Study Skills

Study Skills

Your Starting Point. Ask yourself the following questions.

How often do you read a course textbook?
How many days of the week do you study for one course?
Do you study hard the day before an exam, but rarely between exams?
Where do you study?
How long should you spend studying outside of class? It is recommended that you spend a minimum of 2 – 3 hours a week for each hour you are in class. In Human physiology you are in lecture 3 hours a week and lab 3 hours a week.
Do you schedule your study time and stick to your schedule? Keep a day planner to keep track of all your assignments. In addition to specific assignments, each day you should:

go over that day’s notes
read the corresponding sections in the textbook
quiz yourself over your notes and the material you read in your textbook
review your notes again
preview the next day’s material

Do you study hard or hardly study?
Do you mostly memorize when studying for a test?
Do you have a good support group of family and friends who encourage you?
Do you quiz yourself while you are studying?
Do you use a study group or have a study partner?

Your Secret Life Outside of Class

I study the day before a test but rarely study on a daily basis.

a. True

b. False

I mostly review my notes and don’t read the textbook.

True
False

I don’t have time to take notes on my notes.

True
False

My main method of studying is to read only.

True
False

I am too busy to study each day.

True
False

When I finally get around to it, I study pretty hard for a long time.

True
False

I get by fine with cramming.

True
False

How to read a textbook or your class notes

Survey. Read the chapter title, the chapter introduction, and any other items at the beginning of the chapter, and all of the headings. I use “bullets” for your note taking pages. The words in larger print are similar to the chapter headings.

Question. Look at the heading of each section and form as many questions as you can that you think might be covered in that section. Write them down.

Read. Read the chapter for details. Take your time. Some concepts will take longer to cover than others. For difficult sections rewrite the textbook in your own words.

Recite. After reading each section, think about the questions you made up and try to answer all of them from recall (try not to look at your textbook or notes). Write your answers down.

Review. After you finish the chapter, see if you can answer all your questions (or the Chapter Objectives) without looking at your textbook or notes. Write your answers down.

Fill in the following table to see how you “spend” your time.

Where does your time go? Record the number of hours you spend:	How many hours per day?	How many days per week?	Total Hours per week: (hours X days)
1. Grooming. Include showering/bathing, shaving, dressing, make-up, hair, etc.
2. Dining. Include preparing food, eating, cleaning up, driving to restaurant, etc.
3. Commuting. Include to and from work, from door to door.
4. Working at your place of employment.
5. Attending class. Attending class can improve your overall learning.
6. Doing chores at home. Include housework, mowing, laundry, etc.
7. Caring for family, a loved one, and/or a pet.
8. On extracurricular activities such as clubs, church, volunteering as well as the time it takes to travel to these activities.
9. Doing errands.
10. On solo recreation. Include TV, reading, games, hobbies, working out, etc.
11. Socializing. Include parties, phone calls, texting, e-mail, hanging out, dating, etc.
12. Sleeping. Include naps too.
Now add all numbers in the far column to get the total time you spend on all these activities.
Hours in a week			168
Total hours spent on other activities -
Left for studying =

Be sure to schedule in break time during and between your study times. Be flexible in your scheduling.

To determine if you are spending at least 2 to 3 hours of studying per hour in class, divide the amount of time you have left for studying by 2. If this number is less than the number of hours you are enrolled in you need to reassess how you are spending your time. So non-essential tasks may need to be delayed until after the semester.

Study Schedule

Time	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
6: AM
7 AM
8 AM
9 AM
10 AM
11 AM
Noon
1 PM
2 PM
3 PM
4 PM
5 PM
6 PM
7 PM
8 PM
9 PM
10 PM
11 PM
Midnight

You can always add additional lines if you prefer to schedule half hour or 15 minute study sessions.

Evaluation of Test Taking Skills

Test Taking Skill	Always	Sometimes	Never
1. While studying my notes and the book, I think of and answer possible test questions.
2. I use the end of the chapter questions or online practice quizzes after studying when they are available.
3. I avoid last-minute cramming to avoid confusion.
4. I scan the whole test before starting to see how long it is and what type of questions it contains.
5. I do the questions I am sure of first.
6. I budget my time during a test so I can complete it.
7. I answer questions with the highest point value first.
8. I read all answer options on a multiple choice question.
9. I know what key words to look for in a multiple choice question.
10. I use the process of elimination during multiple choice or matching questions.
11. I write on my exam.
12. I look for keywords like always, never, and sometimes.
13. I know what key words to look for in essay questions. I even underline or circle the key words.
14. When I am unsure of an answer, I go with my first answer and fight the urge to change it later.
15. I try to answer everything even if I am uncertain, instead of leaving some questions blank.
16. I check my answers before turning in a test.
17. I check my scantron to make sure I haven’t left any blanks and that the answer I want is the one I marked on the scantron. I also check to make sure I’ve erased stray marks from my scantron.

I highlighted the pointers I use the most. Your main pointers may be different.

The information in this handout is adapted from Get Ready for A&P by Lori K. Garrett, Pearson/Benjamin Cummings, 2007.