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!