tips to succeed in study

Your teacher or lecturer can explain something to you, you can learn it from a text book, your friends can study with you, even your own notes can explain it to you but all these explanations are of little use if, by the end, you cant explain what you have learned to yourself. If you dont understand a study concept that you need to illustrate in an exam to get top exam results, then you wont be happy with your end exam result. To combat this, get into the habit of explaining whatever it is you are studying, in your own words, so you understand your study notes. The key to help improve your memory is to understand what youve learned when you are studying it. So dont just memorise and tick off the list make sure you understand your theory.

Of course, depending on what youre studying, it may be quite difficult to get into a position to understand a concept,theory or other information you need to learn. This is where it is invaluable to ask questions of your teachers, lecturers or other educators. Dont be afraid of asking a stupid question there really is no such thing when it comes to study and learning! Embrace your curiosity, for as William Arthur Ward said: Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning. Doing so will allow you to fill in the blanks and better prepare you for exams.

Once you feel you understand a concept or a topic, it is important to test yourself on it. Try and replicate exam conditions as much as possible: turn your phone off, dont talk, time yourself etc. You can set yourself a study quiz or practice exam questions and, so long as you approach it with the right mindset, you can get a very good idea of how much you know. You gain a greater insight into where you stand in relation to what youve studied so far. Also, it will give you some much need exam preparation, making the actual exam a more comfortable experience. Flashcards are ideal for boosting your memory and help you recall theory, definitions and key dates these are great for quick study sessions, especially straight before an exam.

Dont feel obliged to just sit in front of a book with a highlighter; there are many different ways to study. You should pick whatever works for you. Try using as many study tools and techniques as possible to help you study better and find what works best for you. Perfect examples of such study tools would be online flashcards, mind maps, mnemonics, online study planners, video and audio resources. Login to your ExamTime account now to access your free online study tools; mind maps, flashcards, study quizzes and practice exam answers and bring your study notes with you wherever you are.

In order to achieve exam success you need to know what you want to achieve. Thats why it is extremely important to set your Study Goals now and outline to yourself what you need to do. With your study goals in mind and your end of year exams weeks and months away it makes sense to have a flexible study plan as opposed to a rigid one. The closer you get to your exams the more concrete your study plan should be, but at this point it should be porous. It should be broad enough to allow you to add and change aspects but concise enough so you know youre covering each subject topic as best you can at this point.

Successful students review what theyve learned during the week over the weekend. This way theyre well prepared to continue learning new concepts at the beginning of each week that build upon previous coursework and knowledge acquired the previous week.

Ever heard the phrase two heads are better than one Well this can be especially true when it comes to studying. Working in groups enables you to 1 get help from other students when youre struggling to understand a concept, 2 complete assignments more quickly, and 3 teach others whereby helping both the other student and yourselve to internalize the subject matter. However, study groups can become very ineffective if theyre not structured and if groups members come unprepared. Effective students use study groups effectively.

Obviously, before you can review your notes you must first have notes. Always make sure to take good notes in class. Before you start each study session and before you start a particular assignment review your notes thoroughly to make sure you know how to complete the assignment correctly.

As your most diffult assignment or subject will require the most effort and mental energy you should start with it first. Once youve completed the most difficult work it will be much easy to complete the rest of your work. Believe it or not, starting with the most difficult work will greatly improve the effectiveness of your study sessions and your academic performance.

Its very easy, and common, to put off your study session because of lack of interest in the subject, because you have other things you need to get done first or just because the assignment is hard. Successful students DO NOT procrastinate studying. If you procrastinate your study session, your studying will become much less effective and you may get everything accomplished that you need to. Procrastination also leads to rushing, and rushing is the number one cause of errors.