Students

The Study Path

Skills learned at the very beginning of when we commence our ‘study journey’accelerate accomplishment from academic studies and benefit a student throughout the study path. Study skills may also be learned through trial and error, but this causes loss of time and unnecessary delay in studies. Most children need to concentrate on study skills that are significant in ensuring a fluent study path for them in school and subsequently after school.

Fluency at the early stage of a study path predicts study advancement at later stages for any child.

Each child has his or her own distinctive study path. Finding the right subject combination, hobbies, exchange studies and starting a career are all part of a young person's life.

Learning disabilities may unnecessarily slow down a student's studies. However, your school can significantly impact the possibilities of diverse learners to participate in learning opportunities arising from teaching.

Small measures, such as delivering lecture materials in advance and preparing summaries of what has been learned, are enough to support the learning process.

It is good to keep in mind that each teacher affects the fluency of a study path.

What will I be when I grow up, what skills will I have when I graduate, which major and minor subjects should I select? These are questions that every student ponders. Well-defined learning outcomes make it clearer to a student what he or she should learn during degree studies. Learning outcomes form a map that enables a student to choose his or her own path.

For a child cooperation creates resources for development, and the study path encourages cooperation.

The various kinds of typical problems and arguments that can be encountered and with which students can grapple with are;

The child does not put in any effort until the last evening before the test or assessment.

Why is it important for me, as a child to understand and to invest in early-stage studies – isn’t there always time later?

I am slow; do I have a learning disability?

What is a good intended learning outcome? What is the use of formulating them? Can I not flow with the crowd.

A lack of motivation and insufficient study skills can slow down the effort of any child in the long run. So when you begin to ask yourself the questions listed above remember that it is not simply hard work and intelligence, alone which help in paving the study path.

According to the experiences of children who move on to university, time management problems are the worst factor causing delays in studies. They realize it when they have passed out of school and when wistful thinking makes them realize and understand that

To compound the above issue, a lack of study skills is a factor that can delay study advancement for you.

Working life renews itself at an intense pace, and on an average, the work tasks of academically educated professionals in specialized fields change every three years. Mastering transferable skills lays the foundation for competence development and work satisfaction.

Similarly, studies show that self-regulation skills, which are part of transferable skills, are linked to study advancement for successful students.

So what are the study skills and the study path that a modern day student requires and which you must incorporate in your student life?

Time and project management skills, coordination and organisation skills, the ability to plan one's tasks ahead, systematic problem-solving skills

Group work skills, negotiation skills, communication skills, performance skills, teaching, training and instructional skills

Information retrieval skills, reading technique, note-taking techniques, competence in critical information assessment Skills in analytical and systematic thinking, logical self-expression in writing

The ability to assess and develop one's actions, the ability to find motivation, persistence

How can you as a student approach your teacher and get her committed to deploying small measures to help you as a student to develop your study skills. Here are some points to consider.

A) Include the goal of ensuring study skill development in the intended learning outcomes of the subject matter.

B) Request your teacher to align her teaching constructively so that the selection of teaching and assessment methods by her supports the attainment of the learning outcomes that you desire. If something does not work, bring it up with her and request her to make minor adjustments.

C) Request your teacher to use versatile teaching like various forms of group assignments and group work, and whilst applying them, you should familiarise yourself with the phenomena and good practices related to groupbased activities.

6. Ask your teacher for rational time management tips of the subject she teaches by explaining to you the planned year workload and by providing tips on how to plan time management. Try to avoid peaks with the workload.

In order to succeed in studies, it is essential for you as a student to manage your time sufficiently and effectively. The form of a subject may affect your time management through the workload, schedules, assessment methods and learning outcomes. You can support and motivate yourself by self-instructing yourself and your friends in self contained time management planning. Instruct your friends and ask them to reciprocate by instructing you. It works.

Effective studying and successful time management reduce stress and produce better learning results. Research also shows that students from Class VI onwards benefit the most from time management follow-up.

