Effective Revision

Rachel Horrocks Birss Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 7th April 20217th April 2021Academic Skills, active learning, challenges, exams, Lightning Sessions, productivity, recall, retrieval, revision, time management, university, work 0 Comment

Do you spend hours revising but struggle to retain the information? Feel like no matter how hard you work you can never do yourself justice in exams? What if it’s not you, but rather the way you’ve learned to revise that’s the issue?

Research suggests that many common and popular revision techniques, such as re-writing notes or memorising PowerPoints, are highly ineffective and inefficient. That’s because they are passive revision techniques, which lead to short-term, surface level learning.

Using more active techniques encourages deeper, longer-term learning and should (hopefully) lead to better marks.

Watch the recording of our Lightning Session on ‘Effective Revision’ then scroll down for some tips on how you can start to incorporate active techniques into your revision.

Tip 1: Don’t change everything overnight

While you want to maximise your revision and minimise ineffective techniques, it’s better not to change too much at one time. Think evolution rather than revolution.

Try out one or two of the suggested active techniques and incorporate them into your revision. Over time you can explore more of these techniques and build a toolkit of approaches that work for you.

Meanwhile, look out for passive techniques which take up a lot of your time for little or no reward, and start to replace them with the active techniques that work for you.

Tip 2: Two key concepts

Active learning is all about information retrieval or recall. Put simply, the more often you have to retrieve or recall information from your brain, the more strongly you’ll reinforce that learning.

Another key concept is spaced practice. Research suggests that spreading out your studying over a longer period of time is more effective and leads to better learning than if you spend the same amount of time crammed into a shorter period.

This means that the earlier you start revising the better, and that doing some work as the semester progresses will reduce the number of hours you need to put in come exam revision time.

But it can also help in the revision period itself. Imagine you allocate two hours to a particular topic. It will pay to spread that two hours out over several weeks, perhaps in half-hour slots, rather than spending two hours on the topic in one sitting then ticking it off as done. Hopefully, you can also see how this approach would also allow you to build in that element of information retrieval we mentioned above.

You can read more about these concepts in Revision Bites.

Tip 3: Find the active techniques that work for you

Popular active revision techniques include:

Flashcards
Past papers or sample papers
Teaching or discussing a topic
Study partners or groups
Brain dump
Creating mind maps

We discuss these – and many others – in more detail in the Lightning Session and on Revision Bites, so be sure to check both out if you haven’t already. But be aware that not every technique will work for you, and not every technique which works will do so in every situation.

Your goal is to arm yourself with a range of options which, over time, will allow you to approach revision and exams with real confidence.

This blog post was written by Dr Gordon Spark, Academic Skills Centre.

Digital Fatigue

Rachel Horrocks Birss Blended Learning, Lightning Sessions 12th March 2021Academic Skills, Blended Learning, challenges, Digital, focus, Lightning Sessions, motivation, online, online lectures, online tools, productivity, recorded lectures, self-care, stress, time management, wellbeing, work 0 Comment

After a year of lockdowns, we’re all experiencing some level of digital fatigue. Whether we’re suffering physical consequences like headaches or eyestrain, or mental symptoms like lack of motivation or depression, digital fatigue can have a severe impact upon our wellbeing.

The good news is that there’s lots we can do to combat digital fatigue and improve our wellbeing, even during this unusual year. Watch our Lightning Session recording to learn more, then scroll down for our top tips!

There are all kinds of strategies we can use to combat digital fatigue. Here, we’ve grouped them into three categories: Before, During, and After, your online experience.

Before

Fighting digital fatigue starts even before you get online. The most important thing is to make sure you have a good space to work. We may not all have the luxury of a home office, but make sure you have a well-lit place to work with a good chair. Adjust your screen brightness depending on the time of day, and, if you find your eyes get tired quickly, book an eye test with your optometrist to make sure you’ve got the right prescription.

