Study Tips

Study Tips

Preparing to study:

Set your objectives: Before you start studying decide what you want to achieve.This will decide the level of commitment and time you need to dedicate to your studies.

Devise a study plan: Determine which times of the week you will study.Split these times into sessions of at least 1 hour for study of new material.Shorter time periods can be used for revision.Make a plan of your study and stick to it.Study according to your plan and see whether you are achieving your targets.

Effective study:

Active reading: You must understand what you are reading and be able to develop good practice in what you are reading.Never memorize anything.Read and understand -  that is what active reading is all about.Follow the SO3Rs formula:

1)Survey: look at the chapter,its sections,introduction,summary and objectives to get a clear view on what the chapter is about.
2)Question: As you read,ask questions to yourself and find the answers from the text.
3)Read: Read the chapter thoroughly once or twice with full concentration.
4)Recall: Try to remember the key points of the chapter after you read by closing the book and thinking with a fresh mind
5)Review: After you are done with the above 4 steps, review through what you have read and brush up necessary conceptions

Note Taking: Taking notes is a very useful way of learning.The notes must be in your own words,concise,well organized and modified with all the key points of the chapter.You can also try to summarize a chapter in your own words to help you remember the key ares

3 ways of taking notes:
1)Summarize a chapter in your own words
2)Make notes with headings and sub headings
3)Make notes in a diagrammatic form

All notes must highlight the key points with underlines.

Revision:

After you are finished with all your study materials,it is a good practice to revise through them at the end moment.

How to revise:
1)Read through the text and your notes
2)Review any assignments
3)Practice standard questions

Exam tips:

Make sure you know the format of the exam - how many questions and what type of questions will come in the exam.Also know how much time you will be allowed for the exam.In your revision attempt all sorts of questions that can come in the exam under timed conditions.

Divide the time you spend on questions in proportion to the marks on offer.For example,in a 1 hour 40 minutes exam (full marks 100) allocate 1 minute to each mark

If you get stuck in a question,leave it and return back to it later.

For multiple choice questions,read the questions carefully and work through any calculations required.If you don't know the answer,eliminate those options that appear incorrect to you and see if the answer becomes obvious.Guess your final answer rather than leaving the question blank.