THE SMARTEST WAY TO STUDY UNVEILED

Work is simply the effort we put into doing things. Bigger things require more input as opposed to smaller ones which require less. However, the results we get are not only proportional to how much work we put into getting things done, but they also depend on whether we work right or not. 

Many students struggle simply because they don't 'work right' academically. 

The learning process has levels designed to occur one after the other. 

There's the acquisition phase where you gather new information—a new topic treated in lectures for instance. It enters via our special senses—we listen with our ears and see with our eyes, and sometimes need to touch, smell or taste an object (lab sessions). 

The second phase of learning is storage. Whatever information we feed on gets stored like books on a library shelf. It's broken down into small pieces first, and then these bits are joined end to end and arranged in the best way possible. This occurs during critical reasoning when we try to make sense of what we learn. This new information structure is then filed away with a new label or attached to an existing 'related' memory. 

    The third phase is retrieval. Perhaps it is the most important of all because it is the basis for remembrance. Our ability to remember things depends on how well we store them and how well we can retrieve them. 

There is no point knowing so much if we cannot remember what we know when we need it. Usually, this occurs because it wasn't stored properly, or we didn't use it long enough for it to stay. When we learn new things, the old ones get pushed back and if we don't use them, from time to time, we'll forget them. 

Since learning occurs through these three distinct levels,  it follows that anybody can learn better by doing things to facilitate these phases and that's the focus of this piece. 

Studying smart is about making the most out of the time and effort you invest in school work, as opposed to making unfocused attempts to study hard. To survive and succeed in university, you need to study smart rather than hard. These techniques definitely help:

1 GROUNDWORK EXAMINATION 

    You shouldn't be studying new concepts days to exams. Doing all-nighters some days before an examination will not only force you to rush through data instead of studying properly, but it will also exhaust you to a large extent with the risk of breaking down.

2.RECORDING AND REPLAYING 

If you record lecture sessions, listening to them later is another great way to study—especially if you're an auditory learner. It works by making stronger impressions through auditory stimulation of the brain. Take notes during lectures as your device records everything (this way you can focus on the class). Then alternate between reading your notes and listening to the recorded session during study sessions. This technique enables you to detect points you missed out while taking notes earlier on, and it allows you to hear and see what you're learning.

3. Learn the same things in different ways

    By learning the same thing using different methods, you stimulate different areas of your brain, and you understand and retain better. You get a stronger impression of what you're learning. For instance, you could watch a YouTube video teaching the concept you're learning. Afterward, you could then read graphics textbooks and make study notes from them. Go on to record your notes as audio files and finally, summarize the concept visually using a mind map. 

4. Review information periodically

This technique is the practical application of the law of repetition. By reviewing what you study periodically, you push information from short-term to long-term memory 

5. LINKAGE

Formal education is structured such that what students learn during their program follows a order and sequence. Therefore, the residual knowledge you have from previous classes almost always find relevance in present ones. Moreover, abstract concepts can be linked with physical properties. For instance, you'd easily remember that a plant is poisonous if it has striking red flowers. The stronger the link, the better!

6. Simplify and Compress everything you learn

School gives us too many materials to study. It's senseless, trying to know every single detail, especially when voluminous texts are involved. The smart thing to do is to simplify and then summarize everything you learn. By doing this regularly, you train yourself to quickly identify the key point. Consequently, you'll be able to skip large amounts of irrelevant data. While you study, make sure you pay attention to recurring patterns within the subject matter. By noticing and understanding these patterns, you chart your way through the subject and understand the framework of the subject. As you study further, whenever and wherever applicable, simplify by using analogies.

7. Take notes by hand instead of using your smartphone or laptop

This works because the process enables students to process the information they receive during lectures, reframing it while they write. Using a laptop or similar devices bypasses this critical process. To an extent, you rob yourself of a chance to understand better, because you’d have to concentrate on typing, while the class goes on. If you happen to receive lecture notes by mail, focus on listening as the lecture is ongoing. Still, scribbling a few points is beneficial.

8. Type your written lecture notes

After taking notes by hand, you can push further by typing (or alternatively, rewriting) them after classes, if you type fast and you've got some free time. Rewriting notes is a great way to memorize and study. It's based on repetition and it works by reintroducing information to your brain. It's especially good for situations where you take notes in a haste and need to reorganize the information into categories, principles or related concepts. While adding an aesthetic touch to your notes, it's a great way to study because it forces you to think through typing.

9. Concentrate when you study

Whenever you study, don't multitask. It makes you less productive. Effective students focus on one thing at a time. What's the point of studying if you're constantly distracted by tweets and social media notifications? Close all browser tabs that are not relevant to what you intend to do, put your phone away (or in airplane mode), and clear the clutter from your study area and just focus. 

10. Use Mnemonics

Mnemonics are words, sentences, abbreviations used to remember especially large volumes of information. When you study, separate concepts from facts. Concepts convey the main idea of the topic, and facts just need to be memorized. Then write down the facts and try to line them up using their first letters, in such a way that it forms a meaningful word or something easy to remember. Alternatively, you could make sentences with words starting with the same letters as those in your list. For instance, SMART for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. Use them whenever and wherever they're applicable.

11. Chunk listed items

With respect to linguistics, a chunk is a phrase or group of words which can be learned as a unit. The principle can be applied to school work as well. Since short-term memory is limited to the number of items it can process, by grouping items into related concepts, you can remember better and learn more items. We unconsciously use this method to memorize phone numbers. Instead of 2-3-4-0-5-9, you chunk by grouping 234-059. That way you memorize two items instead of six (our brain see it this way). It employs the rule of association, chunking groups of items into larger meaningful units. When you need to memorize a long list of points in any subject, try grouping them.

12. Test yourself frequently

 self-assessment is crucial for anyone to improve performance, even academically. That's why good textbooks come with practice questions after every chapter and it explains why students who practice with past examination questions or similar, are more likely to score higher. Don't just read your notes passively. Study smart by regularly quizzing yourself on key concepts and equations. This way, you make all your mistakes outside exam conditions, and profit from them. 

13. Don't pull all-nighters, drink a lot of water and exercise

Unless it's absolutely necessary, avoid staying up overnight to study. It's unhealthy and completely unproductive. Getting enough sleep helps us focus better and keep stress under control. It's a recipe for good grades because it enhances retention, making study sessions productive. Learning the most difficult materials just before bed is smart because they're easy to recall the next day. If you're a nocturnal learner, get enough rest during the day to make up for your study nights. 

Also, dehydration is bad for you. Your brain works better when you're well fed and hydrated. Also, exercise is good for you generally. Physical exercise improves blood circulation, makes you stronger and improves concentration. These benefits translate into better grades over time. 

To wrap things up, the key to effective studying and building your grade point average isn’t cramming or studying longer but studying smarter. I know our degrees are tedious.

But, if you're willing to put in the effort, having a solid transcript is totally worth the pain, even for pharmacists. That's why I wrote Grade Point Beyond Average: The Commonsense Guide To Getting Better Grades And Building Your CGPA.