Study Tips/Inspirational: How To Study

Outline of 'How To Study'
by
Vasudev Seeram

Outline of 'How to Study'

I. HOW TO DEVELOP INTEREST IN YOUR WORK

Acquire information about the subject from a variety of sources.
Tie the new information to your old bodies of knowledge.
Make new information personal.
Actively use your new knowledge.

II. HOW TO CARRY OUT YOUR RESOLUTIONS

Make your task definite.
Feel intensely the urge to do the task before you.
Get started at all costs.
Prepare your physical world for study.
Check every tendency to daydream.
Face personal problems and worries directly.

Determine as objectively and as definitely as you can just where your problem lies.
Find an understanding confidant who can help you analyze and meet your difficulties.
Don't deceive yourself by dodging the problem or pretending you have solved it.

III. HOW TO MINIMIZE DISTRACTIONS

Whenever possible, study in a quiet room.
See that your place of study is properly lighted, heated and ventilated.
Arrange your chair and work to avoid strain and fatigue.
Keep yourself in good physical condition.
Get sufficient sleep so that you feel adequately rested.

IV. HOW TO SET UP A SCHEDULE

Mark off your fixed commitments on your schedule.
Fill in your schedule sheet with areas designated for meals and studying.
Make a list of all the things you will need to do within a given time period.
Break down each task on your list into smaller tasks.
Distribute your task among the empty spaces on your schedule.
Keep a record of what you actually do.

V. HOW TO READ FOR THE BIG PICTURE

Think about the topic of study before beginning to read.
Formulate questions that can guide your reading.
Obtain a preliminary rapid impression of the book.
Read rapidly through the whole assignment.
Go beyond the book.
Make note of the important points as you read.
Review your notes before proceeding to read your assignment each day.
Be self-critical about your acquisition of knowledge.

VI. HOW TO READ FOR DETAILS

Keep the purpose of the reading in mind as you read.
Be sure you have the main thought of each paragraph.
Vary the rate of your reading.
Think critically as you read.
Record the main thought of each division of your reading.
Make a mental (or written) outline of the material as you read; then review the entire reading with this outline in mind.
Organize your notes under major questions, and do your reviewing by repeatedly testing yourself on these questions.

VII. HOW TO LISTEN AND TAKE NOTES

Before class, think about the subject matter.
During class, think all around the points raised in the lecture or discussion.
Concentrate on the topic of discussion.
Take notes on the important point and each day after class, read over your notes and think about the points that were made:

When the class period is devoted to questions and discussions, take relatively few notes and fit these into your reading notes.
Where the lecture method is used, you will need to take more notes than in the case of class discussions.

VIII. HOW TO REMEMBER BETTER

Get the meaning of the idea to be remembered.
Go over the material to remembered again and again.
Avoid mechanical repetition.
Learn with the intention of recalling.
Stop frequently during your studying and recall the things you are learning.
Have confidence in your ability to remember.
If necessary, form arbitrary associations to help you remember information with no logical connection.

IX. HOW TO PREPARE FOR EXAMS

Review the main points, get a skeleton view of the subject, and avoid memorizing scattered details.
Give yourself plenty of time to review.

X. HOW TO DO BETTER IN EXAMS

Try to determine the nature of the examination and the ground it will cover.
Think about the kinds of questions that might be asked.
When you go to take the exam, be well rested, and remain as calm and self-confident as possible.
During the exam, read over the whole set of examination questions and think about each one long enough to understand it.
Read each question very carefully before beginning to answer it.
Make written outlines of your answers.
Reserve time to go over your answers and make necessary changes.

XI. HOW TO PUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE TO USE

Study actively. Learn by doing. Use your knowledge by thinking, talking, and writing about the things you are learning.

Think of illustrations and concrete examples to which your new knowledge applies.
Compare new ideas with the knowledge you already have.
Use your knowledge to explain facts and to foresee consequences.
Put your ideas on paper.
Talk over the things you are learning with others - in class discussions, with your classmates and instructors, or even with family and friends.

Summary of Rules for Effective Study

Feel intensely the desire to master your studies and resolve that you will master them. Build up definite ambitions; appreciate your duties and responsibilities; recognize the consequences of poor work and the rewards of good work.