A student's workload and true learning take a certain time. The time required by studies as well as the amount and difficulty level of study substance - form the overall study burden. If, for example, there seems to be too little time to study for an exam and if most of the studying takes place right before an exam, you may find the situation overburdening. If you as a student feel overburdened, it is likely to lead to superficial learning and trying to pass an exam by memorizing a minimum number of issues by heart.

Distributing studies evenly for the duration of a week will prevent overburdening. By following up on time management, students are able to see what their time is spent on and also identify problematic factors and deficiencies. Time management also involves combining studies, work and leisure. Even with 4–5-week follow-up, a student may notice a connection between the actual time spent on studies and learning results.

Students should especially seek guidance in time management at the early stages of studies, as it may be difficult to adapt to studying once they enter Class X and upwards. A student's situation in life changes when he crosses the milestone of Class X and learns to take responsibility for both studies and him/herself. Digesting extensive topics requires learning new kinds of study strategies and the ability to divide the time spent on studies without anyone else's direction. Time management learnt at the early stages of studies will also help later as studies advance.

The way that students link up with their new environment and studies is usually determined early in the studies. Several analyses have shown that the success of higher secondary studies especially affects graduation level pursuits and the prevention of interrupted studies. It is easy to conclude that the factors affecting the post matriculation phase of studies has great significance in terms of a student's graduation efforts, and it therefore makes sense to invest in the identification of problems during the early stages of studies and to direct any supportive measures to the initial study years in particular.

Why should special attention be given to at the early stage of studies? Which factors most commonly form obstacles to advancement during the early stage of studies? Possible signs of a bottleneck have included students' minor amount of time spent on studying, unevenly distributed workloads on courses and during studies, decreased share of passing marks, an increased circulation load or, simply, feedback from students or the development in average grades attained.

The factors working in the background may be even more complex. Therefore, one must have tools for recognizing the most critical problems when designing and implementing a study path for oneself. Furthermore, one must have the will and ability to work towards clearing them away in the best possible manner. In order to reliably assess the impacts of the measures, it is usually enough to direct the measures to one or two most critical bottlenecks at a time. Resolving even one critical defect and advancement obstacle may enable the attainment of improved results surprisingly effectively.

Scoring well on subjects on the first time is especially important in order to prevent falling behind from the very beginning. The timeliness of studies and their rational placement in the curriculum and in timetables is a necessity for a fluent start to studying. Even a minor improvement in class IX study rates may significantly improve later study advancement and the likelihood of graduating with good grades from school.

Use the PSP process.

A ‘PSP’ is defined as a personal study plan process that covers a student's entire study path. During a PSP process, you as a student need to assesses your competence, set goals and follow up on your attainment, plan your studies, and reflect upon the purpose of studies. There has to be a rational platform from which you can view yourself and what you are doing. If you just rumble along then a time will come when you will ask yourself – what am I doing, and you will get overwhelmed easily.

Studying subjects like mathematics or for that matter of fact Chemistry or Physics in high school is different than studying it at a middle school. It may come as a surprise to a student that succeeding in studies is not as easy as previously thought. Various study methods are needed in order to learn. The nature of mathematics and the other objects in Class XI and XII is different, as the starting point is to try and understand issues on a deeper level. A long break in calculation routines may also cause extra headache. Finding the best and most productive working methods requires some effort from the student, but it is worth the trouble. People are different in terms of their characteristics and prior skills. What works for one person may not work for someone else.

Some pointers that may work for you and on which you can build are;

1. Identifying yourself as a math or physics or a chemistry learner –It is important for a student to identify what kind of a learner she is. Some learn best alone, whilst others need a group to discuss problematic parts. Some want to learn everything, whilst for others, passing the course is enough. A teacher’s idea of a learning style may also be different from a student’s, and the tips provided may not help in that particular case.

2. Ensuring adequate background information–PCM is a subject base that accumulates, i.e. old information lays the foundation for new information. It is recommended that background information be revised in order to enable learning new.

