Study Work Grow have put together some useful tips to help you to study successfully. Follow this link for more.
Navigating the demands of high school can be tricky, particularly when it comes to study. It can seem like a daunting task, especially if you don’t have any study techniques to rely on yet, but don’t fret – we’re here with some smart study tips for high school students. Whether you’re gearing up for exams, tackling a challenging subject, or simply looking to improve your study habits, you’ve come to the right place.
You still need to study in the lead-up to an exam or test, but don’t leave all of your studying until the last minute. Studies have proven that the best way to understand what you’re learning and remember that information long-term is by spacing out your studies and revision.
So instead of leaving everything to the last minute and cramming, create a study schedule. Keep track of important dates and deadlines using a planner or calendar (physical or digital) so you know what you need to study and when. It’s also a good idea to set some goals for yourself at the start of the year, term, or semester – having a clear objective in mind will help you stay focused and motivated, particularly for days when you don’t really feel like studying.
Okay, not necessarily perfect, but definitely better.
Say you wanted to learn how play the guitar. You might go onto YouTube and watch hundreds of tutorials or read a whole book about music theory. No matter how much preparation you do, the first time you pick up a guitar and play, it’s probably not going to sound great. Realistically, you need to practise what you’ve learned lots of times before you’re expected to get it right.
Why not treat your studies the same way? You could:
Incorporate past practise tests into your study schedule
Write your own flash cards with questions on one side and answers on the other
Test yourself often, or have other people test you on the information
Ask your teachers to write you some example or revision questions
Textbooks, notes, Word documents, hundreds of facts and figures to read… Sometimes they just make your eyes swim, and you lose concentration as well as understanding.
If you’re finding it hard to read for long periods of time, you could try using diagrams, graphs, and other visual material as a basis for your revision instead. Then, if you need to, add notes or explanations to help you expand your learning. Make it as intricate or simple as you like; the important thing is finding a way to represent information that you can recognise at a glance.
You could even have a go at sketchnoting (and if you’re not artistically-inclined, don’t worry – you don’t have to be great at drawing for it to be effective).
When you’re planning your study schedule, it’s tempting to revise each subject in a block, move on to the next, and never look back.
But imagine you’re learning to play tennis, and for the first four months all you do is learn forehand. Next you learn backhand. Then finally you’re onto learning volleys. This style of learning is called “blocking”. Sure, you’ll eventually learn all the skills…but it can get kind of boring, and it’s not reflective of what an actual tennis game involves.
This is where another learning technique called “interleaving” comes in. Studies have suggested interleaving can produce much better and longer-lasting benefits. It involves switching between related topics, training your brain to not only learn the information, but making connections between it all too.
Not convinced? In one study, students were given homework sheets using either the blocking or interleaving methods. When they were tested one day later, the students trained with interleaving scored 25% better. When they were tested one month later, the interleaving advantage grew to a massive 76%.
Go over material you’ve learned at different times throughout the term, instead of revising once and leaving it behind until exam time. For example, each time you learn a new topic, put a reminder in your calendar or phone to go over the material again in 2, 4, and 6 weeks down the track.
Everyone makes mistakes, especially when you’re learning new things. But instead of letting it get you down, you can turn your mistakes into a learning tool. Understanding where you went wrong and how to make your answers right is a great way of focusing in on your problem areas.
Keep time in your study plan to go over material and check for mistakes. When you do homework or practice tests, ask your teacher for feedback – they can help you better understand exactly how to complete a specific task or give you ways to improve your responses.
Simply reciting long lists of facts and figures off by heart doesn’t necessarily show deeper understanding of a topic, which is often what teachers want to see in your exams. But if you give those facts and figures some more context, it could make things easier to remember and improve your answers.
The simplest way of doing this is to just ask questions. Ask your friends what they know about the topic, quiz your parents, or even do some searching online (just don’t get too distracted). Doing this will expand your knowledge of a topic beyond simple recall, and might even expose you to concepts or interpretations you hadn’t thought of before.
