Effective Studying

Effective studying depends on a number of factors: the subject discipline, the particular teaching methods used, and the personal preferences of you the student. In a new learning environment, you need to adapt your study techniques to fit in with the requirements of the varying learning situations and the challenges you will face.

The purpose of this document is to give you some insight into study at Exeter and to suggest some study approaches that might help you to make the most of studying here. We aim to promote good learning and hope that our students will develop as independent learners, able to think for themselves.

The role of the academic staff ('lecturers') is to guide, advise and stimulate learning. They will do this in two main ways:

• presenting a body of knowledge,
• setting tasks/assignments that will help you to develop necessary skills.

Your role, as a student, is to be an active learner:

• seeking out relevant evidence and evaluating it in light of questions posed;
• working through the material presented in lectures so that you understand it;
• carrying out tasks and assignments independently, setting your own schedule for completing them.

Conventional Modes of Teaching and Learning

Learning in Exeter is made up of different elements:

• Lectures - a member of staff talks about a given subject and the students listen;
• Seminars - students play an overtly active role and discuss ideas together;
• Tutorials - detailed work is discussed in a small-group context;
• Problems classes - sets of problems are tackled and the techniques needed discussed;
• Laboratories / Workshops - guided practical activities, experiments, project work;
• Private work - guided or self-directed study.

Lectures

Lecture classes will be organised in different ways. Some will be held in a large lecture theatre with rows of seats arranged in tiers. Others will be held in a small room with students sitting around a group of tables.

The lectures will vary from one discipline to another and, within a discipline, from one lecturer to another. Lectures are used to identify key points within the syllabus and to put them in context. Some lecturers aim to give an overview of a subject and expect the students to work on their own to find out the detail. Other lecturers aim to explain difficult concepts which the students need to work through afterwards in order to understand. Some lecturers provoke questions, while others provide factual information.

Lectures are never intended to comprise all of your studying. They are an aid to your learning; you have to play your part:

• Before the lecture it is helpful if you have some idea of what the lectures will be about. Refer frequently to the module descriptor and, if the lecturer forgets to tell you the subject of the next lecture, ask.
• During the lecture you should listen actively, and take some notes. How much detail you record depends on the purpose of the lecture (see above) and your own preference. Generally good note-taking is the result of attentive listening - thinking about what is being said and selecting the main points that are being made.

More important than the way you take notes during a lecture, is what you do with them afterwards. Because listening and writing at the same time is difficult, your notes will need revising This should be done as soon as possible after the lecture while you are still able to recall what went on.

• Go through your notes, checking that they make sense. Separate points with headings and sub-headings and number each one.
• Write out abbreviations in full.
• Key facts and concepts identified by the lecturer need to be accurately recorded and given appropriate emphasis.
• Work through any mathematical analysis for yourself in order to check that you can follow it.
• Follow-up reading will usually be necessary; refer to the recommended textbooks and e-Learning resources. Link this with the revision of your notes and incorporate any further details with these notes.
• File the notes for every lecture in a logical order, numbering pages, and dating them.
• Make a table of contents for every course of lectures. When revising your notes list the topic(s) covered in every lecture on your contents page. Not only does this enable you to find your way through your notes quickly, but it provides a useful overall view of your course, which will help you understand the course.

Seminars and Tutorials

Seminars usually involve a much smaller group of students than a lecture. They may be organised in various ways but their purpose is to provide an opportunity to learn through discussion. Generally they do not provide 'right' answers but the chance for a student to try out some ideas and receive feedback on them. Often one or two students will be asked to prepare a paper that they will present to the rest of the group. All the students will then discuss those papers.

The academic staff play a much smaller part in a seminar than in a lecture. They will decide the topic for discussion and may be available to help the presenters beforehand. They will guide the discussion that follows.

Your role as a student is to contribute to the discussion. Even if you are not a presenter you should do some preparation of the topic beforehand. You should listen to the papers presented carefully so that you have some points to raise. Be prepared to make suggestions, to speculate. Don't be afraid of saying something 'wrong'. When you are exploring ideas there is not likely to be just one conclusion. If you are not a native English-speaker don't worry about your English. Speaking your ideas is a good way of developing the language skills you will need to write assignments, and it is only by practice that you will improve.

Problems Classes

These are a form of seminar. It is normal for problems to be set about a week in advance of the class. It is essential that you make a serious attempt to understand and solve these problems before the attending the class. The instructors will help you with obstacles, but will not be prepared to hold up the class while those who have not done their homework struggle to catch up.