During

When you’re working on your computer, monotasking is key. Avoid switching back and forth between windows during a class, or getting distracted by social media when you should be writing an essay. Activities like switching between tabs or scrolling on social media are actually incredibly tiring for our eyes, so it’s best to minimize them. Instead, try taking physical notes (or even doodling!) during class so your eyes aren’t glued to the screen the whole time. You should also remember the 20/20/20 rule, where every 20 minutes you look 20 feet away for 20 seconds.

After

The best way to beat digital fatigue is to get away from the screen. When you’re finished with your onscreen work, take a proper break away from your computer or phone. It’s particularly good to get out and do something physical, like taking a walk or stretching. If you’re working from home, it helps to set boundaries at the end of your day, where you close all your work tabs or shut down your laptop completely, so you’re not distracted by work when you should be winding down in the evening.

Strategies like these won’t make digital fatigue go away entirely, but they will help you to stay healthy and improve your wellbeing, even in these challenging circumstances!

Focus and Motivation

Rachel Horrocks Birss Blended Learning, Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 8th February 2021Academic Skills, Blended Learning, challenges, focus, Lightning Sessions, motivation, Procrastination, productivity, self-care, stress, time management, wellbeing, work 0 Comment

Learning how to focus well and motivate yourself are essential skills for university, as well as for the workforce and the rest of your life. If we can motivate ourselves to get going and focus intensely on our work, we can accomplish difficult tasks quickly and efficiently. If, however, we struggle to focus or get motivated, doing any work will always be a slog.

Particularly in stressful times, like the current lockdown, focus and motivation can be really challenging. Whether you find yourself with far too much to do (perhaps you’re trying to homeschool or care for an elderly relative alongside your uni work), or far too little (maybe your packed social calendar has been reduced to a string of lonely evenings), these tips can help you shake off the cobwebs and get back to productive, fulfilling work!

Watch our Lightning Session on Focus and Motivation, then keep reading for more tips!

Motivation

In essence, motivation is all about empowerment. It’s about believing we have the ability to do something that matters. After all, if we believe we can’t do something, or that it won’t make any difference, then why bother?

If you’re struggling to get motivated for a particular task, ask yourself these questions:

1: Can I do it?

2: Will it make a difference?

If the answer to either of these questions is no, ask yourself, why not? If you don’t believe you can do it, maybe you need some additional support or training. If you don’t believe it will make a difference, you should spend some time reflecting on whether completing this task with help you reach your goals.

Focus

Focus is essential to good work. When you focus on the task at hand, you can get more done in less time. So, how do we avoid distractions and focus on our work?

1: Work in Short Chunks. Strategies like the Pomodoro Method suggest setting a timer for 25-minutes, then taking a 5-minute break, then working for another 25-minutes. Whether you focus for 25 minutes for 55, working in short, focussed bursts is more efficient than hours at a time.

2: Eliminate Distractions. Put your phone on silent and close any social media tabs on your computer. Our brains are wired to pay attention to distractions, so do yourself a favour and shut them down before they start!

3: Take Breaks. Counterintuitively, breaks actually make us more productive! Taking intentional breaks away from the screen, whether that’s making a cup of tea or going for a long walk, allow our brain to reset so we can go back to our work with renewed energy and more creative ideas.

STEP UP to Blended Learning

Rachel Horrocks Birss Essays, Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 8th January 20218th February 2021Academic Skills, challenges, focus, lectures, Lightning Sessions, motivation, online lectures, Procrastination, productivity, recorded lectures, self-care, time management, university, wellbeing 2 Comments

Welcome to Semester Two!

Whether you’re returning to campus or staying at home, this is hardly the semester any of us wished for. The recent lockdown and increased restrictions are challenging for us all. If you’re struggling to stay motivated while working from home, or you just can’t get used to recorded lectures, don’t worry– you’re not alone!

