University Student need help!

[emn057]

The prof talks at normal speed, but he throws out extra info during lecture that not on his notes. That means I am not getting all the info, and that causes me to feel anxious at times.Another thing that I want to improve is taking notes in class. Anyone have some useful suggestions?

Lots of excellent suggestions here.

As a fellow university student, I find that studying with just one or two other people is better than studying with a larger group. The fewer people there are, the easier it is to keep the conversation focused on relevant material. Find one or two smart, hard-working students in your class and ask if they would like to study together with you. Meet up and ask each other questions over the material and explain concepts to each other, even if you all already understand them. A lot of times you don't know what you do and don't know until you try to explain it, and it can bring to your attention areas you need to work on. You can also help each other with the things you don't understand.

For the things you're really having trouble with, go to the professor. From my experience, most will help you and will appreciate the effort. If the professor is unwilling to help, find a tutor.

As far as taking notes, it's really just a skill you have to develop. Ask your professor for permission to record the lecture. You can also compare notes with your study friends. Just make sure their information is accurate -- sometimes people write down the wrong stuff. If in doubt, consult the book or your professor.

Like a lot of people have already said, learn to manage your time, get enough sleep, go to class, and work hard. I, too, find it extremely helpful to "tutor" myself. Go over stuff in your head (or even out loud, when you're alone) while you're driving, taking a shower, eating, whatever.

After some trial and error, you'll figure out what works best for you. Good luck!

~emn057~

 

[Mrs.Prages]

I take key concepts and make up little rhymes to help me remember them. Kind of like Every good boy does fine - to remeber the EGBDF clef notes.

This stuff really helped me on tests, especially for having to learn the new terminology for computer concepts and science classes. Also very helpful for history - Like:

Little Boys are Heros and Fat Men have Nags for Wives and heros die first to remember that Little Boy fell on Hiroshima first and Fat Man fell to Nagasaki.

 

[baltimoron]

This might not apply to you (hopefully it doesn't…), but what KILLED me on certain tests was that I decided that the teacher was going too fast for me to take notes, and I just gave up stopped taking notes. Then, the info went in one ear and right out the other. Take what you can, and if you miss some, make a little sign and keep going. Don't give up in the middle.

I also agree with people that say it is ESSENTIAL to form good relationships with your teachers. It saved me. Your teachers will get to know you and how you act in class, and actually tell you when you are one the path of darkness. They will also bend their grading scales a bit, and bend some grades (small ones,) in your favor.

The note taking style which I think is the most efficient is the Cornell Method. What you do is you draw like a 1 inch (or so) line down the middle of your paper, put key words on one side, and go into detail on the other. That way, when you want to study, all you have to do is fold the paper over and test yourself. Also, keep everything in a spiral or a notebook, so nothing gets lost.

Worked well for me in high school, should work for college.

 

[H2Andy]

what KILLED me on certain tests was that I decided that the teacher was going too fast for me to take notes, and I just gave up stopped taking notes

oh, dude... you're toast

there was always someone in class who would ask "is this going to be on the test?"

and i would say "no"

then it would show up on the test.

"what the heck?"

i'm teaching you the real world is unpredictable. be prepared for the unforseen



(i was NOT a popular professor)

 

[baltimoron]

oh, dude... you're toast

there was always someone in class who would ask "is this going to be on the test?"

and i would say "no"

then it would show up on the test.

"what the heck?"

i'm teaching you the real world is unpredictable. be prepared for the unforseen



(i was NOT a popular professor)

Believe me, I learnt the lesson to ALWAYS take notes the VERY hard way. Once upon a time, I thought I had it all in my head, and it was obviously not the case when I got the test. I just had to write my name on it and turn it in… Spent hours on retests and makeup for that mistake. Thank god he gave me a second chance, too! :11:

 

[Hoosier]

good point!

Make that "Study Now, Fun later! School first, Family second, Diving third!"
:yleyes:

 

[Diver0001]

Just one more point. I was on the bicycle on the way home from taking my kids to school and it occurred to me that I have another time management principle that I make a sort of mantra on my project teams that might be relevant to you, which is:

If you don't have time to do it right, you don't have time to do it twice.

This sort of throws back to the cut your losses thing. It's a lot less work to pass exams the first time than to "almost" pass and get it on the re-write. If you're going to go for the re-write then put 100% of your effort into the re-write and if you're going to write an exam the first time then put 100% of your effort into the first time. The idea that you can "try it" and pick it up on the re-write if you don't quite pass is something that I saw a lot of other students doing and they spent netto a lot more time preparing for exams than I did.

And once again, excellent time management and keeping well organized isn't hard, it's the lazy-person's way of life. The time you put into time mangement is a fraction of the time you would otherwise spend on studying.

R..

 

[CBulla]

Tutor your friends.

Seriously. You'll be amazed.

110% Totally right on the money awesome learning tool!!! Excellent suggestion Jon!!

Anyone confused by this, the theory is that you don't truely know the material until you can explain and teach it to others... A concept I have found to be very true.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

The prof talks at normal speed, but he throws out extra info during lecture that not on his notes. That means I am not getting all the info, and that causes me to feel anxious at times.Another thing that I want to improve is taking notes in class. Anyone have some useful suggestions?

There are several note taking styles available and a few work very well with profs who are a little scattered in their delivery. Most colleges have a student learning or student assistance center where you may be able to get help on learning different note taking styles.

Many profs also post their class notes or have smoe form of instructors notes available. If you can access these before class, then all you have to do is add comments to them and flesh them out in areas where you are a little weak.

With or without instructor's notes, don't waste time writing down stuff you already know.

Swapping copies of notes with other student can also be helpful as he or she may have picked up on something you missed and vice versa.

If you have any type of learning disability or ADD/ADHD, you can request a note taker as an accommodation. This is normally done annonomously with the notes being passed to you through the instructor or disability services office.

Using a tape recorder is another option and can be done from your seat (normally)without permission or can be left on the podium or near the front of the class with permission. The downside with taping is that it is time intensive as it requires essentially another hour to review the tape for anything you may have missed and even then sound quality can suck. For students who get this as an accommodation, I'll hang a wireless mike on the prof to greatly improve sound quality and reduce background noise, but even then the prof has to be careful to repeat questions form the class that otherwise might not be picked up. And some profs hate to have any record of what they say in class and are catagorically opposed to taping classes.

 

[jonnythan]

110% Totally right on the money awesome learning tool!!! Excellent suggestion Jon!!

Anyone confused by this, the theory is that you don't truely know the material until you can explain and teach it to others... A concept I have found to be very true.

Yup.. and let me add that having someone else ask tough questions makes you think very critically about the subject matter and really gets you to sort it out in your head in a way that you understand, which regular studying is almost incapable of.