3. Activating prior information and combining it with new – Due to the accumulative nature of mathematics, Physics and Chemistry it is also important to activate prior knowledge to form the basis for new information. After this, a new issue can be processed in various ways: by thinking back, combining and describing; and one can learn to use it in practice by applying, receiving feedback and support as well as through diagnosing one's own mistakes.

4. Responsibility for one’s own learning – In high school responsibility and freedom go hand-in-hand. Everyone is responsible for taking care of his or her own matters. The same applies to math studies. The implemented teaching strategies may or may not suit one’s own learning style. Students must bravely make decisions they feel will support their own learning and sort out challenging issues with the teaching staff and fellow students.

5. Seeking motivation – Motivation has great influence on learning, the amount of work one is willing to put in and the progress of studies. As a student you should make it clear to yourself what carries you through studies. Are you willing to truly understand the topics, pass courses, get good marks etc., and what is required of you in order to attain these goals?

6. Use of natural language – In mathematics, and chemistry and also physics there are a number of formal ways to express things. Many may find it difficult to understand them and work with them. You as a student should therefore also aim to think in your own mother tongue, i.e. to make it clear to yourself what the real meanings behind the formulas are. This socalled ‘languaging’ also makes it easier for a child to identify problems and the reasons behind them. This way, mental patterns can be corrected, which in turn facilitates learning new things.

7. Learning from erroneous answers – Erroneous answers can be taken into good use in learning, just like examples of correctly calculated solutions. Sometimes it may feel tough to a student to hear their erroneous solution discussed publicly in class, whilst analysing someone else's errors may feel more sensible. Once students see that others make mistakes, too, their own fear of failure diminishes. On the other hand, students also learn to justify topics and arguments when finding, explaining and correcting mistakes made by others.

8. Learning in a group is a rational choice for many - Studying in a group may help if studying alone does not seem to produce results. It may also deepen learning, even if a student has learnt the actual topic alone. In a group, it is possible to apply various methods to study together or simply make calculations, so that everyone calculates independently but with help close at hand whenever needed. If a student comes to a dead end, someone else may have already overcome that stage, and vice-versa.

9. Try flexible studying. Flexible studying refers to various study opportunities as well as taking situational factors and changing life situations into account. The aim with flexibility is to promote shorter study bursts and prevent study fatigue.

‘Diverse learners’ is a concept that has taken root as a definition of learners with special learning disabilities. The term ‘various learners’ is sometimes perceived as being more extensive and inclusive of different learning styles.

Your school can significantly affect the study progress if you are a diverse learner as well as your possibilities to participate in learning.

Dyslexia is a Specific learning disability related to reading and writing that is in conflict with a person's other skill level and learning ability. The occurrence rate of dyslexia varies and is quite high in India. Dyslexia refers to a different way of learning, perceiving and processing information. It is not an obstacle to academic or professional success, although it could make studying and coping at work challenging. If you feel that you may be struggling, ask you parents for help in getting you a formal assessment. The time and money spent in identifying and pinpointing the issue is just one single day and the time and money saved is equal to the remainder of your life and earning potential. Don’t worry about the ‘tag’. No one really has the time to invest to think – they are so busy in their own world’s.

Remember Dyslexia may manifest itself as a deficit in writing, reading or reading comprehension, or it may be a combination of the said disabilities. For example, reading may be slow but writing is fluent. Or alternatively, writing may be cumbersome and many spelling mistakes occur, but reading flows without problems. Dyslexia may occur separately or in connection with other conditions, such as hyperactivity. In adolescence and adulthood, the most typical dyslexic disabilities have to do with slowness and difficulty of reading as well as spelling mistakes. Dyslexia may not necessarily manifest itself in all subjects, and it is possible that it only occurs when the student is feeling stressed (e.g. during a busy exam season) or tired. Dyslexia may also involve difficulties with identifying the main points in a text, scanty or rambling writing, problems with learning foreign languages, and difficulties with concentration. Dyslexia often involves difficulties with perception, which may hinder mathematics studies even if reading as such is fluent.

