Study Tips: Productive Cramming

Cramming is frowned upon, but at the eleventh hour, there aren't many other choices you can make. Hopefully, you have a basic understanding of 2 things: the objectives of the course and how you professor likes to assess your knowledge.  From an educator's perspective, we want to know that our students have reasonably accomplished the objectives set forth in the syllabus as demonstrated by mastery in basic concepts in the subject. In order to effectively cram for your exams, you'll need your syllabus, notes and study guides (borrow good ones if yours are terrible),  highlighters (a different color for each objective), textbook (if your course has one), paper, pen, and a Starbucks latte.

1.  Locate the objectives on your syllabus and highlight each in a different color. For example:

Objectives:

• To learn the prevailing points of view about creativity and its origins.  
• To gain a better understanding of the writing process.
• To understand how some writers go through the creative process.
• To constructively analyze  and critique the work of other writers.
• To understand and apply literary composition techniques. 

2.  Using the highlighting color scheme you've established, highlight notes and study guides that address the objectives. For example, highlight all "prevailing points of view" in yellow and anything related to the "writing process" in orange.

3.  If your professor did not give you a study guide or if you are like me and need to see one subject on one sheet, make subject sheets using the same color scheme. For example, scribble purple highlighter at the top of a blank sheet of paper. You know that purple means "literary composition techniques."  From your notes, list the techniques you've highlighted purple already and add brief descriptions from the notes. You may need to look them up in your textbook if your notes are not clear.

4.  Guess what? You've been studying the whole while you've been setting up your color code! Take a sip of your latte and plow forward. You can put your syllabus aside for now. Take a look at one color subject sheet.  Determine which items you "have mastered," "are familiar with," or "clueless about."  If you've mastered it, draw ☺. If you're familiar with the item, draw a star. If you are clueless about an item, draw a ☹.

5. Time to review! You will focus on the items you starred for about an hour. You will focus on the smiley items for 30 minutes. Then sleep! (or set up your study notes for another class).

6. The day of your exam, preferably one hour before the exam, run through your frowny items just to gain some familiarity with them. Look through notes and the text book for these concepts.  Those items will be in your short-term memory, so when you take the exam, seek those items out first with hopes that you can recall that information that you just quickly stored.

7. After the exam, it is essential that you debrief. Take a look at your subject sheets and check off the areas that you feel you aced. Put question marks next to the items you weren't sure about.  This will be especially helpful if this course was a prerequisite for another you'll take next semester. You will be able to reinforce what you did not quite get during this semester.

Ideally, you would use these tips all semester long, but if you can set aside 3 hours, you will be able to complete this list and perform better on your finals. It's not all about grades, but sometimes it feels like it is!

Questions? Comment me or hit me up on Twitter @akagia.

Break has begun!! Get to the fun!!

My Dream Come True

Download it to your Kindle or Kindle Reader TODAY! Amazon.com - Read eBooks using the FREE Kindle Reading App on Most Devices  

Almost a year ago, I sat down at my computer and got lost in story that flowed so easily from my mind to the blank pages. I was obsessed with each character and wondered what they were doing when I was away from writing. I would sit and plan out what my characters would do, but by the time I got to the computer to write, they had their own plan. I remember one time, I just knew Drew would ride home with her friend after a party, yet she took off walking down the street as if to let me know that I wasn't in control of her.

Finally, after months of trying to figure out how I could get my book to the masses, my ebook is available on Amazon!  Just in time for Christmas, the holiday season, and cozy nights at home, Enigmatic Encounters: The Beginning is a witty coming of age story set on a small southern college campus. The next book in the series will be out next year, so don't panic! You will find out what happens next with Leslie, Drew, and Bruce, but you have to get this book first to find out what happens in The Beginning.

Education Tidbits: Save Time And Money With Dual Enrollment Programs

With soaring education costs, it is good to know that there are ways to save money.  Dual enrollment programs around the country afford mostly high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to take college courses that count toward graduation and as college credit. “Hitting two birds with one stone” if I’ve ever heard of it!  Most programs around the country are at no cost to the families, and still others have a waiver for low income students.  In some states, the cost is paid by the parents.  Yet, if looked upon objectively no matter where the cost burden lies, families will still save money and time to boot.  

Since students are working toward completing general studies during their senior year, they enter college as a sophomore.  That is one less year that families would have to pay full tuition of a 4-year institution. Programs like the one in Virginia put students on track toward earning a General Education Certificate by the end of their high school senior year. Upon graduating from high school with their General Education Certificate, students are able to transition to community college as sophomores. Earning an associate’s degree from a community college positions the students for eligibility for Guaranteed Admission at Virginia colleges and universities.

Programs such as dual enrollment, ensure that students will complete their college education early or on time, which strengthens the workforce and in turn the economy.  Check your state department of education website for more information about your state’s local programs.