1. Let’s Use Metacognition
Do you ever ...
Put off studying?
Find it hard to get focused?
Feel like you haven’t gotten much done?
Sense that what you’re studying isn’t “sticking”?
Worry that you’re not going to be prepared for tests?
Let’s use metacognition to think about how we study.
Do any of these questions apply to you?
We’re going to talk about some ways to organize and use your study time.
Studying is a part-time job. A good rule of thumb is that you need to study for two hours for each hour or unit of class time.
6.1.16

2. What’s the difference, if any, between studying and learning?
Questions
What’s the difference, if any, between studying and learning?
Which task would make you work harder?
A. Make an A on the test
B. Teach the material to the class
Collect some answers, then go to next slide.
Adapted from Dr. Saundra Y. McGuire, Center for Academic Success

3. To Ace Courses (and everything else!)
Study as if you have to teach the material, not just make an A on the test.
Stay in learn mode, not study mode.
We often think of studying as memorizing. Stay in learn mode – think of yourself as learning so that you can teach to someone else – rather than just memorizing for the test.
Adapted from Dr. Saundra Y. McGuire, Center for Academic Success

4. Why is this so important?
Because COLLEGE is harder than high school!
The courses move a lot faster.
The material is conceptually more difficult and cumulative.
The problems are more involved.
The tests are less straightforward and require you to apply several concepts at one time.
Adapted from Dr. Saundra Y. McGuire, Center for Academic Success

5. Bloom’s Taxonomy Evaluation Synthesis Analysis Application
Make decisions, judge accuracy or quality
Synthesis
Combine elements to create something new
Higher
Analysis
Compare, make connections
[Give students the handout and encourage them to take notes.]
Benjamin Bloom, an educator, developed a taxonomy. A taxonomy is a way of classifying information. He classified the steps of learning. He said we build from basic learning to more complex learning.
When we learn something new, we first need to learn what new terms mean. The next level of learning is comprehension– being able to explain new information in our own words. After that is being able to apply skills in new situations. Next is analysis – being able to compare and contrast, or make connections between things. Then comes synthesis—combining elements to create something new—which could be a term paper or a presentation. Last is evaluation, being able to make decisions or judge whether something is accurate.
Don’t get too hung up on the differences between all of the levels. The main point is that there’s CLICK lower level thinking – memorizing or being able to state things in your own words, and CLICK higher level thinking—applying and working with what you’ve learned—going beyond memorization. Lower level learning is like being able to take a written driver’s test; higher level learning is being able to actually drive a car and handle all of the new situations on the road.
Even though we have to do the basic knowledge and comprehension steps, classes that mostly focus on lower level learning tend to be kind of boring. Things get more interesting and meaningful when you’re actually working with new information, questioning it, figuring out how to use it.
Application
Use information
Comprehension
Explain
Lower
Knowledge
Memorize

6. At what levels did you have to operate to make As or Bs in high school?
Knowledge
Comprehension
Application
Analysis
Synthesis
Evaluation
[Instructor: Ask question, collect answers, then CLICK to show bar chart.]
Comprehension is the most common level of learning, with some application and memorization.
National data shows that high school seniors report putting in an average of 6 hours of homework per week… and over 50% of them received A’s!
No wonder freshman college students can be over-confident about their ability to study efficiently!
Adapted from Dr. Saundra Y. McGuire, Center for Academic Success

7. At what level of Bloom’s do you think you’ll need to be to make an A in college?
Knowledge
Comprehension
Application
Analysis
Synthesis
Evaluation
[Ask question; CLICK to show bar chart.]
At the college level, you’ll be required to not just memorize or restate information, but use higher levels of learning. You’ll need to show you can apply concepts or formulas to new problems or situations.
Those higher-level skills will be important on term papers and tests.
Adapted from Dr. Saundra Y. McGuire, Center for Academic Success

8. How do you move yourself higher on Bloom’s Taxonomy?
The Study Cycle
Intense Study
Sessions
Study
Strategies
So how do you move yourself to higher levels of learning?
Let’s look at three methods.

