The semester is over...now what?

There are a few things to think about now that the semester is over and you have received your grades:

First, check your grades:

* If you are not sure why you received a certain grade, contact the professor and politely ask for an explanation.  Keep in mind that some professors will not answer emails in which case you will have to see them in person at the beginning of the next semester.

* If you think there is a mistake and the professor will not help, there is probably a procedure to follow at your school to clear things up.
* Be sure to keep any evidence you have to support a higher grade (homework, exams, emails, grading policy in syllabus, etc.)

If you are disappointed with one or more grades:

* Examine your efforts – class attendance, study habits, attendance at tutoring, etc.

* What could you have done differently?
* Should you consider repeating the course for a better grade?
* If you do this, what will you do differently the second time?

If you are pleased with your grades:

 

* What did you do to earn those grades?
* How can you replicate these strategies in other courses the following semester?

Enjoy your time off!  Rest up and get ready for the next semester!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.

Final Exam Week Survival Kit

Finals week is always stressful.  Here are some things you need to be successful:

Sleep – Remember, it is hard to learn, recall and produce if you are tired and sleepy.

Exercise – This will help you feel physically good which will help you feel mentally good.

A Healthy Diet – This is not the time to eat a lot of junk food.  Concentrate on fruits, veggies, whole grains and lean protein. 

A Plan – Make sure you know when and where your finals are and what will be covered.  Start to study now (actually you should have started weeks ago!) and map out when you are going to study and review for each exam.

Study Strategies – Remember that learning takes varied and repeated exposure to the material spread out over time.  Start now and use several strategies with each subject.  Study for several days leading up to each exam – not just the night before.   Choose strategies in which you are actively involved with the material (making review charts, study cards, using recitation, outlining the material, etc.).

With planning and strategies you will have a successful week and then a well-deserved rest!

Good luck and Happy Holidays!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com and amazon.com.

 

Concentrating in a Time of Constant Distractions

Many students report having a hard time studying and staying focused on the information they are trying to learn.  One problem is that we are constantly distracted by text messages, instant grams, emails, friends, worries, Facebook….the list is endless!  Here are some ways to improve your concentration and thus improve your study time:

#1. The first is obvious (but perhaps the hardest to do!) – turn off all electronics!

After doing the first suggestion:

2. Set a timer for a brief period and practice concentrating on one thing for that time period.  Gradually increase the length of time.

3. Pick a time to study when you are most alert.  Are you a morning or evening person?  When are you most effective?

4. Put yourself in an appropriate place that is conducive to learning – not in front of the TV or in a busy place where many people pass through.

5. Give yourself cues to signal concentration – go to the same location, use a special pen or pencil, take a few minutes to organize your materials – any or all of these can signal you that you are now going to concentrate and study.

6. Be sure you are telling yourself positive self-talk – you are going to study and learn and be successful, not that you are doing something negative that will end a soon as possible.

If you are focused and concentrating, your study time will be more effective and you will be a more successful learner.  AND you will survive (and maybe even thrive) away from all of the normal daily distractions!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com and amazon.com.

Quick Learning Strategies for Thanksgiving Break

At my institution we have an entire week off for Thanksgiving Break.   This is a wonderful and much-needed rest, but it is too long to go without studying and reviewing what you have learned up to this point.  Another concern is that there is only one week of classes before finals.  Upon returning to campus there will be little time to relearn material before taking finals.  Here are some quick strategies to keep the information fresh in your mind so that you do back-slide in your learning over break:

• Make a practice test at the beginning of the week and take it on Friday.
• Use recitation – as you are reviewing, practice restating in your own words from memory.
• Make study cards and review for short periods of time throughout the week.
• Quickly review some material immediately before you go to sleep.
• Make mnemonic devices for hard-to-remember material.   For example, take the first letters in a list of items and write a silly sentence with each word beginning with one the letters.
• Sing your notes out loud to your favorite music.

