Change is hard. Throughout our lives we transition from stage to stage and are presented with challenges during each transition. Change is hard enough for adults, but imagine how hard change must be for adolescents. More specifically, the transition from middle school to high school is especially cumbersome. As with any transition we face in life, proper preparation will lighten the burden of change. Preparation is so important to alleviate the exponential amount of stress that is often experienced by middle school parents and students when transitioning to high school. The problem we are facing is that middle schools do not teach students the study skills needed to shoulder the heavy load of high school. High school is so very different from middle school, both socially and academically. There are certain skills and strategies that may have never been necessary for success at lower levels of school; but high school is a completely different animal. We created courses teaching the eight study skills we feel will prepare students for the transition from middle school to high school, and ensure success in high school and beyond. Success in school, or in any project in life, begins with the determination of the best strategies for accomplishing individual objectives. Oftentimes, many different approaches will work, but one particular strategy seems best suited for each individual’s particular talents. In our courses, we examine the importance of approaching each school-related task in a way that maximizes your effort, thus relieving the frustrations associated with schoolwork. High school presents students with great individual responsibility, with responsibility comes accountability. In high school, students are expected to take responsibility for their own education and academic success.
Study Skills for Success
In order to determine the strategies that are best suited to your talents, you must go through a process of self-evaluation. The result will be an understanding of your individual strengths, and the strategies that best fit your individual learning styles.
The only way to judge the ongoing effectiveness of your strategy is to evaluate your results. Success should always be measured as progress toward the accomplishment of goals.
Getting Organized and Managing Your Time
Educators are consistent in their evaluation of academic failure. When asked why their students are not as successful as they could be, poor organization and ineffective time management are most often cited as the root causes.
While the strategies you select are critical, your approach to studying and doing homework is equally important. Learning is a process, and the way you go about the process will dictate your success in the application of the strategies you have chosen.
Reading and Taking Notes From Textbooks
Students can never escape the fact that effective learning must include strategies for reading and effectively summarizing what is read. This lesson provides students with approaches that make reading interesting, and note-taking specific to what is most important.
Teachers present information in class using a variety of approaches. The student must determine the technique the teacher is using in order to effectively understand the critical pieces being presented. This lesson provides the student with a strategy for recognizing the different presentation methods, and deciphering the most important facts presented. It will also provide a variety of note-taking styles specific to each teacher presentation technique.
The learning techniques presented in this course provide students with ways of determining what is most important in the materials they read, hear, and discuss. Learning takes place when that information is committed to memory. Critical, analytical thinking develops as a result of effectively committing knowledge to long-term memory.
Preparing for and Taking Tests
If a student is successful in class and in homework, but has a tough time doing well on tests, it is probably because they have not prepared themselves properly. In addition, each different type of test involves a different set of strategies for success. This lesson provides the keys to proper test preparation, and techniques for doing well when answering test questions.
Click on each study skill title to visit that course page. While on the course page click “expand all” next to “course content” to view all of the lessons taught in that course.