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Tag: studying

  • Using a Tutor – Benefits Beyond Raising Your Grade

    Using a Tutor – Benefits Beyond Raising Your Grade

    Have you ever considered using a tutor? If your answer is no, there are a few things you should know about the benefits of a tutor that may help sway your decision. This article will explore how hiring a tutor can help students gain confidence in their own academic ability in addition to giving them a new outlook on course material. A good tutor will be willing to help their pupil become a stronger student, which will reflect in their assessments. I will also advise those hiring a tutor on what to look for when choosing a tutor to insure they are suited for your needs.

    Even those students that are satisfied with their academic achievements can obtain value from the guidance of a tutor. If you have ever studied for a test and skipped over a lesson or two because you did not fully understand it, all the while convincing yourself that one lesson would not affect your grade, you are not alone. Many students feel this way when studying for tests. What you need to consider is that one lesson in a grade 10 class may grow into an entire unit in grade 11 and you may regret not taking the time to get extra help to understand the material more fully. Tutors act as private teachers – to answer tough questions that you might not feel comfortable to ask in class and to help you understand difficult course material. By using a tutor to answer those questions, you will soon learn that no question is a “dumb” question and you will feel more comfortable speaking up in class (and trust me – there is always at least one other student wondering the same thing). Before you know it, your peers will be asking you for help!

    Understanding tough concepts is another place tutors can help. Sometimes it takes someone to explain a concept differently in order for you to understand it. Tutors can be great for this. They are there to help you understand and they can spend as long as you need – using examples until you feel comfortable with the material. For example, when being taught about optics in science class, understanding the specifics about near and farsightedness is lost on many students but few will ask for clarification. A tutor could take this concept of sight and compare it to the clarity of the words on an overhead screen as you adjust the focus to give the student a concrete example they can draw on when discussing or during tests.

    The examples above are determined by quality of tutor you hire. When hiring a tutor you should consider their education (a teacher, university student or senior high school student), their experience with the subject matter/course (they have already taken or taught the course and been extremely successful, or they have tutored this course in the past) and their philosophy on learning. I suggest meeting your potential tutor in person before hiring them and explain your needs and goals. When possible, consider tutors that have been recommended to you by family or friends. If that is not an option, try asking a teacher, professor, teaching assistant or guidance counselor for suggestions. Good luck!

  • Time Management Skills

    Time Management Skills

    At the end of the day, time management is going to be one of the chief challenges you face and one of the most valuable skills you develop throughout your post-secondary education. Though university and college is not the first time we’ve had to deal with time restraints, the increased focus on independent study and, for many students, the presence of a part-time job completely redefines how we appreciate and organize our schedules.

    A common joke you’ll hear in your post-secondary education is: “good grades, proper sleep, a social life: choose two.” This isn’t far from the truth! Though you are more than capable of doing all three, as well as hobbies, extra-curricular activities and jobs, many students are shocked by the time requirements called for in both university and college.

    For many this is made even more difficult by going away for school. For the first time you are solely responsible for getting up in the morning, organizing your meals and ensuring that you are capable of staying on top of your workload. It can be hard but it is possible! Developing your time management requires the growth of your individual organizational and prioritizing abilities, as well as sometimes forcing adjustments to certain study habits which may not function as well as they can or should.

    By the end of your degree I promise you’ll be laughing at your younger self, running around and stressing about first-year worries. Until then, let me try and give you some tips to help effectively organize your time:

    i) Design a class schedule around your own sleep pattern. Some of us are night owls, some are early birds. If you are like me and struggle to wake up for early classes, let alone study during that period, don’t be afraid to try and sign up for those 10:00 classes rather than the 8:30 ones.
    ii) Breaks are important. Some will make the argument that it is better to work through everything and, if it works for you, great. If not, accept well-deserved breaks as they come to you. If possible, do something that takes you out of the library or your room – a walk around the block? A jog? If not, try and do something with a clear start and finish. Watch an episode of a television show with the clear 21-minute end and don’t get lost on the internet only to look at the clock again two hours later.
    iii) Sleep is essential! Some cope with the time restraints by cutting back on their sleep schedules and for many we can afford to do this while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Be careful, though, as it can be a slippery slope. Sometimes it’s better to sleep that extra hour than stare listlessly at the computer all morning trying to wake yourself up.

    Just make sure to be careful with your time and make the most of it. In the end you’ll be able to handle your time constraints with no problem!