Page 205 - Keys To Community College Success

get analytical

LINK MEMORY AND ANALYTICAL THINKING

Complete the following on paper or in digital format.

1. Identify the course that interests you the most this term.
2. Analyzing the material for the course, name a set of information you believe you will have to memorize.
3. Describe specific ways you can use analytical thinking to learn this material (look at the analytical thinking actions
and Bloom’s Taxonomy on page 116 to get ideas).
4. Will this material you have to remember be important to your working and/or personal life after college? If so,
describe the connection. If your first response is “no,” think carefully about it, and describe how the experience
of learning it might be useful to you in your future.

Now that you know more about how memory works, get down to the business of
how to retain the information you think is important, and access that information
when you need it.

HOW CAN YOU REMEMBER
what you study?

Whatever you study—textbooks, course materials, notes, primary sources—your
goal is to anchor important information in long-term memory so that you can use it,
for both short-term goals like tests and long-term goals like being an information tech-
nology specialist. Take a productive risk and try out a variety of strategies to see which
will reward you with the most retention. One great way to do this is to use journalists’
questions—six questions journalists tend to ask as a writing aid:

1. When, where, and who: Determine the times, places, and company (or none) that
suit you.
2. What and why: Choose what is important to study, and set the rest aside.
3. How: Find the specific tips and techniques that work best for you.

When, Where, and Who:
Choosing Your Best Setting
Figuring out the when, where, and who of studying is all about self-management. You
analyze what works best for you, create ideas about how to put that self-knowledge to
work, and use practical thinking to implement those ideas as you study.

When
The first part of when is how much. Having the right amount of time for the job is
crucial. One formula for success is this: For every hour you spend in the classroom each
week, spend at least two to three hours preparing for the class. For example, if you are
carrying a course load of 15 credit hours, you should spend 30 hours a week studying
outside of class. Check your syllabus for the dates reading assignments are due, and
give yourself enough time to complete them.

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