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STUDY SKILLS:
The ability of any learner to study successfully depends to a great extent on his fundamental study skills, i.e. his ability to concentrate, to perceive correctly and accurately, as well as the ability to remember what has been perceived.
Study skills should not be confused with study techniques and study methods. The difference between these can be explained by using the game of soccer as example. In order to be a soccer player, a person FIRST has to master the fundamental soccer skills, e.g. passing, heading, and dribbling the ball. Only after that can he be taught techniques and methods. In the same way, in order to be a good student, a learner FIRST has to master the fundamental study skills.
Mnemonics training is often done without keeping this sequential fashion of learning in mind. A mnemonic is a specific reconstruction of target content intended to tie new information more closely to the learner's existing knowledge base and, therefore, facilitate retrieval. There are a variety of mnemonic techniques, including keywords, pegwords, acronyms, loci methods, spelling mnemonics, phonetic mnemonics, number-sound mnemonics, and Japanese “Yodai” methods. An example of an acronym is to remember the word HOMES to recall the names of the Great Lakes: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior. The purpose of number-sound mnemonics is to recall strings of numbers, such as telephone numbers, addresses, locker combinations or historical dates. To use them, learners must first learn the number-sound relationships: 0=s; 1=t; 2=n; 3=m; 4=r; 5=l; 6=sh, ch, or soft g, 7=k, hard c, or hard g; 8=f or v; and 9=p. To remember the date 1439, for example, the learner uses the associated consonant sounds, t, r, m and p, and will insert vowels to create a meaningful word or words. In this case, the word “tramp” can be used.
There are, however, at least two problems in improving memory by means of mnemonic instruction. The first problem is -- as already stated -- that it overlooks the sequential fashion of learning. Mnemonics instruction is, to a large extent, instruction in memory techniques, which should be taught only AFTER the skill of memory has been learned. It can be compared to a person being taught soccer tactics, such as the “wall pass,” while he has not yet adequately mastered the skill of passing the ball. As stated in ‘Knowabout Soccer', “No matter how good your passing technique, if the quality of your passing is poor, your technique will not be effective.” The second problem is that by teaching memory crutches only, the result is, as stated by Scruggs and Mastropieri, “on more complex applications, generalization attempts [are] less successful.” If the SKILL of memory is taught, however, the learner can apply it in any situation.
STUDY TECHNIQUES:
There are three learning techniques that can be employed to make study more successful
1. Association: This is probably the most important and most effective of all the learning techniques, of which mnemonics is probably the most commonly used association technique.
2. Thinking in pictures: One is able to remember much better what has been seen in the mind's eye than what has been thought in abstract terms. Therefore, one should always consciously try to think in terms of pictures.
3. Reduce frequency of brain waves: The brain usually vibrates at 20 cycles per second or higher. Dr. Georgi Lozanov was probably the first who discovered that, if the frequency of the brain waves is reduced, more effective study becomes possible. He found that playing slow Baroque music could reduce the frequency of brain waves. José Silva was probably the first who discovered a method to reduce the frequency of brain waves at will.
STUDY METHODS:
Most learners have the bad habit of only studying the day before a test or exam. There are two serious disadvantages attached to this method of study:
1. There is never any regular practice of study skills.
2. It has been found that within 24 hours -- on an average -- one forgets up to 80% of what one has learned. If, however, the study material is reviewed after 24 hours, it takes 7 days before 80% is forgotten again, and if another review is done at this point, then it takes 30 days to forget 80% again.
Research has shown that, if the correct pattern or review of studied material is followed, memory consolidation is enhanced significantly, and the overall time spent in learning is slashed dramatically. The following pattern of initial study and subsequent review will certainly deliver excellent results:
1. Set up a timetable that is divided in study periods of 30 minutes each. On the first day on which this new timetable will be implemented, take the first study period to learn some study material thoroughly. It must be brief enough so that it can be absorbed in only about 15 minutes. Once the full study program is in operation, as you will soon realize when you read further, one only has about 15 minutes in each study period of 30 minutes in which to study and absorb new material. The rest of the time is spent on reviewing previously learned material. The piece of work must be summarized and thoroughly studied in these 30 minutes. Take a rest of 5 minutes at the end of the study period.
2. Review after 5 minutes. Take 3 minutes of the next study period to review the study material of the previous study period, before new material is again summarized and thoroughly studied.
