With finals just around the corner, a lot of college and university students find themselves thinking about the perfect way to get ready for exams. How about starting or joining a study group? Here are some of the recommendations that may help you have more productive study sessions and prepare for tests effectively.
Form a Study Group Yourself
If you want to have the most effective and productive study sessions, it is better to form a study group yourself. If it includes people who are committed to getting the best grades, you’re going to achieve some great results. Make sure to have study sessions that aren’t too long since a study session that is more than three hours long will soon make you lose motivation and inspiration to work hard. Needless to say that the rest of the group will lose focus as well.
Choose an Appropriate Study Environment
There are several places on campus where you all can meet and study. There are study rooms, libraries, conference halls, and many other spots where you can have the most productive study sessions possible. Check online websites to see if there are any comfortable cafés in the areas where working on your essays or preparing for exams would be possible.
Take Regular Breaks
Take short breaks between study sessions if they last for more than 90 minutes. Keeping breaks is a must in order to reload your brain and get inspired for a new session.
Ensure You All Have Roles
To make sure your study group functions well, ensure to establish all roles. IN other words, every member of your small academic society should take on a specific role. The latter is provided with certain responsibilities. For instance, if someone is good at time management, this person can be responsible for informing the rest of the group about the upcoming study session. Besides, it is important that you have a leader of the group that will keep your meeting on track and ensure that you all are moving forward to the desired goals. Write down people’s names and the roles they are assigned with. Always pick only those who are best suited for the particular roles.
Provide Each Other with Help
It’s great when you know your strengths and make them work for your success. However, it is important to keep in mind that you all are not competitors in your study group. You are fellow students, and you should help each other. Do you see that your friend’s essay looks quite cheap? Don’t remain silent! If you can’t help with the task, search together for a trusted online service to approach with a “Help me do my essay” request. The reality is that today s/he is the one being taught. However, the next you may be the one in need of help.
Plan the Topics You’re Going to Cover
It is essential for you all to be clear on what it is that you’re going to cover during your next study session. The quality of your study time can be really damaged if you lack a detailed plan. Ensure to have a specific plan that covers what you’d like to achieve. Later, you will use it to see how you progress with your studies and measure overall success.
If you don’t know how to build a strong plan for a study session, ensure to start by pulling out your syllabus and identifying the key issues that you would like to cover. Put them down to get back to them when it’s time to check your progress.
Finally, keep in mind that measuring your success is a must. Find out if your team has covered the main syllabus points that were previously identified. Take into account the gaps in your study session to work more effectively in the future.
Keep the Right Size of the Group
Make sure to keep your study group to a limited number of people. If you do not have enough students in your group, you will simply limit your knowledge circle. At the same time, too many people may eventually distract you from the study process. It is recommended to have from 4 to 6 people to form a complete study group that will help you grow academically and make study sessions both effective and enjoyable.
Things to Do During a Study Session:
- Check your notes.
- Pay attention to information that remains unclear.
- Work on this or that home assignment.
- Get help with finding online academic sources that you couldn’t find yourself.
- Ask questions you hesitated to ask in class.
- Quiz each other to check your knowledge levels and get ready for the exam.
Some Final Tips to Consider
- Don’t forget to take your notes with you. Thus, you will have an opportunity to compare what you have put down in class to what your peers have.
- Don’t waste your precious time during your study sessions on unnecessary talks (you will do that later).
- Take regular breaks. Have a 5-minute break during your study session. Are you done with your essay or research paper? Have some coffee with cookies to take a little break.
- Always have a quick summarization at the end of each study session. Thus, you will see what you succeeded at and what aspects require more attention.
Finally, stay focused!
