BASIC STUDY SKILLS

Last Updated: 10-20-12

STUDY SKILLS:

Good study skills are a matter of attitude! Along with a positive mental attitude consider the following methods to improve your studies:

(1) STUDY IN A SPECIFIC PLACE – It should be a quiet, well lighted and comfortable area free from distractions.

(2) USE SPACED STUDY SESSIONS – Use a large number of relatively short study sessions, rather than one or two long ones. Small, frequent, 20-minute study sessions are much more effective than one large “cramming” session.

(3) TEST YOURSELF – Ask yourself questions before, during, and after your study session.

(4) OVERLEARN YOUR SUBJECT – Study more than you need to by going “above and beyond” so that you will be able to write an essay about the subject material.

(5) RECITATION – Repeat aloud what you are learning by summarizing main points.

(6) SELECTION – Learn to critically mark texts by underlining main points and making marginal notations.

(7) ORGANIZATION – Organize your material by outlining the information studied.

One last point: Take Care of Yourself – Eat a well-balanced diet and get plenty of exercise and sleep.

THE SQ3R METHOD:

This proven method of study involves the following five steps:

(1) SURVEY – Get the “big” picture first and find out where you are going and what you are going to learn. Look ahead by skimming and scanning the text. Pay special attention to chapter and section headings, as well as reviews and summaries.

(2) QUESTION – Ask yourself questions before you read and as you read in order to focus your attention on the subject being studied. Asking yourself questions helps you to get actively involved in what you are studying.

(3) READ – Read the material carefully in context and seek to understand what you are reading. Break your reading down into small “digestible” sections. Write brief notes about what you are reading. Highlight or underline key words and sentences.

(4) RECITE – Stop after each section and restate and summarize what you have read. Answer the questions you previously asked yourself. This is one of the most important parts of the study process and aids in memory reinforcement. Recitation is one of the most efficient methods of study. It is even more effective than reading the same material over and over again without recitation and review.

(5) REVIEW – After you have finished, go back over the material you have studied as well as any notes that you have taken. This should be done several times. Your goal is to over learn the material.

(This method is also called THE PQRST METHOD involving the same five steps: (1) PREVIEW; (2) QUESTION; (3) READ; (4) STATE; and (5) TEST.)

READING SKILLS:

Reading is probably one of the most important skills that you will ever develop! Therefore, consider THE FOUR “R’s” OF READING:

(1) READ ALOUD CAREFULLY – Active reading, using as many senses as possible, is always best.

(2) REFLECT PURPOSEFULLY – Think about what you are reading and ask yourself questions about the material. Read to understand. Read for comprehension. Pay attention to chapter headings and subheadings. Study all pictures and illustrations. Look for topic and summary sentences in paragraphs, transitional statements, and end-of-chapter summaries.

(3) RECORD WHAT YOU READ WITH A PENCIL AND PAPER – Learn to underline and outline key information. Look for the main ideas and summarize information.

(4) REVIEW WHAT YOU HAVE READ – Go over the material one more time and ask key questions of “Who? What? Why? When? Where? and How?”

Perhaps the most important success secret in reading is: READ EXTENSIVELY – Read as much as you can in as many areas as you can! Read with a dictionary at hand and work on building your vocabulary.

MEMORY SKILLS:

Memory involves the following THREE STAGES: (1) Sensory Memory – Incoming information that comes from either the eyes or the ears is literally held in memory for up to 2 seconds. This information is either attended to (selective attention) and sent to short-term memory or not attended to and forgotten. (2) Short-Term Memory – This area of working memory is a temporary storehouse for small amounts of information. (3) Long-Term Memory – This area is a permanent storehouse for meaningful information. Information is remembered only when this order is followed. The reason we forget things is usually because we did not remember them in the first place! Memory can be improved and aided by using the following techniques:

(1) USE MENTAL PICTURES – Make a visual picture of what you are trying to remember. The more unusual or bizarre the picture and its connection to what you are remembering, the easier it is to remember it.

(2) MAKE THINGS MEANINGFUL – You can memorize something much more easily if you first seek to thoroughly understand it. Organize and arrange your material into smaller “chunks” or units. Systematize the information.

(3) MAKE THINGS FAMILIAR – Connect and associate what you do not know with what you do know. Move from the general to the specific as you build upon your knowledge.

(4) RECITE AND REPEAT – Go over and over and over (i.e., rehearse) the material you are memorizing. This area is most basic to memorization as it moves information from short-term memory to long-term memory through reinforcement.

(5) MEMORIZE ACTIVELY – Use all of your senses in memorizing something. See it, hear it, think it, speak it, write it.

(6) USE MNEMONIC DEVICES – These memory devices utilize acrostics, creative acrostic sentences, rhymes and songs, and other specialized techniques.

(7) KEEP A POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE – You can if you think you can. If you tell yourself you have a bad memory you will have a bad memory.

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