Perhaps every student’s least favorite part of going to school is tests. In my experience, even a “good test taker” can take these tips from TestTakingTips.com and use them to get higher scores and great grades!
See TestTakingTips.com for additional study tips, including how to do well on certain question types, like multiple choice, essay and short answer.
Preparation for your first test should begin after the first day of class; this includes studying, completing homework assignments and reviewing study materials on a regular basis.
Reading is one of my favorite activities in and out of the classroom. Over the years, I have several methods to help me become a better academic reader versus a pleasure reader.
Some of these tips may seem repetitive or “common sense” but they work!
Remember – academic reading is different than pleasure reading in numerous ways, so you have to approach them differently.
Getting Involved, Staying Involved and Having Fun
Involvement is a key to being happy in college. And college is one of the few places you can try as many things as you want without consequence or spending a lot of dough. So why not try out all your interests? Why not join a few clubs and meet new people? Why not take advantage of the free movies, the free concerts (or low cost at least), or other activities your college itself or organizations team up to offer? Over and over again, research (and personal experience) has shown that students that get involved are less likely to drop out of college and are more likely to have higher grades and graduate from college.
Ok so I’m at college – where are the clubs and organizations?? Check out the student affairs website – there should be a listing of organizations or an office where you can go to get more info on the clubs and organizations. Many clubs and orgs put up flyers at the beginning of semesters to gain interest in what they do. Interested in watching anime? Try the anime club. Want service? There are tons of these groups around. Want to do something more local than a large national organization? Colleges have these too.
Let’s say you’re interested in what lots of the groups are doing but don’t want to stretch yourself thin – go to a couple events that those groups throw and decide which one you can give more time. Just because you’re not a member doesn’t mean you can’t go to their events. My undergrad institution had what we called “Club Expo” and all the clubs and organizations (all 300+) took over the student union to hand out info on their organizations and get interest lists together. Just because you have interest doesn’t mean you have to join. It just meant they would contact you when things were going on and give you space to make your own decision.
After spending 4 years in undergrad and 2 in graduate school, I have had to learn, sometimes the hard way, how to listen and take notes well.
These are tips that I also have passed on to my students this past year as I taught American Government.
The following 5 tips work, no matter what subject matter you are studying.
1. Go to class! There is nothing like going to class. Getting notes from your friend, listening to a podcast of the lecture after the fact, etc. just do not substitute for the real thing.
Finding out what your learning style is and tailoring your approach to classes, reading, studying and organization to it may help you process information more efficiently, thus becoming more successful in school.
Diablo Valley College’s learning styles survey is helpful to determine what your learning style is.
The survey answers the question of whether or not you are a visual, auditory, or tactile/kinesthetic learner with a series of simple situations (32 questions total).
You can take the survey at the DVC Learning Style Survey for College website.
I took the survey and my results are:
The school year is gearing up, and it is better to get in the routine of good study habits earlier, rather than later.
Below, you’ll find 5 time management tips that work.
These are tested by me, a professional student and approved by my mom, a professional mom and retired teacher. 
1. Start managing your time at the BEGINNING of the semester, not the end. You want to get in the habit of managing your time wisely early, so you will be less stressed at the end of the semester. Be flexible, though. Don’t feel that you have to stick to schedule or habits that aren’t working for you. Change things around and try to find a pattern or schedule that works best for you.
Students (and workers!), isn’t it is a big hassle to reset your regular alarm clock if you just need a quick afternoon nap? The worst part is if you forget to turn the alarm on after you took such pains to reset it or if you set it for 2 a.m., not 2 p.m.!
Don’t despair, though. The Naked Alarm Clock is a reliable and easy to use internet clock. You can use it anywhere that you have an internet connection and a browser that uses Macromedia (Adobe) Flash.
