Our courses mirror the content that would be learned in school, so it’s an excellent way to boost confidence because your teen doesn’t ever miss out. As an online course provider for Scottish students, we offer a wealth of expertise when it comes to online learning.
We are confident that our brilliant material and high-quality videos (by real teachers) superbly supports your child’s academic success. Our teachers, methodologies and technologies are all geared towards delivering this very specific type of education. We guarantee that our online courses will give your child confidence and boost their grades alongside being an enjoyable and fun learning experience.
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Top 10 Study Tips For University Success
While it may be true that not everyone learns in the most effective way by doing the same things, there are certain fundamentals that you can follow in order to virtually guarantee yourself academic success during your time at University. No matter what degree you take or what College you're enrolled in, University classes are all structured in similar ways. Lectures, text book readings, assignments, projects, quizzes, midterm and final exams. Knowing the format of the class beforehand allows students to create a strategy that when implemented and stuck to, results in good grades and less stress. Here are our top 10 study habits you should try to implement into your strategy for academic success at University!
#10 - Take Extensive Notes
Probably the most tedious of our top 10, taking good notes is hard to do consistently. In our ADHD world, many students find it difficult to maintain their focus long enough to record the information given out during lectures. However, when it comes time to write a quiz/test/exam you'll be glad you have that pile of notes to review and refresh your brain with. Taking good notes is in itself an act of learning, as one cannot write something down that doesn't make sense on some level. This small act goes a long way in creating the foundation for a solid understanding of the material being covered. Taking notes also has the added bonus of keeping your brain occupied and awake by staving off restlessness and boredom. An excellent method I learned in my first year of Engineering was to scribble down everything that seemed useful in some manner, almost as if you were transcribing the lecture. Later that day, transfer and rewrite the notes into an understandable form in another notebook. This will cement the information into your mind, moving the material from your short term memory into your long term. Lastly, notes have become a source of income for many students as those who take excellent notes are often sought after by the lazier students who are willing to pay a premium for a great set of notes to study from. You will not only get good grades, but you will be getting paid to do so as well. If that's not a win-win I don't know what is!
#9 - Obtain Old Exams and Assignments
If possible, try to find exams and assignments from previous years to give yourself a good idea of what subject matter the instructors are most likely to test you on. They don't have to have the answers to be useful and in fact for many students they are even more useful without because this way the student can attempt the exam/assignment as a check of their knowledge, identifying any weak areas that they should go back and re-study. Old exams and assignments are often made available through class websites, student union websites, or through College clubs or associations. One common tactic many students use for science classes with a lab section is to find a graded lab notebook from a previous year. Labs are notoriously difficult in terms of time constraints and for what's expected from a student lab report. Having a format to follow along with is an incredible help and knowing where not to make mistakes is invaluable as well.
#8 - Begin Studying For Exams EARLY
Between academics and your social life, time is not something you'll have lots of throughout your University career. But one thing you should always make time for is exam studying. There's nothing worse than leaving all of your studying for the night before an important test or exam. The stress causes your brain to panic and when you panic, you won't learn as well as you normally would. Studying a little bit each night during the week leading up to the exam will not only make you better prepared but it will remove most of the stress you'd have if you had left your studying for the last minute. Early exam studying allows a student to identify weak spots in their understanding and to prioritize their studying accordingly. Just imagine studying until the early morning of the day of your exam only to find you've completely ignored a section that you have little to no understanding in. Don't let that happen by studying EARLY!
#7 - Use a Laptop During Class If Possible
If permitted, use a laptop for note-taking during your lectures. Most students can type faster than they can write so they will be able to record much more information than they normally would. If the classroom has WiFi you'll have the added ability to research topics you're unsure of during lulls or breaks in the lecture. If a professor uses a word you've never heard before, just alt-tab over to dictionary.com and look it up! Or, if the lecture is completely flying over your head, e-mail the professor from your seat and set up an appointment to discuss the day's lecture. There are many uses for a laptop during class, I'll let you imagine the other not-so-academic uses. Many students have grown up with a computer being a staple in their lives so it's only natural to use it as a tool for learning as well. It's an easy transition for your brain to go from Facebook to Powerpoint! If a laptop purchase is in your future, refer to our article for tips on choosing a budget laptop for students.
#6 - Use Your Time Wisely
In between classes as well as before and after school, there are many opportunities to sneak in some studying or homework that many students either don't realize or just don't use. I've known people who would study on the bus during the ride to and from school. I've also known people that would combine their time at the gym with their study time! Just bring your notes and instead of watching the TV's and listening to your iPod, wear ear plugs and read your notes. You get a workout for your body and for your brain! Always keep your notes handy and try to use any spare time you have even for simple review to make sure you're on top of the material. All of those small moments you fill with studying will really add up to a solid understanding and you'll find that you require less studying when exam time arrives. That's huge.
#5 - Get Your Questions Resolved ASAP!
