Studying

In a word, "Accidentally".

The way my course is set up, I get given all the course materials at the start of each year and we work through a chapter a week. Usually I will do the chapter in one afternoon, sometimes I'll try and get a whole book (maybe 6 weeks work) done in the first week. Then I do an assignment towards the end and a lot of it has sunk in by then.

I tend to study better when I'm working on an assignment, I find it really difficult sometimes to just make notes on things and keep it in...

 

I'm currently out of class at the moment, but this is what helped me in a lot of classes.

Taking notes in class: If there's powerpoint slides, print them out and write down the notes that go with each slide. Helps to have additional paper if you run out of room on the power point slide paper.

At home, reading and taking notes of important information in the book, then incorporating what was said in class into the notes. It takes practice, however, to figure out what's unimportant and what is.

If there's assigned vocab words, write down the words and then write down the definition from the book's glossary. I usually always worked in my room since it allows from both an easy break and as a tool to look up things.

Alternate the colors of pen you use when you write your notes. Pencil smears too easily and alternating the color from page to page helps to keep things from being monotonous. If everything is done properly, you'll have a summary of the chapter to go over when test time hits. As an added bonus, there's less stress come finals time if you keep up on everything.

 

Three words: Diet Mountain Dew

 

I take notes in class (not that I really need to; I can remember everything), and then I start at home or at a library with textbooks or (more rarely) an internet source. I read those until I feel I have adequate knowledge of where everything is, and then I go off the finer points.

The biggest part of studying at home for me is that I have cleanliness and silence. Absolutely no music or radios in the distance. Dogs are also intolerable. I can't concentrate without a physical copy of my work, so I tend to hand-write plans and I print drafts to edit by hand. Without being able to have my work on paper, I can't focus properly.

Tea and coffee, too. I hardly need explain that one.

With maths, I just create problems or go off a worksheet for as long as it takes for it to sink in. If it's a particularly difficult form, I find shortcuts and little "cheats" for remembering, but only directly before a test.

 

Coming from someone who has a lot of experience in it on both sides of the equation, these are my recommendations:

1.) Study intently well before a test.
2.) Give it a good shot later and see how your recall goes.
3.) Check in next day for 15 minutes.
4.) Review as necessary.

Seeing something a lot then recalling it later does a lot of good.

Do not "force" yourself to study when you are in a mental brain drain or zombie mode.

Taking notes forces you to pay attention, through seeing or hearing, followed by neural processing then re transmitting it to the paper where you at least look at again while writing.

Don't forget, don't study everything you already get pretty well, it will just waste your time.

This is what I tell students.

 

I'm out of school at the moment but i still study once and a while and I use flash cards and while i was in school i wrote notes . I also study straight out of the text book if it's math i watch youtube videos on how to do math problems for my algebra class then practice the text book problems .

 

Procrastination
Procrastination
Procrastination
Procrastination
Procrastination
Procrastination
Procrastination
OH FUCK DEADLINE TOMORROW HELP

 

How to study like Batman:
1.Bring your needed textbook home
2.Eat whatever is in the cupboard.
3.Lay on the floor.
4.Stare at DS as it charges.
5. Play DS
6. Remember you brought home your textbook and make a building out of books
7. Tumblr until it's too late to do anything reasonable.
8. Go to exam unprepared
9. Barely pass your classes because you're a worthless idiot
10. Have your parents be extremely disappointed in you even moreso than usual
11. Cry

 

I'm in fact still working this out. I study in a rather sporadic, unordered way; it does work, I just don't know why especially. I think my memory retention is what pulls it through really.

In class I will try to take the best notes I can, and while I won't usually follow that up at home immediately, when I'm revising I tend to look at notes and transfer them to a different format, such as bullet points --> mindmap. Doesn't need to be copious, just enough to get me to redo the notes in a new way. I also find that discussing ideas with classmates can be far better than any reading, but having said that it's a fairly unreliable technique. I definitely prefer having music of late as a way of combining study and relaxation, partly since I just don't like absolute silence (feels weird to me) and partly to combine study and relaxation.

And yes, procrastination is a major theme.

 

Damn, I forgot this one in my list.

