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Overwhelmed by the amount of material
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Don't look at the whole mountain, look at the ground in front of you.
It's time to take control!
- Pull out your text book, syllabus, and any class notes that you have so far.
- Pick
out the most central, most basic, most important ideas from the
beginning to the end of the course and write them down (whether you
understand them or not). This is your central study outline.
- Look
at your class schedule and any other important commitments that you
have for the coming week, and find one hour slots to plug in the above
topics.
- Before you begin studying in each
time slot, survey the chunk of material that you have decided to learn.
What seem to be the main ideas, what information supports them, what
opposes them, are there any examples, graphs, charts, or illustrations
that concisely illustrate these central points?
- Remember,
you are not trying to learn all of it -- just the main ideas, and one
example of supporting information for each. Study these things in
relationship to your central outline.
- Read to
understand the central ideas, supporting and opposing information.
Rewrite these ideas in your own language. Work in one hour blocks of
time, and at the end of the hour, review what you have done.
- Then,
take a break, or work on something else. Before you begin to study the
above material again, review what you have already learned to remind
yourself that you know it. Pick another chunk of material and start
again.
- Even in technical classes, where each
chapter builds upon the previous one, it is not always necessary to
understand all of the material before moving on. When trying to study a
later chapter, look for the fundamental principles described earlier
and build upon that relationship.
For more information, click on these links:
Organize your time and your life | Set goals for your education | Identify resources | Study efficiently
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For
more information about these and other services,
call (202) 994-5300 or visit . |
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