Are your grades going south or not where you want them to be? Here are 10 Effective Strategies to Make Better Grades

 Get Effective, Smart Study Strategies to Make Better Grades

Studying is a necessary part of any student’s life.

You can sit in class, take notes, and later take a test, but that is only part of the story of attending college.  Effective study strategies consist of taking information and internalizing it in a way that allows for an accurate recall which helps you earn better grades. To put it another way, you are wasting your time if you study only to remember something for a test and then forget the material as soon as you walk out of the testing area. Research indicates that students with good study habits generally make better grades.

Really, now.  Do you want to develop a reputation of someone who is educated, or do you want to develop a reputation of someone who learned to take tests, but did not learn much of anything else?

 

If you believe that knowledge is power, then you might want to learn effective ways to study and obtain that knowledge.

 

The fine print:

If you only want to learn to take tests, then you are probably in the wrong place.  I can help with that, but I am not going to do that now.  Go read something that was written by someone who does not value a good education.

 

Back to studying:

While we spend what seems to be all our childhood in school, we are rarely taught how to take notes or study.

Have you ever lost points on an assignment because you forgot to do something?  My assignment checklist can help you remember the details.  Check it out!  It is FREE!!!!

Become a more successful student by studying more effectively:

Listen and ask questions in class

1. Take good notes. Record all the ideas presented by the instructor. You can fill in the blanks with the textbook. Date each entry and keep all the notes for a particular class together.

 

• • If your instructor writes it on the board, you’d better copy it into your notes!
  • If your instructor says “Now, this is important”, write it in your notes.
  • Write down all examples your instructor provides.  It is best if you can paraphrase what you are told,
  • Do not take verbatim notes if possible.  If you can do not understand what you write, the odds are good you will not understand your notes later.
  • Rewrite later if necessary.  This might seem like a waste of time, but you would be surprised how much you can learn simply by copying your notes.  Rewriting forces you to think about the words and put them into your own words.  That is how you learn.

• • You need to give some serious thought to how you learn at this point. Some people can copy what the instructor writes and then figure out what the notes mean outside of class.

• • Some people need to listen to understand the instructor’s points and then write some notes.

• • Do not spend all your class time writing notes if you need to hear to understand first.

• • If you can, and the instructor allows it, you might want to record the lecture and take notes later. This might seem like a waste of time, but you might discover that you learn a lot more, and retain the information longer when you listen to the lecture first and transcribe your notes later.

2. Study a little each day. Most students wait until the last possible minute to study for a test, but there’s only so much you can learn in a day. Study in small, frequent sessions. The time to begin studying for the final is the first day of class. Seriously. It’s never too soon.

 

• • If you spend a few minutes each day during the first week of a class, you will build on the material as the class progresses. If you do not start to study until two or three weeks into the course, think of all the material you need to review and learn.  THAT will take you longer than doing a little at a time at the beginning of the term.

• • Study for a few minutes right before bed. Everyone needs a good bedtime story. Yours can be a riveting tale about sub-particle physics. Studies have shown that information learned just before falling asleep is better retained.

• • https://www.chronobiology.com/scientists-say-studying-before-bedtime-is-best/
  • https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/ulterior-motives/201611/how-sleep-enhances-studying

• • Fifteen minutes each day over a 16-week semester is 28 hours! That’s a significant amount of study time.

• • Fifteen minutes a day for six days a week for a 12-week semester is 18 hours. That is still a significant amount of study time.

• • Remember, it is easier to develop a small habit than it is to try to create a big one when you absolutely need it. In other words, it is easier to develop a habit of studying for 10 – 15 minutes and build on that a minute or three at a time, than it is to try to create a habit of studying for 45 minutes or more when you have hardly studied at all for weeks.

 

3. Visit the instructor outside of class every so often. Avoid being a pest, but show that you care about learning the material. Have an intelligent question to ask. Avoid asking anything that can easily be found in your notes or the textbook. You’ll only make yourself look foolish or lazy.

• You’re likely to get the benefit of the doubt if your grade is borderline. All you need to do is stop in the instructor’s office and ask a good question a couple of times each month.  If you are having a tough time thinking of a “good” question, check with your instructor to ensure you have the right understanding of the major project for your course.  READ THE INSTRUCTIONS first.  You do not want to verify something that is clearly written on the instructions.

 

4. Have an attitude that works. When viewed negatively, studying becomes much more challenging. Viewing studying as exciting as getting a root canal will not improve your grade.  Remember, studying is a chance to learn new things, secure your future, and show your best.

• • Avoid procrastinating, but study when you’re in the mood to do so. Wait until your attitude has changed if you’re overly distracted or disinterested.  If you always have a “bad attitude”, you might want to have a long talk with yourself about why you enrolled in college in the first place.  If you do not have a goal, you will find that studying is going to be hard to do.

 

5. Pick a location conducive to studying. A quiet location with minimal distractions is best. In spite of what you may think, studying with the TV on isn’t optimal. Find a quiet place where you can focus most easily.

• • If possible, study in the place where you’ll be tested. It will be easier to recall the information.

If you are using study sessions with other students:

6. Leave everything else at home. Leave your laptop if you don’t need it. The internet, Facebook, and 60 minutes of wasted time are only a few clicks away. Avoid bringing anything to your study session that might be a distraction.

 

7. If you must bring a child to a study session, check to see that this is fine with your study mates. Make a pack with one or all of them that they will help you stay accountable for your study session.  You need to have someone tell you if you are being too distracted to effectively study. Not only do you impact your learning, but you also impact theirs as well.

Do the required reading before class.

8. You may not understand the material when you start class, but you will be able to ask better questions. When there’s reading assigned to go along with the lecture, read the material before class. You’ll already have a good idea of what’s going on.

• • It will also be easier to take notes since you are familiar with the material.

 

9. Take frequent breaks. Avoid studying for more than an hour without taking a short break. Get up and move around. Call a friend and chat for a few minutes. Make sure your friend encourages you to return to your studies.  This is supposed to be a short break, remember? You’ll get more done in the long run.
10. Check your college website.  Colleges and universities almost always have web pages for their students with study and college survival tips.

 

Studying does not have to be a major project.  Little changes can make big impacts.

Studying more effectively will take less time and provide better results. Going to school doesn’t have to be stressful. Developing good habits is the key to success.  These habits can help you improve your motivation.  Learn to study more intelligently rather than applying brute force to the situation. You can be a highly successful student.

Want more ideas?  Check out another of my blogs with study tips.

If you have any questions, leave a comment!

If you found this helpful, please share it with someone you think would also find it useful.  I would appreciate it.  Your friend might appreciate it too.

 

Have you ever lost points on an assignment because you forgot to do something?  My assignment checklist can help you remember the details.  Check it out!  It is FREE!!!!

 

If you have any questions or comments, please leave me a note.

 

Valerie

updated 21 June 2023