9. The Study Cycle Preview Attend Review Study Assess
When we’re learning something new, the more we can work with it in different ways, the more likely we are to remember it and be able to apply it. This study cycle prompts us to work with new material in several different ways. Also, it has us use shorter, more frequent study sessions that are less tiring than cramming, and more effective.
Preview before class – Before class, quickly read or skim assigned reading. Look for the highlights—focus on headings and boldface words, review summaries and chapter objectives, and come up with questions.
Attend class – GO TO CLASS! Answer and ask questions and take meaningful notes. Previewing the material should help you feel more connected the material during the class. (We’ll be talking about meaningful note-taking separately—but we mean doing more than just copying what the instructor says.)
Review your notes as soon after class as you can – Look over your notes and make sure they are complete and clear. Note any questions and follow up with your instructor or other students. Rewrite your notes if needed. This will help you clarify and remember information. If you can, try to schedule time shortly after a class to review your notes.
Study – Repetition is the key. We’ll look at this more closely in a minute. Don’t just memorize -- ask questions such as ‘why’, ‘how’, and ‘what if’.
Assessyour Learning – Ask yourself - am I using study methods that are effective? Do I understand the material enough to teach it to others?
CLICK [to show red border around Study box]– Let’s take a closer look at the Study step.

10. Intense Study Sessions1
Set a goal
1-2 min 2
Study with focus
30-50 min 3
Reward yourself
10-15 min 4
Review
5 min
If you’re ever find it hard to get focused when you study, here are four steps that can really help.
First, set a goal for your study session – read the chapter, complete the homework assignment, etc. Setting a goal primes your brain.
Second, study with focus. Remove any distractions. Don’t just read, but interact with your material – organize, make notes, and so on. You can set a timer for 30 – 50 minutes. Knowing you have a set amount of time can help you focus.
Then, reward yourself. Take a walk, take a break, call a friend, get a snack. Studying is tiring – this will help you refresh and clear your head.
Finally, review what you’ve just studied. Check your work and decide whether to keep studying, change tasks, or stop. If you keep going, repeat the steps, starting with a goal.
What do you think? How many of you do something like this?

11. Nine Best Study Tips (3-1/2 minutes)
Two excellent videos ...
Nine Best Study Tips (3-1/2 minutes)
ure=youtu.be
The Science of Procrastination and How to Manage It (3 minutes)
Tell students these are in their handout – they can review on their own. Or you can show in class.

12. Learning Strategies Activity
Work in pairs or threes. Look at the list of learning strategies in your handout.
Note whether each strategy looks like a lower or higher level of learning. You don’t have to decide if it’s “application,” “synthesis” etc.—just lower or higher.
Then consider – is there anything you may want to do differently when you study?
Take about 5 minutes.
Review activity instructions on page 4 of the Using Study Time handout.
The purpose of this activity is to ask you to think about different types of strategies to use when you study. A lot of us memorize – there may be some different strategies you want to try.
If you’re not familiar with annotation or concept mapping, we’ll be talking more about how to do those.
Have students work in pairs or in threes. Circulate as they work and be available for questions.
To review answers, show the next slide and use the instructor’s copy of the handout to talk through answers.

13. Bloom’s Taxonomy Evaluation Synthesis Analysis Application
Make decisions, judge accuracy or quality
Synthesis
Combine elements to create something new
Higher
Analysis
Compare, make connections
Discuss answers. In some cases, it may be debatable whether a strategy is lower or higher level learning—that’s OK. The main point is that there are some strategies beyond memorization that can be helpful.
Lower level learning isn’t bad—but it’s a good idea to incorporate higher levels of learning into studying.
If you haven’t talked about using office hours or tutoring, spend a few minutes encouraging students to take advantage of these.
Application
Use information
Comprehension
Explain
Lower
Knowledge
Memorize