How to properly study?

Aoifums

Sounds pretty stupid, but I really don't know how to get information in my head. All I've ever done is cram the night before (worked for the JC), but thats obviously not going to cut it. Reading over something just bores me so I don't learn.

How do you actually get something to stick in your brain?

K4t

Read it > Understand it > Keep reading it or writing it down until you remember it.

Sucks but tis the only way.

randylonghorn

Aoifums wrote: »

Sounds pretty stupid, but I really don't know how to get information in my head. All I've ever done is cram the night before (worked for the JC), but thats obviously not going to cut it. Reading over something just bores me so I don't learn.

How do you actually get something to stick in your brain?

Everyone is different, and there are lots of study skills sites out there with advice.

One approach ...

- Don't just passively read over something, make notes of important points (or highlight them, though this tends to ruin books).

- When you have read the chapter / section, glance back over the notes you made / points you highlighted.

- Close the book / notes, take a clean sheet of paper, and see how many of the points you can remember / jot down. Check back when you've finished.

- If you have time, or perhaps a couple of days later, pick out a question on that topic. Plan out (from memory) how you would answer that question using the key points you identified.

Certainly if you do it that way, you're a lot more likely to remember (at least most of) the material, and it will be a lot quicker / easier to revise ... and if you keep the notes in an orderly fashion you will have them for your revision later.

spurious

Always have a pen in your hand while studying.
Write your own notes.

elaine93

Well this is how I study, I got it from when this group came to our school before the JC to tell us how to study properly and its really good because it doesn't let you just sit looking at the book not learning anything

1.First speed read the chapter

2.Write down all the important points as you go

3.Then write down everything you can remember without looking at the book in the form of bullet points or a mindmap.

4.Check the first list of important things against the second list you did without the book.

5. Keep trying until the two lists are the same.

Also use as much colour as you can ( use highlighters, write your notes in coloured markers,pencils) and space everything out really well. You could also try reading the page aloud into a tape recorder and listen to it back if you're an auditory learner. If you do a test on what learning style you are on the internet there are loads of tips specially for each type (auditory,visual, kinesthetic)

highlydebased

randylonghorn wrote: »

Everyone is different, and there are lots of study skills sites out there with advice.

One approach ...

- Don't just passively read over something, make notes of important points (or highlight them, though this tends to ruin books).

- When you have read the chapter / section, glance back over the notes you made / points you highlighted.

- Close the book / notes, take a clean sheet of paper, and see how many of the points you can remember / jot down. Check back when you've finished.

- If you have time, or perhaps a couple of days later, pick out a question on that topic. Plan out (from memory) how you would answer that question using the key points you identified.

Certainly if you do it that way, you're a lot more likely to remember (at least most of) the material, and it will be a lot quicker / easier to revise ... and if you keep the notes in an orderly fashion you will have them for your revision later.

As difficult as it is, this is probably the best advice there is. Worked well for me last year and once I get back into the swing of it this year, hopefully I'll be rewarded in June with questions I can answer on the LC.....

TBH the hardest thing is getting yourself to actually sit down to do it...once you can do that

dory

I agree with the writing notes people. Although everyone has a different style.
For the Leaving I wrote my own notes for everything, and it worked.

For languages, try everything to speaking practice. There are conversation groups, online tutorials and stuff. Don't just rely on your teacher because they generally have too many students to listen to everyone.

For science subjects you just have to go over the stuff again and again until you know it as well as you know how to tie your laces. Good luck!

Daragh101

www.skoool.ie

its good for study notes!

amy.can.live

Yeah, I agree with the whole making notes thing because I find it easier to learn something if it's in my own words.
I also find it easier if I read it aloud to myself cos I find it sticks there. During my JC I used to have an English study thing with my friend where we got together and would quiz each other on pride and prejudice or whatever. And if you really don't like writing your own notes then there is a variety of good notes available online :-)
I'm trying to get back into studying myself, it's really hard because I'm in disbelief that I'm really gonna be sitting the LC next June or whatever lol

zoom!

this is by far the easiest and most effective way to study.

Read through a section in your book. Use your higlighter to pick up sentences or phrases that are important or useful. Get an a4 pad and pen start to read the point that you've highlited slowly and as you are write it down don't worry about neatness or anythin just scribble it as fast as you can. Then do the same for the next point. ONce you've written the second point out, straight away write the first one out again. Then write the second one out again without looking at the book. Then do that for every 2 points of information. After maybe about 8 points write them all out again without looking. If you do this you won't forget them for weeks.