Outline of studying skills and learning techniques

Okay, you know I love outlines.  Outlines help you organize information, see what information is related and how it’s related.  Here’s an outline I made about things good students do.   Some of them are technical things you can mimic.  Some require a little confidence, a little faith that what you have to say, and what you think, is valuable.   And again, some people organize information naturally, just like some people are natural athletes.  You may not be a natural, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t learn how to do it.  You can become a better student.

What do good students do?

Good students:

I) Organize information

A) Relate terms and facts within a hierarchy

B) Relate terms and facts to other terms and facts

C) Can group and relate terms and facts:

1) By similarities

2) By differences

3) By function

4) Within a field of study (intra-connections)

5) Between fields of study (inter-connections)

II) Question what they hear, see, read

A) Ask internal questions as they read, see, hear

B) Ask questions during class – either aloud or by writing ideas down

C) Ask questions while reading

1) Encounter a forgotten fact while reading and look it up

2) Realize they don’t understand what they are reading and back up

3) Give themselves time to think about connections inspired by the reading

III)  Show interest in a topic

A)   Increase interest in a topic

1) By asking questions while material is presented (either in their head or out loud)

2) Pretending to be interested until they are

B)   Force interest in a topic by looking for something in the material that they relate to

IV)  Allow time for studying – as looking things up and making new connections takes time

V)  Are willing to take risks

A)  By asking questions in class

B)  By allowing themselves to make odd or extraordinary connections

C)  By assuming that their input and thoughts are valuable

7 thoughts on “Outline of studying skills and learning techniques”

  1. This is a really good post. It really gets to the heart of good design not only for the web, but often for print as well.

  2. Argelia Gares

    Hey There. I found your blog using Bing. This is an extremely well written article. I’ll make sure to bookmark it and return to read more of your useful info. Thanks for the post. I’ll certainly return.

  3. thank you so much. I have a different A&P teacher this semester for the second half than I did last semester and he (new instructor) wants a lot more info in his answers. I’ve been scared that I was going to fail, and so far I have failed. My fear is holding me back when I know I can do it. This info has calmed me down and put me back into some sort of focus.

  4. I’m so glad to hear it Noel. Make yourself a plan and believe in yourself. And make sure to ask for help when you need it. Professors really like it when students ask questions and utilize their office hours. It definitely shows you’re trying. Have a great semester!

  5. hi…I’m very interested in using this outline, however if someone could please give me an example of how to use this outline? I will be taking A&P I in the fall and I have never taken a science class like this. I got a review book and I’m starting to look at that. So I have an idea on what to expect in this class. I’m excited that I found this website and I will be utilizing all it has to offer! Thanks for your time 🙂

    joy

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