If you have to put in some serious time studying or writing a paper, here are two tips to help you:

• Plan ahead when you will study, tell someone else, and build that into your plan.
• Go somewhere that is more “academic” – your local Library or coffee shop perhaps.

Enjoy the time off and come back to your campus and your classes refreshed and ready for a strong finish!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com and amazon.com.

Distributed Practice Can Save the Day!

One study strategy – Distributed Practice – can make a big difference in your learning and grades by the end of the semester.  Distributed Practice means that you spread out your studying and do a little each day.  PLEASE NOTE – the initial learning of your lecture notes and the initial reading of your textbooks is not part of this!  Once the initial learning has happened, Distributed Practice means that you review the material 20 minutes almost every day.  Here are some ideas:

1. Put the information you need to learn on index cards and carry them with you.  Every day go through the pack, and then do it again tomorrow.

2. Put the information into a review chart and then use recitation (restate in your own words from memory) to quiz yourself from the chart.

3. Over Thanksgiving Break, spend 20 minutes every day reviewing your class notes.

4. For math, put some problems on the front of index cards and the solution on the back.  Then, every day, pick a few cards, do the problems and check yourself.  If you start to remember them, make new ones!

5. Make some practice tests, set them aside, and test yourself a few days later.  If you have friends in the same class you could take each other’s practice tests and then explain why each answer is right or wrong.

This is a great strategy if there is a class that you are completely uninterested in.  Twenty minutes goes by in no time!

Another helpful idea is to set the timer on your phone for twenty minutes.  That way you are not concentrating on the time, but on the material to be learned.

What is important is the constant repetition spaced out over time.    You will be amazed at how much you can remember!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (of Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com and amazon.com.

 

Mistakes are Great!

Everyone makes mistakes.   Sometimes in education we think we should be perfect all of the time, but that is not possible if the goal is to learn new things, to grow and to improve.  So why are mistakes so great?

* You find out what you know and what you don’t know.

* You find out that what you thought you knew was incorrect and then you have a chance to learn it correctly.

* Mistakes give you a chance to reflect on how you prepared or studied and to make improvements.

* You get to evaluate what you have been doing and make positive changes.   This can involve sports, working in organizations, etc.

* Looking back, you may find that a mistake sent you in an entirely new and better direction.  

When you make a mistake, change how you talk to yourself.  Don’t put yourself down or think negatively about yourself.  Instead turn it around and see what you can learn!  That makes all the difference in the world about how you see yourself and about your motivation and forward progress!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (of Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com and amazon.com.

End-of-semester Crunch

Believe it or not, the end of the semester is approaching.   At my institution we have four weeks of classes left followed by a week of final exams.  In the middle of that time is a week for Thanksgiving Break.    A lot of things are due and a lot of activities are scheduled.  Here are some ideas for handling the end -of-semester overload and stress:

• Look at the time as a whole – map out the final weeks, see what you have due and when.  When are your finals?  How much time do you have off for Thanksgiving?

• Work ahead and have projects done a day or two early.  Problems always happen – you run out of printer ink or money for the copy machine for example!

• Is there a final that is critical to a higher grade in that class or a class that has been challenging all semester?  If so, make a study guide and review that information for about 15 – 20 minutes every day above and beyond your regular studying.

• Make sure you know if each final is cumulative or covers the last unit of the semester.

• Start to prepare for exams now.  Don’t wait for the professor to tell you what will be on the exam.  Study everything.

• Plan some off time to handle the end-of-semester stress.  Plan a movie date or dinner with friends.  Also, look forward to the time off over Thanksgiving and between semesters.   You can work hard for a few weeks if you know some relaxing time will follow!

This is a busy and fun time of the year.  You can enjoy it and still end the semester well with a good time management plan.

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (of Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

 

Dealing with Distrations

There really is not a lot to say about distractions except that you have to remove yourself from them.  Learning takes extended concentration.   You cannot learn if you are constantly checking your email, going on Twitter, playing a game on the computer, etc.  You have to pay attention to what you are doing – one thing at a time. 