University classes tend to operate with the "snowball effect" as the primary method for topic progression. That is, the information is cumulative and the last stuff you learned will be instrumental in understanding the next stuff! So anytime you don't understand something or have a question about the subject matter, get your question answered as soon as you can. Whether by asking during or after class, through an e-mail or phone call to the prof, or even by asking a fellow student, you need to stay on top of the subject matter in order to be ready for the next stuff that's coming. Don't let the holes in your understanding be knowledge pits for the future!
#4 - Get To Know Some of Your Classmates
This one can be extremely difficult and stressful for many people these days. Meeting people is becoming increasingly difficult in a world of social stigmas and fears of disapproval. I'm not going to tell you how to meet people, just that when you do, the benefits will be immediately apparent. Having a buddy to sit with during class, having someone to lean on for notes from a lecture that you missed, being able to bounce questions and ideas off of somebody, and most importantly having someone to check your assignment answers with before you hand it in, are all spectacular reasons to swallow your nerves and start saying "Hi! My name is...." to the people in your class.
#3 - Explore Other Class Resources
Many class outlines will have "optional" reading listed along with the required textbook. This is often a HUGE opportunity for easy marks and guaranteed success in the particular class. Professors are humans just like me and you. Their job is to relay the required material and then test you on it. If they're using the required textbook as reference for the learning part, where do you think they're going to get the material for the testing part? If you said "the required textbook", you're wrong and you need to stop thinking like a high school student! Professors will often take test questions out of their favorite textbooks, resulting in quality assessments from a trusted source. Those favorite textbooks are often listed as optional reading material either on the class website or on the course outline. Also don't forget the mighty Internet. YouTube is an insane resource for How-to's, recorded lectures from other schools, and general knowledge videos on every subject matter imaginable. Use Wikipedia and Google as well to find extra(often better!) resources on whatever it is that you're struggling with.
#2 - Pre-Read Lecture Material
I discovered this one by accident, even if it is, or should be common sense. One night I was bored. Really bored. I grabbed a text book for a class whose lecture I had the next morning and I began reading from the point we stopped at in the previous lecture. It was difficult to understand and took a lot of focus to push through it but the next day in class while listening to the Professor, it crystallized in my mind and was easy from then on. It had the added benefit of being committed to my long term memory giving me a greater and more thorough understanding of the material. It makes sense if you think about it, I was essentially learning the material twice. Once independently and once with the help of an expert. These combined into a solid understanding that I still possess to this day. Now I'd love to suggest that you do this for every class, every night. But we all know that isn't reasonable so what I do suggest is that you use this technique for anything that you deem to be very difficult or abstract. That way you'll have a great head start on understanding and mastering the hard stuff, leaving plenty of time for filling in the gaps with the easy stuff!
#1 - Go To Class!
While going to class sounds too simple to be our #1 most effective studying habit, it truly is and I'll tell you why. Going to class not only keeps you disciplined and focused on what you're at University to do, but it also lets you absorb the subject matter simply by sitting through the lectures. If you're an auditory learner this is huge because just listening to the lectures will create an understanding that should be enough to pass the class in itself! If you're a visual learner then watching the notes being written on the board or reading through the slides during the presentation will give you the necessary understanding to pass the class. Going to class also ensures you have the latest news on assignments, tests, quizzes, and exams straight from your Professor's mouth. You don't want to be that student that shows up for class once a week only to find there's a scheduled test on that day! Simply going to your classes like you're supposed to is much more powerful than most students realize. If you look at the nine tips before this you'll see that most of them actually require this step as a pre-requisite so that should also be an indicator of how important it is to attend your classes without fail.
As a student who has both failed classes and received honors in classes I can definitely say that the above tips and techniques will work for you. Whether you use some or all of them is up to you, but just remember that University is an individual sport and you'll only get out of it what you're willing to put in! I hope you've found these tips useful and informative, good luck and stay classy!
How Online Classes Close ‘Gaps’
As a parent or guardian, you may hear the phrase ‘close the gap’ or ‘bridge the gaps’ used in reference to schools and learning centres. Especially with pupils being away from school for so long during 2020, ‘close the gap’ might be a phrase you’ve heard in the press or media.
This phrase refers to strategies or techniques used to bridge aspects of your child’s learning that they may have missed, forgotten or not yet grasped. Typically, ‘closing the gap’ also refers to giving pupils opportunities to match more closely with their peers and age group, in terms of knowledge and access to quality learning. Online classes are an excellent solution for this.
As an online course provider for Scottish students taking National 5s, Higher or Advanced Highers, we are confident that online courses- such as ours- are the way forward when it comes to closing or bridging academic gaps. One of the many reasons is because we have the capacity to deliver consistently high-quality content, accessible to all students at any time. Should your teenager identify a subject gap, they can instantly rectify this by finding the right lesson using our robust material (after straight forward sign up.)
Online classes give students the means to revisit subject areas again and again- something which there just isn’t time for in a live classroom. It doesn’t matter if your child has to view an online lesson ten times before they ‘get it!’ Being able to
pause, rewind or replay video lessons is of great benefit to pupils- but especially when they are trying to work independently on closing a gap. At https://www.mydigitallesson.co.uk, we provide excellent quality video lessons for core subjects, and we offer scholarship for pupils who qualify for Free School Meals to ensure our courses are accessible to all.
