PSI Tutor: Academic Mentor

Freak! How will I remember all the details from the readings? How do I even go about preparing for an essay exam?

These are common comments I hear from students, so I have put together a list of hints that got me through my degree. Hope they help you too:

N.B. It is pointless to try and memorise everything. Examiners do NOT want a regurgitation of what has been written and said by others. They want your interpretation and evidence of your understanding of concepts, theories, models, methods and analysis.

1. Collect your readings set in lectures and tutes and sort them into the order you received them in class.  Week 1 readings are first, then Week 2, then Week 3 etc…

Lectures are usually created to build-on previous lectures. By putting your readings in order your knowledge will build on previous understandings, and so the subject as a whole will make more sense to you.

Trust me
2. Use a Word document to create a study matrix (I use a table table of rows and columns) which you will use to write up your notes. A study matrix is a concise and effective way to summarise texts.

Across the top columns write titles such as:

Author and date.

Psychological approach/School of thought (e.g., psychoanalytic, cognitive, social modeling).

Research question/Aim of the report.

Method; sample; analysis; findings; strengths and weaknesses etc…

Keep your notes BRIEF. Remember that psychological research into memory enhancement supports the “chunking” of information. I try to keep to a maximum of 3 dot points of 3 words each for each cell in my matrix. Sometimes there are more, but 3 is my general rule.

Try using pictures and other visual cues as well; mnemonics are a great way to enhance memory, especially as humans are visual creatures. This technique may take a little longer but it makes your notes yours.

Similar Schools of thought or methods etc can be grouped by colour to aid memory.

4. Read one Row during each of your daily “idle times“. These are times in your day when you are doing nothing much, just idling (e.g., waiting for the kids to come to the car after school, waiting for a kettle to boil, waiting for a bus, etc …).

The study matrix will make it easy to compare and contrast readings.

It provides a timeline of developments in theories, models and research and analysis methods.

The process of studying from the matrix aids you in seeing the relationships between research questions, methods and analysis.

5. Write yourself a glossary of new terms. “Naming the names” and “talking the talk” will show that you understand when to use a term or concept in context. I write my glossary up as flashcards, a definition on one side and the term/concept/phrase on the other. Sometimes I put them on a key ring, so that I can have them on hand for those “idle times”.

Like any language, once you understand some of the general words/phrases you are able to communicate and understand more.

6. Twice a week write an essay from the notes of your matrix (but don’t peek at your notes :-).

Think of it as a story, with your different readings and their aims or research questions as characters in an adventure (to find Truth!).

JUST WRITE!!!

Don’t judge what you are writing or fret about dates and spelling. Let yourself flow onto the page. Let yourself be surprised by what you DO know already
When you have finished writing you can critique your efforts to identify gaps in knowledge, misunderstandings or confusions. Highlight those areas on your study matrix and focus on learning these- they are the areas you do not know yet.

7. In the exam use your pre-reading time to jot out a sketch of your matrix. Again, don’t fret if details are forgotten, once you start writing you will notice that parts of information remind you of other information stored in your memory.

Ok, so who has used these techniques and found them not useful at all? Or which ones do you find work best? Do you have others to add?

Write well~