Sometimes this is as easy as disabling Facebook for an hour, turning off your phone, going to the Library away from your friends, or turning off the television.  (I know this sounds extreme – but you really can do this!!)  You are not isolating yourself for the rest of your life, just for a short period of time.  If someone expects to be in constant contact with you via texting or Twitter, tell them you are studying for a specific length of time and then reconnect with them when you are done.

Other times the distractions are more intrinsic – inside your own mind.  These types of distractions could include family or financial worries, grade concerns, contentious relationships with friends or significant others or other problems.   These are a bit harder to deal with, but it can be done. 

• One idea is to physically write down what you are worried about the then physically set the list aside and study.  This physical act helps you set the worries aside and learn. 
• Another idea, strange as it seems, is to designate specific times when you will actively worry about the problem and then visualize yourself moving forward from the worry.  
• It might also help to think of a plan of action – when and how will you deal with this worry. 
• Finally, consider going to the Health Center at your school and talking with someone impartial – not connected with your concern.  It is a big help just to verbalize what you are worrying about and put it in perspective.

The good news is that if you eliminate distractions and pay attention to your studies, you will be more successful and more efficient – you will be done sooner!

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (of Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

How Do You Find the Big Picture and Supporting Details?

I am grading essay exams this weekend, and some of my students did a good job of finding the important details but missed the big picture – the main point of the article and how the information was organized to support that point.  Here are some ideas to “see the big picture.”

1. Preview what you are reading first to get the overview.

2. Read an article twice – first rather quickly to see the big picture and then again to fit in the details.

3. Read with two purposes – see overall topic and organization and the supporting details.

4. If it is a very dense textbook chapter without a lot of help (headings, learning objectives, etc.), skim first, and then read more closely.

5. Ask yourself: “What is the issue?  What is the topic?”

6. If it is a fiction book, read the back cover and any other information provided.  As you are reading keep an open mind regarding what the book is about.  Sometimes in fiction it takes a while for the author to reveal the main story.

This is an important reading and thinking skill.  For many experienced readers it happens automatically.  Be aware of your comprehension process and reading strategies and actively look for “the big picture.”

First Semester Success: Study Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Arden B. Hamer, is now available at wordassociation.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

Think of Learning as a Process

What you do before and after a learning experience makes a difference in how effective you are. 

Before you are preparing your mind to take in the information. 

After you are helping the information become secured in your memory.

 Here are some ideas:

Reading textbooks

Before

Preview the information by leafing through looking for the organization, bold print, etc.
Read the Learning Objectives
Read the Conclusion at the end

After

Read the Learning Objectives and supply the information
Go back through the chapter and read your margin notes, highlighting or heading and bold print
Take any quiz available and review ones you miss
Make a study guide from the information

Taking lecture notes

Before

Read corresponding textbook chapter
Print out and read the power points or lecture notes professor has posted on-line
Review previous notes

After

Reread notes, make corrections and fill in missing information
Use recitation (restate in your own words from memory) to see how much of the information you can remember
Turn notes into a study guide

Active Learning

Learning must be active – you need to be actively involved and thinking about the information you are trying to learn.  Here are some ideas:

Manipulate the information – rewrite the information into a different format such as a review chart, concept map, study cards, outline, etc.

Connect the information with what you already know from your background, another class, you career goal, whatever connection you can make

Recite – read over a section, close your book, and restate the information in your own words

Teach - Form a study group and teach each other

Review – once you have learned the information, review it every day for a short period of time spaced out over a week or more

Test – make a practice test, put it aside and then test yourself in a few days.  Or use any quiz or “Terms to Know” available in your textbook or on line.

 You get the idea – anything more than just passively “rereading” or “reviewing.”   The more actively you are involved with the information the better you will understand and retain it! 

Annotation or Margin Notes

One way you can increase your reading efficiency and retention is by writing brief notes in the margins of your textbooks.  These are called annotations or margin notes.  They are short, maybe just a few key words, and summarize the important information contained in a paragraph or section. 

