TOP TIPSfor becoming a successful Post 16 BUSINESS student

B U S I N E S S D E P A R T M E N T

Read ahead – ensure you know the next topicto be covered and read the relevantchapter/section in your course textbook, orreview it using reliable/suitable online sources.Make a note of any questions you want to askduring the upcoming lesson.

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Take good, clear notes in class – ideally usea system like the Cornell note taking methodthat helps you review the notes afterwards.

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Review and reduce - consolidate yourknowledge and identify any remaining areasof uncertainty by reviewing your lesson notesand handouts, etc. Create more condensednotes, mindmaps, flow charts/diagrams, flashcards, etc. Reprocessing the information inthis way helps it to stick!

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Test yourself – during holidays, go back overyour notes and test your recall of the topicsyou have covered. Make a ‘brain-dump’mindmap of everything you can rememberabout a syllabus topic. Revise the areas youcan’t remember well. 

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Be proactive – search for answers to yourown questions, ask for further help whenneeded, collect any work from lessons you miss. Read The Economist online or thebusiness pages of broadsheet newspapers.

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Take a wider interest – watch TVprogrammes that have a business focus,watch YouTube tutorials on topics you arestudying, listen to/read the news on TV, radioor online, read biographies of successfulentrepreneurs.

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Practice applying your knowledge – reflecton current events and how they might affect aparticular business, or present opportunitiesfor new businesses, or consider how abusiness you are familiar with might beaffected by specific business theory. Outlineyour ideas in a short report.

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Create/join a study group - team up withone or a few of your peers to create a studygroup.  This can help you all to divide up thework and share the load. Teaching others really help the information to stick!

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Plan your time and use your study periodseffectively – be strict with yourself so youfocus your full attention on work during yourstudy time. Try the Pomodoro method.

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Focus on your essay writing skills – Thereis never one simple answer. identify andweigh-up the pros and cons of variousalternatives, before reaching yourconclusion. All this needs to be done in thecontext of the scenario you are given. 

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