Scheduling

1. The best way to develop regular study habits is to make a schedule of your time. You may wish to block out the times you work, go to class, eat, sleep and enjoy leisure activities, and then identify the times during which you can schedule two hours of study for each hour of class. You should schedule your study time in uninterrupted periods of at least one hour. If the periods are much longer than one hour, plan for short, 5–10 minute breaks.



2. Schedule review periods at the end of each week and go over the week’s notes and reading assignments. This will greatly decrease your need to cram before major exams.



3. Try to have a special place for studying, well-lit and away from noise and distractions. If you cannot study at home, look for a quiet corner of the library or other appropriate place.



4. Inform your family and friends about your quiet hours for study if it seems necessary, and ask them to avoid disturbing you during these set periods.



5. Some students like to organize study groups to review lecture notes and textbooks, and prepare for exams.

Methods for Effective Study

Effective studying takes concentration, and this may require some mental warming up. First, you might think about the importance of the assignment and its relationship to the whole pattern of the course. Make sure you know just what the reading assignment is, and review any comments your teacher may have made about it. If you understand the exact nature and purpose of the assignment, you will know what main points to look for as you read.

1. A method which can be very useful in developing the habit of reading systematically is called the SQ3R (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review) method. The steps are:
   
   
   1. Survey. Take time to read introductory and summary paragraphs included in your assignment. Then read all the headings and everything written in bold print. In this way you will quickly get a general idea of the content and sequence of the sections.
   
   
   
   2. Question. Convert headings or topics into questions which you expect to be answered as you read. Ask what evidence will support statements and what facts will be used to develop ideas.
      Before reading, also ask yourself what you already know about the subject. Relating new materials to old landmarks makes it easier to grasp the new material.
   
   
   
   3. Read. Now read the assignment from beginning to end, checking each section or paragraph in order to answer your questions.
      
      
      1. As you read, look for key ideas, which are usually built around topic sentences. Identifying these ideas and moving from one to the other in your reading aids in comprehension.
      
      
      
      2. Along with key ideas, watch for transitional words and phrases. They reveal relationships between facts and ideas. These are words and phrases such as first, second, because, consequently, for example, and finally. They are valuable in pointing out how the author’s discussion is proceeding.
      
      
      
      3. Read for facts, ideas and relationships. How does all the material fit together in a pattern?
      
      
      
      4. Always try to keep the author’s purpose in mind. Don’t get bogged down in difficult words or sentence structure. If you get confused, go back to the topic sentence and try to strip the material of all the modifying phrases. Until you get the sense of the material, the details may just confuse you. If you are taking notes, wait to do so until you thoroughly understand the material and can condense it in your own words.
      
      
   
   
   4. Recite. Ask yourself the questions you formulated before you read the material and answer them, out loud if you like. Now is the time to fix in your mind any facts that can be visualized: maps, diagrams and mathematical relationships. Verbal recitation can be an effective way to organize and remember the material.
   
   
   
   5. Review. From time to time go back over a section of your textbook or reading notes, trying to remember as many of the important points as you can; then look again at your book to see where you were right, where you made mistakes, and what you left out. Continue this process until you really know the material.
   
   


2. Outline. This method involves selecting and organizing the essential points in your own words. Writing them down can be an aid to effective learning just as saying them out loud can be.



3. Underline or Highlight. You should use this method only after you read through all the material. You may be tempted to do too much highlighting, especially if you haven’t read the whole selection first. Don’t underline entire sentences or paragraphs, just the major ideas and key words. As in the outline, you should mark only the essential points. Underlining is not a substitute for note-taking. Writing your own notes is a better memory aid.

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