study skills handbook

TheStudySkillsHandbookSecondEditionStellaCottrell©StellaCottrell1999,2003Illustrations©StellaCottrell&PalgraveMacmillanLtd1999,2003Allrightsreserved.Noreproduction,copyortransmissionofthispublicationmaybemadewithoutwrittenpermission,exceptasstatedbelow.Noparagraphofthispublicationmaybereproduced,copiedortransmittedsavewithwrittenpermissionorinaccordancewiththeprovisionsoftheCopyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988,orunderthetermsofanylicencepermittinglimitedcopyingissuedbytheCopyrightLicensingAgency,90TottenhamCourtRoad,LondonW1P9HE.Anypersonwhodoesanyunauthorisedactinrelationstothispublicationmaybeliabletocriminalprosecutionandcivilclaimsfordamages.TheauthorhasassertedherrighttobeidentifiedastheauthorofthisworkinaccordancewiththeCopyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988.Firstedition1999Secondedition2003PublishedbyPALGRAVEMACMILLANHoundmills,Basingstoke,HampshireRG216XSand175FifthAvenue,NewYork,N.Y.10010CompaniesandrepresentativesthroughouttheworldPALGRAVEMACMILLANistheglobalacademicimprintofthePalgraveMacmillandivisionofSt.Martin’sPress,LLCandofPalgraveMacmillanLtd.Macmillan®isaregisteredtrademarkintheUnitedStates,UnitedKingdomandothercountries.PalgraveisaregisteredtrademarkintheEuropeanUnionandothercountries.ISBN1-4039-1135-5AcataloguerecordforthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.Thisbookisprintedonpapersuitableforrecyclingandmadefromfullymanagedandsustainedforestsources.1098765432112111009080706050403EditedbyAndrewNashDesignedbyClaireBrodmannBookDesigns,Lichfield,StaffordshirePrintedinChinaSelf-evaluations,checklists,plannersandrecordsheetsmaybephotocopiedbyindividualstudentsfortheirpersonaluseonly.AcknowledgementsTheauthorwouldliketothankthefollowing:TMPWorldwideResearch,32AybrookStreet,LondonW1M3JL(tel.01718721500),forpermissiontoreproducetheirdataon‘softskills’andemployment.LynnChiswick,forherfullencouragementandsupportforSkillsforSuccesswhenallIhadtoshowherwereafewpencil-and-papersketchesandalotofenthusiasm.RobertSimpson,PamDixonandDavidGoslingforhelpfulcommentsonthefirsteditionoftheHandbook.ThemanylecturersatUELwhousedSkillsforSuccessandtheothermaterialswhichhavebeenincorporatedintothisHandbook,includingthedyslexiasupporttutorswhopilotedsomeofthematerialwithdyslexicstudentsattheuniversity–thefeedbackofallthesestaffonwhattoinclude,andonhowtoadaptsomeoftheearlymaterial,hasbeeninvaluable.KateWilliams,forreadingthroughtheoriginaltextandforhermanyusefulsuggestionsonhowtoimproveit,andthekindness,encouragementandsensitivitywithwhichsheofferedthese.LecturersfromBritishandinternationaluniversitiesfortheirconstructivefeedbackonthefirstedition.Whereverpossibletheirsuggestionshavebeenincorporatedintothisedition.Margaret,Suzannah,Andrew,Claire,Sanphy,Barbara,Felicity,Isobel,Gabriella,Jackie,C.E.D.,allthosewhoseworkbehindthescenesmadethisbookpossible.Thehundredsofstudentswhowereopentodiscussingtheirdifficultieswithmeandwillingtoelaboratenewandindividualwaysofapproachingtheirstudy–tothem,andtoallfuturestudentswhomaystruggleforevenaday,thisbookisdedicated.AcknowledgementsiiIntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbook1HowtouseTheStudySkillsHandbook2Wheretobegin3Sevenapproachestolearning4WhatdoIwantfromuniversity?61Preparingforuniversity7Applyingtouniversity8AmIreadyforHigherEducation?9WhattoexpectinHigherEducation10Independentstudy12Independentlearning:takingcontrol13Independentlearning:benefits,challenges,risks14Typesofe-learning15Basicsofe-learning16Successfule-learning17Basichealthandsafetyfore-learning18Skillsandpersonaldevelopment19Thestudent’syear20Whatisexpectedfromyou?21Anxietiesandresources22Managinganxieties23Whataremypersonalresources?25Eightthingsyoucandobeforestartingatuniversity26Review282Identifyingyourskills29Fivestudy-skillscomponents30Skillsandqualitiesyouhavenow31Currentskillsandqualities33Turningpersonalskillsintoacademicskills34Studyskills:priorities,stage135Studyskills:priorities,stage236Studyskills:actionplan37Monitoringskillsdevelopment38Personalprofiles39Transferableandsoftemploymentskills40Turningacademicskillsintotransferableandsoftemploymentskills41Recordingachievement42Developingaportfolio43Review443Intelligenceandlearning45‘AmIintelligentenoughforuniversity?’46Ninedifferentviewsofintelligence47Whatis‘learning’?52Sixconditionsforlearning54Optimallearning57Review584TheC·R·E·A·M(creative,reflective,effective,active,motivated)strategyforlearning59Findingyourcreativestreak60Beaprofessor–andotherideas61Creativelearning62Whatismylearningstyle?63Reflectivelearning65HowwellamIdoing?66Reflectivelearningjournals67Virtueversuseffectiveness68Effectivelearning70Settlingdowntostudy71When,howandwhere?72Organisingspaceforstudy73Managingyourtime74Effectivediary-keeping75Tentime-savingsuggestions77Studytime78Wheredoesthetimego?79Timecircle80Timemanagement81Priorityorganiser82Workingbackwardsfromdeadlines83Usingcomputersforeffectivestudy84Organisationalskillsforstudyingonthecomputer85Howinformationisstoredoncomputers86Activelearning87Emphasisonaction!88Activelearningstrategies89Motivatedlearning90WhatdoIaimtoachieveatuniversity?91Usingdesiredoutcomestoguidestudystrategy92Achievingdesiredoutcomes94TheC·R·E·A·Mstrategy95Review965Workingwithothers97Studyingwithothers98Waysofworkingwithothers99Talkingandlisteningskills100Makingyourpoint101Makingthegroupwork102Beinganeffectivegroupmember103Dealingwithdifficultmomentsinthegroup104Prejudice,unfairnessanddiscrimination105Dealingwithunfairdiscrimination106ContentsiiiContentsCopingwithunfairdiscrimination107HowwelldoIcontributetoseminarsandgroups?108Studysupportnetworks109Sharingworkwithoutcheating110Makingapresentationorgivingatalk111HoweffectiveamIingivingatalk?113Beingawareofyouraudience114Review1146Researchskills115Identifyingthetask115Makingthemostofthelibrary116Findinginformationinthelibrary117MakingthemostoftheInternet118WorkingwiththeInternet119Identifyingandselectingrelevantinformation120AmIasmartreader?121Improvingreadingcomprehension123Improvingreadingspeed124Makingnotes126Howhelpfulareyournotes?127Note-makingstyles128Shortcutsinnote-making130Makingnoteswithconfidence131Recordingandusinginformation132Plagiarism133Detectingplagiarismandcopying134References135Givingreferences136Writingoutreferences137Gettingthemostoutoflectures138Lecturenotes:coversheet139Problem-solving140Practicalsandlaboratorywork141Review1427Writingforuniversity143HowgoodamIatmanagingwritingtasks?144Writingforthefearful145Developingyourwriting146Anxietiesaboutwriting146Similaritiesbetweenacademicwritingandotheractivities147Overcomingwriter’sblock148Tricksforgettingstarted149Students’solutionstowritingblocks150Essaysandotheracademicwriting151Aseven-pointprocedureforwritingassignments152Analysingthetitle154Academickeywordsusedintitles155Devisingyourownessaytitle156Commonfeaturesofallacademicwriting157Structuringyourwriting158Organisinginformation:planningyourwriting159Structuringanessay160Planningyourwritingassignment161Planningstages162Conceptpyramidsorganiseideas163Essayplansaspyramids165Writingdrafts167Paragraphs168Checkingyourparagraphs170Linkingideastogether171Editingyourdraft172Editingfinaldrafts173Presentingyourwriting174Lecturers’preferences175Review1768Developingyourwriting177Stylisticconventionsforacademicwriting177Beingprecise179Usingfacts,opinionsorarguments179Writingfordifferentsubjects180Alternativestothescientificmodel182Polaroppositesinacademicapproaches183Differentstyles184Descriptivewriting185Argumentative/analyticalwriting186Frameworkforanargumentativeessay187Evaluative/analyticalwriting188Frameworkfora’compareandcontrast’essay190Usingpersonalexperience191Whatgetsgoodmarks?192Usingfeedbackfromtutors193Whatisanessaylike?194Review1989Projects,dissertations,reportsandcasestudies199Whatisaproject?200Whatisadissertation?201Choosingthetitle202Developingaresearchstrategy203Designingquestionnaires205Interviewtechniques207Presentingandanalysingthedata208Characteristicsofreports209Structuringreports210Writingthereport:openingsections211Writingthereport:thebodyofthereport212Writingthereport:conclusions,recommendations,abstracts213Reports:layout,presentationandstyle214Projectanddissertationchecklist215Dissertationactionplan216Casestudies218Writingacasestudy218Review22010Criticalanalyticalthinking221Developadetective-likemind222Criticalthinkingwhenreading223Criticalanalyticalthinking230ContentsivCriticalthinkingwhenwriting231Criticalanalyticalwritingvs.descriptivewriting232Identifyingcriticalanddescriptivewriting233Feedbackontheactivities235Review23811Memory239Individualmemorystyles240Checkyourmemorystyle241Improveyourmemory242Usingthebrain243Thetriunebrain244Stagesofthememoryprocess246Suggestionsformultipleencoding248Memorythrivesonorganisation251Pyramids,patternnotesandpictures252‘Chunking’information253Review25412Revisionandexams255Whatdoesrevisioninvolve?256Effectiverevision257Revisionstrategies259Revisionandexampreparation260Revision:seven-pointactionplan261Advancepreparationfortheexam262Exams263Intheexam264Doingwellinexams265Examstrategy266Dealingwithstress267Managingstress268Review27013Planningyournextmove271Studyskillsachievements272Evaluatingachievement277Planningyourfuture278Personaldevelopmentalreadyundertaken279Planningtowardsacareer280Careerreadiness281Lifelonglearning284Wherenext?Skillsforsuccess285Clarifyingpersonaltargets288ActionplanforPDPgoals289Whatnow?290Suggestedfurtherreading291References292Index294ContentsvRelatedPalgraveStudyGuidesSkillsforSuccess:ThePersonalDevelopmentPlanningHandbookStellaCottrellTeachingStudySkillsandSupportingLearningStellaCottrellHowtoWriteBetterEssaysBryanGreethamTheStudents’GuidetoWritingJohnPeckandMartinCoyleTheMatureStudents’GuidetoWritingJeanRoseResearchUsingITHilaryCoombesStudySkillsforSpeakersofEnglishasaSecondLanguageMarilynLewisandHayoReindersEffectiveCommunicationforArtsandHumanitiesStudentsJoanvanEmdenandLucindaBeckerEffectiveCommunicationforScienceandTechnologyJoanvanEmdenHowtoManageYourArts,HumanitiesandSocialScienceDegreeLucindaBeckerHowtoManageYourScienceandTechnologyDegreeLucindaBeckerandDavidPriceviVisitouronlineStudySkillsresourceatwww.skills4study.comThestudyskillsneededforHigherEducationareultimatelygainedonlythroughstudyingatthatlevel.Studyskillsdon’thatchfullyformed,anymorethanagrownhenpopsfromanegg.Theyevolveandmaturethroughpractice,trialanderror,feedbackfromothers,andreflectionasyoumovethroughthedifferentstagesofyourcourse.Youwillbesurprisedathowyourthinkingandlanguageskillsdevelopsimplythroughcontinuedstudy.However,therearesomebasicapproacheswhichcanstartyouoffonagoodfooting,helpyoucutcorners,andacceleratethelearningprocess.ThisHandbookdevelopedoutofpracticalworkundertakenwithhundredsofstudentsovertenyears.Thecoreofthebookhasnowbeenusedbyover50,000studentsandhundredsoflecturers,whosevariedcommentshavecontributedtothisversionoftheHandbook.QuicktipsanddeeperlearningAreflective,active,self-evaluatingapproachtolearningdevelopsdeeperunderstandinginthelongterm.However,quicktipsarealsoinvaluabletostudents,especiallyinemergencies.ThisHandbookoffersbothapproaches.Tomeetyourimmediateandlong-termstudyneeds,moveflexiblybetweenthetwoapproaches.1IntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbookLEARNINGOUTCOMESTheStudySkillsHandbookaimstohelpyoutomanageyourownsuccessasastudent.Itdoesthisby:preparingyouforwhattoexpectfromHigherEducation(universityorcollege)encouragingyoutothinkabouttheskillsyouhavealready,whichyouwillneedbothasastudentandinyourworkinglifeprovidingresourcestohelpyouevaluate,reflectuponandmanageyourownlearningmakingsuggestionsonhowtodeveloppositiveapproachesandgoodstudyhabitsofferingguidanceonhowtotackleactivitiesthatmanystudentsfinddifficulthelpingyoutounderstandmoreabouthowlearning,intelligenceandmemorywork,andhowtodevelopcriticalandanalyticalthinkingstylesencouragingyoutounderstandthatsuccessasastudentisaboutmorethanbeing‘clever’.Goodmarks,aswellasotherkindsofsuccessfuloutcome,arepossibilitiesforanystudent.IntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbookCartoonsandpagelayoutThecartoonsanddifferentlayoutsactprimarilyasvisualmemory-joggers.Evenifyoucannotdrawwell,youcanusevisualpromptsliketheseinyourownnotes.(Thiswillalsohelpyoutofindthingsmorequickly.)Thevarietywillencouragelearningthroughdifferentsenses,too–seeChapter10formoredetails.Theself-evaluationquestionnairesTheself-evaluationquestionnaireswillhelpyouintwoways:bybreakingdownmajorstudyskillsintotheircomponentsub-skillsbyenablingyoutopinpointwhichcomponentsmakethestudyskilldifficultforyou,andtonoticestepsoractivitiesthatyoumissedoutinthepast.Sometimesjustgoingthroughthequestionnairewillbeallyouneedtodoifthishelpsyouidentifythemissinglink.Usethequestionnairestomonitoryourprogressandidentifyyourstrengths.The‘challenging’chaptersDon’tbeputoffbychaptersthatlookdifficult,orbywordsyoudon’tknow.Youmayneedtoreadsomechaptersseveraltimes–butthat’stypicalofadvancedlearning.Whenyouhavelivedwiththemforafewweeksandthoughtaboutthem,theideasandvocabularywillbecomeeverydaywordstoyou.Knowledgeofspecialisedtermsandofunderlyingtheoriesempowersyouasastudent.Itsharpensyourthinking,allowsyoutodescribethingsmoreaccurately,andimprovesyouroverallperformance.IntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbook2Thisisaguidethatyoucandipintoasyouneed–orusebyworkingthroughthechaptersrelatedtoaparticularaspectofstudy.Youcandoaslittleorasmuchasyoufindhelpful.Ofnecessity,theHandbookfocusesonadifferentaspectofstudyineachchapter.However,asyourstudyprogresses,youwillnoticethattheseskillsareinterconnected.Developingoneareaofyourstudywillalsohelpwithotheraspects.FindingwhatyouneedEachchapterbeginswithanoutlineofthelearningoutcomesforthatchapter.Browsingthroughthislistmayhelpyoudecidewhetherornotyouneedtoreadthechapter.Eachchapterdealswithseveraltopics,andeachtopicisintroducedbyaheadingliketheoneatthetopofthispage.Theseheadingsmakeiteasiertobrowsethroughtofindwhatyouneedquickly.Theindex(attheback)givespagereferencesforspecifictopics.KeepingajournalThissymbolremindsyoutonotedownyourreflectionsinyourstudyjournal.Fordetails,seepage67.PhotocopiablepagesPagescontainingself-evaluations,checklists,plannersandrecordsheetsmaybephotocopiedforindividualreuse.(YoumayliketoenlargesomeofthemontoA3paper.)Whenyouhaveusedthephotocopies,keepthemwithyourjournalforfuturereference.Thissymbolisusedtoindicateapagethatcanbeusedforself-evaluationorforplanning.HowtouseTheStudySkillsHandbookReadthroughthe‘Sevenapproachestolearning’usedbyTheStudySkillsHandbook(page4).TheHandbookwillthenmakemoresensetoyou.CompletetheWhatdoIwantfromuniversity?questionnaire(page6).Thiswillhelpyoutoorientateyourselfasastudent.BrowsethroughtheHandbooksoyouknowroughlywhatisinit.Youmaynotknowwhattouseuntilyoustartassignments.UsetheStudyskills:prioritiesplanner(page35)tofocusyourthinking.Ifyouareunsurewheretobeginwithastudyskill,dotheSelf-evaluationquestionnaireintheappropriatechaptertoclarifyyourthinking.Chapters2–4covergroundworkandapproachesbasictotherestoftheHandbook.Youwillprobablyfindithelpfultoworkthroughtheseearlyon.Ifyouarethinkingofapplyingtouniversityorknowlittleaboutuniversitylife…StartwithChapter1,‘Preparingforuniversity’.Thisgivesyouanideaofwhattoexpectfromuniversity,helpsyoudecidewhetheryouarereadyforuniversityyet,andgivesadviceonhowtoprepareyourselfforyourfirstterm.Chapter4isalsolikelytobeuseful.Youmayalsofindithelpfulifyou:identifyyourcurrentskillsandqualities(seepages31–4)lookatyourmotivation(WhatdoIwantfromuniversity?,pages6and91)developconfidenceinyourreading(pages120–6)andwriting(pages144–9).IfyouhavedoneBTECorA-levels…Youmayfindthatyoucanbrowsethroughtheearlysectionsofeachchapterquitequickly.Chapters4,5,8,9,10and11maybethemostusefulforyou.Ifyoufeeluncomfortableaboutabookthatusesimagesaslearningtools,readpage53andChapter11on‘Memory’andthemethodsmaymakemoresense.DyslexicstudentsTherearenowthousandsofdyslexicstudentsinHigherEducation.Manyaspectsofthisbookweredesignedwithdyslexicstudentsinmind,including:thecontentstheuseofvisualimagesthebook’slayouttheemphasisonstructuretheuseofvariedandmulti-sensoryapproachestolearning.PaceyourselfIfyouhavebeenawayfromstudyforawhile,orifyouarefindingstudydifficult,bekindtoyourself.IttakestimeandpracticetoorientateyourselftotheHigherEducationenvironmentandtodevelopstudyhabits,especiallyacademicwritingskills.Yourfirst-yearmarksmaynotcounttowardsthefinalgrade,whichmeansyouhavetimetopractiseandimprove.EverybodylearnsintheirownwayTherearemanyavenuestosuccessfulstudy.Experiment.Explore.Becreative.Findwhatsuitsyoubest.Chapters2–4encourageyoutolookforyourownlearningpatterns,andmakesuggestionsonhowtoexperimentwithyourlearning.IntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbook3Wheretobegin1LearningcanbeanadventureItisdifficulttolearnifyouarestressedorbored.ThisHandbookencouragesyoutobeeffectiveratherthanvirtuous,andtoseekoutwaysofmakingyourlearningmorefun.Degreecoursestakeseveralyears,soyouneedtofindwaysofmakingyourlearningenjoyable.Smallchildrenlearnextraordinaryamountswithouttryingparticularlyhard–simplythroughbeingrelaxed,observing,playing,role-playing,tryingthingsout,makingmistakes,andbeinginterestedinwhattheyaredoing.Theydon’tregardsetbacksasfailures;theydon’tworryaboutwhatothersthink;andtheydon’ttellthemselvestheymightnotbeabletolearn.Whenachildfallsover,sheorhejustgetsupandmovesagain,andeventuallywalkingbecomeseasy.Adultscanlearninthiswaytoo–iftheyallowthemselves.2UsemanysensesThemoreweuseoursensesofsight,hearingandtouch,andthemoreweusefinemusclemovementsinlooking,speaking,writing,typing,drawing,ormovingthebody,themoreopportunitieswegivethebraintotakeininformationusingourpreferredsense.Theuseofseveralsensesalsogivesthebrainmoreconnectionsandassociations,makingiteasiertofindinformationlater,whichassistsmemoryandlearning.Thisbookencouragesyoutouseyoursensestothefullandtoincorporatemovementintoyourstudy.Thiswillmakelearningeasier–andmoreinteresting.3IdentifywhatattractsyouItiseasiertolearnbykeepingdesirableoutcomesinmindthanbyforcingourselvestostudyoutofduty.Someaspectsofstudymaybelessattractivetoyou,suchaswritingessays,meetingdeadlinesorsittingexams,andyetthesealsotendtobringthegreatestsatisfactionandrewards.Itiswithinyourpowertofindinanyaspectofstudythegoldthatattractsyou.Forexample,visualiseyourselfonalargecinemascreenenjoyingyourstudy–oryourlaterrewards.HearyourownvoicetellingyouwhatyouareIntroducingTheStudySkillsHandbook4SevenapproachestolearningTheStudySkillsHandbookusessevenapproachestolearning.IenjoyfindingoutnewthingsIlovethechallengeofgrapplingwithnewideasMyreadingskillsareimprovingeveryweekgoodstudentis‘notintheirgenes’.Panicaboutthiscan,initself,makeithardtolearn.Thatiswhythisbookconsidersideasaboutintelligence(inChapter3)andstress(inChapter12).Manystudentswhowerenotidealpupilsatschooldoextremelywellatcollege,followingthoroughpreparation.7RecogniseyourownlearningpreferencesEachofuslearnsinanindividualway–thoughwealsohavealotincommon.Sometheoristsdividepeopleinto‘types’suchasvisual,auditoryandkinaesthetic,orintrovertedandextroverted–therearelotsofwaysofdividingpeopleup.Theimportantthing,however,isnottodiscoverwhich‘type’youarebutrathertorecognisethemanydifferentelementsthatcontributetohowyouyourselflearnbest.Ifyouregardyourselfasa‘type’youmayover-identifyyourselfwiththattype.Youmaythengetstuckwiththatimageofyourself–andalwaysconsideryourselfa‘visualintroverted’type,ora‘chaoticextrovert’.Thismayleaveyouwithrigidviewsabouttheonewayyoulearn.Whatyouneedtodoisexperimentwithstrategiesandskillsyoucurrentlyunder-use.Thehumanbrainishighlyadaptable:ablelearnersmoveeasilybetweendifferentstrategiesandlearningstyles,dependingonthetaskinhand.Thegoodthingaboutbeingawareofhowyoulearnbestisthatyoucanadaptnewlearningtofitwhereyouarenow.Youmayalsobeabletoseemoreclearlywhyyoudidwellorbadlyatschool,depe