Part of our mission at FUNDAmental SKILLS is to equip learners of all ages with some very basic skills that have far-reaching implications and results. One of these skills is EFFECTIVE STUDYING, in other words, methods and tips and techniques that, once tried out, you will want to use again and again until studying becomes something you love and not dread.
As an introduction, here are some of the barriers to acquiring and retaining knowledge, as identified by the controversial American author L Ron Hubbard:
1. Lack of MASS. Like many of Hubbard's ideas, this one is good and universally applicable but shoots itself in the foot by using a word that no one can really relate to...MASS. What is referred to is of course a lack of REFERENCE for the material being studied. If you are studying tractor mechanics, in the classic Hubbard example, but do not have a tractor in front of you, you will soon run into trouble. Because you cannot related the words in the textbook to anything you have ever seen or experienced, they lose meaning and you either become bored or very anxious because you "don't understand" or you ask yourself what on earth you are doing in the situation you find yourself in. We will explore the merits of the BIG PICTURE, in other words relating new stuff to stuff you already know, and knowing where things fit in order to understand them better.
2. Too steep a GRADIENT. Hubbard's words again...referring to the "learning curve". If what you have to learn goes too fast, and you don't have time to master one concept or fact before moving on to the next one that builds on the previous one, you will soon be lost, not able to do what is expected of you, and feel like a failure. Going back to where you felt secure, in order to pick up from there and work through material thoroughly, slowly and efficiently is not a shame, it is common sense. Working slowly and methodically results in far better understanding and retention of facts. If at the same time you relate new facts to your BIG PICTURE, there is no reason for you ever to forget anything, and the need for exam stress and cramming disappears. We will explore ways of eliminating exam stress once and for all.
3. The misunderstood word. Once again, Hubbard's STUDY TECH has a point, which unfortunately gets laboured completely dead and flat. We will not do that: what is important is that you MUST understand every single word you read. If you skim over words you don't know in order to get to the end of the material, you may well lose out on the whole point of the material, and many connections may be lost to you. So learning how to use a dictionary efficiently is a great and valuable skill and shows that you are serious about understanding what you are learning and don't only do it because it is expected of you. Language underlies all learning. It is good to understand the meaning, origin and areas of employment of every word you encounter, as it increases your comprehension and mental flexibility. And once those two are increased in one area, they operate better in all areas of learning.
So climb on the bus with us as the coastal school year starts tomorrow - we are inviting all secondary and tertiary students to connect with us: state your problem or difficulty, and we will look at ways of approaching it , working through it and taking its sting out in the process.
As an introduction, here are some of the barriers to acquiring and retaining knowledge, as identified by the controversial American author L Ron Hubbard:
1. Lack of MASS. Like many of Hubbard's ideas, this one is good and universally applicable but shoots itself in the foot by using a word that no one can really relate to...MASS. What is referred to is of course a lack of REFERENCE for the material being studied. If you are studying tractor mechanics, in the classic Hubbard example, but do not have a tractor in front of you, you will soon run into trouble. Because you cannot related the words in the textbook to anything you have ever seen or experienced, they lose meaning and you either become bored or very anxious because you "don't understand" or you ask yourself what on earth you are doing in the situation you find yourself in. We will explore the merits of the BIG PICTURE, in other words relating new stuff to stuff you already know, and knowing where things fit in order to understand them better.
2. Too steep a GRADIENT. Hubbard's words again...referring to the "learning curve". If what you have to learn goes too fast, and you don't have time to master one concept or fact before moving on to the next one that builds on the previous one, you will soon be lost, not able to do what is expected of you, and feel like a failure. Going back to where you felt secure, in order to pick up from there and work through material thoroughly, slowly and efficiently is not a shame, it is common sense. Working slowly and methodically results in far better understanding and retention of facts. If at the same time you relate new facts to your BIG PICTURE, there is no reason for you ever to forget anything, and the need for exam stress and cramming disappears. We will explore ways of eliminating exam stress once and for all.
3. The misunderstood word. Once again, Hubbard's STUDY TECH has a point, which unfortunately gets laboured completely dead and flat. We will not do that: what is important is that you MUST understand every single word you read. If you skim over words you don't know in order to get to the end of the material, you may well lose out on the whole point of the material, and many connections may be lost to you. So learning how to use a dictionary efficiently is a great and valuable skill and shows that you are serious about understanding what you are learning and don't only do it because it is expected of you. Language underlies all learning. It is good to understand the meaning, origin and areas of employment of every word you encounter, as it increases your comprehension and mental flexibility. And once those two are increased in one area, they operate better in all areas of learning.
So climb on the bus with us as the coastal school year starts tomorrow - we are inviting all secondary and tertiary students to connect with us: state your problem or difficulty, and we will look at ways of approaching it , working through it and taking its sting out in the process.
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