 

I usually work on the floor. I lay out all my things and then write down the main points of a topic, then talk through it as though I am giving a presentation, then write it from memory and talk it through again. That way it tends to stay in my head for a while.

Sometimes I have music.. sometimes I find it distracting. I usually have to have frequent 15 minute breaks, otherwise my mind wanders.

 

My courses are generally divided up into two types: biological sciences and everything else. By everything else, I mean through understanding of concepts and rote practice, it will click. Calculus, organic chemistry, pharmaceutical calculations, and general chemistry fall under this category.

My tactics are similar for both types of courses. But contingent on how different each class is, I amend my study method accordingly. For instance, if I have a good grasp of the concepts in calculus, then I will not look up supplementary materials online.

1) Go to lecture
2) Take notes in the "notes" section of the powerpoint. Because I take notes on the specific slide, I know what notes pertains to which slide. For this reason, it's better than taking notes on Microsoft Word. If there aren't any powerpoints, just take notes in a notebook/binder /w loose-leaf for "everything else" and in Microsoft Word for "biological sciences".
3) Review the material ASAP. If I don't understand something, then I go to the textbook.
4) Look up any supplementary materials online, e.g. Khan Academy, to help reinforce the material.
5) Do all of this well before the exam date.

Oh yeah I also listen to music only when doing practice for "everything else". It makes studying less miserable. But I can't concentrate with music on the background when reading the textbook... that's just me haha.

 

Helixa's Reply to "Studying"

When I'm in class, I try to take notes, but that ends up frustrating me because I end up behind everyone else.

So, I just use my strange love of researching random topics, and... Eventually I end up looking at something else that's completely different.

So, I just listen to the reviews in the class that are usually a day or two before the test, then completely zone-out in the middle of it by accident.

I need to practice paying attention. XD


I love learning new things, but I'm really bad at this "school"-thing.

*sighs*

 

Almost all of my classes are very heavily science/math based, so this is what I do:

1. Unlike most people, I take very few notes in class, mainly only when the professor says something like, "this is important," or, "this would make a really good exam question." I just sit there and listen. I absorb information very well. I find that taking notes actually interrupts this process for me.

2. After lecture, I go through said section in the textbook and work on understanding the concept behind the problems while making sure to understand the process to find the solution.

3. LOTS OF EXAMPLE PROBLEMS!!!!!!!!! This is the most important thing for me. It really helps the information stick. It also increases my speed while doing the problems so I am more likely to be able to finish on an exam.

That's pretty much how I do it. It works well for me, but doesn't for a lot of friends.

 

I take notes in class, and then read them over either the night or the hour before the test. When I really need to memorize terms, quizlet is my best friend. I'll study on there a little bit and then have them all memorized within an hour.

 

I'm more of an autodidact, zoning out in class, and do the majority of my learning on my own time. Homework has the advantage of helping me rack up points while providing the practice needed to cement concepts, otherwise, I pick up on things quite quickly from reading alone.

When it comes to memorizing, which is an unfortunate part of many classes, I'll make and review flash cards, or test myself using my whiteboard, for 10-15 minutes after waking up and again before bed over the course of several days, which is more effective than trying to force the information down in one long power session.

When it comes to math, I like looking at many different types of problems, and finding my own ways of solving them, since it helps me understand how a method can be applied in several different ways that can't just be learned from a definition or example. If its a course heavy in the reading and writing department, I try to imagine myself as the person who is going to receive the information, and having it seem "natural" and interesting.

 

If you need biology or chemistry help just ask me if you want.

 

Take a few notes in class, more if the teacher lectures "full, tenured professor style" (doesn't follow a lesson plan or textbook and just rambles on).

Read and do practice problems during the week, if needed. I generally don't study as much as I should; apparently I have pretty good cramming skills (which work in most, but not all classes).

Once tests are on the (immediate) horizon, put entire life on hold and spend entire days poring over books and notes, and maybe organizing some study groups. I like groups where we assign each other different segments and we have to teach that topic to the others in the group because if I know a subject well enough to teach it to other classmates, I've mastered it.

 

:roflmao: This was me last night cramming for my history midterm at midnight and finding out that my book doesn't have an index. XD

No but normally for history I make a master list and French (or anything vocab related) I write and say it through repetition.