Written Assignments - Essays and Reports

Written assignments form a major part of the way you are assessed and will demonstrate your understanding. An assignment should not be merely a compilation of things you have read or heard in class but should demonstrate your critical abilities, and your skills of evaluation and reasoning.

Assignments are designed to make you think. Your response should be argued logically and supported by evidence. The subject matter and type of assignment will impose further constraints but almost all forms of academic writing will require you to be clear about the following points:

• What question is being asked?
• What is my starting point?
• What is the scope of this work?
• What method(s) will be used to analyse the evidence?
• What evidence is available?
• What conclusion(s) can be drawn from its analysis?
• What new questions do the conclusions raise?

How to Succeed as a Student

Organise Your Time

You will be responsible for your own learning and for developing the understanding necessary to complete your course successfully. How you do this is to you to decide. It is important to organise your life so that there is enough time to do the necessary private studying.

It is a good idea to draw up a personal study timetable. This has two advantages:

• it ensures that enough work is done to cover your course;
• it also allows you to undertake extra-curricula activities without feeling guilty.

One year of a full-time programme in the UK requires you to spend 38-42 hours per week on academic work over 30 weeks. These hours will largely comprise formal and private study. Look at your lecture schedule and consider your other commitments. Be reasonable in your expectations. You are unlikely to work effectively for more than eight hours in any one day and you cannot work without breaks for food and relaxation. Review your schedule every week in light of set work and any other commitments, and draw up a plan of work, but keep to broadly the same pattern every week. Allow time to cover all the elements of your programme and don't neglect one part of it because there does not seem to be much set work to be handed in.

Understand Assessment

Your performance in every module will be judged in one way or another. The most common assessment methods are an unseen examination taken within a defined time, and/or a written assignment done in your own time but with a fixed deadline. Whatever the form (the module descriptors specify this) the marks you receive will normally be based on the following criteria:

• the ability to recall factual knowledge of the subject;
• the ability to evaluate theories;
• the ability to solve problems;
• the ability to think critically.

As well as end-of-module assessments, there should be opportunities during every module for you to practise and so develop the skills necessary to complete successfully, i.e. attain the learning outcomes specified on the module descriptor.

You will receive feedback on your work and progress, and it is very important that you take notice of the comments made because they will indicate how far you have met the requirements of the assignment and what more you may need to do. If you don't understand the comments do find the person who marked your work and ask them to explain what was wanted.

For advice about taking examinations see a booklet 'Examinations: how to be prepared' which is available from the Student Skills Development Service.

Develop Concentration

It is easier to plan what to do than actually do it, but a timetable is aways helpful. Knowing what you should be doing in any work period avoids switching from one task to another unable to decide which to do. It also provides an end point to your studies, which aids concentration. If you find it difficult to concentrate for very long, try dividing the task in front of you into sub-tasks so that completing each of these gives a measure of progress and satisfaction. Suitable surroundings help too - a clear table, a hard chair, enough light and heat. Isolate yourself from sources of distraction (mobile phone: off, email: off, TV: off, etc.).

Take Notes

You should always keep a record of what you have seen/heard in lectures. There are two traps to avoid here. Firstly, if the material is complicated it is tempting to copy down sentences and/or paragraphs verbatim. When you come to refer back to these notes later you may not understand them. The second problem is that you may later copy out these points into your assignments and not attribute them to their author. This is a form of plagiarism and is penalised severely by the University.

The following suggestions will help you to avoid these problems:

• listen for clues to the main points e.g. 'There are two important theories';
• look out for clues to the structure of the lecture e.g. 'Firstly we will...', 'The final stage...';
• copy points that are written on the board or on the overhead projector screen;
• carefully copy formulae and mathematical explanations (check them independently later) and ask the lecturer if you are unsure about any of the notation being used;
• when writing notes leave space for later addition and annotation.

