How to study, what to study

This article is the first in a series intended to help students of all ages and in all streams to figure out what to study and how to study. For years together I have been guiding and teaching my junior medicos as well as my dearly loved optometry students how to formulate study strategy. These days I have been tutoring my daughter with the expected outstanding results. I hope to be able to help those who study online by providing free study guidelines.

These strategies have been tried and tested by me over and over again. They are guaranteed to work.

Time and mental energy are both precious commodities. I do not believe in wasting 6 hours in achieving what can be done in 60 minutes. Stress free.

So here we go. From grade level studies to post graduate studies, remember to spend time planning. You need to define your goals before you touch your books.

• What is your material
• Where is your material (book/ notes/ online study sources)
• What is your time frame/ how little time do you have
• Why are you studying it (for knowledge/ as part of course requirement/ for testing purposes)

Once this much is defined, you know what, where, when and why. As you keep using this how to study/ what to study approach,  you will start thinking in a streamlined, methodical manner.

Next is the approach to a chapter..assuming you want to know how to study science/ history/ geography/ civics/ biology/ physics/ physiology/ anatomy/ medicine/ surgery/ basic sciences. The approach to a chapter remains the same.

Every page you read has 2 parts. The part that matters, and part that does not matter: the fillers. By fillers I mean the language/ sentences/ the connective-tissue of writing so to speak. The author needs to put these in, but you do not have to waste anything more than a passing glance on them. Learn to mentally edit out fillers.  It is a mental discipline you will learn really fast. Once all the 'noise' has been removed from a page, whatever remains is the essence. That is all you need from that page. 

Use index cards/ sticky notes and right then and there, write down those few words that sum up the essence of the page you read. This reduces each page down to a list of bare facts. That is it, you are done. Every time you visit that chapter, all you will now need to look at is your tiny but neatly written lists of facts. Imagine going through a 1000 page book the night before your exams..and doing it in 10 -15 mins because when you studied you shrank it down to substance, eliminating all writing-fillers.

I would suggest limiting the use of hi-lighting pens to a minimum as I have found these cause eye strain and fatigue at exam time. And then one gets into a spiral of hi-lighting more and more, often entire sentences and paragraphs..a waste of time and a disfigured book at the end of it.

For those looking for resources on how to study and what to study: I hope you find this useful. If you do, please leave me feedback. I will really appreciate it. Good luck.

~ Suchi