The majority of students can weakly infer that studying longer will cause higher test scores. The two factors may correlate with one another, but certainly one does not cause the other. In fact, it is the exact opposite. A UCLA study came to the conclusion that if you find yourself aggressively cramming for a test, such a pulling an all-nighter, the results are actually counterproductive. The fact is, you need your sleep, and without it your learning will be deprived. So the million dollar question is this: How can I study for a shorter amount of time and still get the grades that I desire? Please observe the Brendan Feifer (me) process on how to study and reap the benefits of TIME MANAGEMENT!
Step 1: Buy a Planner:
As corny as it sounds, this is how you will begin the process of reducing study time. I’m a freshman, but I was here for summer classes. Buying a planner allows me to budget my time and take things day by day, which is pivotal in keeping my stress levels from going through the roof. You don’t have to write down every little detail of your day in a planner; simply just write down what you need to get done for that particular day. A planner, which can be found pretty much anywhere on campus, is the first step towards studying success.
Step 2: Actually Write IN the Textbook:
We buy our overpriced textbooks to learn from, so we might as well us them for reasons other than to gather dust on our desk. When taking notes, it is imperative to highlight and mark our textbooks up. Writing in our textbooks allows us to critically think for ourselves and serves as the basis for originality. Just think about it. The clothes we wear, the buildings we see, Beaver Stadium; what do these all have in common? They stem from drawings and writings. They are original because they are handwritten. Sure computers are neat and serve as a multipurpose, but they’re distracting and don’t pave the way for cognitive originality. UCLA professor Patricia Greenfield analyzed over 50 studies on the correlation between technology and critical thinking and based off of her findings, she concluded that students when given internet access don’t essentially focus as well than kids without internet access. The results carry over to studying as well. If you use textbooks to their fullest potential, you will not only eliminate the alluring temptation of social media, but you can highlight key information so that when it is time to study, you don’t have to reread the whole chapter again.
Step 3: If You can Teach it, then You know It
If you’re studying for an exam and bored out of your mind, two things could be happening. One, the content you are studying very well may put anyone to sleep. Two, you are not studying correctly. Get up! Get active! Try explaining to your roommate what you need to know, assuming he or she has no prior recollection of the material that you are trying to explain. During my time here over the summer, I took a mass media class that was filled with endless vocabulary words. Rather than apply brute memorization to try and memorize the words, I explained to some of my friends (no I’m not lame for this) what the vocab words meant in context! Thus, I applied each word to a particular memory I could easily recall during test time. Not only did it make the process of learning the words easier, it made the time go by quicker in which it took to learn the words all by having fun at the same time.
Does anybody have any study tips that they use for themselves, or any that could be prevalent to this class? Comment below!
I definitely agree that sleep is super important when it comes to doing well on a test or exam, because no matter how hard you studied, if you’re sleep deprived it’s going to be harder to focus and remember all the information you crammed into your brain at 3 AM. As well, planners and having a calendar are my favorite ways to keep organized and therefore study better. I write out all my due dates and test dates, as well as whatever activities or meetings I have, and then everyday when I get back from class I’m able to see what I need to get done for the next day and what the rest of my week looks like in terms of scheduling so I know how much time I’ll have to do homework and get stuff done each day.
This article is very relatable for all college age students, especially freshman like myself who are just getting a hang of the study habits needed to succeed in classes. I also agree that studying for a long chunk of time at once has obvious negative benefits, aside from getting tired while cramming for a test/ pulling an all nighter, I’ve personally experienced getting extremely bored from trying to interpret concepts all at once. I find myself getting distracted much easier, and ending up watching Netflix or scrolling through social media feeds. This is probably another reason why studying for a long time at once is not beneficial for most students. I’ve found from personal experience that a great way to study for an upcoming exam is to periodically review the information as it’s taught in class. This way your studying little by little every night, and can clear up any confusion long before your actually tested on the information.
Nice blog post! You do a great job of mixing your personal opinion in with scientific studies to back up your tips. I use a planner and write myself lists before I start my day. This guarantees that I will complete the goals I set for the day (or at least most of them). While I’m pretty good at time management, I have a terrible time studying for tests and exams. I have two coming up next week and I’m too nervous to crack open a study guide. I find myself getting easily distracted while studying and not absorbing the material that I write down in front of me. Talking about the subjects is great advise and I’ll surely try that while studying this week.
I think that these are some very helpful tips. Too often, people think that the more the work on study, the better they will do. But if you are not using good study practices, and haven’t been learning the material all along versus all in one day, you are not going to get much done. I completely agree with the idea of writing in the text book. I find that when I add my own notes, or summarize a whole section of reading in a bullet or two in the margin, I will remember the material more. And highlighting key ideas while reading makes it easier to find them when you go back to study later. Also, once a person buys a planner, they need to make sure to actually write in it and check it for important dates. You don’t want to be missing assignment deadlines or important meetings, especially this early in the year.
Something that always helps me is going over notes after class ends. I find that it refreshes my memory so I’m more capable of making connections between class material, especially since we only have class twice a week! Also, to help with preparation, I’ll usually get everything for the next day organized and in my backpack the night before. Some days you wake up late, you know, and it helps to be able to grab your bag and just go.
P.S. I like how you ended your blog with a suggestion for comments; I hadn’t seen that before and I think people should do that more often!
During high school, I was one of those people who could study the material the night before and then be fine for the test the next day. I did study though. Some people I know got through by just looking it over minutes before the test started. My favorite study tip is: Use Flash Cards. Flash cards have always been my life line throughout school. It might seem a bit elementary, but if you make flash cards you are first, writing down every definition you need for the test (which is studying in itself) and then second, you are making a portable, easy, and efficient study guide. With flash cards, I always loved how I could make different piles and treat every definition like an actual object saying, “I got this” or ” I need to go over this one again.” Reading definitions on a paper never worked for me because it was way to cluttered and overwhelming. I love the tip you wrote called “If you can teach it , then you know it.” I never thought about this as a study tip, but I can definitely see the benefits of it. This website gives more tips about how to actually learn the material and not just memorize it, which I think can be very helpful for this class because all our tests are open note. Memorizing the notes is not going to help us for the tests, but learning the concepts definitely will.
I can relate that all-nighters do not work with studying for big tests. My Junior year in high school, I scheduled to take my SATs in the spring. At the time, I was doing Softball, involved in 10+ clubs, and babysat my siblings at night. As you can probably tell, I didn’t have time to study. When it came a week before time to take my test, I started cram studying and pulling all-nighters! The night before my test I stayed up until 2am studying material I did not know for a test that began at 8am. I obviously, overslept and did poorly on my SATs. I rescheduled for late fall of my Senior year. Second time around my test scores improved by hundreds. I found out that when studying, you want to pace yourself. Give yourself little breaks between so your brain isn’t fried. I liked to study 30mins straight and then give myself a 10 minute break. I’d either play a game, take a walk or call up a friend. After 10 minutes, I’d test myself on the material I studied previously then move on! It’s one of the best study habits I made up for myself and it has definitely not let me down yet. So I definitely recommend!