Setting and Achieving Goals

Your Goals

You’ve probably been forced to set goals at some time, whether in school or elsewhere. Setting goals is a tricky business, though, because you have to set them for yourself--not your teachers, your parents or your peers. Ask yourself what you want to achieve. Use these desires to set your goals.

The goals that will help you improve your studying should possess the following characteristics:

Goals Should Be...	Good Example	Bad Example
Specific	"I will earn an A in biology class first semester.”	“I will try as hard as I can in biology from now on.”
Realistic	"I will improve my GPA from a 2.8 to a 3.0 this semester."	“I will improve my GPA from a 2.8 to a 3.9 this semester.”

A+ Starts With Attitude

Learn How You Learn

In studying, as in the rest of your life, a positive attitude will help you just as much as a negative attitude will hurt you. By improving your attitude, you may give yourself the jumpstart you need to get down to business with your studying. One way to create a better outlook on studying is to understand your preferred method of studying. To do a little self-analyzing, check out this evaluation that will help you identify your personal learning style:

Learning Style Survey

Knowing whether you are a visual, auditory, verbal or kinesthetic learner will help you understand what studying tactics are best for you. It will also help you understand why, quite possibly, reading a textbook alone in your room for five hours straight did not result in a stellar grade.

Test-Taking Tips

Down the Home Stretch

You’ve spent the last 18 weeks preparing for the performance that is worth – in some cases – up to 50% of your grade or more. However, if you’ve followed the steps and suggestions in this guide, then your preparation should have put you in a strong position to “nail it.” Here are a few tips for the home stretch:

1. Get a good night's sleep and eat a healthy breakfast.
2. Keep a positive attitude and don’t panic if you stumble early.
3. Take a watch with you to gauge your time.
4. Read over the entire test before starting.
5. Don’t rush but don’t get stuck on a small part of the test to get the perfect answer.
6. Skip a problem if it’s taking too much time, mark it and come back to it later.
7. If you get extremely nervous, remind yourself that, in the big scheme of things, it’s just a test.
8. If you have time, read over your answers when you’re done.

Tests: Long-Term Memory

The Long Haul Memory Test

Are you able to remember a small amount of information, but your mind goes blank when the test contains more than 10 questions? When studying for tests, you have to use a different part of your brain than when studying for quizzes because you have to remember more information and remember it longer. Try these suggestions for improving your scores on longer tests:

The Journey: A Memorization Technique

Quizzes: Short-Term Memory

I Forget. Short-Term Who?

Whether you suspect your teacher of throwing a pop quiz, or if you have weekly quizzes over small amounts of freshly taught material, you’d better have better-than-average memorizing skills to perform well. Notice that we didn’t say “memory” skills, but “memorizing” skills – that is, the ability to learn the information is as important as the ability to retain it.

Reviewing material immediately after class is essential to quick memorizing:

Class Time is Priceless

If you’re in college or private school, then you’re probable paying good money for an expert instructor to teach you about a subject – so technically, class is not priceless--just pricey. In any case, class is like a presentation for you, revealing everything you need to know for the test. So make sure you prepare for class, pay attention during class, and review after class. The most important thing you can do to improve your success in school immediately is to start attending class prepared. Here's what that means:

• Pre-class. To better understand the information presented in class, read the material required for lecture beforehand. You will be able to follow along better, ask better questions, and

Plan, Plan, Plan

Plan Ahead

Smart studying doesn't begin when you get your first assignment. Planning and organizing should occur before your first day of classes. This will allow you to feel prepared and excited to study – as you should be. Here are a few tips to help you plan:

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  Get a calendar. Calendars are crucial for planning. There are many different kinds, so decide whether you prefer the large monthly kind that you tack to your wall, the weekly notebook kind that you can carry around with you, or the digital kind that you have on your computer or palm pilot. If you would like to print out your own schedule, then check out this pre-made calendar. In the end, it doesn’t really matter what calendar type you choose; just make sure that you will use it. Fill your calendar with your commitments – classes, job hours, club hours, even a favorite T.V. show if you want. You will quickly see how fast your time is scheduled – no wonder you couldn’t fit 27 hours worth of activities into your previous schedule. For more help with time management, check out: Learner's Day Planner.

Study Skills Overview

Some people claim their success comes naturally. Those people are probably liars-- they just don’t want to sound like nerds!! Maybe some of them are Einstein-esque--but even Einstein studied. The real cause people’s success in school is simple: they study and study well! 

The Trusty Guide to Study Skills will teach you the strategies that work. It is packed with the best, most reliable research on how to succeed in and outside the classroom. In this guide, we will cover:

• How to improve your study skills by focusing on your style: your attitude, your learning style and finding what motivates you.
• Tips on how to permanently improve your study skills.
• The best approaches for different quizzes and tests.

Mental Health Education

Mental health continuing education classes and courses are ideal for students, psychiatrists, social workers, psychologists, counselors, and mental health professionals. Continuing education allows mental health professionals to stay current with the knowledge and practices in their field of study. If you just got out of college, the last thing you want to think about is more education. However, continuing education is not only a great idea, it's necessary in many fields. If you never went to college, there are probably many fields that you want to explore or subjects that you wish you had studied in school. In either case, there's no need to worry because the Internet is here! Educational opportunities abound online and resources are available for everyone.

Psychological Foundations of Learning

What is teaching?

Teaching encompasses imparting knowledge. It is an integral process of learning that can only be understood in realm of learning. Learning is a relative term that may prove difficult to define. Many people define learning in terms of gaining academic knowledge but in actual sense, learning means more than acquiring academic knowledge (Dictionary.com). Learning is a life long process that starts at infancy and continues to the end of life. Every day in life we learn new things that changes our way of doing things and the way we perceive things. According to Hostetler (2005) learning is a process that is geared towards common good. Learning should not be perceived in term of academic excellence but in terms of how it prepares a person to become useful in the society. Hostetler (2003) acknowledges that the goal of public education is to make sure the society is made up of uprights individuals who can co-exist with other members of the society. He creates a connection between public education, social capital and governance of the society.