I’m having a hard time finding the best way for me to study. I do pretty good in study groups where I can listen to others talk things over. I tend to be the one in the group that will research the answers to someone’s question or a debate but for the most part, I listen more than I talk. It helps me hear others explain things and reiterate our lecture in a different way. Outside of study group though? I can’t seem to find the perfect study method for me. Flashcards seem to help for memorization but I havn't quite figured out what to do to help me actually understand and retain what I am learning. I read the material over and over again but it just doesn’t seem to stick very well when I do that and I find myself getting distraced by so many different things when I study alone. Apparently, I have to actually hear the subject being discussed in order for it to do anything for me. I also tend to single out one topic that I study my ass off for, and neglect or at the most, just skim over the other parts. I’m not sure why I do that.
I really need to change my study habits before I get into The Program. I have been able to make decent grades doing what I am doing, but I keep thinking how much better I could do if I just changed my study habits. I probably could have gotten that A in A&P I if I had just studied smarter. I have heard about the overwhelming amount of work that goes into NS and I really don’t want to find myself barely scraping by because I don’t know how to study efficiently.
So tell me, how do you study?
Midwest accent
4 months ago
That's me in my old study group! (We don't meet anymore.) They called me "dictionary girl". lol I like hearing others talk it out too, but I'd have to have read the material beforehand because I have a problem with taking anyone's word for it.
ReplyDeleteI think of myself as a visual learner: I have to see it or read it. Flashcards have worked for me, also writing notes as I read. I also have to have a way to relate what I'm reading to other things, make sense of how it works in real life and not just on the page.
Since you seem to like the auditory input, why not record lectures? I did that for my prerequisite classes. I should've done that in nursing school, too... Good luck!
I study differently for each subjects. For some subjects it is gross memorization. Others it's applied knowledge from memorized facts, and others are just critical thinking based on nothing actually discused in class. You will learn that a lot of nursing school is not what you know, but what the best answer (or most right) is among 4 correct answers. Multiple choice is no longer 1 right and 3 wrong answers... Best advice I can give is go to class, listen to the professor and read the book. I rewrite all my notes for clarity. I wish I had more time for note cards... Study groups can be super helpful too. It allows others to fill in blank spots you may have in notes and understanding.
ReplyDeleteIt depends on the subject for me... I do a lot of drawing (I know it sounds strange, but in subjects like A&P, a whiteboard and a few markers helps me reinforce things like layers of tissue, structures, etc... and it's nice to write out relationships between things too in different ways visually, sometimes a chart works, sometimes a concept map, etc... I love my whiteboard for studying tough concepts!) and I make flashcards on the computer that I transfer to my iPhone to study whenever I have a few minutes. And study groups really help me put it all together... bouncing concepts off one another (and, to be honest, explaining things to the students who are struggling) helps me remember it all.
ReplyDeleteA positive change in your study habits should do it then! Balancing and putting priorities in the right places can make a big impact. Ah well, there's always the internet for some more tips. Try to collect a few of them and do the things that'll work for you. When the time comes when you need to study online, most of the tips you'll be getting can surely be applied.
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