Don’t hesitate to reach out for help if you’re struggling with a concept or subject. We get it, asking for help isn’t always easy, especially if there are high expectations of you or you’re too embarrassed to admit you don’t understand something. But even though school is important, your health and wellbeing always comes first, and it’s not worth the stress and anxiety.
If you’re feeling unsure, don’t leave it to the last minute to ask for help. Whether it’s letting your teacher know you’re struggling, joining a study group, or seeking tutoring assistance, there are heaps of people out there who are more than happy to help you – all you need to do is ask.
Study Work Grow
Overcoming Procrastination and Strategies for Students
Are you tired of falling into the clutches of procrastination, constantly battling against looming deadlines? You’re not alone! Procrastination can be a common struggle among high school students, but fear not – in this blog, we’ll provide you with some effective strategies for overcoming procrastination once and for all. Let’s get started.
There isn’t really one single reason. Procrastination often stems from various factors, such as:
Feeling overwhelmed: being daunted by the magnitude of a task can lead to avoidance and delayed action.
Lack of motivation: when a task seems uninteresting or lacks clear rewards, it’s easy to put it off for something more enjoyable.
Perfectionism: striving for perfection can lead to fear of failure, causing us to delay starting a task to avoid potential mistakes or criticism.
Distractions: the allure of social media, video games, or other distractions can tempt us away from our responsibilities.
Thankfully, there are plenty of tried-and-true methods out there to stop procrastination and boost your studies. Here are some you might like to try:
Divide daunting tasks into smaller, manageable chunks. Tackling one small step at a time makes the overall task more approachable and less overwhelming.
Set Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals for each task. Clear goals provide a sense of direction and motivation.
Design a realistic study schedule that incorporates designated time slots for each subject or task. Stick to the schedule to develop consistency and combat procrastination.
Identify the time of day when you feel most focused and energised. Use these peak hours for challenging or important tasks to optimise productivity.
Work in focused bursts of 25 minutes, followed by a short break. Repeat this cycle several times, allowing yourself longer breaks after completing multiple cycles. This technique helps maintain concentration and prevents burnout.
Minimise potential distractions by turning off notifications on your phone, using website blockers, or studying in a quiet space away from temptations.
Reward yourself after completing tasks or reaching milestones. Treat yourself to something enjoyable, like a favourite snack or a short break, as a motivation boost.
Share your goals and progress with a friend, family member, or study group. Being accountable to someone else adds a sense of responsibility and can help keep you on track.
Remember that perfection isn’t attainable. Embrace the learning process and be kind to yourself. Accept that mistakes happen, and use them as opportunities for growth.
Overcoming procrastination requires self-awareness, discipline, and a toolbox of effective strategies. By understanding the reasons behind procrastination and implementing the suggested techniques, you can reclaim control over your time and boost your productivity. Remember, everyone is different, so try different techniques until you find something that works for you.
Read more study tips on our website here.
Past HSC Exams Papers
Higher School Certificate exam papers, with marking guidelines and HSC marking feedback , are available
for each course. Select a learning area from clicking the link below to see exam paper packs by course for
each HSC year.
https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/11-12/resources/hsc-exam-papers
Why You Should Set Goals.
Planning for your future or just wanting to get the most out of your year? Gain long-term vision and short-term motivation by setting some goals. Whether you’re thinking about subject selection, post-school pathways, gap year options, your next holiday destination, or how to get fitter and healthier, you’re already forming goals. They don’t always have to be hugely monumental and life changing events either – here are some reasons why you should set goals.
Spending some time thinking about what you’d like to achieve in the future (either in a year, five years, or even ten years) can help you work out what’s really important to you. If you care about something, you’re more likely to stick with it and feel a sense of achievement when you follow through. Writing down your goals and putting an action plan in place are the first steps to finding your passion.
