Last semester was rough, to say the least. Among the stress of learning how to study efficiently, becoming comfortable away from home, and working to build new friendships, I got my fourth concussion and had to take a month and a half off from class and assignments. Despite this, I still managed to survive with only a slight hit to my GPA, and I am now looking forward at how I can improve for this term. After meeting with a learning strategist and doing some self reflection to find study strategies that work well for me, I found myself with a collection of advice that may be helpful for you.
Here are the strategies and tips that I have for you:
1: CORNELL NOTES
Cornell notes are set up with study cues on the right margin of the page, content on the left side of the page, and a summary at the bottom of the note. I usually exclude the summary because it is not helpful for my personal study techniques, however, in classes that require the use of math it can be extremely useful to include important equations or values in the summary section. This note taking system is intended to be used so that you write the content notes during class and the learning prompts and summary after class. I like this note taking system because it allows for an easy and fun way to go over the content you learned in class when making the study cues. This plants possible midterm questions in your head soon after you learn the material and provides an easy way to practice information retrieval so that you know what information you recall and what information you should work on.
2: LEITNER SYSTEM
Building on information retrieval, the Leitner system is a system that uses cue cards for repeated testing. I am using 4 small buckets (you could get them from Walmart, Staples, The Dollar Store, Amazon, etc) and filtering my cue cards through the system. Each bucket is reviewed in a certain time frame and the cue card can progress from one bucket to the next if you answer it correctly. If you answer incorrectly, the cue card will move back a bucket so that you must review it more often. In my case, bucket 1 will be reviewed once daily, bucket 2 will be reviewed once every other day, bucket 3 will be reviewed once a week, and bucket 4 will be reviewed once every two weeks. This system works nicely with Cornell note-taking because you can put the study prompts on your cue-cards.
3: MNEMONICS
I have been using mnemonics since I was young and they have never failed me. Because of mnemonics, I can recite the compounds in the Kreb's Cycle with no hesitation (Oh Crap I Know So So Fricking Much) and remember the order of sharps with ease (Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle). Mnemonics can come in many forms, including stories, acronyms, songs, patterns, or sentences.
4: FREQUENT BREAKS: THE POMODORO TECHNIQUE
This is a very important technique that is often overlooked. When people get into the groove of studying, they don't want to stop. We typically can't fully focus for long periods of time, therefore it's extremely beneficial to take small breaks to get back to your full potential. To do this, set a timer for 25 minutes and do your work without breaking focus. Once the timer goes off, take a 5 minute break! Keep doing this until you have repeated the process 4 times. After the fourth repetition, increase your break time to avoid fatigue. Some break activities include filling up your water, grabbing a snack, doing some squats, stretching, and going for a quick walk around your house. On the longer break, you could go for a walk, watch a quick episode of Netflix or Disney+, talk to a friend, etc. You can also adjust the times if the 25 minute blocks are feeling a little too short, it's all about finding what works best for you.
5: PARAPHRASING
Something that I find extremely helpful for understanding the content that I am studying is paraphrasing it into words that I understand. Changing information from course notes and slides to how I would prefer to write it is very helpful for me and I do this with all of my notes. In a pinch last semester, I only paraphrased my notes and read through them a few times and still managed to get an A+ on my final exam (disclaimer: using one technique is not an effective way to learn for most people, paraphrasing should be combined with other practices).
THANKS FOR READING!
I hope you find some of these techniques beneficial in your endeavors, happy studying! ~ Meagan Olivia Crawford Disclaimer: I am not an expert on this topic, but these are some techniques that work for me. Everyone has different learning styles and it's important to find what works for you.
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