I recall not having a study method many years ago. Someone I knew back when I began my college life once showed me ways to study more committedly. However, it took me years to understand these steps and I often fell into the habit of unstructured reading and studying – “lazy reading”, so to speak. Over the years, I’ve learned a thing or two, and would like to share that with students who are beginning their studies in college and are facing new academic challenges.
Reading articles, novels and textbooks efficiently requires concentration. Multitasking impairs effective reading, especially when studying from a textbook for an exam. There are several techniques to improve concentration when studying from a textbook, including breaking down studying into equal portions, separated by brief moments of relaxing “rewards” (the so-called “Pomodoro Technique”), as well as studying in the right environment, whether at a library or a cafe, or at a place where both concentration and pleasure can be found. Meditation before engaging in reading is also important, as well as asking yourself why it is important to go through the process of reading and studying something, especially if it is hard or if you are not particularly motivated by a particular subject.
During the study process, active reading involves engagement. Passive reading is doing so without a plan of action, waiting for whatever comes in the next paragraph, without a real desire to discover what is on the page. Active reading helps create associations which improve long-term memorization. Structuring this process with the SQ3R (S – skim, Q – questions, 3R – read/recite/review) reading method can be very helpful to study as efficiently as possible. It consists on first, going over, or skimming, the reading from a bird’s eye view, paying attention to any titles, subtitles or words in bold present on a particular chapter. While skimming, it is important to ask questions about the reading, taking as many notes as possible throughout the chapter at stake. These questions will later help guide you through the reading, making it easier to understand. Then, of course, comes the reading portion of studying the text, but while doing so (after each section, for example), remember to recite in your mind (or out loud) important parts of the reading as you go over it. Finally, it is necessary to review what has been read. Recapitulating a section of a chapter at a time, and then doing so for the entire chapter, is crucial to interiorize the material.
Last but not least, it is crucial to study with time in advance. Always pay attention to lectures and try to read a certain section that you know will be covered during lecture beforehand. I advise you to start dedicated study for an exam two weeks in advance. Doing so earlier might lead to forgetting the contents if not reviewing adequately, and doing so in less than two weeks might cause you not to cover all the material in a way that will be effective for the exam. Starting dedicated study the weekend before the exam is usually a terrible idea.
Sources:
Lesson: Module 4, slide 5