No matter how big, challenging, or daunting your aspirations are, goals can help you break them down into manageable steps and plan ways to work around obstacles. Eventually, lots of small goals will lead you to your ultimate destination (plus, it feels good to celebrate milestones along the way).
“Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness, no laziness, no procrastination: never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.”
Earl of Chesterfield
Putting things off is so easy to do, but it means you’ll probably end up achieving less.
Setting goals helps you be more accountable to yourself. Instead of brushing it off and thinking “I’ll do it tomorrow”, your goals will stick in your mind. If you don’t complete an action or step, it might nag at you. Goals can work as a constant reminder of what you should be doing, and prompt you into action.
Once you’ve gone through all the effort to discover, plan, and set goals, statistically there is a much higher chance you’ll be more motivated than ever to see them through to the end. You don’t want all that hard work to be for nothing, right?
The last few years have been a bit crazy and lots of us had plans changed or written-off – sometimes more than once. So it’s understandable that you might be feeling hesitant to start new goals.
But actually, goals can help to keep you productive and preserve your sanity by making you feel a bit more in control. Planning our futures can help us to feel less stressed, and even improve our mental health. Despite the unknowns of the future, goal setting still has great value – so try not to get sucked into the “why bother” attitude and instead opt for making the best out of what you have to work with.
If you haven’t set any goals yet, don’t stress! It’s never too late and there’s no perfect time or deadline. You could take some time to think about what you’d like to achieve right now, or book it in for this weekend. Then you can get stuck in and start taking action once you have a bit of direction.
Make sure your goals are:
Realistic and achievable
Measurable
Valuable and meaningful
Flexible – it’s OK to change your goals or milestones if they’re not working out for you.
When it comes to setting goals, the sky’s the limit, right? But there’s a difference between setting goals that sound good, and ones that are actually achievable.
If we set achievable goals, we’re much more likely to follow through and complete them. That’s not to say you can’t aim high – but you need to remember to be realistic at the same time. So what goes into setting achievable goals? Let’s take a look.
This is probably the most important question to ask yourself. More often than not, achieving our goals requires us to put in a bit more effort than usual. If you’re not willing to do that, chances are you won’t reach your goal.
For example, if your goal is to get As for all your subjects, but you don’t want to do any more study than you do now, chances are your goal is not achievable.
For your goal to be achievable, it also needs to be compatible with other parts of your life, and any other goals you might have set. Think about whether you live in the right place, if you have enough money, or whether you have any other important commitments that might hinder your progress.
Of course, you need to make sure your goals are realistic. If you’re already 16 and have never played sport in your life, making it to the Olympics by the time you’re 20 is probably not realistic. While it’s important to dream big, you also want your goals to be realistic, or else you might end up feeling let down if you can’t achieve them.
If you’ve gone through the above questions and haven’t run into any problems, chances are you’ve set an achievable goal.
Remember, just because a goal doesn’t fit in with your life right now doesn’t mean you can’t go back and revisit it in the future. Or maybe you need to consider working on some smaller goals to make your way up to a big one – if you want to run a marathon in 2 months’ time but are very unfit, make your goal to run just 1k, then 5k, and so on, until you feel ready to achieve your big goal.
Study Work Grow
10 Ways to Study That Aren’t Boring
Sitting down at your desk and studying has probably never been any student’s favourite thing to do…ever. Sometimes there’s just no getting away from the fact that you have to knuckle down and do the hard yards. But there are ways that you can study and learn while having a bit of fun (or at least make the process a bit more enjoyable). If you’re searching for some ideas, here are our top 10 ways to study that aren’t boring:
Think of it a bit like going to the gym – some days you just don’t have the motivation, but joining a class and getting the motivation you need can be really helpful. You might also find it more fun and engaging than sitting alone at your desk.
Some people (like me) love nothing better than a great doco. If that’s the case for you, why not search out some documentaries in fields that you’re studying or are related to those subjects and settle in for a good watch.
