how to write study guide for college course

What should a study guide include?

A good study guide should be a combination of both the lecture notes and notes from the readings. Go through chapter notes and look for similarities in your lecture notes. If certain topics, names, or concepts appear more than once, underline or highlight them, and make sure they are prominent in your study guide.Oct 9, 2014

What is a study guide for a course?

A study guide is an aid, usually in the form of printed notes, designed to assist students with their learning. It indicates what should be learned, how it can be learned, and how students can recognize if they have learned it.

What is the purpose of a study guide?

The purpose of a study guide is to help you synthesize and summarize the information. You might think of your study guide as a mini outline. It is especially useful for difficult or complex concepts or subject areas. The primary advantage of a study guide is that it reduces the amount of information to be learned.

How do you construct a study?

The following 6 steps should help you create an efficient study schedule that works for you.Choose your learning methods. There is no best way to learn. ... Identify your knowledge gaps. ... Define your goals and set deadlines. ... Map out your strategy to optimize efficient learning. ... Build in rest and self-care. ... Re-evaluate and adjust.May 1, 2019

What should a study guide contain?

Your study guide should contain only the most important concepts you’ve seen in class during the semester. It’s not just a rewritten version of your class notes. It’s supposed to help you study and prepare effectively for an exam. You need to prioritize the information provided.

Why should a study guide not include everything?

Your study guide shouldn’t be including all that you’ve seen, because not everything is going to be on the exam! Instead, focus on key points and concepts. This will help you create a general picture of what you’ve seen in class throughout the semester.

How effective are study guides?

Study guides are a very effective study method, if done correctly and thoroughly! I suggest taking it everywhere with you so you can study in your free time like during your lunch break, waiting for the bus, or in between classes. The important thing to remember when it comes to studying is that you need to do what works for you. Once you have found your method, stick to it!

How to help you understand concepts?

A good way to help you understand a concept is to add an example to it. Your teacher might have provided some to you during class, or you might come up with something. The important thing is that you add examples that you understand and that make it easier for you to study.

Can you use full sentences in a study guide?

Don’t use full sentences; instead, try to use keywords or small phrases that are easy to remember. The main objective of a study guide is to facilitate your studying, and formatting your document visually will definitely help you achieve that, especially if you’re a visual learner (like me)!

How to write an expository paper?

Tips for writing expository papers include: Determine the approach required for the assignment: compare and contrast, cause and effect, procedure or process. Write a concise thesis statement that presents your topic, but does not include opinion. Research existing information about your topic.

What are the common writing problems?

Common problems occur when using the passive voice, incorrect punctuation and confusing word options.

What is an expository essay?

Similar to argument and persuasive essays, expository papers require you to research an idea or concept and provide supporting evidence. This type of writing includes a thesis statement, as well as the logical presentation of sources that address the idea you are exploring in your paper.

What are some tips for writing a research paper?

Tips for writing research papers include: Develop a clear and focused research question, hypothesis, thesis or topic. Identify relevant sources, including previous research reports.

What is an academic proposal?

They often outline a research plan or project idea with a goal of gaining support from another group. This type of writing is more common in graduate-level study, but may be encountered by undergraduates involved in collaborative research projects with professors and other students. Tips for writing academic proposals include:

What is a research paper?

This format can be used to describe the methods used in your own research project, present the results of a research project and to describe the research that has already been completed in an area of interest. Some assignments require a combination of these approaches. These papers typically include formal sections, such as an introduction, review of existing research literature, analysis, discussion of results and conclusion. Tips for writing research papers include:

How to prepare for an essay exam?

The first step in preparation for essay exams is to complete all of your course reading assignments, participate in discussions and organize your notes and study time. This should take place throughout the course, not just in time for the exam date. Tips for exam essay writing include:

How to help your teacher with homework?

Homework assignments can show you what your teacher felt was important as well as providing an idea for what type of questions may appear on the exam. Pay close attention to things you got wrong on the homework. Begin by including those portions in your study guide.

What is the easiest form of study guide?

The easiest and most common form of study guide is the summary sheet. Simply start by summarizing important parts of your notes. Summary sheets are excellent for people will learn well by reading over material. They are particularly useful for history and literature classes with little memorization required.

How to write a study guide?

1. Gather all of the sources you will need. You will be putting together information from a number of sources, so start by getting them together. The better prepared you are when you begin, the easier the study guide will be to write.

Why do we need study guides?

Study guides can provide you with a quick and easy way to go over important material before tests or exams. There are a number of different basic study guide formats and each is designed to help you consolidate information in a way that's easy to read and approachable. Different topics can lend themselves to different formats ...

Why is it important to take notes in class?

Your notes can serve to aid in your organization of material as well as to know what areas your teacher thinks are most important.

Why do we use comparison charts?

This method is most effective if you are trying to establish similarities and differences between facts, theories or subjects. Comparison charts let you see relationships between specific characteristics or categories.

What is a concept map?

