This document provides study tips and strategies for both students and teachers. It recommends that students focus for 25 minutes then take a 5 minute break. An ideal study space is quiet with no distractions. Taking notes and rewriting notes after class helps reinforce learning. Teachers should differentiate between important concepts and facts, encourage note-taking, use questioning to check understanding, and help students form study groups. The overall goal is teaching students how to learn effectively.

1. Chetan Tonde
TAProject: Helping your Undergraduates How to Learn
and Study.

2. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
This talk..
Study
tips/strategies
Teaching
tips/strategies
(bold)
Begin…

3. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
Study Tip 1: How long can effectively focus and learn?
Efficiency
Time
Study's suggest that typically we can focus continuously for about 25 min.
Start
Study
(25
min)
Break
reward
(5 min)Efficiency
Time

4. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
Study Tip 2: Place of study ?
• Place of study is really important.
• Create a study area if you don’t have one !
• If you to study in your bedroom, face your back to bed and to the wall.
• Use a study lamp to helps focus.
• Use a study desk and make a habit to sit at a study table.
Place Purpose What happens ?
Bedroom Sleeping Bed starts calling!
Kitchen/Dining Table Eating Should I make a sandwich ?
Rec Room/Living Room Socializing People distract you. You are
listening to TV, Radio but not
studying.
Dorm Sleep, Study, Socialize Doors open ?
Tip: Talk about study strategies with students either in class or in person.
They could general or course specific.

5. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
The more actively you learn are the better you learn.
• Just reading over and over equals rote memorization. (Not helpful!)
• Some ways to learn efficiently
• Distinguish between Concept vs. Fact ?
• Make the above distinction while you teach.
• Concepts (Most Important)
– Apply (do examples), make it meaning full, rephrase it.
– Repeat concepts in a different way to students.
– Connect or Contradict to what already taught.
• Facts (Not so important but we still need to know them.)
– Recall multiple times, periodically. (Immediately, same day, next day,
next week).
– Repeat the facts you use in your class. This reinforces them.

6. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
The more actively you learn are the better you learn.
• Short term memory is just (10 - 30 sec)/ 4-5 things. So ?
• Take Notes! Flesh out your notes right after your class. You
are fresh and can recollect.
– Ask students to scribe for a class.
– Submit them the same day for extra points.
– Upload them on the course website.
– Students can learn how to take notes.
• For students: If you can’t understand something, go to your
teachers. They want you to succeed!
– Always welcome students to come and talk to you. Be
patient.

7. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
Study Tip: How to use a textbook ?
– SQ3R Reading method1.
• Survey, Question, Read, Recite,
Review.
– Survey
• Skim the chapter, the structure,
survey.
– Question
• Ask possible questions.
– Read
• Try to see of answer them.
– Recite
• Recall key ideas in your own words
– Review-
• Test your self, prepare a study
sheet.
1Based upon Robinson, Francis Pleasant. (1970) Effective study. New York: Harper & Row.
- Augmenting SQ3R in teaching.
- Survey:
• Give them an overview of the
topic before you start.
- Question:
- Give motivation and ask
possible questions that may
arise.
- Read:
- Answer those questions as you
proceed to teach.
- Recite:
- Repeat key ideas periodically.
- Review:
- Quick reviews or ask questions
that probe understanding.

8. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
Study tip: How to memorize ?
– Use mnemonics
• Acronyms
– VIBGYOR - Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange,
Red.
• Coined sayings
– EADGBE - Eddie Ate Dynamite Good Bye Eddie.
• Visualizing/Draw images/Sensing
– Four types of Carbohydrates
• Taking notes!
– Suggest mnemonics yourself in class.
– Encourage students to create their own.

9. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
General Tips
• Encourage students to make study groups!
– Performance grows up dramatically as students explain things to each
other.
• Highlight things from text book.
– Point out important topics/pages/ideas in the course textbook.
• Students complain that, “During exam I don’t remember a thing ?”
– Emphasize recognition not equal to recollection.
• We remember things the way in order we read them.
• Teach someone. Think out loud. Explain it to empty chair. Write it
in your own words.
• Good study strategy: 80 % Reciting + 20 % Reading = 100% Study.
• Advice to sleep/rest enough.
• Students complain. Not enough time to study ?
– Suggest them to drop activities if you needed. Ask them to prioritize.

10. Study Less Study Smart (TAP)
Conclusion - What Teachers we do ?
• Talk about Study Skills
– Ask how they study ? What have they tried and how has it helped them ?
• Differentiate when necessary about concept vs a fact.
• Make it clear what is important and what is not.
• Make students scribe notes.
• Use SQ3R strategy for teaching
• Give them ways to remember things.
• Help foster interaction and study groups.
• Ask questions to probe understanding in class.
• Rephrase/Repeat key ideas/facts and make the recitations
reinforce the lectures.
• Learn - Unlearn cycle: The bigger goal is to learning to how learn.