 

 

By using this strategy while you read, you are becoming a much more active reader.  This will result in higher comprehension and retention. 

 

 

Here is what to do:

1.         Read the paragraph or section.

2.         Think about what is the important information you need to remember.

3.         Condense that information into a few key words.

4.         Write the words in the margin of the page near where you found the information.

 

 

There are other ways you can mark your pages:

• Write numbers beside where items are listed.
• Write "def" beside where an important word is defined.
• Draw a small concept map or chart in a white space to help you understand something.
• Circle names or important dates
• Put a star or arrow beside something that is important

Keep in mind that this is a new way to read and may be uncomfortable at first.  But isn't any change uncomfortable?  Give it time and you will wonder how you ever read without a pen or pencil in your hand!

 

 

By using this strategy you are ensuring that you will be actively involved with the information and doing much more than simply letting the words run through your mind.

How to Choose a Major

It is much more difficult to pass up fun, social activities and focus on your studies if you are undecided about what you want to major in and do with your life.   Also, there is a lot of pressure from colleges and universities to declare a major early in your academic career, but making this decision often is hard.  Here are some things to do as you start to explore your options:

If your institution has a Career Center, take advantage of that.  The people there are trained professionals to help you with this decision and can give you expert guidance and advice.

See if there are any Career Exploration classes available.

Take advantage of computer-based inventories such as the Myers Briggs.  That particular one will lead you to consider such things as whether you like to work with people compared to more independently or if you like a fairly rigid schedule compared to a spontaneous and flexible one.

Listen to your heart.  What are you doing when you feel the most fulfilled and excited?  In the past, what have you done when you felt very satisfied about your day?  Can these be incorporated into a career or will they be your hobby and recreational activities?

Look at the government websites about job availability and future growth.

Read the course descriptions in your college catalogue.   Which ones sound interesting or boring?  That could give you some information about what you are interested in.

Over break or vacations consider shadowing people in various careers.  You want to know what they actually DO on a day-to-day basis as opposed to how glamorous their job sounds.  (This may take a little work to find these people.  Ask your parents’ friends, your friends’ parents, people from your church, people you talk to on a regular basis.  Most people love to share what they do and are very willing to help a young person along in their career choices.)

Many people are working in a field different from their major or only slightly connected to their major. 

Remember that some of the most important things you will learn in college include critical thinking, independent learning and problem solving.  These skills transfer across all areas.

Good luck!

Why Are You in College?

I have been reading final papers from an Early Entrance Experience  program I taught one week before our regular semester started.   One of the topics the students wrote about was their decision to attend college. Many of them wrote that they found it useful and motivational to consciously think about their decision now that they were actually on campus.

As I am writing this it is now a few weeks into the semester.  You are probably finding the work more demanding than you expected.   This is a good time to pause and reflect on the same topic – why are you in college?  Why did you make this decision?

* Was it assumed you would attend college and there was no other option –OR- did you make a conscious choice?

* Does everyone in your family have a degree –OR- will you be the first?

* Do you have successful examples to live up to –OR- are you setting the example for younger siblings and relatives?

* Do you want to live up to someone’s faith in you –OR- do you want to prove wrong the people who said you could not be   successful?

* Do you have a clear career goal –OR- are you searching for the right major for you?

Whatever the answers are to these questions, you are the one responsible for your success.  Thinking about why you are in college will go a long way toward keeping you motivated and on track.

Take Care of Your Health

 How you feel physically has a big influence on your ability to learn. Plan to take care of yourself in these three ways:

• Sleep: The best way to get a good night’s sleep is to go to bed and get up at about the same time every day. Naps are fine, but a nap is about 20–30 minutes. If you get into your pajamas and under the covers, you have gone back to bed! Too much sleep during the day can disrupt your sleep at night and take away from valuable study time.

• Exercise: Exercise has multiple benefits—it helps your brain function well, gives you energy, helps keep your weight under control, and helps you fight off germs. Most schools have beautiful fitness centers and organized classes—take advantage of what they have to offer.

