Five Ways to Study Smarter
Five tips to help keep you on track during finals and set you up for success in the New Year
1. Make a List of Things You Need To Do
Procrastination has plagued students for centuries. By organizing and prioritizing tasks, your mind can feel a lot less like a one thousand piece puzzle with a blank picture. Begin by writing down the dates of your exams and final projects so that you can visualize what must be done first. Then, add in your potential work schedule, essential responsibilities, and time for yourself. The most important things will be the events that are not flexible; you can reschedule a dinner date, you cannot reschedule your exam.
2. Write, Don’t Type
The age of technology has been a blessing for universities and no one can argue with that; however, sometimes a little nostalgic pen-to-paper is what the brain needs. In a 2009 study by the University of Florida, researchers found that when handwriting instead of typing, individuals were more likely to remember vocabulary words, recall concepts, and generally perform better. Despite being more time consuming, this simple change might allow you to memorize faster. Have some fun with it: colour code, highlight, use gel pens, create drawings - the world is your oyster!
3. Change of Scenery
As comfortable as it is, avoid studying in your bedroom! Brian Robben, an author for the American College of Health Sciences, provided three reasons as to why you should never try to learn in bed. Firstly, the bedroom is a comfortable place for sleep and relaxation - your brain knows this! Secondly, the lack of space will result in you spending more time looking through your papers than actually reading them and your productivity will decrease. Lastly, by forcing your brain to associate the bed with work, you will have difficulty sleeping.
4. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
It’s easy to stay on track when there’s a group of people making sure you do your work. Study groups allow for concise, organized, dedicated periods of time for you to learn and fill in any gaps you may have missed in class. If you would like to spice things up, consider making study games for the group! By creating the games, you’ll be learning the content before teaching it to others. Try simple study games such as Jeopardy, Kahoot, or Card Matching. Remember, you’re not alone in your classes or in your exam anxiety, so take advantage of your ability to work with others - they’ll appreciate it to!
5. Take Breaks
The most important study tip is to take regular breaks. Have you ever read a boring book and finished a page only to realize that you glossed over it without actually absorbing the content? It happens to the best of us. Give your brain a break between study sessions. Humans can maximize productivity for about three hours before failing to take in all of their surroundings efficiently. So check your phone, grab a snack, and watch some Netflix. Be careful not to fall into the infamous procrastinator's black hole, but definitely take about half an hour out for yourself. Exams are important, but so are you.