The Secret every teacher knows about studying

Most think that studying means you have to just consume the course material. (Click here to see a few ways of doing that). But if you really want to excel you need to realize that a good studying strategy doesn't just mean you devour knowledge... it means you need to produce it too.

Courtesy of Flickr - Steven S.

You see, it's easy to come by and store knowledge if you learn to understand well. So how do you understand better?

1) For the visually oriented

Write the material in your own words. Draw figures. Figure out and even design your own problems to solve. Make a power point presentation. Build something.

2) For those who are more auditory

Review your material out loud. Let your ears hear it! Close the door to your room, lecture your pet, or better yet, a friend or two (with their explicit permission!). 

This is how teachers know their material... because they take the time to produce it. The downside of this technique is that it requires a lot of time, so you need to prioritize.

So what's the secret in a few words? If you want to study well, teach yourself!

By Marc Mikhael, Ph.D.

The Apprentice's Compass - Navigate University!