Normally, dyslexia is detected as early as school age. However, a student may advance to the level of higher education without their dyslexia being diagnosed. In Classes XI and XII, students are expected to pick up a variety of new skills and to advance quickly, and this is when dyslexia may form an obstacle to study advancement. Unawareness of dyslexia as the cause of poor study success may also lead to a child dropping out of the learning curve.

When you work on your study path ask a few questions. Does Working seem to be slow and arduous? Are you finding putting answers in verbal form burdensome and taking a lot of time. Is structuring information into written form difficult. Do insignificant words cause difficulty? Are letters and numbers getting mixed and changing places? When reading, do lines appear to jump or move. Are you having difficulties with sticking to and recording meetings? Is your handwriting difficult to read? Is your reading comprehension difficult, and reading slow or erroneous.A Child with HINDI as a primary language and dyslexia may have difficulties with prepositions, particles and articles in foreign languages, along with spelling.

Not only for your self. Encourage your friends to ask these questions also about themselves and ask them not to suffer in silence. It is all in vain. Better to seek help and improve.

Incorporate cooperation in your study path. Cooperation is powerful: it helps attain results that a lone student is unable to reach alone. Little by little, cooperation between children has become a central strategy for educational establishments, without which development and experiments would only be left to individual pioneers or forced projects initiated by the administration. At the same time, cooperation has become an important part of professional growth for individuals and, at its best; it manifests itself through the development of communal expertise in a learning organisation.

In most cases, problems with the development of communal expertise have been due to the traditional perception of the student’s ability as an individual activity. A child’s competence is often perceived as individual even when working together. Everyone has his/her own expertise, which they “own” and do not necessarily share with others or mutual use. Try to get out of the mould. Holding hands will actually help you.

Learning outcomes are goal descriptions, which briefly explain, from your point of view, what you feel can be expected from you to master at the end of a course r module in order to pass it. Intended learning outcomes are clearly and simply expressed sentences, which describe a student's competence, are easy to assess, and clearly indicate the competence level. Learning outcomes should be mentally planned in a way that enables you as a student to attain them during the concerned course.

How to get the best benefits from learning outcomes and what are they? To get the best possible benefits from learning outcomes, conceptualize a study path where you can assess the attainment of learning outcomes and build reading based on competence. Assessments often steer your time management and competence buildup. In order to ensure the quality of your human capital, it is important from the intellectual point of view to base your achievement upon competence and to make learning outcomes functional. In order to attain the benefits of learning outcomes, the quality of learning outcomes must be viewed by you - in terms of constructive aligning and the progress and level of competence.

Today, with a large share of people working in service professions or expert positions, it is important to not only know your field but also to be able to work in cooperation with other people. The advantage of co-operative learning is based on a few interconnected issues. First of all, it leads students like you to teaching each other (peer learning). Consequently, children must process what they have learned, and this teaching becomes more personal than the teaching that teachers usually have time to provide. Furthermore, co-operative learning coaches students like you to use operating models that they can apply in working life, along with the actual course content you will study. These operating models can become your Study Path, as your learning motivation can be better maintained than when listening passively to lectures or in traditional group work. Co-operative learning is based on study processes that are designed to minimize the problems encountered with traditional learning settings.

For a study path to be successful the child has to first call understand and appreciate that learning is an ongoing process, and that more than intelligence or cognitive ability it is systematic planning and careful understanding of your ability the amount of learning you can do and the manner in which you create a study path for yourself that will see you through school university and institutions of higher learning.

The time has come when the only variable that is available in this world is human capital. It is going to be the uniqueness of intellectual capital that you possess which is going to determine how scarce resources are going to be allocated amongst the children of today. The more unique the intellect and the higher the perfection you can offer, the greater will be the demand for your services. Intellect, perfection, uniqueness do not arise in a vacuum and need to be learnt and mastered. For this study and dedication are required along with a clear study path.