Successful Students

9

9. . . . Don’t cram for exams. Successful students know that divided periods of study are more effective than cram sessions, and they practice it.

If there is one thing that study skills specialists agree on, it is that distributed study is better than massed, late-night, light-ditch efforts known as cramming. You’ll learn more, remember more, and earn a higher grade by studying in four, one-hour-night sessions for Friday’s exam than studying for four hours straight on Thursday night. Short, concentrated preparatory efforts are more efficient and rewarding than wasteful, inattentive, last moment marathons. Yet so many students fail to learn this lesson and end up repeating it over and over again until it becomes a wasteful habit. Not too clear, huh?

When you cram, you are taking the shortcut, and shortcuts never produce any real worthwhile results. Also, when you take shortcuts, you fell rather rotten knowing that you could have done better but didn’t. Shortcuts cut you short. You can’t plant watermelon seeds and harvest fresh watermelons the next day. It takes time. Cramming for a test or a project and expecting to make a high score the next day is like planting watermelon seeds and expecting to harvest and eat fresh watermelon the next day. Plus cramming for a test or project doesn’t help you academically, so why even do it. Plan ahead, prepare ahead. Give yourself plenty and weeks to prepare for upcoming accountability opportunities.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

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Study for Multiple Exams

Part 1

How I study for multiple exams, deal with multiple projects: Really it is my time management that I explained above. If I see I have multiple things due or to study for all the same time I spread out my time beforehand. For example, if I have a test Monday, and 2 tests Tuesday then I will study for my Monday test Thursday and part of Friday. Start studying for my next test on the second half of Friday and part of Saturday, then my second Tuesday test on Saturday as well and part of Sunday. Then Sunday night I can review for my Monday test because I already studied for it, when that is over I can begin reviewing for the other tests.

My overall study method: I try to break it up over several days or at least two. I get bogged down if I try to pull an all nighter.

How I’ve overcome an initial bad grade: If I received a low grade I probably knew it was coming because I didn’t prepare properly or I didn’t use the right study habit for that class. I usually try to get over what I did wrong and sometime discuss with the teacher what I can do differently on the next exam or what they suggest I do for studying for the next exam.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

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Effective Study Methods

Part 3

How I deal with multiple projects/test: When I have more than one test or project, I break up my studying. I will study for one test for 30 minutes or so and then switch to the other one. If there is some part of a project that I know will not take very long, I will do it when I don’t have much time. If I am really in a crunch for time on a specific day, I will study for one test in the morning and the other in the afternoon or at night. By breaking up the studying into different sections, I feel like I get much more done. Cram sessions do not work for me. I need to study something for shorter period of time more often for it to sink in.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

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