Read With Purpose

A large part of your studying will be reading, therefore it is important to read as efficiently as you can. The amount of guidance offered in selecting material varies from one module to another, but unless you are specifically directed to the contrary, you are not expected to read all the books on a book list. Book lists are, as the name implies, lists of books that are available. It is up to you to decide which books and/or journal articles will be useful. It is more important that you read effectively than you read a lot. A useful mnemonic for reading efficiently is W.H.O.:

• Before you begin to read ask yourself 'Why are you reading, what do you want to get out of it?'.
• This determines How you read. There are a number of different ways of using books depending on why you are reading.
  • a steady read of the whole for background information;
  • scanning the book to locate the part that you need, followed by a detailed reading of that part;
  • reading very closely a part of a text book punctuated by frequent pauses for review, to gain understanding of a different theory or concept;
  • skimming quickly through various books, reading a little here and there, in order to get an impression of the range of a topic.
• At the end of each period of reading, pause and consider the Outcome.
  • Have you fulfilled your purpose?
  • How does what you have read relate to what you already know? Does it contradict what you have read elsewhere?
  • Think about what you have just read. Do you have any reservations or questions about it?
  Depending on your response to the questions, you may decide that you have read sufficiently or that you need to do more reading.

Before reading, always record the title, author and location of the book or article for easy reference later, and so that you can acknowledge quotations and the source of your ideas. While reading, take notes in your own words. If the amount to be read is long, read a few pages at a time and make notes at the end of each part. If you want to record a sentence or phrase for use, put it in inverted commas so that you remember later that it is not your own words. After reading, think back to the main points that have been made.

Write With Clarity

Module descriptors are published on the WWW and give links to the specific guidance and requirements for essays and reports which are published in the Department Handbook, normally along with the marking criteria for particular exercises.

Students writing formal essays or project reports may find the articles Psychological Writing by Prof. Stephen Lea, and Use of English by Prof. Roger Bowley useful guides to appropriate style and grammar.

The NASA publication Clarity in Technical Reporting [2.8MB] offers common-sense suggestions for improving written and oral reports. It discusses basic attitudes, some elements of composition, the organization and contents of the report, and the editorial review.

Use Textbooks

Textbooks may seem daunting, especially if they are large, because they contain unfamiliar material. Of course, if they contained only familiar material, there would be little point in reading them! Your attitude when approaching a textbook will affect what you learn from it. If you approach it with fear and trepidation, it may be more difficult to read. To approach a text with confidence, it's easier if you:

• make it more familiar before you read it by looking at the table of contents;
• consider it in the light of questions you have already.

This will make the text:

• less forbidding and more accessible;
• more useful for your purpose and therefore more worthwhile.

If you'd like to read more effectively, try the following.

• Decide what you want to get from the text - an appreciation of a theoretical argument? An overview of a topic, or a key fact? List some questions you want the text to answer.
• Skim through the chapter, looking at headings, diagrams and summaries. This will familiarise you with its content and stimulate you to remember relevant knowledge you may already have. If you are reading to find a key fact, you can probably stop here. Headings will have helped you to locate it.
• If you are reading for background, skim through to find any words or phrases that are unfamiliar. This ensures an uninterrupted flow of reading (especially useful for dyslexic students who may lose their place when reading).
• Read the first line of each paragraph in the chapter or section. This will tell you what is contained in each paragraph and how the author approaches the argument.
• With your mind on what you want to find out, read the text - if you own the textbook underlining or highlighting lines that are useful, othewise note them on a separate piece of paper. (It is important that you are very clear about what you want to find out at this stage; if you aren't, you might end up underlining everything!)
• Make a summary of the underlined/noted parts.
• Review what you have read and written. Does your summary answer the questions that you noted at the beginning?

These steps will:

• help you to decide early on whether the book is of use (and save you time if it isn't);
• encourage you to see the text as an extension of what you already know, rather than an alien experience to be feared!

Make your reading active. A good indicator is if you start talking to yourself, or arguing with the author, as you read or write. It shows you are trying to make sense of what you are reading.

Find Help

Many people in the University are willing to help you with study problems. The Department Handbook has a useful list:

• Advice and Assistance for Students

Obviously, unless you ask for help no-one will know that you need it.

Advice for International Students

If you are not a native speaker of English, try to think in English when you are studying. You will have to write and discuss your subject in English so it is important that you practise working in that language from the beginning. All subjects have a specialised vocabulary of technical or subject-specific words that a student has to understand. Some of these words may occur with a different, general meaning in English and if you convert them into your own language using a general-purpose dictionary, you will get the wrong meaning.

For international students there are also a wide range of welfare services. Details may be found in the University handbook for international students. These services can help you with non-study problems that may get in the way of studying.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Anne Wyatt for permission to base this document on material she developed when she was a study skills advisor at Exeter.