On any school night, a common question parents ask their teens is, “Do you have any homework?” or “Have you studied yet?” What those parents should be asking is, “Does my child know how to study?” Unfortunately, the answer is often no, but having strong study skills is the key to academic success, whether in middle school, high school, or college.
What often happens in the middle and high school classroom is that a teacher tells students that they need to take notes. After the pens and paper are out, the teacher usually tells the students what to write. Some students understand it, others don’t. Students are given a reading assignment to accompany their notes, and some time later there is a test. The teacher usually does some kind of review before the exam, but basically the student is on his own to study. He maybe he never read the homework; perhaps he only half listened during note taking; maybe he only heard half of it during the review. When he sits down to study, he doesn’t have what he needs, he probably gets bored and leaves for the night. That doesn’t bode well for how he’ll do on the test.
No matter what the subject, if a student doesn’t understand, or even care about, the correlation between good study skills and good grades, they will probably end up being a mediocre student at best. And if they want to go to college, keep in mind that a student without good study skills can sink very quickly. Parents should know that college professors should assume that students come to class fully aware of the importance of taking good notes, reading effectively, and paying attention. Those who have those skills are successful in college; those who do not fight.
The problem, of course, is getting your teen motivated enough to learn good study skills and then use them. That’s not easy, and parents will need to be creative in their efforts for their teens to see the value. If that teen is planning to go to college, be prepared to explain that reading, taking notes, and studying are everyday tasks in college: the better prepared she is now, the more likely she is to do well in college.
Some middle and high schools offer classes that teach study skills. An example is a program called AVID – Advancement Via Individual Determination. In AVID classes, students learn to take notes, read content, study, and organize. It might be worth calling the counselor’s office to see what your teen’s school has to offer if he thinks he doesn’t know how to study.
An effective study method can be self-study, if you can convince your student that it is worth the effort. SQR3 (Survey, Question, Read, Recite, Review) uses five clear steps to study:
- First examine, or scan, the entire document. Pay attention to headings and subheadings, graphics and charts, bold or italic text.
- Question what you just surveyed. What questions come to mind with each caption or graphic? What makes you wonder that test in italics?
- Then carefully read each section, one at a time, looking for answers to your questions.
- Next, recite the answers to your questions out loud; Saying the answers helps you remember the information.
- After you have read and recited each section, do a final review of all your notes, questions, and answers. Make a list of the main points.
Using this method, or some variation of it, would give any student an excellent set of study notes, as well as confidence in their knowledge, and put them on the path to academic success.
