For each of my classes, I have different study habits. Some of my classes require extra attention, while others I have an easier time with and I know I won’t need extra help. For classes that have a stronger social studies aspect, I make quizlets and look over the chapter briefly when preparing for assessments. When studying for science based classes, I do a lot of practice problems on Khan Academy, watch Youtube videos further explaining the topic, and go over my notes from class. I would also like to take advantage of the tutoring programs offered at the university. When I’m in class though, I use slightly different methods to make sure that I am retaining the information and paying attention. I take notes of everything that the professor says during the lecture. After the lecture, I go back through and I highlight the information that was key to the main themes of the lecture. 

One class that I am doing well in is Sociology. When reading over the chapter that is due for the next class, instead of taking notes on paper, I make a quizlet with all the vocabulary from the chapter and any people that are mentioned. During class, I take notes on everything Professor Lopez says and try to copy everything from the presentation. At the end of the class, I highlight all the key terms and themes. 

One class that I am experiencing challenges is my Chemistry Lecture class. To make sure that I do my best in the class, I will be using several study techniques to help me. I will be attending group study sessions before major tests and other study sessions just to go over any material that I’m not understanding. I’ll also be using Khan Academy and the practice questions that they have available. If those practice questions don’t go well, I’ll be watching the numerous videos that they have available to students for free. If I’m still not doing well, then I will go to office hours and ask Dr. Maloney for clarification. Office hours might be hard for me because I have class sometimes during office hours, other activities, and I also live in Whitehurst and it’s far away. I plan on studying at least 2 hours a week for Chemistry, but that could go up depending on what assignments are due that week. I will break those 2 hours up into 1 hour increments on Tuesdays and Thursdays (those are the days I don’t have Chemistry and will be good for reinforcement). I think I need to spend more time on conversions and finding the atomic weight because those were the questions I struggled with on the homework and on the test. There are lots of practice sets on Khan Academy that I can do to practice. I believe that I did a decent job in studying for the exam that I took on Tuesday this week. I felt well prepared and got an 88. I reviewed, but didn’t study the material that I felt I already knew because I took Chemistry in high school. I spent more time on the material that I felt unsure about, and wanted to make sure that I felt more comfortable with it. I believe that I am using most of the tools available to me to study except for the tutoring center which I think I will take advantage of for this next exam. I’m not struggling with my motivation to study because I want to make sure that I am well prepared for the actual nursing courses my Junior and Senior year. I was confused about how the orbital fields were filled up, but was able to figure it out during a group study session before the test. One confusion that still remains though, is conversions. I am going to go to her during office hours because I have tried all my other study tools and habits to try to understand it and it still isn’t cliquing. While preparing for the exam though, there were several things that I felt worked better than others. I felt that doing the Chemistry practice questions on Khan Academy and the practice worksheets that Dr. Maloney posted on Blackboard. One method that didn’t really help me was looking over the textbook chapters. I would have to reread it over and over and didn’t really help me understand anything. I didn’t answer the conversion questions correctly on the test. I was on the right track to get the right answer, but messed the problem up in the later steps right before I got, what I thought was, the final answer. I will be going to Dr. Maloney during office hours to make sure that I have conversions down pat. 

One new technique that I can use in class to help myself better understand the material is to write down any questions that I may have about the information so that way I can remember what I wanted clarification on. Writing down questions that I may will also help me stay actively engaged. Another technique that I could use outside of the classroom to help me study more is using the be here now technique. Every time I begin to wander in my thoughts, I’ll say “Be here now,” to train my brain to stay focused on the material and bring me back to reality.