Erica Siaulnski, Staff Writer
Midterms and test-taking time are one of the most stressful times of the semester for students. Oftentimes, being overwhelmed with work and struggling with stress both inside and out of classes leads students to feel too distracted and unaware of how to handle studying. Luckily, if you’re feeling this way, the Milne library offers many different studying services and assistance to students. Including appointment-based, small group, peer tutoring for all 1000 – 2000 level courses. Professional academic coaching for writing, study skills, reading, and basic math skills. Half an hour to fifty-minute study skills workshops, which are welcome for walk-ins throughout the week, and are also eligible for lead credit through the school.
Study sessions include ones such as “Make It Stick: Six Tips for Students”, with a presenter explaining helpful tips on making information stick when it comes to taking tests and quizzes. Including opting for active practice over review. Studies prove that it’s more successful to review information with someone else; actively recalling what you have learned with another person makes information stick more, and allows you to learn more information in the process. comes routine. Avoiding cramming (mass studying sessions) and trying to learn a lot of information at one time.
Spacing your practice also helps you learn more. Spacing out study sessions and slowly integrating studying a little each day allows the information to be easier to recall, as it becomes routine.
Getting plenty of sleep is also one of the most well-known studying tips, yet it’s been proven time and time again by studies that sleeping at least seven hours allows the brain to function at full capacity and allows for quicker, more accurate recall.
Switching topics when it comes to studying also helps. When studying for finals or multiple exams in a week, it’s better to study a little from each topic each day instead of cramming and studying one topic each day.
Testing yourself and recalling information at random moments throughout the day is also a great way to recall information. This allows you to focus on what you don’t know as opposed to what you already know. It also allows for recalling information to be easier, and allows you to be more prepared for when it does come time to recall information during the test, and allows you to save more time.
Taking notes by hand as opposed to using a computer. When typing, students tend to lose information, misspell, or forget the information they are recording. Studies show that handwritten notes help students recall information better. As you have to slow down when handwriting notes, and think about the information being written.
The Student Learning Center is open Monday through Thursday, 9:00 am – 8:00 pm. Friday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm, walk-in appointments are available.
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