In Module 7, we focused on maintaining/finding your motivation while in college. I know college can be really hard and repetitive, so it’s very easy to lose interest or motivation as you move through the semester. However, it is very important to spark that motivation! Having motivation in college starts with productivity, which means you need to actually do your work in an effective way. This could mean that you need timers to remind yourself when to get to work or using an app that creates a background noise so you aren’t easily distracted. This is where you need to find what works for YOU. Everybody is different and has their own way of doing things. Also, it’s important to make sure you are doing okay so you can be motivated. This means you need to take care of your mental health, learn how to manage stress, and relax. These three things are the most important topics in Module 7 and can be found on Slides 21-24. If you think you are struggling with a mental health issue, please reach out! There are many resources on campus and in Columbus. If you feel super stressed out, make sure you are taking breaks, sleeping enough, and having a healthy coping mechanism like going to the gym or calling a friend for 15 minutes. Make sure you don’t slip into unhealthy coping mechanisms like oversleeping and overeating, as this will most likely just make you more stressed out. Keeping yourself in check is imperative to having motivation. I hope these tips helped you out, Happy Finals Week!
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Module 6: Searching and Researching: The Foundations of Academic Writing
During Module 6, we learned the difference between searching and researching as well as the things we should be looking for before we include an article or website in our own research paper. This topic is not foreign to me as I have taken two College English classes in high school through CCP. My teacher really drilled all of this information in my head and now it’s ingrained forever, but I’m so thankful for it! I think the most important takeaway from this module is found on slides 14-16. These slides discuss Reliability, Quality, and Utility of sources in scholarly writing. Knowing what each of these terms mean and why they matter is so important when looking for sources. In order to write a great paper, you must have great sources! Another tip is to use scholarly search engines to find your sources. I personally like EBSCOhost, and it’s the one I have been using since I started my college career. However, you can go to OSU’s library website and use any of the research databases provided on there. These scholarly databases are such a great tool for academic writing because you can ensure that the articles are peer reviewed and full text, which boosts the reliability, quality, and utility of the article! Learning how to navigate these databases and including them in your research is one of the biggest pieces of advice I could give to college students, these resources really elevate your own research papers!
https://library.ohio-state.edu/screens/databases.html
Module 5: Web-Enhanced Listening and Viewing Strategies
This week we discussed the importance go note taking, how to be an active listener, and different methods of taking our notes. I think the most important thing I learned this week is to be open to new ideas and ways of doing things. It’s very easy for us to be stuck in our old ways and never want to change because we know what works for us. However, I do think it could be a good idea to try out some new things in school, such as your note taking method! I have personally been using the Outline Method for as long as I can remember and it really works the best for me, my major, and study habits. I have learned about a few new methods this week such as the List Method and Concept Maps Method, and I think it is possible to incorporate some ideas from each method to create something that is personal and usable for you! A good resource that described each method can be found on Slide 14 in Module 5. The Cornell Method is a very good method as it allows you to create questions and summaries about the material in your notes, which leads you to deeper processing of the information. I have used this method in high school and I did not really like it for me, but now that I’m in college I think I could open up to it since I’m dealing with harder content. I think a way to incorporate the Cornell Method into my Outline method is to just write a couple questions on each page of notes I take so I can actively think about what I am writing down. I encourage you to be open to new note taking strategies as they could be very helpful and hopefully advance the note taking system you are using now!
Module 4: Web-Enhanced Reading and Study Strategies
In this week’s module, the topic of being a better reader and using online tools to aid your learning was discussed. I think becoming a better reader is so important, especially in college. I do not have too many classes that have required me to read a lot, but I have also been in a few where I would have to read a few chapters every night. In those classes, I often found myself drifting my attention away throughout my reading time and would have no idea what I had just read the sentence before. This type of reading causes you to reread passages and text and in turn costs you your time. Chapter 5.2 from College Success provided tips for being an active reader and I found them to be very helpful. Some of these tips include: pacing your reading, scheduling out reading times for the week, avoiding distractions, and taking breaks. While all of these tips are great, I think the most important tips are to avoid distractions by turning off your phone and reading in a quiet environment, and taking breaks. As a student, I often forget to give myself “healthy” study breaks. By healthy, I mean just a 10 minute break which could include me getting a snack, drinking water, and going for a walk around the residence hall, not just sitting on my phone and dragging my planned 10 minute break into an hour long break. We need study breaks to keep our brain functioning in a productive way, so my biggest piece of advice is to try not to cram and allot for some breaks!
Module 3: Efficiency in the Digital Age
This week in class we discussed how to overcome procrastination and how to make better time management decisions. The most useful thing I learned is that I should be committed and stick to a routine. This not only applies to my schoolwork, but also to things like eating healthy, going to bed at a certain time, and going to the gym. I often struggle with the “I’ll do it later” mentality, and I know it would be way better if I just did things when they should be done. Slide 17 provided a website that had a great list of ways to manage your time better. This week’s module really opened my eyes to how I spend my time and what I could do in order to improve.
One thing from this module that I already put in practice was creating a time tracking table to see how I spend my free time during my day and how much sleep I get. We all had to do this for an assignment and it has probably been the most beneficial assignment I have ever done here at OSU. I never think I spend too much time watching YouTube or scrolling on Instagram, but tracking my time showed me how my time could be better well spent. Although, since I had to track my time, it gave me an incentive to be more productive. Therefore, I think this is a great way to hold yourself accountable and to stay focused on the tasks at hand while keeping a good balance with leisure time as well.
Based on what I have learned in this module, I would recommend that any student should challenge themselves to be better. Recognize what your weakness is when it comes to procrastination. Is it getting on your phone? Feel like you do not have enough time? Try to set up a time schedule of when you should work on homework each day and make sure the list is prioritized, with assignments that are due in the near future being completed first. Make the schedule and try to out for a week or two. If you struggle with getting on you phone while completing assignments, utilize the “Do Not Disturb” setting on your phone. This way you will not get any notifications as long as you are off your phone. Which bring me to my next tip. Having your phone sit next to you is very tempting, so maybe try putting your phone across your dorm on a shelf or on top of your fridge. This way the temptation is gone and you can really focus on your schoolwork.
https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/effective-time-management
Module 2: Communicating and Collaborating
Module 2 taught us how to properly communicate with our peers and professors as well as utilizing online tools to enhance that communication. The most important thing I learned this week was how to properly contact a professor via email. Slide #7 of the Module 2 lesson gave a really good layout of how each email should be before sending it to a professor. Communicating with your professor over email is very important in college and it could be the first impression your professor is getting of you. Therefore, it is crucial that it is done the right way to avoid any confusion or miscommunication. On Slide #8, Dr. Soltzfus emphasized that emails to professor should be formal. In other words, do not compose an email that sounds like a text to your friends, this can often leave a bad impression. It is also important to note that most questions such as due dates, meeting times, and other class information is located in the syllabus, so it is best to always check there first before composing your email. However, if you need clarification on an assignment or questions about class content, be sure to email your TA or professor, the proper way of course. Emailing professors can be intimidating, but following the simple steps provided in this module can make it a lot easier.