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by admin  July 17, 2010 9:23 am

Do you need to be super smart or an academic genius to get a large class at college or university? Absolutely not! Many students fail to achieve the quality that they are able to simply because they are not aware that a student with an ‘average ability can do really well. All that is needed for a coherent strategy, organization, preparation and discover what the examiner / assessor is looking for and ability to deliver it. Following my tips and advice will take a little extra time each week, but will save a lot of time and stress come assessment time and will even more important to help you get the big class. Organization Skills-The first thing you should do is to arrange a good record. No system is right for everyone, so make your own. The golden rule is that whatever system you use must be something that will make it possible for you to put your hand on the notes, and work immediately. Valuable time is lost and stress levels rise when students are able to find a particular piece of paper, insert notes, articles, reference, etc.
Note Books, Get a separate book for each topic scratch the essential notes ideas, lecturer comments and other gems that you come across. Make a special note to add a reference when appropriate.
There is nothing more frustrating than having a great quote, information, etc. and then to lose marks because you are unable to add an accurate reference. Where applicable, transfer data from your laptop to your main theme file but does not dispose of the original, you never knows whether you can use it! Plan your time effectively / Time Management-Take ten minutes on Sunday evening to sit down and plan your week. Have you heard the saying “People do not plan to fail-they are not planning”? You will learn how true this is, as you go through life, not a plane as bobbing around at sea, never reaching a destination. The best and easiest way to achieve something in life is to decide on your goal, set a date for when it must be completed and prepare a plan for how you will get there. Be realistic in setting unachievable goals will lead to regular failures, which in turn will undermine your confidence. Learn to prioritize-During your planning session Sunday to look at week one main rank your tasks in priority order. If you have been a particularly busy week to look at ways you can “steal” extra time oak lacks a leisure activity or carry a non-urgent task for the following week. The correct approach to lectures and tutorials / seminars are also crucial for success. Why we need to consider the right approach? Simply because so many students get it wrong, they fail to exploit these golden opportunities by committing one of the following sins: 1 Non-participation
second Participate but do not exploit because of: boredom
incomprehension
too busy to take notes to understand the concepts that are explained Very few students bother to prepare for lectures why? Simply because they have nothing to do except sit and listen. This approach represents a massive waste of a valuable resource. Proper preparation can be a solution to all three points in ’2 ‘above, and the result is that the student will gain greater value from the meeting in terms of greater understanding, which ultimately will lead to better marks. OK, so what is the correct approach? Creating the topic of the lecture in advance. Read the relevant pages in your textbook, conduct some research in the specific area / topic. Get an understanding of what will be discussed. Write some notes, involve yourself with the topic. It is important to have a prior knowledge and understanding will enable you to keep up with what is being said alleviate confusion / boredom. quickly try to record everything a teacher says is not a good idea. So many times I would look around the auditorium and see most people scribble away furiously. The fact is that unless the teacher specifically dictates the information he / she wants you to know it will be extremely difficult to simultaneously listen, write and understand. In order to achieve a preliminary understanding of the subject and has written down some relevant notes will free you up to give your undivided attention to the lecturer, perhaps make a few extra notes on the info you can not get elsewhere. Ask yourself why you want to waste lecture time writing down information that can be easily obtained from the textbook? Yes, sounds stupid right? But look around at your next lecture and see how many people do it! Mailing lectures you have to spend some time thinking about what was said. Re-visit texts and add new notes to those made previously, and check all references from a teacher. I am a big proponent of writing up your notes, simply because it is easier to edit and add additional information as you go along. Moreover, they can be printed off when required for audit purposes. ? Please, please, remember to save a copy of all notes, essays, projects, data etc to a removable storage device that you keep a safe place to crash computers and laptops get stolen. Tutorials / seminars Preparation here is crucial. I know a couple of teachers who dismiss from class any student who has failed to develop. Typically the group will have prepared answers to some questions or may be asked to provide information on a particular topic. The whole point of a tutorial is to promote independent study. To get students to think, research, formulate ideas and present / discuss their findings. Failure to prepare and contribute rather defeats the object, at least you’ll be passing up a golden opportunity at worst you can end up looking foolish. So prepare yourself properly. Read your lecture note’s, texts’ or other relevant material, and formulate your answers. Sometimes the teacher sets are required to do a group project. If so, make sure you meet regularly and distribute responsibilities and ensure that all pull their weight. Using experience to develop your ‘team working’ skills. Tutorials / seminars provide an excellent opportunity because you are in the company of an expert. As such it is presented with an opportunity to ask questions or get clarification on a particular item, use it! Think about how you can expand those notes get more insight / understanding that you can use in coursework / exam to get the extra marks
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Following a tutorial, add your answers and any additional information to the relevant section of the file and update your notes. At the end of each module, you must have a complete set of “revision notes “comprehensive information from all your sources. Make sure you keep up to date, expand your notes, a relevant quote a new development. The more comprehensive your notes, and the better your knowledge base more secure and less stressful you will come exam time < ; / p> Make sure you print a copy of your recent notes and review them regularly. This need not take any extra time, how can you get to university? Walk, take the bus? Thirty minutes each way? It is one hour Audit everyday, this corresponds to lots of “free” review time is not affected in any other activity! By going through your notes on a regular basis will get the information embedded in your memory makes exam much less stressful, as you already have an excellent knowledge which can then just “refined”. Buy a set of index cards and jot down main points / key information. Always carry a kit with you. When you stand in the supermarket queue and waiting at the dentist etc get them out and go through them. You’ll be surprised how a couple minutes here and there can really add up. Do not just read, but test yourself, sometimes when we just read that we may get distracted. Try to write info ‘down-make up a question and answer it, this will force you to concentrate. It will also ensure that not only do you know it, you also understand it and can use it. Knowledge and understanding are not necessarily the same thing! Preparation of written answers will reveal the weak areas. If possible ask your supervisor to read through your answers, this will enable you to determine whether you’re on the right track. To write out answers seem unattractive do not forget that you have to do it in the exam, probably up to 3 hours. There’s nothing worse than the author’s cramp, now is your chance to practice and strengthen those fingers “!

Sam Collyer is a lawyer, counselor and author of “The Smarter Student guide to a Great Grade” available as a free download from: www. degreehelp. org. uk

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