Go find ‘study tips’ on the internet and you are surely to find the typical ‘study hard, pay attention, use a calendar etc…”.  As an experienced teacher, and an overachiever as a student, I can tell you that there are some ‘smarter’ ways to improve your grades.

Here are 5 secrets to getting good grades:

1.    What’s Your Teacher’s Style?

If you have a new teacher, ask him or her if you could see one of his or her older tests (obviously not the same one you will be writing).  It can be from a different subject and even a different year.  See what kind of tests your teacher likes to give.  Does your teacher prefer multiple choice or essay questions?  If your teacher likes to give essay questions, then what ‘keywords’ does he or she use (e.g. compare and contrast, explain, describe)?  Obtaining a test from your current teacher will give you more insight as to how to study for the test. 

2.    Time Is On Your Side.

Studies show that students retain more information when they study in small chunks as opposed to longer periods of time.  Set specific times for yourself and stick to it, even if you’re not finished.  If you aren’t finished, you should still take the break and come back to your work.

If you are consistent with the breaks, you’ll be consistent with the study time as well!

Get the hardest and most undesirable work out of the way first; otherwise you will spend too much time on it later on as it will steal your time away from you.

3.    #3 Is For Three Calendars.

That’s right.  Three calendars.  Get a weekly, monthly, and yearly calendar.  The weekly calendar is perfect for when you have a test next Thursday and a report next Friday.  By ‘seeing’ the next week, you will be better planned.  The monthly calendar is good for being prepared for exams, major projects, and mid-terms.

The yearly calendar, though, doesn’t have much function.  Then why am I suggesting that you get one?  Well, a yearly calendar provides you with a significant psychological advantage.  You see, by putting up a yearly calendar, and of course filling it out as you go along (i.e. you should first write on the weekly and monthly calendar, then copy them to the yearly calendar), you will be able to look back and see the amount of work you have done.  When you see all the assignments, and the amount of work you have put in, you will be more likely to be motivated to continue studying even when you don’t feel like it. 

Imagine, it’s January and it’s winter time.  You are tired and you don’t feel like doing homework or studying any longer.  So, you look at your yearly calendar and realize that you’ve put in tons of work over the past few months.  It would seem like a waste to quit now, wouldn’t it? 

4.    Know Thyself.

Everybody has down times and peak times.  What are yours?  Perhaps you have extra curricular sports after school and other sports or lessons in the early evening.  Then when do you plan on doing your work? 

It’s important to know the time of day that you have your energy and the time when you are tired.  Maybe from 5:00 to 6:00 would be a good time to study before you go to karate class which starts at 7:00.  Or perhaps you can squeeze in 45 minutes right after school.  What you must do is determine the best times to study, and stick to that schedule.  There’s no point on saving homework for 8:00 after you’ve had baseball practice and swimming lessons.  Find your time!

5.    What’s Your Type?

What kind of learner are you?  Are you audio, visual, or kinesthetic?  Is your dominant intelligence verbal, artistic, interpersonal, or logical?  There are many free online tests you can take to get an idea of your learning preference and type of intelligence.

So, let’s suppose that you are a visual learner (you learn best by watching).  Then, you should try to study by using visual aids such as mind maps, diagrams, and pictures.  Or perhaps you are an auditory learner who is dominant in musical intelligence, then you might consider remembering math formulae by writing them into song lyrics.

Regardless of your learning style and type of intelligence, you can find ways to study that’s best for you.

     Clearly, the pattern here is to study smart.  Make studying cater to your lifestyle and skills and take advantage of some of the resources that at your disposal.  Persistence, hard work, and some self knowledge will help you get better grades in school.

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Every time I read the same studying advice about ‘finding a quiet place to study’ , my blood boils. 

Why does everyone give the same advice?

I don’t agree at all !!!   I’ve had students who simply work better when there’s noise, and lost of it.  Sure, there are a handful of kids who need absolute silence to read or do math problems, but there are just as many who would rather be surrounded by other people, a tv, or a radio!

Why do we all have to study in quiet?  Why do we tell kids they have to study alone in their rooms?  I hated being in my room to study!  I felt like I was missing out on something, especially when I heard the tv or laughter from downstairs.  You bet I rushed to get my homework done fast. 

I believe that there are many kids who would rather study in the kitchen or in the living room than in solitary confinement upstairs.  They would rather be near people.  Maybe they could actually study better with some background noise (I personally work best when there’s a lot going on).

Here’s another point to add to this issue.  Have you ever thought that maybe it would be good for kids to learn how to tune out noise and distractions and practice focusing at their task at hand?

How many workplaces are completely silent?  Aren’t we trying to prepare our children for the workforce?  Shouldn’t we try to emulate a real-work environment?

What do you think?

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