Blog #69 – TEACHING STUDENTS HOW TO STUDY
Early in a school year, teachers need to take some time to provide students with ideas of how they can study to insure mastery of the concepts being taught. From taking notes, to making flash cards or forming study groups, students can be taught how to do things that will increase the opportunity of success on independent study work and assessments.
During my career, I always required that students keep a notebook in which they recorded notes of the lessons that I was presenting. Initially, I would tell them to copy any examples, definitions, properties or theorems that I wrote on the chalkboard or overhead screen. Later in the school year I asked them to copy any concepts that they were having difficulties with. When studying, I advised them to highlight important information. The day before a test I asked them to place stars next to concepts that they needed additional time in mastering. To insure that they were taking useful notes I checked their notebooks every six weeks. I spent special attention analyzing the notebooks of students that I knew were having the most difficulties in the lessons that I was presenting. I made sure that I informed these students if they needed to improve their note taking skills.
Something else that I recommended students do was to make flashcards that featured formulas, definitions or theorems they needed to master. I told them that they may have their parents help them in studying the flashcards. They were also told that if they placed questions on one side of the flashcards and answers on the other side, they could study on their own. As they mastered information on some of the flashcards, they could eliminate those from the stack that they needed to study.
Another idea that I provided my students for studying was organizing a study group. The study group could consist of two or more students. When they met with the group to study they could use their notebooks or flash cards to ask questions and review concepts, formulas, definitions or theorems that they needed to study.
Teachers need to accept the responsibility of helping students learn ways that they can study. This should be done at all levels of education. Teachers should inform parents of ways that their children could improve their performances. Teachers need to get parents to be active participants in the learning process. That means that parents can check their children’s notebooks, flashcards, homework and tests.