To support you in this challenging time, the Academic Skills Centre has created resources addressing these two key issues: Online Lectures, and Focus and Motivation.

For more support in a whole variety of areas, check out the full programme of Lightning Sessions.

Independent Learning Units

If you prefer working in your own time, log in to the Blended Learning for Students organisation on My Dundee. There, you’ll find two new units: Focus and Motivation, and Getting the Most from Recorded Lectures.

These units contain our top tips for learning in this new environment. You’ll find text, videos, and quizzes to help you test your knowledge. Each unit will take approximately an hour to work through, and you can dip in and out as you like.

Lightning Sessions

To kick off the semester, we ran two Lightning Sessions at the beginning of semester. The sessions lasted just 30 minutes, and we converted them into blog posts afterwards! Whether you missed the sessions, or you want a refresher, you can find both of them on our blog.

Getting the Most out of Recorded Lectures

Extracting relevant information from online lectures is a whole new challenge. Learn how to get the most out of your online lectures, without having to re-watch the recording seven times.

Focus and Motivation

Without as many on-campus classes and social opportunities, it can be hard to stay motivated. Watch this session to learn how to be more focussed while working online, and how to motivate yourself in difficult circumstances.

Managing Stress

Rachel Horrocks Birss Lightning Sessions, Study Skills 15th December 2020productivity, self-care, stress, time management, university, wellbeing, work 0 Comment

It’s hard to work when we’re feeling overwhelmed. Whether we’re struggling to keep up with deadlines, or we’re handling difficult circumstances in our personal lives, most of us will experience at least some level of stress while at university.

The first step to managing stress is to realise that stress isn’t a sign of weakness. Rather, stress is a physiological response to a perceived threat. Feeling some stress about an assignment isn’t a sign that you shouldn’t be at uni. Rather, it’s a completely normal response to a challenge.

Secondly, stress isn’t all bad. In fact, low levels of stress can actually increase our productivity! When stress gets to be too much, however, it’s important to seek help. If stress is impacting your physical or mental wellbeing, you should talk to a trusted friend, or get in contact with the University’s counselling services.

Finally, stress isn’t something we’re stuck with. While we can never totally eliminate stress from our lives, we can improve our response to it. By applying some targeted strategies, we can learn to manage stress and stay happy and healthy in the face of challenges!

To learn how to manage stress, watch our Lightning Session, then read the tips below.

[To skip the intros, jump straight to 2:17]

In the Lightning Session, we discuss at least a dozen different ways to manage stress. Here are our top three:

Take Care of Yourself

When we’re busy, self-care becomes the first thing to go. While we may not all have time for leisurely bubble baths, it’s important to take care of ourselves in several basic ways. Getting a good night’s sleep, exercising, and eating healthily are all major contributors to our overall wellbeing. If we’re feeling stressed or sad, going for a quick run or walk outdoors can have a significant impact on our mood.

It’s worth prioritising these things, even if that means we have less time for work. Going to bed on time, then waking up refreshed, will make you far more productive than staying up all night trying to finish your essay. If you take good care of your body, you’ll be able to get more done in less time.

Break it Down

Don’t try to get everything done at once. Instead, break your large tasks (such as “write essay”) down into manageable chunks (for example, “write introduction” or “research for 45 minutes”). Big tasks are unmotivating and can be overwhelming, while smaller ones give you that all-important sense of achievement.

It’s also okay to work for shorter blocks of time. Rather than setting aside a full day to work, try working in smaller segments, perhaps just 20 minutes to an hour. Working for shorter periods, then taking intentional breaks, will help you maintain focus, which makes you more productive.

Do the Things You Love

When we’re stressed, we feel like we need to work all the time. In fact, the opposite is true. During stressful times, it’s important to stay connected to the things that are important to us. This could mean spending time with family or friends, playing a sport, or working on a creative project. Doing enjoyable activities is actually one of the best ways to manage stress, which increases both our happiness and our productivity!