Study Skills Site

A colleague forwarded a link to an interesting site called how-to-study.com. The site offers many helpful tips for students but I have found that some of the tips can also serve as a resource for teachers.

For example, under the section procrastination the site offers up eight separate issues, all of which either lead to procrastination or resemble the problem. Among one type of issue is perfectionism and fear of failure; another is confusion, task difficulty, or lack or priorities; and the third is of course, general laziness. Though one might parse words as to whether each is, or is not procrastination, all of the behaviors listed will certainly resemble the behavior.

Another section deals with test anxiety. The feelings of nervousness around test time are of course natural yet can still create enormous challenges for students. For those of us who believe there is still merit in testing students, the idea is to teach students how to deal with this anxiety (rather than avoid testing as a means to eliminate this feeling as some would prefer). I particularly agree with the phrase, “a little anxiety can jump start your studying and keep you motivated.”

Again, the site is designed primarily to be a resource for students.