Studying: There's More than One Way for Everyone :)

As a recently graduated senior who’s experiencing their last high school summer, you’d think that studying would be the furthest thing from my mind. But, believe it or not, with college just around the corner, the dreaded menace keeps popping into my brain.

The thing is, I have a lot of college credit from high school, and I thought that I took the correct chemistry class I needed to move forward with my degree. Well, I was wrong. So, I decided that if my vacation plans for this summer fail, I’ll take the CLEP exam to get the credit. The only problem is that I don’t know if I can take it since COVID-19 has closed all of the testing facilities in our area.

I honestly don’t mind taking the CLEP exam, I’m just a terrible test taker. I get so nervous and hesitant… just the thought of having to sit down for an hour doing nothing but exam questions (this CLEP exam better not be three hours long like the ACT) gives me a little anxiety. Thankfully, I know ways to reduce my anxiety, so when I get to test day, I only need to worry about if I know the content.

This is why I thought it would be a great idea to write down some of the ways I like to study. As I learned in high school, there is no “one way to study”. Every teacher had a different method because they knew what worked for them, and over time I was able to figure out what worked for me. These are just a few ways that I prepare for quizzes, tests, or exams, along with some tips on studying in general:

Be Prepared!

One of the most important things I can tell you is to not wait until the last minute! When the teacher tells you the date of your test, write it down in your planner. Then, put a notice in your planner the week before so that you remember the test is coming up. (This way you aren’t shocked when the teacher mentions the test two class periods before it happens.)

What I like to do the week before the test is start my study plan. The first day I will decide what study material I want to create. (If your teacher plans to give you a review sheet or something, you can either do additional studying on your own until you get the review sheet, or you can ask for it early if possible.) Once I’ve made the study materials, the second day I start reading or practicing over and over. Starting a week early is beneficial because I don’t have to endure one long and draining studying block, I can split it into sections. Typically I will try to study about thirty minutes a day in the six days leading up to the test.

The night before the test, I make sure I have a little time to relax before I get a good night’s sleep. Even though I sometimes don’t want to, I also make sure I put my phone away. Being on the phone stimulates the brain, and keeps you from falling asleep. If you need something to help you fall asleep, try listening to music, watching TV, or reading a book. I know this is cliche, but getting a good night’s sleep the night before a test is extremely important. When you don’t get enough sleep, your brain doesn’t function nearly as well as it should, and you probably won’t perform as well on your test.

Also make sure you get plenty of energy the morning of your test by drinking lots of water and eating a healthy breakfast. I try to get something with protein, like a bagel with cream cheese, eggs and bacon, or a cheese stick with an apple so that I have energy for the test!

Flashcards

Whether it’s trigonometric identities, French vocabulary, or significant historical events, flashcards are one of my go to’s. Most of the time I use online sites to make them, like Quizlet, but even handheld flashcards are great. I like having them online because I can easily separate the cards I need to work on more by “starring” them. Overall, flashcards are super helpful to me, because they help me increase my exposure to the material and remember important information.

I do not own this image.

Review Sheets

When it comes to studying for math or physics, flashcards are not super helpful for me. If I need to know a particular formula or factoid, then flashcards are my hero, but otherwise they don’t help me much with these subjects. The thing with flashcards is that they’re supposed to be fast and quick, but when it comes to extensive math problems, sometimes you need a little more time to work things out.

This is why I like to use review sheets. Whether the teacher hands me a list of concepts I need to know, or an actual study guide to complete, I work on every problem. The thing with math is that it takes practice. The more I did it, the easier I could remember the steps. So doing the homework and re-working problems that have stumped you before is a great way to prepare for a math or physics assessment.

Check Your Work!

I cannot tell you how many times my friends wouldn’t check their homework before the test. Not only does checking the homework help you identify what you don’t understand, it lets you know when you’re doing something wrong! I’ve had friends say they completely understood the homework, so they didn’t bother checking it. Then they’d get their test back and realize that they had been doing the problems wrong the entire time.

Do yourself a favor and check your homework! When you get an answer wrong, look at your work and try to understand what happened. Working through these problems again, and understanding the mistakes so you can move on, is what will help you in the future.

Look at What You Need to Know!

Believe it or not, one of the best ways to remember information is to actually see it.(Crazy, right? I’ll give you a minute to let that sink in.) If you haven’t taken the time to read through the notes instead of aimlessly jotting things down, you don’t really understand what’s going on. The more familiar you are with a topic, the more likely you are to remember it when test time comes. So, what I try to do is see the information at least three times in different ways:

1. Take notes

   1. To start off, usually I take notes in class, either by writing or typing things out.

   2. PRO TIP: Sometimes when I take notes, they can get pretty sloppy or disorganized if I have to write super fast. When this happens, I usually will go back and type the notes out, or just re-write them so they are more legible. Then whenever I'm going back to look at my notes, I can use my nicer copy instead, and I won't waste time trying to decipher my questionable handwriting.

2. Refer to notes and do homework

   1. When I do my homework, I usually go back to sections of the notes that are relevant to the topic, or re-read my notes entirely.

   2. When doing the homework, if I do not find myself needing to check the notes, I might skip re-reading. I just do whatever I think is necessary for me to remember the information.

3. Make your own materials and study

   1. When it gets to at least a week before the test, I usually go through the notes or look at a study guide to determine what I really need to know for the test.

   2. This is also the point where I would create flashcards by using Quizlet, and start studying for about thirty minutes or more every day leading up to the test.

In all honesty, you probably already do the first two steps. Taking the time to study is just an extra little boost! Borrowing a friend’s flashcard set and homework answers is easy, but I think it’s extremely helpful to do the work yourself. Take the time to re-read your notes and make a study guide with the information you need to know.

Do the Work!

Probably the most important thing I can tell you is don’t cheat. If you don’t have time to make your own review materials, then borrowing a friend’s is better then having nothing. But when it comes to homework answers and test taking, cheating is not an option. The point of quizzes and homework is to identify how far you’ve come, and what you still struggle with. Cheating will not help you in the long run. Cheating is what you do as a quick solve in the moment, but when your math teacher starts the next chapter and you realize you need old formulas you don’t know how to use, you’re screwed. Cheating just keeps yourself from learning something new! Maybe you won’t need it in the future, but maybe you will. You can’t always predict what the future holds. So, when in doubt, don’t cheat, do the work and just try your best!

Take a Deep Breath... You Got This!

Once you’ve taken time to prepare, whether you started a week ahead of time or the night before, you’ve done all you can to make sure you try your best. Take some deep breaths and relax. At the end of the day, you’ve done all that you can to make sure you get a good grade. Even if it’s not what you were hoping for, you can always try better next time! You just have to be confident in yourself! Don’t give up, and remember that there is more than one way to study. Just keep trying until you find what works for you!