3. Review after 24 hours. Take 3 minutes to review the material that was studied the previous day. Then take 3 minutes to review the work that was studied 5 minutes ago, before again studying and summarizing new material.
4. Review after 7 days. Take 3 minutes to review the work that was reviewed 7 days ago, before reviewing the work that was studied the day before, and then reviewing the work that was studied 5 minutes ago.
5. Review after 30 days. Take 3 minutes to review the work that was already reviewed 30 days ago, before reviewing the work of 7 days ago, then that of 24 hours ago, and then that of 5 minutes ago.
6. Review after 120 days. Take 3 minutes to review the work that was studied 120 days ago, then the work that was studied 30 days ago, before reviewing the work of 7 days ago, then that of 24 hours ago, and then that of 5 minutes ago.
1. Find a quiet area in your house in which you are comfortable and can isolate yourself from distractions. Be sure that this space includes a chair, table or desk, and sufficient lighting. Ask others not to disturb you while you are in this special location and turn off all phones, beepers, televisions, videos, music, or anything else that your mind will wander to instead of focusing on the schoolwork.
2. Find the best time to study. Some students tend to do their best work as soon as they get home from school while they are still in the school mode. Others need a break and don't settle down to study until after practice, playtime, a nap, dinner and/or family time. Just be sure to allow yourself enough time to get everything done and still get enough sleep each night.
3. Organize your day, week, month, etc. Set aside a specific time each day to do your homework and study. Decide on a reasonable minimum amount of time that you will spend in this quiet place each day. For instance, lets say you decide on 45 minutes as a reasonable amount of time to dedicate to schoolwork each day. This means that even if homework is completed in the first 35 minutes that you will still stay in this area and study or review notes for the next 10 minutes until the 45 is up.
4. Reward yourself for sticking to your schedule and being productive. Decide on an activity to do once your study time is completed. Plan on watching a television show later in the evening. Tell yourself that you will play five minutes of a video game for every fifteen minutes that you study. Create goals and their rewards before you start studying and work hard to reach them each and every day.
5. Variety is important. Vary the topics that you are spending time studying. Get the mandatory homework out of the way first and then go back and spend the additional time reviewing material from different courses each day. If you spent extra time reviewing history yesterday, spend the additional time on science tonight. Some subject areas may require more time than others. You should get a feel for this a month or so into the school year.
6. Study the difficult subjects first and get them out of the way. You will be able to absorb material quicker and make more connections when you are mentally fresh.
7. Take regular study breaks. This can also serve as a mini-reward. For instance, tell yourself that you are going to get a drink or snack or listen to a specific song after you finish re-copying your notes for science. Make the breaks short, 3-6 minutes or so, so you won't get side-tracked or lose focus for the day.
8. Don't just re-read notes or the text. Ask questions. Create flash-cards. Redo assignments. Create time-lines. Play games. Re-write your notes. Get someone to quiz you. Find websites online that review the same material. Make up questions that you think will be on the test. Create new outlines of the material by writing some specific topics and filling in the details from memory. Studying should be an active process, not just time spent re-reading something.
9. When you need to remember a group of terms use the first letter of each to create a word (acronym) or a sentence (acrostic). For instance, an easy way to remember the five Great Lakes is the word “HOMES”. By just remembering the word “homes” you can easily remember the names of the five Great Lakes . H stands for Huron, O for Ontario , M for Michigan , and so on. You can also create silly sentences to help you remember long lists of terms. For instance, remembering the sentence “Martha Visits Every Monday, Just Stays Until Noon, Period”, will help you remember the planets in the order they are found. M for Mercury, V for visits, E for Earth, etc.
10. Become a teacher. Find someone who is willing to listen to you –, a classmate (this would be a great review for them), Mom or Dad, a sibling, the family dog – and explain your notes to them. Have them (except the dog) ask questions about the material that they themselves don't understand. It's amazing how much you can retain when you have to actually teach material to someone.
11. Repetition, repetition, repetition. The material should become second nature to you by the time test day arrives. If it is not, then you need to devote more time to preparing for the test.
12. Exercise often and before you sit down to study. Research shows that students retain more after being physically active. Go to soccer practice, take a jog, rough-house with your dog, break a sweat first, then settle down and focus on your school work.