How To Prepare For A Science Class

1
How To Prepare For A Science Class

• Effective Habits for Effective Study
• Active Listening
• Taking Notes in Lectures
• Tutoring
• Class Room discussions Participation
• Class Room Preparation

2
How To Prepare For A Science Class

• Index Study System
• Avoiding Procrastination
• M.U.R.D.E.R a Study System
• Concentration
• Test Taking

3
Effective Habits for Effective Study

• Take responsibility for yourself
• Center yourself around your values and principles
• Put first things first
• Discover your key productivity periods and places
• Consider yourself in a win-win situation
• First understand others, then attempt to be
  understood
• Look for better solutions to problems
• Look to continually challenge yourself

4
Active Listening

• Focus on the person communicating
• Let argument run its course
• Be involved
• Give the instructor time and space
• Give the instructor to regroup (conclusion)
• Ask questions during Q A period
• Affirm your understanding
• Ask questions (non-threatening)
• Reflect on your experience
• Interpret
• Apply what you have learned
• Quickly express appreciation
• Invite classmates for discussion afterwards
• Write out a summary with questions for further
  review

5
Taking Notes in Lectures

• Keys for good lecture notes taking
• Record, Reduce, Recite, Reflect, Review
• Organize notes according to sections
• 1. Central space
• Identify the main points, capturing main ideas,
  quoting the important points of the lecturer
• 2. Marginal space
• Used for editing and annotating what you have
• Written, linking information, adding definitions
• 3. Condensing space
• Used for summary and conclusions
• Compare your notes with other classmates
• notes

6
Tutoring

• Build a relationship and trust between you and
  the tutor
• Always seek for a help
• Review materials before going to tutor
• Come up of a list of Can not do or Did not
  understand
• Listen closely. Do not interrupt
• Assess the situation
• Ask more times if you do not understand
• Show you appreciation at the end of helping
  session
• Communicate your results/findings
• with classmates to deepen your knowledge

7
Class Room Discussions and Participation

• Make notes of questions, answers, discussion you
  want to share
• Introduce your contribution with a quick summary
• Express your ideas and opinions very clearly.
  State a reference to support your points
• Refer to your notes
• In making an argument, start with examples from
  your teacher or author
• Ask for feedback
• Demonstrate openness and dialogues when other
  classmates agree or disagree with your points
• Focus your contributions on your analysis of the
  topic studied

8
Class Room Preparation

• Before Class
• Do your homework
• Review your notes
• Seek help and communicate with your instructor
  for any study problems
• Focus on the task at hand before class
• Write any objectives that come to your mind
• In Class
• Arrive on time for class
• Avoid distractions
• Evaluate as you Listen
• Review your class objectives

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Class Room Preparation

• Position yourself in the class room for better
  listening, seeing, discussing and asking
  questions
• Write a to do list which includes
• Assignments
• Reviewing difficult concepts
• Joining study groups
• Making appointments with instructor, tutor,
  classmates
• Examining your expectations by asking yourself
  Am I satisfied with this class?

10
Index Study System

• The advantages of the index study system are
• Helping you in reviewing and reading materials
  frequently
• Keeping track of any terms or formulas you need
• Solidify knowledge by writing each question in a
  card with its answer in another card
• Carry your cards with you anywhere, everywhere
• Testing yourself any time
• Studying with classmates individually or in a
  group

11
Avoiding Procrastination

• Procrastination can be related to a course
  project or to a habit
• If it is project related, then
• Motivate yourself
• Be goal oriented
• Positive attitude
• Look for the big picture final objective, end
  result
• Develop your plan
• Admit to mistakes
• Avoid strong emotion, distraction, fantasy
• If it is a habit related, then
• Try to forget it and focus on task

12
M.U.R.D.E.R a Study System

• M.U.R.D.E.R stands for
• Mood have positive mood
• Understand put whatever not understood in
  separate unit
• Recall review your knowledge by recalling what
  is learned
• Digest contact a tutor if you need a help and
  reconsider your information
• Expand your knowledge by sharing it with other
  classmates
• Review have a strategy in reviewing what you
  have studied in class and by the tutor

13
Concentration

• Stick to a routine
• Study in a quiet place
• Take a break during studying
• Avoid day dreaming
• Review lecture notes before lecture start
• Have positive attitude toward the lecturer and
  the lecture
• Resist distractions

14
Test Taking Strategy

• Come prepared
• Arrive early for test
• Stay relaxed and confident
• Be comfortable but alert
• Preview the test
• Answer the test by answering the ones you know
  best and the one with high points
• Multiple choice test use best educated guess by
  eliminating the possible wrong questions
• Essay test think before you write and try to be
  focus on the main task
• Keep time for reviewing the test use 10 of test
  time for a review before submitting

15
Test Taking Strategy

• Analyze your test result and use it as an
  indicator for the next test
• Decide and adopt best study strategy works for
  you

16
Acknowledgements

• The Advising and Counseling Center Staff - Tobi
  Ames
• Science Club Decatur Campus
• The audience