How to Study Effectively and Achieve Excellent Grades in School

 In school we are mostly taught of what to learn (our different courses such as engineering, medicine, law, accounting, etc.) and less of how to learn (if we are taught that at all). Personally, I had to go through school learning how to study effectively by constantly trying out different methods of studying. Then during one of my holidays, I went further to read different articles (even on BBC) and books about how the brain works in consolidating our memory (remember there’s no learning if there’s an inability of recalling the knowledge acquired). The important thing I learnt was that you can train your mind to be excellent at retaining knowledge, and that the more you study rightly the more you become better at studying and achieving excellent results.

So, in this blog, I will be discussing in the simplest ways of how to study effectively to achieve excellent grades in school (of course you can apply this knowledge in other areas you are studying for).

     1.     Work on your belief system

At school you may meet many students, sometimes senior colleagues, who will be complaining that certain courses are difficult, or the lecturers teaching them are difficult, or you may be seeing some courses to be very difficult yourself. But many other students have also passed that same courses brilliantly.

·   Our behaviors are mostly driven by our beliefs. Simply believing that you will pass all your courses excellently motivates and sets your mind on the right course of achieving that. Never lose your confidence. Reading is a sure way of increasing your confidence that you know a thing. 

·  Be mindful of your self-talk because your mind is always eavesdropping on your self-talk. Jim Kwik said, “Your brain is a supercomputer and your self-talk is the program it will run”. I developed this mantra while in school, “School is fun and reading is sweet”. Get more amazing insights on the power of self-talk.

·  Dissociate yourself from pessimistic group of people. Instead join a study group, where you get to receive important materials and tips, as well as discuss what you’ve learnt.

 

      2.     Avoid distractions

Learning requires attention. Therefore, avoiding all forms of distraction such as going through your phones, discussing unrelated stuffs with friends, etc. is quite necessary. These distractions can make your study session longer, less effective and feel boring.

·   Locate a quiet and comfortable environment to read. Ensure the environment is well ventilated and is appropriately lighted

·  Don’t read on your bed. Your brain has associated the bed with sleep; therefore, you might sleep off while reading on your bed.

·    Eating food while studying is a source of distraction (so also is hunger).

 

     3.     Take short breaks

Don’t read at a stretch for a very long period of time trying to cram everything into your head at once without taking a break. Doing so will put you under great pressure. This may make you find reading very unpleasant the next time that you are about to read because your brain and body always want to react against anything that wants to put you under pressure.

· Rest or sleep after study. Research has shown that doing so helps our brain to consolidate the knowledge acquired into our long-term memory.

·   Don’t take breaks that totally distracts you from studying. Such breaks kill the desire to continue reading.

·   Exercise your body. You don’t want your blood to pool in your extremities as you sit at a spot for a long time studying.

·  If you feel anxious or stressed, pause for at least 5 minutes. Be grateful for the progress you’ve made so far, and practice deep breaths- your brain needs it.

 

      4.     Be curious to learn a new thing

To learn a new thing, you must act like you know nothing and that you knowing something new makes you happy. You must open your mind first to accept new ideas, and to discover subtle things you missed in other previous study sessions. 

·    It is said that information + emotion = long term memory. So, make your study period an enjoyable one.

·    Try to visualize the concept you are studying.

·    Use mnemonics. Relate what you are learning to concepts and stories that you are already familiar with.

·    If possible, try to see the relationship between the various pieces of information you are studying.

·   Be in the right state of mind to retain what you have read. Avoid being in a bored state of mind.

·   Be humble. Participate in class activities and ask questions in class, ask your course mates to explain any concept you can’t understand, visit the library, and use to internet for research.

·    Be active in the learning process by taking notes.

·   Test yourself by answering past questions in the courses after studying.

· Start your reading earlier, not when it is closer to examination period, to avoid the stress of cramming and its accompanying anxieties.

·  You can do a spaced practice whereby you plan your study sessions in advance and space them into manageable units.

·   Study a course at a time. Don’t take three different textbooks on different courses to study at a limited period of time.

·   Stick with the recommended textbooks. You don’t want a situation whereby you read different authors’ views and get confused on which to stick with. Unless if you really want to read wide in that course of study.

 

      5.     Teach someone

When you learn with the intention of teaching someone else, your approach to studying will be better. And when you actually teach someone, you will discover your level of understanding. Teaching is an important way of recalling the knowledge gained from your memory, and that really helps that knowledge to stick better.

·   If you don’t have someone around presently to teach, then you can make notes based on what you have read and check it against the original material if you remembered correctly. You can do this several times until you get it right (I apply this study method most of the time, and I must confess that it is quite effective).

·  You can also teach yourself. You can achieve this by explaining the concept you have read aloud to yourself, then you double-check your textbook afterwards to make sure the information you recalled was really accurate. You repeat the process until you get it correctly.

Always study at your pace. Plato, the Philosopher said, “Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow”. So, no matter how slow your ability to retain information is, don’t stop or become discouraged. You will surely get better with time as long as you don’t stop studying. 

If you have other suggestions on how to study effectively, or you do have a question regarding this discussion, please leave a comment in the comment section and I will do my best to answer those questions. Also if you find this blog to be helpful, please refer this blog to a friend. Thanks for your time. 

You can also checkout other amazing blogs below:

•  How to Register Your Courses on University of Port Harcourt e-Campus Website Using Your Phone
•      How to Hold a Charming Conversation 
•     The Role of Dream in Successful Living 
•     Benefits of a New Life in Christ Jesus 
•      The Role of Focus in Successful Living 
•      How to Discover Your Talent 
•      How to Achieve Great Feats Through Great Thinking 
•      How to Study Effectively and Achieve Excellent Grades in School 
•     The Role of Character in Successful Living 
•      The Beauty in Work 
•      The Role of Values in Successful Living 
•     Most Important Emotional Needs of Women 
•      Discovering and Understanding the Emotional Needs of Men

Lebari-Dick Leteh is the author of 'Truths About Talent' and 'The Good News'.