Learning as a Process - Part 5 of 7

The goal of the learning process is to get information from your short-term, working memory to your long-term memory.


Short-term/working memory - this is what you are using when you are studying (reading, taking notes, learning your notes, making study guides, etc.)


Long-term memory - This is where you store all that you know and where you get the information when taking an exam.


So the question is ...How does the information go from the short-term to the long-term memory?


And the answer is ...It gets there by using a variety of strategies including self-testing combined with repetition and spacing these strategies out over time.

• Variety means doing different things with the information - reading, taking notes, recitation (restating in your own words from memory), study guides, study cards, practice tests, the list is endless!
• Repetition - You have to revisit the information you want to learn multiple times before it becomes firmly fixed in your long-term memory.
• Spaced out over time - it does not work to go over and over the information in one study period, it needs to be spaced over time.   Sixty minutes of study is very effective in 20 minute increments spread over three days, while 60 minutes the night before the exam is not effective.

So as you can see, getting the knowledge firmly into your long-term memory is a process that takes time and effort!


In the next blog we will look at the end result of this process - successfully taking exams.


*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Learning as a Process - Part 4 of 7

While "review" is just the beginning of the learning process, it is important both when taking lecture notes and in academic reading. 

With your lecture notes, you should review them as soon as possible after the class, definitely before the next class.  When you review you can do the following:

* Make any corrections needed
* Make sure your notes are clear - add more information if necessary.
* Highlight or do what is needed to be able to easily see the major topics and subtopics.
* Rewrite if needed.  For example, if your professor is not organized, you may need to rewrite your notes into some organizational format, perhaps one that follows the book.

With textbook reading, when you are done and before you move on to something else, take a few minutes to review what you have read.  This is important because it gives the information time to start to settle into your long-term memory.  You can review by doing the following:

* Reread your annotations (margin notes), separate notes or what you highlighted.
* Look at the Learning Objectives and see if you can remember the information.
* Look back through the chapter and reread the bold print.
* If there are "Terms to Know" at the end of the chapter, see if you can define those.

At this point, with either lecture notes or textbook reading, you can then begin the learning process.  One easy step is to test yourself with recitation.  Reread a section and then restate the information in your own words from memory.  If you can do this, move on to another logical section. If you cannot, reread or review and try again.

The next blog will look at moving information from your short-term to your long-term memory.
*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Learning as a Process - Part 3 of 7

Just like being an effective note-taker, being an effective academic reader is a process.  You can do things before you start, while you are reading and after you are done that will enhance your comprehension and retention of the material.  Here are some ideas:

Before reading -

• Be sure you know your purpose - that will direct which strategies you use during and after reading.
• Be sure you have some background knowledge about what you are going to read.
• Preview the assignment - this will also help  you gain background knowledge.
• Look at the topic of the selection and how it is organized.
• Read the learning objectives, headings and subheadings.
• Look at any information in bold print.
• Look at the pictures.
• See how long it is.
• Make a reading plan - if the assignment is too long to read in one sitting, divide it into a manageable part and read that.  Do NOT just stop in the middle of the sentence when your time is up!  Use any extra time to review what you read.

While you are reading -

• Strive to understand (I know this sounds obvious, but your mindset is important!)
• Monitor your comprehension and reread if it breaks down.
• Look for the overall organization.
• Look for signals from the author - context clues, signal words, bold print, spacing, etc.
• Use recitation - after reading a section stop and see if you can restate the information in your own words.  If you cannot, reread.
• Highlight - combine with recitation and only 25% to 30% of the page.
• Annotate or take margin notes - four steps: read, think about what you read, put into your own words, write key terms or phrases in the margin.  This has you interacting with the information in fours ways and strengthens your learning.

The next blog will look at the importance of review, both after reading an assignment and after taking lecture notes.
*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Learning as a Process: Part 2 of 7

In the last post we looked at things you can do before a lecture to prepare yourself to take effective notes.  Here are some ideas for during and after the lecture:
During the lecture -

• Look for how the professor organizes the information.
• Write down anything he or she writes on the board.
• Watch for signals such as a number indicating how many points there will be, writing something on the board, saying the information is important, etc.
• If you were able to print out the power point slides, take notes directly on those.  You may need additional paper for unrelated notes.
• Leave some space between topics so you can easily see the organization when you are studying. 
• Ask questions if you do not understand something.

When you have left the lecture class, remember that you have only recorded the information.  The true learning happens after class when you start to learn the notes.
After the lecture -

• As soon as possible review your notes - make corrections, clarification, identify questions.
• Start to learn the information.  After reading, see if you can recite the information in your own words without looking.  Check yourself.  If correct, move on to the next topic.  If incorrect, review and try again.
• Use chunking - study the information in small, logical chunks.  Do no try to learn 5 pages of notes at once.
• Consider extending your learning by putting the information into a study guide such as study cards, review chart, concept map, etc.  Reworking the information into a different format helps you understand and learn.
• Be aware that one lecture leads into the next.  For the most part they are not stand-alone pieces of information but a part of a larger topic.  Keep the big picture in mind as you move through the course.

Next week we will look at effective academic reading strategies.
*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.

Learning as a Process, Part 1 of 7

For the next several postings we will examine learning as a process.  Learning does not happen instantaneously - it takes time, effort and planning.  The postings will address:

• Taking effective lecture notes - before the lecture
• Taking effective lecture notes - during and after the lecture
• Academic Reading Strategies - before and during
• The importance of review
• Successful test-taking
• Getting information from your short-term to your long-term memory
• The flow of the semester

One thing that college students do is take a lot of lecture notes.  What you are creating is in effect another text that you will need for the class.  To learn from your notes they have to be clear, organized and complete.  In order to take effective notes your brain needs to be prepared to comprehend and record the information.  Here are some ideas to achieve that:

Before the lecture:

• Know what the topic will be (this is hopefully in your syllabus).
• Read the textbook to gain background knowledge and vocabulary.
• If there are power point slides, print them before class and review.  Consider using the format with the slides down the left side of the page and lines on the right for notes.
• Review the previous lecture as it will lead into the next one.

The important thing is to have some understanding about what will be covered in class.  It is impossible to get up to speed if you are unprepared and have no idea about the information.

The next blog will discuss what to do while you are taking the notes in order to have a working document to learn from and then what to do after the class.
*****
First Semester Success: Learning Strategies and Motivation for Your First Semester (or Any Semester) of College, by Dr. Arden B. Hamer, is available at amazon.com, wordassociation.com and barnesandnoble.com.  Click on the upper right link.