Carry your resolutions into practice. The following methods will help:

Think frankly of the larger consequences of success or failure in the task before you.
Make your task definite and keep this one job clearly in the analyze of your attention.
Get set for study. Begin work! Go through the motions.
Concentrate on the subject. Check every tendency to daydream. Guard against mind-wandering and pull yourself back sharply on every occasion.
Face your personal problems that interfere with studying. Meet them intelligently instead of continuing to fret and worry over them. Seek wise counsel from trusted friends and advisers. Guard against deceiving yourself with make-believe resolutions and self-defensive explanations.

Develop interest in your subjects of study. To do this:

Acquire information about the subject.
Tie the new information to old matters of interest.
Make the new material personal. Relate it to matters of concern to you.
Take an active attitude toward the subject and use the new knowledge.

Avoid all distractions that interfere with your studying - noise, glare of lights, uncomfortable feelings, strains, too great relaxation, and so on.

Arrange a fixed daily program of study. Plan your work. Cultivate systematic habits as regards the time and the place for your studies.

Develop effective methods of reading.

Think about the topic of study before beginning to read. Prepare your mind. Review your notes from the day before.
Reading by referring to the preface, table of contents, etc.
Read rapidly through your assignment first, to get a bird's-eye view of the whole by:

Reading phrases and sentences, not words.

Skipping wisely; reading only parts of sentences and paragraphs.

Read your assignment a second time, more slowly, thoroughly, and thoughtfully. Some specific rules are:

Keep the purpose and plan of the reading in mind as you read.

Stop at the end of each paragraph and think about the point. Look at the ideas from all sides. Be sure you have a clear understanding of the thought. Learn the meanings of new of unfamiliar words.

Read important and difficult points slowly. Read the familiar and unimportant points rapidly.

Think critically while you read. Draw your own conclusions. Go beyond the book.

Make note of important points in your reading. Mark your book or take notes. Summarize the principal thoughts and jot them down. Use your notes in reviewing each day.
Make a mental or written outline of the whole reading. Think over this organized outline of the topic before leaving the book or reading. For thorough mastery. organize your notes under major questions. Them review the reading by testing yourself on these questions until your "self-recitation" is satisfactory.
Be certain your knowledge is clear and well thought through. Avoid vague and muddy thinking. Get a few fundamental ideas clearly.

Develop effective methods of classroom work.

Ascertain the teaching method in each of your classes and guide your classroom activities accordingly.
Think about the subject matter for the day, before class. Prepare your mind. Review the work of the preceding day.
During the class period consider all aspects of the points raised in the lecture or discussion. Go beyond the ideas presented.
Concentrate on the general topic of discussion.Check every tendency toward mind-wandering or daydreaming.
Take notes on the important points. But remember that the first things is to understand the ideas; getting them down on paper is secondary.

1. During discussions, take relatively few notes and fit these into your reading notes.

2. During lectures, get a skeleton outline of the lecture or a set of notes covering the main points. Revise your notes while the subject matter is still fresh in your thinking.

Use your notes after class each day. Think over points which are not clear and seek further light from books and from your instructor.

Improve your ability to remember by adopting better methods of learning. Specifically-

Get the meaning of the idea to be remembered.
Go over the material to be remembered again and again.
Keep actively attentive; avoid mechanical repetitions.
Learn with the intention of recalling.
Stop frequently during your studying and make yourself recall the things you are learning.
Have confidence in your ability to remember.
When facts have no logical connection, form some arbitrary associations to help remember them.

In preparing for examination-

Review the main points; get a skeleton view of the subject. Avoid memorizing scattered details.
Do your reviewing early. Avoid high-pressure cramming at the last minute.
Find out from the instructor what kind of examination will be given and the ground it will cover. Anticipate as well as you can the kinds of questions which will be asked.

In taking examinations-

Be well rested. Remain as calm and self-confident as possible. Trust your memory.
Read over the whole set of examination questions and think about each one long enough to understand it.
Read each question very carefully before beginning to answer it.
Make mental or written outlines of your answers.
Go over your answers if you have time and make necessary changes.

11. Study actively. Use your knowledge by thinking, talking, and writing about the things you are learning. Apply your knowledge as much as possible and as soon as possible.