The end of a semester can be a stressful time for students, with exams and final projects looming. Travel plans also lurk in the back of their minds. And all of that now swirls in the context of a global pandemic. So, itโs reassuring to know that there are numerous resources available to help students succeed at this time of the year.
One of these key resources is the College of Charleston’s Center for Student Learning (CSL) โ which is used by over 45 percent of students at CofC.
According to Lindy Coleman, director of the CSL, more than 1,400 students have used the center’s services this semester, totaling 5,221 visits. She and her colleagues โ and the more than 160 student-employees โ have assisted these students in a myriad of ways from tutoring to supplemental instruction to simple, one-on-one consultations.
โThis has been an atypical year because of COVID,โ Coleman explains, โbut weโve adapted and have been offering our services online, via Zoom. We offer assistance across most subject areas taught at the College. And CSL personnel are available, morning, afternoon and evening as well as on the weekends.โ
And Page Keller, who directs the Collegeโs Center for Excellence in Peer Education, says that having students assist other students with their studies provides a number of advantages.
โNot only do peer-tutors offer necessary academic assistance,โ she says, โbut as peers, they are approachable, provide immediate and meaningful feedback to the students they are helping, and can make the course content relational in a way that is different from faculty.โ
Here are 10 study tips for exams from four peer-tutors with the CSL:
Hussain Bhagat
Hussain Bhagat, a junior biochemistry major from Columbia, South Carolina, has been a chemistry tutor in the Center for Student Learning for over a year. Bhagat says he likes doing this work because he knows he can present information in a way thatโs often more relatable for students.
โAt the end of the day,โ he says, โIโm a student, too, so coming to me for help is like going to a friend. I can use sports analogies to make a point or I can put things in laymenโs terms pretty easily and that usually helps get the information across.โ
His top two study tips include:
Make Time
โFirst and foremost, actually set aside time to study. Thatโs really important, and I know it seems overly obvious, but setting up a structure is really useful, especially if this is your first semester,” he says. “You donโt want to have exam week sneak up on you and find out that youโre so worried about doing exams that you donโt actually study. You have to delegate time to do the assignments and actually put in that work and youโll be ready for exams.โ
Practice, Practice, Practice
โPractice problems can be super helpful, particularly for students in chemistry courses. As much as people hate doing these because theyโre tedious and time-consuming, they really expose you to the material and help concretize the concepts,” says Bhagat. “Do them, and do them multiple times, and that will help you overcome testing anxiety. To me, working your way through practice problems is much more beneficial than simply reviewing your notes and telling yourself, โsure, I know this stuff.โ A lot of students have trouble with tests not because they donโt know the material, but because they donโt know how to regurgitate the material in a given period of time. And the only solution to that is to practice more before the exam.โ
Emily Turner
Emily Turner hails from Richmond, Virginia. Sheโs a sophomore double majoring in international studies and hospitality and tourism management. Sheโs also an Italian Studies minor and has been tutoring students in that language throughout the fall semester.
Her top two tips include:
Plan Ahead
โDeveloping a study plan for exams is really important,โ she says. โWhen you know your goals and you set them out in manageable steps, that makes it easier for you to achieve them. For example, a friend of mine has a statistics exam coming up and she knows that if she doesnโt study one set of concepts on Monday and another set of concepts on Tuesday, etc., she wonโt get through all the material before exam day. So, sheโs planning ahead.โ
Be Inquisitive
โAlways ask questions. Iโm a campus tour guide with the Charleston 40 and I tell my guests that the only bad question is the one that doesnโt get asked,” says Turner. “When studying for an exam, you need to ask those questions that will inevitably come up. Even if what you ask about doesnโt end up on the test, you never know when youโll use that knowledge, and you wonโt be able to if you donโt ask about it and find out.โ
Haley D’Alessandro
Hayley DโAlessandro is a junior from Wayne, New Jersey, double majoring in studio art and biology. Sheโs been a supplemental instruction leader for over a year. She says she puts in 10 to 15 hours each week helping students as they progress through their courses.
Her top three study tips are:
Study Together
โGroup work can be really effective, so study with fellow students if you can, or even your parents. Try to teach them about what youโve learned. If you can teach someone what youโve learned, youโll definitely know the material.โ
Whiteboards Work Wonders
โI like using a whiteboard and putting a topic up on it,” says D’Alessandro. “Then, Iโll write everything I know about that beneath the word or phrase. I donโt refer to my notes until Iโve exhausted everything thatโs in my head. This helps me identify what I need to study because it wonโt be up there on the whiteboard.โ
Sleep is Vital
โSo many students forgo sleep the week before finals because they end up pulling all-nighters. Frankly, that just doesnโt work,” she says. “Youโre not really learning when youโre cramming and you wonโt perform well on exams if youโre exhausted. A good eight hours of sleep each night is ideal. Youโll feel refreshed and your brain will be ready to tackle those exams.โ
Erin Niland
Senior secondary education majorย Erin Niland works as a master consultant in the CSLโs Writing Lab. Sheโs held this role for the past five semesters and says she really enjoys it. What makes the lab special, Niland says, is that there are consultants there from all sorts of majors and minors, not just English.
โWe work with students on a peer-to-peer basis, so I think itโs less intimidating than having to do this with someone who might be much older or more credentialed,โ she says.
Her top study tips include:
Study Zone
โA lot of students headed home for Thanksgiving and will be staying there, and that makes it so important to have a designated study area,” says Niland. “Whether thatโs at home at the kitchen table or at a local library or a coffee shop, it doesnโt really matter. But having a spot youโve deliberately set up will help you get into an academic mindset and stay focused. And, if itโs somewhere thatโs not in your house, thatโs usually a bonus.”
Study Shades
“I highly recommend that students color-code their class notes, or their flash cards or whatever written material they use. This actually stimulates your brain and builds on pre-existing neural pathways. And specific colors are known to have certain properties. For instance, blue is linked to productivity and green is linked to memory. Thereโs a lot of research that backs this up. Ultimately, itโs a really simple thing to do and itโs a tactic thatโs applicable across all academic disciplines.”
Vocalize It
“Regarding writing, if youโre working on a final essay or paper, I recommend that you read it aloud to yourself. Doing that gives you a chance to see whether what youโre trying to convey is well articulated and whether or not your main points are communicated,” she says. “Itโs also a good way to discover spelling and grammatical errors. I know it might seem awkward, so if you donโt want to hear your own voice, there are various software programs available that can read your work to you.”
