Study Tips You Can Actually Use
Author: UNB College of Extended Learning
Posted on Mar 6, 2024
Category: Our Stories , Online Learning , Professional Development , Behavioural Intervention and Autism , Degree Credit
Studying is a learned skill.
Studying doesn't come naturally for many people and most school systems in Canada don't have the time or resources to give kids and teens proper study skills.
The good news is that skills can be improved with practice and dedication.
Go beyond reading
Sitting and re-reading notes and textbooks is not the same as actively engaging with the materials. It doesn't help you retain the information in the long term.
Ways to engage in active studying:
- Test yourself regularly by creating quizzes (there are lots of apps that can help with this). Quizzing yourself is a highly effective study technique.
- Pretend you're an instructor teaching what you're studying to a class. Explain it out loud and in your own words. This is also known as the Feynman Technique.
- Make concept or mind maps, which are visual representations of information, to help you learn. Start by reading about a topic then put your books away and try to draw a concept/mind map that connects the ideas you've just read about.
- Create flashcards to encourage yourself to actively recall information. It's been shown that students who use flashcards often gain a deeper understanding of the topics, retain the knowledge longer, and are able to better apply what they've learned.
- Rewrite songs to help you remember your materials. Research shows that people remember information more easily when they sing it as a familiar tune, rhyme, or song. Use a popular song you like or write a brand new one and change the words to incorporate everything you're studying.
Short intensive focus = success
Intensive study sessions are short and allow you to get work done with minimal wasted time and effort. Research has shown that shorter, more intensive studying tends to be more effective than traditional drawn-out studying or cramming.
- Intensive sessions typically only last 30 to 45 minutes, and should include active studying strategies (like those listed under "Go beyond reading").
Spaced repetition is another strategy where you review material at ever-increasing intervals, instead of cramming everything in at the last minute. By having time intervals between your study sessions, studies show you may remember more—even if you spend fewer actual hours studying!
- In the beginning, the intervals between when you study are close together. As the material is reviewed, the intervals between when you study become longer.
Create a calendar strategy
Planning and coordinating your schedule will help you accomplish your goals and minimize distractions. The key is to pick a day of the week (like a Saturday or Sunday) and each week, on that day, plan out your calendar.
Getting the most out of your calendar:
- Start by determining how many free hours you have available.
- After that, plan out your schedule:
- Write down class times, deadlines/due dates, and appointments
- Think about each class you're in and jot down what you want to get done for that class during the week.
- Block out dedicated study times (if you use intensive studying, you only need to block out 30-45 minutes at a time, which is more manageable).
- As you plan, make sure to include how long you think each item will take.
- Now add 30% more time to all the durations you put down. We tend to underestimate how long things take.
- Do you still have time to get everything done? If not, reassess and see what can be removed or changed.
- If you find that you don't have enough hours to complete your work, you will likely have to start prioritizing things. Completing everything is a luxury that most students aren't able to do.
- If assignments and projects feel overwhelming, break them down into smaller tasks and dedicate time each week to each task until it's done.
- Before going to bed each night, look at your plan for the next day. Adjust it, if need be. We tend to be more productive if we wake up with a plan.