If watching a documentary isn’t generally your idea of fun, why not give it a try? They could grow your knowledge of real-world issues and topics. They could help you to improve your interdisciplinary thinking by introducing you to subjects you might not usually think about, which in turn might improve your creativity, problem-solving, and social justice skills, as well as your general knowledge.
Watching a movie could also be helpful. For example, if you’re studying English Literature and there’s a movie about your book, or if you’re studying history and there’s a movie about the event or era that you’re studying, they could improve your comprehension and bring them to life for you.
Side note: watching any random TV show, documentary, or movie and telling yourself or your parents that it’s “study” won’t cut it – you’ll have to be selective and look for valuable content.
In September 2020, teens were reported to spend an average of 14.4 hours each week online. So why not make some of that time productive and help you get ahead in school?
Researching ideas, watching video explainers, and finding practice tests or exam questions can all be great ways of using the world wide web to your advantage.
You’ll just have overcome the temptations to go off track. Unfortunately, spending time scrolling through Instagram, watching videos on TikTok, and chatting to your mates on Snapchat don’t count.
Researching and putting together a project or presentation won’t just help you to learn about the one topic. You’ll also be developing your:
creativity
analytical and critical thinking
problem solving
tech, communication, and other skills too.
If you find these kinds of activities motivating, why not incorporate them into your personal study time? You could write blogs, make videos, write a letter (such as to your local politician or council), create infographics, design a poster…the options are endless.
Competitions are also an easy way to put your knowledge to the test and challenge yourself. Plus, you’ll be able to add them to your resume and might win some cool prizes.
The classroom isn’t the only environment that’s designed for learning.
You could visit museums, libraries, art galleries, theatres, and go along to educational and careers events.
If you’re interested in politics, you could take a tour of Government or Parliament House. If law is more your scene, you could sit in the public gallery during a sitting too.
There are lots of ways you can expand your knowledge without staring at your books.
You could get a lot out of going along to workshops, completing short courses and microcredentials, or joining in with holiday programs.
There are some that you might have to pay for, but others could be free. A great place to start looking is your local library.
These days there are thousands of apps that are designed to make learning fun and engaging, so why not see what’s available and how much they cost.
You could also get a hold of some good old fashioned board games, or learn some card games. Depending on your choices, games could help you to:
improve your memory
boost cognitive skills
increase your processing speed
develop logic and reasoning
improve critical thinking
increase spatial reasoning
advance verbal and communication skills
extend your attention and concentration span
teach problem-solving
grow your confidence and get better at decision-making.
Not that these should replace traditional study practices, but time spent on these games can be a fun way of winding down, spending time with family and friends, that also have additional benefits to your brain and skills development.
Sitting down to study for a solid stretch after a big day at school is not appealing to many people. So why not work smarter by utilising your downtime better and spreading out your study sessions?
You could use any time spent travelling to read over your notes, free periods at school could be helpful too (if you can resist the urge to chat to your mates). If you’re waiting for sports to start or waiting for an appointment, why not hit the books and do a little study?
That way, when you get home you’ll have more time to chill out, play some sport, catch up with friends and family, and generally spend more time doing what you enjoy.
If you have solid skills in some subjects, you could earn some pocket money and revise everything you’ve been learning while tutoring your peers or younger kids who need a little help.
Teaching other people is a great way to determine how much you know and where the gaps are too. So even if you’re not keen to tutor, you could ask a parent, sibling, or even a friend to sit down and let you “teach” them something.
If you have a little time to spare, even if its just 10 minutes a day, why not start learning a new skill?
You could learn to touch type – this will be helpful for getting assignments done, taking notes, and in life generally.
Maybe you could learn the basics for a few coding languages, or start learning a foreign language – this could be useful in a gap year and attractive to potential employers.
Head over to our study tips page for ideas to help you get motivated and stay focused.