• Good nutrition: On many college dining plans you can eat whatever and whenever you want, but there is no one to remind you to plan or eat balanced meals. Remember to eat from a variety of groups and include fresh fruit and vegetables. Don’t go crazy with sugary desserts and fried food.

 The better you physically feel, the better you will be able to concentrate and learn.

 

Things to Consider at the Beginning of the Semester

Whether you are a freshman or a returning student, there are several things to consider at the beginning of each semester.

• How are your classes scheduled throughout the day?  Is there time to study between classes?  Will you, or will you be tempted to go back to your room and relax or nap?

• Exactly when and where are you going to study?  Make sure you start the habit of enough study time this first week!

• How are you going to keep your assignments and exams under control?  Where will you record your assignments?   Make sure it is someplace you look at every day.

• How are you going to keep all of your class material organized?   Will you use one large notebook or individual notebooks?  Will you have a folder for each class?

• Are you able to buy your textbooks?  If not, ask your professor if you can borrow one or use one in the Library.

• Do you understand your school’s technology system – any programs your professors are using, the formal email account, etc.?   Many professors will not answer email from an outside account plus you will miss any all-class emails the professor sends if you are not using your school account.

• What is your plan to stay healthy?  When will you exercise?  What exactly does it mean to eat a healthy diet?  

• What help is available if you get sick?  Think about it now, not if it actually happens and your feel terrible.

This is a lot to organize and we have not yet thought about how you will actually LEARN the material from your classes.  That will be next week’s topic.  Until then, enjoy your academic experience and start the semester with good habits!

Returning for the Fall Semester

If you are a returning college student headed back to college, here are some things to think about:

                                                    

If you are doing well:

• What learning strategies do you use that work well for you?
• What academic habits do you have that are helping you be successful?

If you are struggling:

• What have you been doing (or not doing) that is getting in the way of your success?
• What positive steps can you take this semester to improve things?
• What concrete learning strategies can you add to your studying?

For all students:

• What classes are you taking this semester?
• How are they spaced out during the day?
• What will be good times for you to study?
• Which class will be the most challenging?  What will make it challenging?  What learning strategies can you use in that class?  Is there help on campus for that class?

Think ahead and plan now how you will approach the semester.  Then hit the ground running that first week. 

 

Keep Learning Over the Summer

If you are not taking classes over the summer, what can you do to keep moving forward in your academics and future career?  Here are some ideas:

• Read the newspaper.  Look for articles that connect to your major as well as any Liberal Studies classes you are taking in the fall.
• Read books that pertain to your major.
• Read anything!  This keeps your brain working and improves your vocabulary.
• If you will be taking courses in the fall that involve math, do some work to keep up your skills – get a workbook and study, go to www.freerice.com and do some practice problems, get a math book from your local library and review.  There are multiple options!
• Consider doing some service for others.  Not only does this prepare you for the working world, you will gain leadership experience and have something to put on your resume.
• If you have a job, pay attention!  What is happening in the business?  How are people interacting?  How can you use this experience to your advantage?
• If you know someone working in your future field, ask if you can accompany them to work for a day or a few days.  Ask questions.  Learn all you can about the field.

There are always ways to move forward and gain knowledge and experience.  Be aware of what is going on around you and be open (and prepared!) for opportunities.

Learning Through Your Senses – Muscle Movement

Many students like to be on the move – they don’t like to sit still.  They get restless during long classes and have a hard time paying attention.  They don’t like to sit and read or listen for a long time.  If they want to learn something, they prefer to do it themselves as opposed to reading the directions or having someone tell them what to do.   If this is you, here are some ways to add large and small muscle movement into your studying:

• Make and use study cards.  You will like the manipulation aspect.
• Take notes, rewrite notes, make charts, graphs and study guides – you are using small muscles!
• Likewise, annotate when reading.  The small muscle movement of writing will help keep you engaged.
• Take your review chart and study it while on the treadmill or exercise bike.
• Tape your notes and listen while walking or running.
• Make use of small segments of time by carrying your study cards with you.
• Try to avoid 3 hour, once-a-week classes if possible.  If you must take a long class, be sure to get up and walk around during the break.
• When studying, take breaks every 30 minutes or so.  (By a “break” I mean a few minutes to walk around, not two hours to hang out with friends!)
• Seek out classes with a lab component or where students do projects as opposed to exams.

