Test Strategies

Improved Essays
As with most things in life, tests are easier when someone first takes the necessary steps to prepare for them. A crucial component to preparing for a test is by incorporating successful strategies in order to study the test material. My study habits have been continuously refined throughout my tenure as both a high school student and then as a college student. For example, in high school, I used to just repeatedly read the study guide or notes until I felt that I was adequately prepared to take the exam or quiz. This was typically enough to help me obtain an A on the tests, but upon entering college, I was shocked about how different the tests were, and I forced myself to learn new strategies that would help me succeed in my endeavors. I have …show more content…
Though I try to ward off procrastination by scheduling group study sessions with my friends, it can still hit me hard sometimes. One strategy I could utilize pertains to my study habits. Instead of studying all at once, I could study for chunks of time before the tests. By doing this, I would not feel the pressure of the test being in the next two days, and having to spend hours upon hours of studying over those two days to work myself up to an excellent grade. According to Lea Winerman (2011), “… if you have 12 hours to spend on a subject, it’s better to study it for three hours each week for four weeks than to cram all 12 hours into week four”, a piece of advice that makes perfect sense considering that it would greatly help to reduce my stress before the test hits. Winerman also points to the notion that spacing out study sessions helps with long-term memory regarding the material. For example, when she states, “Decades of research has demonstrated that spacing out study sessions over a longer period of time improves long-term memory” (Winerman, 2011), she is pointing out that this is knowledge that has been both known for many years and backed by scholarly research, and it is not some random innovative discovery that has no actual basis. People who truly want to learn should want pertinent information known for many years, and seeing as how this strategy is an excellent defense against unnecessary stress, students should adopt this study habit. I will definitely be spacing my study sessions out from now on, as I, like many other students, do not like feeling test

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