Five Study Tips Every Student Needs
Simple and effective study techniques that not only break big pieces of work into smaller tasks but complement each other
In general, schools do not teach us how to learn but expect us to study. Students then often end up developing their own ways of learning. Over the years, I have learned a lot of study techniques through trial and error, which are worth sharing. This blog will cover the five most valuable tips that have helped me learn effectively and why every student needs to focus on them more than any other.
Tip #1: Pre-read your lessons before classes
It is weird turning on a class when you know nothing about what you are going to learn, and that could be causing you to feel like you are not supposed to be in that classroom or thoughts like “I do not belong here” pop into your head. Imposter syndrome hits hard when everyone else in the class seems to be getting along with the key concepts in a lesson while you have no clue what is going on. To productively participate in classes and avoid such feelings, I highly recommend students to take time to understand the content of the lesson they are about to cover before the class.
Reading ahead will help you engage with your professors and colleagues, learn more about the topic at hand, and beat imposter syndrome and the thoughts in your head that question whether you are in the right place. Going through the notes before the class will also give you the time to focus on listening, understanding, and participating during the lesson.
You belong wherever you want to belong.
— Sophia Amoruso
- How to read before class
Here is how I practically read prior to the class, which I encourage students to do it too: type or pen the title “Class Pre-reading Notes” for the page you intend to take the notes for the next lesson right after finishing each class. Read, do your research, and understand the contents of the lecture you are about to take a week, a day, or hours ahead of the class, identify and write the most important areas you need to remember in the pre-reading notes and record down any question you would like the instructor to further clarify for you.
Tip #2: Attend all your classes
I have had educators that my peers did not like but were my favorites for the simple fact that I did not place expectations on how they should teach me or grade my exams. I have this approach to making every teacher your favorite; try to understand their teaching style and their way of doing things then adjust for that. Attending your classes is the only way you can get to know lecturers more, interact with them, ask the questions you noted in your pre-reading notes, and perhaps get a sense of the style of their questions, their way of finding solutions to the problems in an area of a study, which in turn helps students to have a fresh look at issues in their fields of study and learn from experts.
Be open minded and stay curious. Do not place expectation on educators rather get to know them and interact with them. Because the way you like to get things done does not necessarily have to be the same way every one else does.
Tip #3: Revise after classes
Do not throw off and forget about your notes till exams come around. Revising allows you to break the forgetting curve — a concept whose discovery is associated with a German psychologist called Hermann Ebbinghaus in 1885. Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve is about how humans suffer from remembrance declines; our memory of the things we learn exponentially decays over time unless we review it again and again.
- How to revise
Revise whenever you need or want to recall what you learned; when you have a test or an exam by using active recalling techniques, thinking through the topics, making use of associations, and challenging yourself to retrieve information from your brain through tests, questions, and past exam papers.
To break the forgetting curve, these techniques ( pre-reading, attending classes, and revising) helped me learn effectively with spaced repetition, break the task of studying into smaller chunks, and review information at different intervals.
Tip #4: Design your environment
We all know it is hard to study in an environment full of distractions and spaces that your mind associates with other activities. So I strongly advise, if you can, to devote one space only for focused learning wherever that may be for you. It could be a particular space in your house, a library, or a cafe. All you need is to discipline yourself when you are in that space so that your mind starts to associate it with doing only deep work and the activity of studying.
Tip #5: Enjoy the process of learning
Relishing the journey of studying and not looking forward to only the destination makes learning fun and doable like anything in life. Do not put off your happiness until you pass exams or achieve a grade you desire rather be happy in the process while you learn. Create systems that make the journey exciting and attractive by associating learning with positive experiences.
Say positive things about the process when difficult days come, remember why you started, remind yourself who you want to become, and be grateful for the ability to read and write that nowadays we seem to take for granted.
Focus, enjoy, and get better in the journey; the destination will come in the end.
Learning something you are passionate about will also keep you pushing forward during challenging days. Moreover, following these steps has let me enjoy the journey, study consistently, and learn effectively.
If all these tips work for you, GREAT. If not, all of what works for me does not necessarily have to work for you exactly the same. I hope you find something useful in these tips and wish you all the best in your learning journey.
