Prepping for Midterms- Organizing Yourself for Midterm Season!

It’s midterm season. Professors and TA’s and colleges and universities around the globe are getting us all together for mid semester assessments.  Don’t let them sneak up on you.  I always encourage students to constantly check their syllabi and follow up with their professors. Will you have exams, projects, presentations, papers and when everything be due.  Determine preparing for midterms will require for each course and prioritize.   Armed with this information you’ll be able to manage your time and  schedule of studying.  This post will highlight the information students should gather in preparing for midterms.  Don’t miss the bus children.

For each class it’s best to find out....

1.  The format of your midterm- Is it an exam? ( if so is it multiple choice, Short Answer, Essay,etc.). Is it a paper? Project? Etc.

2. The date and time of your midterm or when your midterm must be submitted to your Professor.

3. Find out if your midterm will be cumulative or non cumulative- Cumulative exams assess your knowledge of all the course content from the first day of class until this point.  In other words, what was discussed the first week of class will probably be on the exam. Non-Cumulative exams just test you on the material that was taught since the most recent exam/assessment .  

4. Find out if your professor or TA will provide in class review or access to study guides.  If so, plan to attend them. If not, consider supplementing your personal study with group study.

5. If you don’t know already, find out your current standing in class ( In other words, inquire about prior test grades, missing assignments, etc. 

6. Review returned quizzes, exams. paper and assignments. Read and review your feedback and comments that your professors made on your tests/quizzes, especcial the questions you got wrong.  Note areas where you professors made specific suggestions that would improve the quality of your work. If you’re unclear about anything you see in these comments don’t be afraid to reach out to you professors or TA. If necessary, you can even visit office hours, study groups or supplemental instructions sections. If you’ve struggled in a course thus far, learning where you’ve gone wrong is the first step you should take in making sure you don’t make the same mistakes twice.

Asking these questions will best prepare you to handle midterm season Fall 2011.  . Most of the answers to these questions can be found on your syllabi and/or through a brief conversation with your professor before or after your next class. I’ve learned the hard way that failure to be organized about your studying results in a lot of unnecessary anxiety, stress and cramming.   Save yourself the heartache.  I’ll be back with more study tips later in the week. As always I hope this helps. Feel free to leave your comments, questions, feedback below.

Classroom Hustlin: How Tykeia Takes Class Notes!

Back again to give a little more information on note taking strategies that have worked for me.  This post will focus more on the actual act of taking good notes and organizing them for future use.  Not to get all elementary one you, but here I’ll give you  the basics behind how I take my notes in class.  You are welcome to consider  this method when trying to find the method of note taking that works best for you.  Remember midterms will be here to bust you in the mouth before you  can comb your doobie down.  I’m just trying to help you get ready.  Don’t miss the bus!

As I stated in previous posts, the days of carpel tunnel and arthritic finger cramps are OVAH!  I no longer deem it necessary to write everything down in class. I learned (the hard way) that doing so is super counter productive to getting all you can from the class session.  I now focus on identifying the main themes of the lecture and class discussion and feature those in my notes along with any accompanying diagrams, examples and analogies that help me understand and retain the course concepts.  The note taking strategy method that helps me  do this is the traditional outline method.  I take notes as one would outline a paper.  Check it out 

1. Point 1- I start here by writing the general topic area/ discussion point/ main idea that is being discussed.  It’s really more of a title.  
   1.  Definition Here is where I write down the standard definition or conceptualization of the topic area/discussion point or main idea given above. 
      1. Additional important  information surrounding the definition is provided here. This information  includes key factors surrounding the definition that frame and provide context for understanding the point/idea that's being discussed.  See the example below

 Sample Class Notes

1. Jean Piaget’s Theory of Psyco/Cognitive Development
   1. Definition : According to Piaget human cognitive development occurs through a series of stages.
      1. These developmental stages were deemed universal to all children/people. 
      2. Movement from one stage to the next occurred when a child had a certain level of physical/cognitive experiences and had reached a certain level of maturation.
      3. There are four stages
         1. Sensorimotor
         2. Prepoperational
         3. Concrete Operation
         4. Formal Operational
   2.  Sensorimotor-
      1. A child is typically at this stage from birth to two years of age
      2. At the level the child little levels of competence and awareness of objects or people that are not within the child’s physical presences and realm of sensation
         1. Children don’t recall /remember/think about what they can’t physically sense at the time. What the can’t see/hear/smell/taste/touch
         2. Piaget referred to this a lack of object pemenance
   3. Pre-Operational Stage

I prefer this method of note taking for a variety of reasons.  First, it’s quick and it organizes my thoughts and ideas. It’s not just a bunch of random terms and sentences all over the page.  It provides the structure and really outlines the flow of class discussion.  It helps you frame your thinking.  Secondly it’s very easy to do. It’s conducive to those who write their notes in notebooks as well as those who choose to bring a laptop to class and type their notes out.  It’s very fast. Especially for you typists and laptop luggers out there.  Most people naturally type a lot faster than they write.  PS if you’re looking to amp up your average words-per-minute rate, this  is a quick and easy way to do it.  But I digress :-) 

The outline format of note taking is also great because it’s conducive to  quick phrases and short hand. in other words,  while you’re in class you don’t have to write perfectly structured complete sentences.  The goal is to get it down and get it down right..  Hell, sometimes I don’t even write coherent words.  You will find all typea of short hand and text speak up and through my outlines.  ( B/c = because; F/E= for example; Defn: Definition, you get it!).  You’ll have time to go back and make it legible later.  Actually the act of the going through your notes and cleaning them up is actually a way study.  You’re reviewing the material when you’re decoding shorthand and translating your quick phrases in to actual sentences.  It’s really a great way to prepare for exams. It’s really been a huge help to me; the outline method is really an efficient way to take and organize your notes.

I hope this has been helpful to you.  I’m not saying that this is the best way to do things it’s just what’s best for me.  Remember, there is no one right way of taking notes.  It's all about learning and doing what's goingt to help you succeed.  I’d love to hear/ read about things that work or have worked  for you.  Holla at the comment section if have  anything to add.   We’re all scholars in process here, each one teach one. Ya dig?! If you have any questions or would like to see some more information feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. 

Happy Note Taking! 

The GlamNERDS Review Back to School Apps and Websites for Students Vol. 2

Back again to review another website that has become one of my favorite resources.  Today we’re talking file sharing … 

DropBox

Dropbox is web based file sharing program that allows you to upload, back up and share files online.  Have you ever gotten to the library/computer to realize that you left your flash drive at home? Or have you ever woke up to find that your hard drive has completely imploded and you lost  your term papers and class notes to the war on PCs? Dropbox has been there for me when I've faced similar challenges along my academic journey. I think every student should have one.  

Dropbox is a program that syncs your files online and makes them accessible from any computer/ipad/smartphone with internet capabilities.  You’ll be able to access your files via the on the Drobbox website or by installing the Dropbox app or program.  Your files and documents are stored on Dropbox’s secure servers where they will be safe and secure from all hurt, harm and danger.   You can share you dropbox with classmates, friends, roommates, boo thangs, or anyone with a dropbox account.  I’ve even used the program to share music and video files.  It’s a keeper and you can get up to 2GB of storage for free.   If you dont have it, you're living under a rock. Head to the Dropbox.com and sign up today! Don't miss  the bus children!