Concept maps or branching diagrams are a way of mapping ideas so you can easily follow information from general to specific. Concept maps are best for people who learn visually, allowing you to draw connections between things.

What size index cards are used for flash cards?

Flash cards are generally created using blank 5 x 7-inch index cards and may contain as much or as little information as you wish, though they tend to be most effective for memorizing individual words or defining specific concepts. For this reason, they're especially effective for studying languages and history.

How to study for a test?

The first place to start studying is by talking to your instructor, professor, teacher, or TA, to direct your efforts and attention to the correct place. If it isn't a major part of class discussions, make sure you find out what information discussed, read, and covered throughout class this particular test will include.

How to write a key concept?

Write 1 key concept on the front of each index card and then, on the back of the cards, write whatever fact (s) you'd like to associate with the key concepts. Cycle through the cards yourself, or have someone quiz you using the cards.

Why are timelines important?

When you're studying, it can be helpful to prioritize studying broad facts, formulas, and concepts, and the relationships between them.

How to connect to information emotionally?

If you need to connect to information emotionally to understand it, organize your notes into narrative form to study it better. Translate concepts from math into a story that you can connect to, then organize your study-guide like a short-story you can recite to remember the application of the formulas.

What is an example of a concept map?

A formal outline, as you're sometimes expected to write for an essay assignment, is an example of a concept map. If outlining works for you and organizes information in a way you find useful, outline the info to study. Formal outlines can make excellent study guides, but only if you find them easy to write out.

Why draw concept maps?

Draw concept maps to connect main ideas and prioritize information. Concept maps involve writing each main idea into a separate box, which is connected according to their chronology or importance. Then, connect branches of associated information stemming from the main ideas.

How to study smarter and not harder?

In order to study smarter, not harder, you will need to eliminate distractions during your study sessions. Social media, web browsing, game playing, texting, etc. will severely affect the intensity of your study sessions if you allow them!

How to be active in studying?

Ideas for active studying include: Create a study guide by topic. Formulate questions and problems and write complete answers. Create your own quiz. Become a teacher. Say the information aloud in your own words as if you are the instructor and teaching the concepts to a class.

How to study for a class?

Ideas for active studying include: 1 Create a study guide by topic. Formulate questions and problems and write complete answers. Create your own quiz. 2 Become a teacher. Say the information aloud in your own words as if you are the instructor and teaching the concepts to a class. 3 Derive examples that relate to your own experiences. 4 Create concept maps or diagrams that explain the material. 5 Develop symbols that represent concepts. 6 For non-technical classes (e.g., English, History, Psychology), figure out the big ideas so you can explain, contrast, and re-evaluate them. 7 For technical classes, work the problems and explain the steps and why they work. 8 Study in terms of question, evidence, and conclusion: What is the question posed by the instructor/author? What is the evidence that they present? What is the conclusion?

How to spread out studying?

In order to spread out studying over short periods of time across several days and weeks, you need control over your schedule. Keeping a list of tasks to complete on a daily basis will help you to include regular active studying sessions for each class. Try to do something for each class each day.

What is the study cycle?

The Study Cycle, developed by Frank Christ, breaks down the different parts of studying: previewing, attending class, reviewing, studying, and checking your understanding. Although each step may seem obvious at a glance, all too often students try to take shortcuts and miss opportunities for good learning.

What is active engagement?

Active engagement is the process of constructing meaning from text that involves making connections to lectures, forming examples, and regulating your own learning (Davis, 2007). Active studying does not mean highlighting or underlining text, re-reading, or rote memorization. Though these activities may help to keep you engaged in the task, ...

Why is self testing important?

For example, self-testing is an active study strategy that improves the intensity of studying and efficiency of learning. However, planning to spend hours on end self-testing is likely to cause you to become distracted and lose your attention.

What is a study guide for exams?

Be sure to refer to the study guide for your upcoming exam. A study guide is one tool to help you effectively prepare for exams. Be sure to incorporate it as part of your success strategy while also reviewing your coursework, notes, and feedback from your mentor.

Can you see all the questions on the study guide?

Since each student in the same course may see a different set of questions drawn from the original exam pool, you may not see questions about every topic indicated on the study guide. However, make sure you are familiar with all topics because you don’t know which ones will appear on your exam.

Is it hard to prepare for an exam?

There’s no doubt about it: exams are a challenge. It can be tough to prepare for them, especially when your mentor didn’t create the exam and can’t provide much guidance. Online courses cover a lot of material, so it can be hard to know where to begin when you’re studying.

What are the benefits of engaging lessons?

Engaging lessons can strengthen your knowledge of punctuation, writing mechanics and style, the structure of essays, word choice and much more. Multiple-choice quizzes test your comprehension of the lessons you study, while chapter exams and a final exam offer a broader review of this course.

How long before a test can you reschedule?

If you need to reschedule your test, the deadline to do so is at least 24 hours prior to your testing time. Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment® (VCLA™) is a registered trademark of Pearson Education, Inc., which is not affiliated with Study.com. Earning Credit.