Study Skills

Change-Setting Goals

Change-Setting GoalsChanges in the days to come!

One of the first changes you may notice about continuing your education is that you have to learn to juggle many things at once. This will include your course work, finances, and maybe your family. Learning how to set priorities is a critical step to successfully handling the challenge. You need to keep your goal in sight at all times and tell yourself you can do this!

Change-Setting Goals*Take control of your own life

*Adopt the idea that you are responsible for you

*Refuse to allow friends and family to tear you down

*Control what you say to yourself

*Take carefully assessed risks often

*Don’t compare yourself to other people

*Develop a victory wall or victory file

*Keep your promises and be loyal to friends, family and yourself

*Win with grace – lose with class

*Set goals and maintain a high level of motivation

Persist

Persist*F? What Do You Mean an F?There will be times when you are disappointed with a grade. What do you do? Be truthful with yourself and examine the amount of time you spent on the project. Consider the following:

Did you attend class regularly?Did you come to class prepared and ready for discussion?Did you ask questions in class for clarification?Did you meet with the instructor during office hours?Did you seek outside assistance in places such as the writing center or math lab?Did you ask your peers for assistance or join a peer/study group?

PersistYou may be surprised , but the way you act in (and out of) the class can mean as much to your success as what you know. No one can make you do anything or act in any way that you do not want to. Consider the following:

• Bring your materials to class daily• Come to class prepared: read your

texts and handouts and do the homework

• Turn in projects on time• Participate In class• Ask your instructor about the best

time to come for extra help• Do not sleep in class• Be respectful to other students• Turn off your cell phone• Call ahead if you are going to be

late• Dress for success! Wear the right

clothes particularly for clinicals

PersistWon’t you stay for a while? The age old “scare tactic” for students! Look to your left, look to your right – one of those people will not graduate with you. The great news is that you do not have to be that person! Consider the following:

• Make use of every academic service offered by the university

• Work hard to understand your learning style• Work hard to develop a sense of community• Join a club or an organization• Watch your finances carefully• Visualize your Goals• Maintain a sense of self esteem and self respect• Learn to budget your time• Attend classes regularly

Prioritize

We all procrastinate, then we worry and promise we’ll never do it again and if we can just get through this day. We say things to ourselves like, “If I can just live through this test, I will never wait until the last minute again.

PrioritizeConsider the following:

* Face up to the results of procrastination

* Concentrate on the rewards of managing yourself and your time

* Break up big tasks into small ones

* Give yourself a time limit to accomplish a task

* Set a regular time for study and do not vary from it

* Start studying with positive, realistic thoughts

* Establish study habits

* Set reasonable, concrete goals that you can reach in about 20 to 25 minutes

* Face fear; look it right in the face

* Get help from your instructor

* Avoid whining and people who whine and complain

* Allow yourself more time than you think you need to complete an assignment or to study for a test

* Practice your new study habits for 21 days

* Actually reward yourself when you have accomplished an important body of work

* Start on the difficult, most boring tasks first

* Find a quiet place to study

* Balance your load

Read

Is Reading FUNdamental or Just Pure Torture?

ReadWhat are the top two academics problems among students

today? The two greatest problems students face are math and reading!

Here is a six pack that can actually help you: The ingredients for successful reading: Use these tools to improve your reading comprehension, analysis and speed!

The material you’re reading An open mind Pencils

Highlighter A Dictionary A note book

Read

SQ3R to the rescue:

An effective way to approach a chapter is to use the SQ3R method. This method has been successful for millions of students.

S- Survey – Survey or pre-read

Q-Question – Ask yourself Who?, When, What? Where? and Why?

3-R’s

Read- Read the chapter

Recite – Find a classmate and ask each other questions

Review – Re Read and review your notes

SQ3R can be a life saver when it comes to understanding material that is overwhelming.

LearnIs there one best way to learn? The way on learns depends on many variables such as learning styles, your personal intelligences, personality typing, your past experiences and your attitude.

Discover your talents!

Are you a:

Visual Learner – Thinks in pictures

Auditory Learner – Prefers verbal instructions

Tactile – Prefers hands on…

LearnWhat can you learn from your personality?

The four major personality categories are:Extroversion/Introversion – This category deals with the way we interact with others and the world around us. Extroverts prefer to live in the outside world and introverts draw strength from the inner world.

Sensing/Intuition – Sensing types gather information from their five senses, whereas intuitive types are not very well organized but rely on their gut feelings.

Thinking/Feeling – Thinkers are logical people, they do not make decisions based on feelings or emotion. Feelers make decisions on what they feel is right and just.

Judging/Perceiving – Judgers are very orderly people and they must have structure in their lives. Perceivers are just the opposite.

What type are you?

Record

What did you say?

For students, good listening skills are critical. Cultivating and improving your active listening skills will help you to understand the lecture and clinical material, take accurate notes, participate in class discussions and communicate to your peers.

At the core of listening is the ability to hear, understand, analyze, respect and appropriately respond to the meaning of another person’s spoken and non verbal messages.

Listening needs to be personalized and internalized. Practice listening with the whole body on the following levels:

Listen with a purposeListen objectivelyListen constructively

Record

Listening when English is your second language!

For students whose first language is not English, the college classroom can present some uniquely challenging situations. Don’t be afraid to:

Stop the instructor for clarification

Figure out unfamiliar words in context

Enhance your vocabulary

Write down everything

Seek help by practicing the language and maybe start your own conversation group!

¿Qué dijo

O que você

disse

Kisa nou te di

RecordThe L-Star System

One of the most effective ways to take notes is the L-Star System:L Listen –Choose a spot where you can see the instructor clearly. If you see the instructor’s face become animated or expressive you know you are hearing important information.

S-Setting it Down – Use a series of symbols/abbreviations to write everything down. This will save you time, for example; w/ with, <less, etc and so on…

T- –Translate your notes immediately after class. Go to a quiet place and review your notes.

A-Analyze – When you are translating your notes ask the questions “What does this mean?” and “Why is this important?”

R-Remember – Try to create a visual picture and speak the notes out loud using mnemonic devices and find a study partner.

*Study Tips

*Avoid simply re-writing your notes.

*Focus on application-based studying.

*You might study by going over the readings and notes, and then practice sample questions on the material.

*Study Tips – Auditory Learner

* If you are an auditory learner, consider tape-recording lectures and re-listening to them.

*Consider studying in groups

*Careful: Do not allow study groups to become solely social gatherings

*Study TipsKinesthetic/Psychom

otor Learner

*Get in the skills lab or simulation center!

*Find opportunities at work (if applicable) to practice.

*When studying, re-enact or role play the information to give it a real feeling.

*Study Tips: Visual Learner

*Use different colored highlighters within your notes.

*Look at diagrams and models while studying.

*Use your textbook or online resources to study.

*Draw pictures in your notes related to content.

*While in Class…

*Make sure you are an active learner in class!

*Participate

*Ask questions

*Identify the “muddiest point” (most confusing area)

*Take notes, writing down examples given. Draw pictures.

*Avoid multi-tasking (aka surfing the net, checking email during lecture).

*Study Tips

*Review your notes immediately after class. Research has suggested a correlation between this behavior and improved test performance.

*Study a little bit each day (or night).

*Review your notes on the day of the test but avoid studying until exhaustion.

*Make sure you are rested and fresh prior to the test!

*If you ever miss a class, make sure you get notes from a peer and study extra diligently on the material.

*With time management, hard work, diligence, and individualized study techniques, you will

SUCCEED!