How it started?
During this semester, I tried several strategies to help me study. The strategy I use most often is tomato clock. Using a tomato clock can help me keep on studying during a specific time. But sometimes I found I cannot concentrate while learning. Even though my eyes are on the book, my mind is flying away. In this way, I want to find a way to reduce anxiety while improving my expertise.
Why this book?
I find the book “A Mind for Numbers” my best choice. This book focus on the mind or brain, and provides copious information and practical applications to help readers develop habits of mind and behaviors that lead to successful learning not just in STEM fields but in any subject or skill.
During the several strategies shown in the book, I think chunking will be the most helpful strategy to achieve my goal. Chunking refers to the process of taking individual pieces of information and grouping them into larger units. Creating a little library of these chunks will help us perform better on tests and solve problems more creatively.
Use of the strategy
Let’s start a powerful chunking!
1. Work a key problem all the way through on paper.
This problem will be a problem with solutions. But while solving this problem, we should not read the solution and the solving steps. Solve it by ourselves and make sure we understand the reason we write each step.
2. Do another repetition of the problem, paying attention to the key processes.
Do the problem again, may be using a different way to solve it. This step seems amazing but it is useful. People will not remember how to play a song on the piano with once practice. If we practice more times, it will be easier to remember.
3. Take a break.
During this time, we can do anything we want to do, for instance, we can work on part time jobs, doing some sports or work on other subjects. This is a period to diffuse mode time to internalize the problem.
4. Sleep.
Before sleeping, it’s a good choice to do the problem again. If we do not have time, just think about the solving steps while waiting for falling asleep.
5. Do another repetition.
Do the math problem again in the next day. During this time, we can find we are able to solve this problem faster. We can better understand each step of the problem and why we write each step. We may even find why we had some trouble with it while first solving it.
During this time, we can focus on the relatively more difficult parts of the problem and scan the easier parts. The focusing time is called “deliberate practice” and this practice can increasing our concentrating time. This is one of the most important aspects of productive studying. And this will give us a good start.
Also, there’s an alternative or supplement at this point is to see whether we can do a similar problem with ease.
6. Add a new problem.
Find a similar question and work on it. It is a good choice is this question is similar to the first one. The solution to this problem will become the second chunk in your chunked library. And continues step 1-5 to solve this problem. And after we become comfortable with this problem, move on to another.
We will happy to find that after a few solid chunks in our library can greatly enhance our mastery of the material and our ability to solve new problems efficiently.
7. Do “active” repetitions.
We need to review the main points of these problems in our mind while doing some actives such as doing sports and waiting for sleep. This can help us enhance our memory and strengthen our ability to recall key ideas when we are solving homework problems or taking a test.
Measuring success
In order to measure the working time, I first using the tomato clock. This is the picture of a tomato clock app called “Forest” and it shows the time I spend every day on studying.
This is a picture of tomato clock to recording my concentration time from 1st Nov. to 17th Nov.
Then I use a separate daily/ weekly planner to check off my reading, note review, and assignments.
This is a picture of plans from 8th Nov. to 14th Nov.
Final words
I think combine tomato clock with the chunking strategy is a very useful way to increase expertise and reduce anxiety. In addition, making a daily/ weekly planner to check how many works I do every day is a direct way to help me motivate myself. I can give me some gifts if I finfish all the assignments on the planner and think back carefully if I did not finish the assignments. It is helpful to find the distractions and improve in the future. I will continue this learning ways in the future because I think these combinations of strategies can largely improve my efficiency.
After this semester’s reading of the book “A Mind for Numbers”, I will also recommend this book to my friends in need so that they can be more productivity in the future.
Citation:
Overview of ‘A Mind for Numbers’ – Learn: CSUF. (n.d.). Retrieved November 18, 2020, from http://www.fullerton.edu/learn/interesting-articles/Overview-a-mind-for-numbers.php
(n.d.). Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://www.google.com/search?q=sleeping
(n.d.). Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://www.google.com/search?q=break