historical or scientific facts, and you should be good  to go.  But how do you study for a calculus or trigonometry course?  Is it even possible to study for a math exam?

It is–if you know what you’re doing. Here are the rules to keep in mind. Read the rest of this entry »

Most of us know in our gut that in high school, you don’t need to study nearly as much as you do in college to get grades.  But while we never think of it in this way, this is a trap that causes many to do poorly in their higher education.  Old habits really do die hard, and yet your old high school study habits will destroy your college GPA. Read the rest of this entry »

Sure, studying can be a drag, but with the unlimited access to knowledge available in the 21^st century, accessing information can also be quite an adventure. Let’s consider a few of them.

A great place to get studying done is the library. Yes, the idea might seem SO 1800′s but nowhere, not even the Internet, can provide you with the vast knowledge that a library can in such an accessible way.  This is especially true when you consider that most libraries offer Internet access PLUS their other resources. Some libraries even have their books digitally archived so that you can Read the rest of this entry »

College is not a simple task. You know that. Most of your school mates probably find school to be overbearing, overwhelming and extremely stressful. Many students drop out due to poor grades, finding the independence to prove too stressful for the. A lack of social life and not being able to balance the workload with sports, intramurals and various clubs and organizations doesn’t help matters. If most students were simply able to put their schoolwork ahead of their other priorities they would be feeling less stress, be more relaxed and find they will enjoy their time at school more than they previously had. Read the rest of this entry »

Study on test preparation – The Test Preparation Study was conducted from 2004 to 2008 by researchers at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto,

What Did Teachers Tell Us?

Preparing Students for the Test

We asked the teachers what activities or approaches they would recommend to a new Grade 3 teacher who asked how to prepare for the test. Almost all (99%) of the teachers recommended teaching students strategies for answering multiple-choice and open-response questions. More than 95% endorsed teaching students how to understand the test instructions, having students work on sample questions, discussing examples of good responses to those questions, and helping students get used to working independently. About 85% recommended administering a mock test and teaching students how to handle feelings of anxiety about the test. Less than half of the teachers recommended talking with the students about whether the test was important. Read the rest of this entry »