Believe it or not, you do not have to stay away entire night studying to get the grades you want. In this article, you will find ten successful studying tips that will help you study more and study better while saving time. Before that, however, let’s take a quick look at a highly-effective form of studying- holistic learning.
What is holistic learning?
Holistic learning is the process of organizing the information you gain into easy-to-recall patterns rather than cramming at the last minute or memorizing everything bit by bit. By arranging information in a way that everything interconnects with each other, you will be able to see the entire picture rather than just small parts or concepts.
If all this seems new to you or if you need help understanding and implementing this kind of studying, here are ten successful tips to help you out:
- Use metaphors
Metaphors are great tools to help you quickly organize information. They work by comparing simple ideas to complex ones. If you encounter ideas and concepts too complex, think of an analogy that ties to this idea to help you understand better.
- Engage all your senses
It can be tough to memorize abstract ideas since they are so removed from the average human being’s senses. You can, however, come up with images, thoughts and pictures that relate to the information in order to bring them closer.
- Teach more
Did you understand the ideas and concepts that were taught in your class? Great! Spread that understanding with friends and colleagues. It may seem frustrating, but teaching actually helps you organize ideas better. Spending a few minutes teaching a concept to someone can help you more than studying together with him or her for hours.
- Do not leave any information disconnected
Remember that the metaphors and packets of information you organize in your mind should be connected to something else. Leaving out information or keeping some ideas separate will not help you remember them on exam day.
- See if you shift between concepts
How successful have you been so far? You do not have to wait for a test to find out! You can test it on your own by just writing down about the subject you are studying. Reference on idea to explain another and jump sections to make sure you can truly connect between the ideas you have formed.
- Look for patterns
Find patterns in the information you study, since they help make it easier to organize and identify connections linking different ideas and topics.
- Read on different topics
Read more and build up a general understanding of several topics. This will help you become more flexible when finding patterns and creating metaphors for new topics. In simpler terms, it gets easier to learn when you know more.
- Do not force or cramp information
Do not try to force information in the day before the exam, since it is very inefficient. Instead of doing this, interlink the ideas that come to you as you study and then recap everything the day before, rather than learning from scratch.
- Create models
Models, in this case, are concepts that help you describe abstract ideas, even if they are entirely true or accurate. Create an experience or an image in your model and reference it when you try to understand abstract concepts. Build on this model as you learn more and more about the concept.
10. Use books and notes to learn
It may feel nice to have a notebook or textbook with well-organized notes, but what is the point if you do not understand it? Use notes and textbooks as a medium to add that information to your head. Do not worry about making a mess, just focus on getting the ideas from the books and notes into your mind.
