Study Skills

Time Management

Time ManagementMost people believe that there is a direct relationship between study time & doing well at college. E.g. You will achieve better results in examinations the more time you spend studying.

This is not the CASE!! As we are all aware you can sit in front of a book for hours yet take in nothing! (Except daydream)

It should be remembered that it is quality not quantity of your study that determines the effectiveness of your learning

Time ManagementFor example, one hour spent looking up answers to a specific question is more beneficial than two hours spend passively reading a textbook

Rewriting lectures notes to make them neater is not as useful as trying to summarise the key point they contain

According to Moran (1997) Wasting study time means spending it unwisely on activities which you know to be irrelevant to your academic goals

Time ManagementFrom a mature students perspective combining study & home life in an effective way can be a serious challenge!!

As a student in the foundation programme you will be expected to undertake independent work outside class time. For example, you will need to find time to work on assignments & essays, read over lectures notes

So what you must do is balance these demands with your family/domestic commitments along with your work in Hospira

Time ManagementAs you will already know organised workers tend to do better than disorganised ones, students in LYIT are no different! So effective time management is a very important skill to develop.

As a starting off point it can be beneficial if you examine a typical week in your life to determine how much time you will have for study

Use last week as an example & see how mush of your time was taken up by the following everyday;

Time ManagementThis is what you give a full time studentLectures Library visits & studyDomestic & family timeSocialising & relaxingWorkTravelSleeping & EatingOther

Summarising your time allows you to understand how much time you really spend in the various areas of your life

Time ManagementNow you can clearly see where you are spending your time. For example if you find that you do not have enough time for study yet your watching X amounts of T.V or socialising, the time table will indicate that you should reduce these activities in order to find the extra time for your study/college work.

However, you may find some things take priority over others. Can you ask for help from the people who share you life? For example will someone else do the shopping & cooking on certain days to give you more time.

Time ManagementOne of the most important things about time management approaches is to start them early in the academic calendar. Dont wait until your falling behind in work to start a time management approach

This will result in crammed schedules & a lot more stress & worry!!

The following time management system may be of some use to you, or you may find certain aspects of it useful

Time ManagementGoal SettingWhat are you goals? Sometimes is helps to divide your goals into time frames (immediate goals, short-term goals, long-range goals)

E.g. long-range goal= complete the foundation certificate, short-term goals = do class assignment for next week, immediate goals = read over lecture notes before going to class

Before going any further write down a list of goals you want to achieve (work, study, home)

Time Management Look at the goals you have listed & ask yourself the following;

Are you actively working on these goals?Are you putting any of them off?Are any of the tasks you will do today contributing to accomplishing the goals you have set for yourself

It can be helpful to spend just five minutes every day writing down some specific study goals for that day. By doing this you have something tangible to study, thus getting distracted less by other material

Time ManagementAs already mention breaking goals down into smaller pieces can be of great help. Take for example the goal of finishing your Foundation Certificate, this in itself may seem quite daunting!However, you can break this down into more manageable pieces. E.g. The certificate is broken 4 sub goals, each module Business, Maths, Communications & IT. Again each of these can be broken down further into goals; assignments, presentations, tests, & final Exams.So the key is to take each step at a time, & not to get stressed out about the bigger picture

Time ManagementTime Awareness & Time TrackingAs we have already covered by drawing up our new time tables! By knowing exactly how you are spending your time should make it easier to manage your time well.Other ways of tracking your time are as follows;At the end of every hour just jot down a few sentences about what you actually did for that hour. This way you will be able to see what patterns are emerging in your use of time & thus make changes to improve your productivity. Are you doing what you planned to do?

Time ManagementPlanningJust like in any business or organisation planning is a key function which helps in achieving various objectives, be they long or short term. This approach can also be applied to studying.

2 planning tools which may help;Monthly PlannerWeekly Planner

Time ManagementMonthly PlannerThis can be used as a memory aid, use it for tracking major exam/assignment dates, appointments, birthdays, holidays etc. A good monthly planner will inform you for upcoming busy periods.

For example in May you might have an exam, presentation & assignment due. With this in mind you can manage your time appropriately. You can also add in interim dates (which you can review the progress you feel your making)

Time ManagementWeekly PlannerThis should be designed with all your daily activities in mind, work, domestic, study, lecture times, social etc. This is an important time management tool as it must encompass important tasks (like homework activities which move you towards your goals)Again its important that you prioritise your study tasks at the start of each week. Do you have something that has to be done this week as opposed to something you would like to do this weekYou should assign a time slot for each task for example Tuesday 10-10.30 read over bus lecture notes!!

Time ManagementIts important that you associate specific tasks to specific times, e.g. maths on a Thursday & Sunday. But its vital that you dont schedule important study activities to unrealistic work times.

Pick a specific day each week to set the plan for the upcoming week. Once your week is planned you will feel must more focused & confident in what you are studying is correct & you are also utilising your time efficiently

To maximise your concentration, study in blocks of 40-50 minutes. If you find yourself with 10-20 to spare, why not look over some notes!!

Time ManagementTaking ActionOnce you have set your goals, figured out how you are spending your time & decided on a plan to help you achieve your goals, all that is left if to take action.The plan offers you a written representation of the decisions on how you will spend the coming week, so you dont have to spend time each days worrying about what tasks to do.As you begin remember that the plan can be flexible & is not made in stone, some things may take longer than others, dont feel stressed our about this

Time ManagementTry and stay focused on each task & just do the best you can. By following the plan & your progress you can learn from your mistakes & good experienies along the way

Time Shifting & AdjustingAlong the way at some stage or another you will have to make some adjustments to your plan & time management habits. Some problems you encounter may be out of your control, so keep calm & get back on track as soon as possibleProblem under your control should be dealt with immediately so they dont get in the way of your goals

Time ManagementA few problems which one should avoid are not knowing when or how to start your work, engaging in procrastination, & also task hoping. So it is important to use your self-discipline to not get side tracked while also having confidence in what your doing is right.

Finally, dont forget to keep doing the things you enjoy, whether that be exercise or meeting with friends. A good balance between study & what you enjoy is a necessity!!

Next WeekPick any newspaper article you want & write up a small report on what interested you in the article.

On Saturday just ask at reception and they will tell you where to go. Enjoy it!!