Any way you can add movement will help you stay on task and learn!

Learning Through Your Senses - Hearing

Think about how you like to get directions to somewhere you have never been.   Do you like to follow a map or a list of directions like you get from MapQuest?  Or do you remember best if someone verbally tells you where to go and maybe you repeat the information back to them.  If this second way seems the best, you may like to learn through your sense of hearing.  There are several study strategies you can use that use sound and words:

• Read your textbooks or notes out loud.
• Read them to some sort of rhythm.
• Tape yourself reading them and then listen while driving or exercising.
• Form a study group and explain the class information to each other or quiz each other.
• Teach the information to someone else.
• Background noise is fine while studying; just don’t let it overpower your thoughts.  And remember that you will be taking the exam in silence.
• Of course, make sure that you attend all classes so that you hear your professor explain the information as well as your classmates’ discussions.

Next – study strategies using large and small muscle movements.

Learning Through Your Senses - Visual

One way you can increase your learning is by using your various senses (sight, hearing, touch or movement) while studying.  Here are some ways to incorporate the visual sense in your learning:

• Create charts or graphs
• Add color to your notes, charts, study cards, etc.
• Draw pictures
• Look at pictures or videos on the Internet
• Pay attention to diagrams
• Create your own diagrams
• Visualize what you are reading or studying
• If you are studying a person, find a picture so that you know what they actually looked like

You even might find that you can visualize your study aids when you are taking an exam!  

If you like color and visuals, these suggestions will make your learning and studying more effective and enjoyable.

Study = Learning + Review

I was talking with my grandson who is finishing seventh grade about what it means to “study.”   He had “looked over” his science notes, but was that really studying?  My reply was that what he did was “review” and he had yet to fully “study.”

So what is the difference? 

There are two parts to studying:

1. Learning – this is your initial and ongoing work with the information and is quite in depth.   You can use a variety of strategies to learn the material.  These include:

• Reading and note-taking
• Rereading
• Making Study Guides such as concept maps, charts, study cards, questions and answers
• Recitation – restating in your own words from memory
• Rewriting
• Working through practice problems

2. Reviewing – this is what you do to keep the information fresh in your memory after you have learned it.  Strategies to do this include:

• Recitation using the study guide you made during the learning stage
• Distributed practice – review the information for short periods spread out over time
• Rereading notes and/or study guides
• Practice problems
• Taking any practice quizzes or tests available through the textbook or your professor

You can see that this is quite time consuming, but learning does not happen quickly.  It takes time and effort.

Keep up the hard work!

Grades are Posted – Now What??

Now that you have your semester grades, what’s next?

If you are happy with your grades:

• Think about what you did well this semester.
• What did you do in your classes and when studying to be successful?
• Is there anything you didn’t do but should have?
• (This would be an appropriate time to make a list and pack it with your next semester belongings!)
• How can you transfer those same work and study habits to the next semester?
• What courses are you taking next semester?  Which ones will be more challenging?  What can you do to be successful in those classes?
• Enjoy some well-deserved relaxation time!

If you are NOT happy with your grades:

• What went wrong?   (Don’t entirely blame others – what was your responsibility?)
• What could you have done differently?
• (Again – consider making a list and putting it where you will find it next semester.)
• What can you do to fix things?   (Maybe change your next semester schedule and add a D/F repeat?)
• Review your goals.  Why do you want to go to college?  What sacrifices are you willing to make to be successful in your future classes?  
• Take some time to renew your goals and your determination to be successful!

This is the perfect time to reflect and review.  Then resolve to do well or even better next semester!