Mid-Semester Reflection
- Learning Style
My learning style is Sensor/Feeler and after learning about my learning style I was a little surprised, some new study strategies that I tried were relating more to the things that I learn with individual experiences. With my learning style, we get a better understanding of things when we relate them to our own personal issues because relating it to something we are familiar with, makes us feel more comfortable about the topic. I also break down big information into smaller portions to fully get a good understanding of the topic instead of being confused. Some other things that I try including going back over information that I learned in class with a smaller group of friends and then going back over it for myself. So far, these strategies have been working in my favor because I have saw an improvement in my grades and I can not only help myself, but help my peers who are having difficulties also.
2. Study Habits
I study in my dorm room, in the library, in the community lounge room in my residence hall, in the study room in my residence hall, and in the Webb. In majority of the places that I study in, there are minimal distractions present. I usually study either after my classes or on the weekends when I have free time. During this time of the day, depending on the time, I feel energized enough to do a good amount of work and if not, I’ll take a little power nap to reward myself so when I wake up I’m ready to start fresh. To me, my studying is effective if I put enough time and energy into what I’m doing. If I could improve my studying, I would not overload myself with information all at once and risk the consequence of forgetting the material that I just reviewed.
- Transition to college
College has been partially what I expected. I expected to be more independent and in control of my assignments as of what many professors told us before starting classes and what upperclassmen told us. The only thing different about this is that majority of teachers don’t take late assignments, so it’s kind of like you either do it or you don’t. The only time you really know about assignments or anything that is due, is looking on blackboard so if you don’t check up there daily, you miss out on a lot. One other thing that is different is that all professors have a schedule or syllabus that we must follow during the semester, so without checking this you really won’t have a clue as to what is going on in class or what is due. So initially the responsibility becomes solely based on you. Living on campus has been an adventure so far, one of the toughest things about moving away to college is not being able to have much of a social life after school because everyone isn’t as close as they were before. A few other challenges include not having your own space like before and not being around family as much as you used to be. One of the easiest challenges to overcome was being more social, it was easy because there are way more people on the campus to interact with.
- Connecting to Campus
A challenge that I have encountered was not understanding some of the material in class and falling behind the curve because the professors move at a faster pace than I’m used to. Some resources that I have took advantage of is the PASS sessions and the SI Sessions for chemistry. A resource at ODU that I would like to more about is the Student Support Services or Trio, I would benefit from the services that they provide. Yes, there has been a few people who have helped me so far, this semester by providing me with the extra help in classes that I was having trouble with and they actually broke down the information in a way that I could understand. I have attended an interest meeting for HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America) because I was a previous member for 2 consecutive years, I have attended the Black Students Association meeting because I am interested in joining a group that is formulated for the minorities on campus, I have also attended the Be-you-tiful Natural event because I love clubs that help people to embrace who they are and how they should just feel comfortable in the skin that they are in.