Some people might argue that ‘online teaching’ doesn’t match up to that of the classroom. Whilst there are obviously wide-ranging benefits to learning in a classroom, online learning enriches classroom learning- and has its own brilliant benefits. Whilst a classroom teacher may need to divide their attention between many students, online learning allows your teen to generate a much more individualised approach for themselves. In class, your teen might be itching to go back to a topic they feel they missed, but be wary that the rest of their peers seem to have ‘moved on’ or not have the same ‘gap.’ Thus, our online courses are perfect for enabling your child to truly take control over their own learning.
With us, you are also assured that lesson content is delivered by professional, well-established teachers (many of whom have their own classes in school.) Consequently, you and your teenager know that the content provided is sound, professional and trusted. With our experience as a digital learning provider, you can guarantee that we know exactly how to give your teen the means to close gaps and feel confident about the school year ahead!
Source: https://www.mydigitallesson.co.uk/onlinecourses/how-online-classes-close-gaps/
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Child Motor Skills and Academic Success
One of the unfortunate side effects of the tremendous technological advancements of the past twenty-odd years is the diminishment of physical playtime for children. Kids are no longer enticed by the prospect of playing sports, riding bikes or just going on adventures, since they have electronic outlets that do all of those things for them with the simple guidance of a game pad controller. These archaic activities teach children coordination, encourage the sharpening of reflexes, build muscle and play a key role in obesity prevention. Now it is believed that this important part of childhood has a crucial role in how kids develop scholastically. A recent study reported in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences stated that children with poor motor function are more likely to experience academic difficulties in their teenage years.
A group of scientists in Finland studied the physical activity, motor function and academic achievement of 8,000 children at ages 8 and 16. The study found that obese, physically inactive 8-year-olds whose parents reported substandard motor function tended to have poorer grades and demonstrate academic indifference in their adolescent years.
Poor motor skills can often be brushed aside as clumsiness. Kids who tend to stumble, drop things, have slow reflexes, who experience difficulty tying shoelaces or using cutlery or who have trouble throwing or catching balls have poor motor skills. The good news is that this is something that is completely correctable. Here are a few techniques that can improve a child's motor function:
Engage in outdoor sports - For young children, a simple game of catch can help to improve reflexes and even build core strength. Teaching a child to throw a ball back and forth with force, control and accuracy will increase both fine motor skills (the precision with which a person can employ hands and fingers to complete a task effectively) and gross motor skills (head to toe muscle function)
Take Dance Lessons - Dancers have rhythm, are able to isolate muscle groups and are in top physical condition. Dance training helps enormously with coordination and muscle isolation. Moreover, it's fun!
Learn to Knit - Arts and crafts like knitting can assist with fine motor skills. The delicacy with which one must work the needles helps to improve cognition, concentration, hand/eye coordination and visual acuity.
Learn to juggle - It sounds odd, but learning to juggle is a fun way to master hand/eye coordination and sharpen reflexes. Juggling requires breath control and rhythm and balance. It's a great party skill, and is quite effective at relieving stress. Juggling can even make you ambidextrous!
Academic Success in College - It's Smart to Know Something About Your Professors
It is unquestionably in a student's best interest to earn the respect of his/her professors, and, even better, be liked by their professors. Good relationships with one's professors start by knowing something about those professors.
Professors are gods in their classrooms with the power of life or death over grades, but professors are people too! They each have personal interests, passions, family, a favorite team (even if it is a debating team!) and at least one dear alma mater.
Now, a professor is going to like a student who shows up on time, is prepared, participates in class discussions, does not chew gum, wear a hat, drink water, eat, crinkle paper or sleep. That's just common sense and basic courtesy.
But, a student can go beyond that, and should. Hey students: do some research on your professors. Go to their departmental home pages or personal websites and read their curricula vitae. Find out where they went to school, what kind of degrees they have, articles they have published or books written. Do Google searches on your professors.
During the semester, professors will mention something important to them about their good old days in graduate school, or teaching here or there, or about some book they have written. Make a note of it and ask them about it later. It's just basic human nature for a professor to like someone who shows an interest in their beloved field of study, or some important accomplishment.
And it's not "sucking up" to show professors that you appreciate them enough to know something about them. It's smart, and you will learn something in the process. It's the same way in the working world. It's good to know something about people with whom one is doing business.
You might be impressed with your professors' accomplishments. A good number of professors are well-respected in their fields, appear on TV and in the newspaper as experts, are sought-after lecturers around town and have written numerous articles and books. It is good to know all this.
One day you might need letters of recommendation for graduate school, or references in the working world. If you have worked hard and participated in a professor's class, especially if you made an "A," a professor will likely be glad to write a good letter of recommendation for you or give you a glowing personal reference. And even more so if he/she likes you.
Grading is subjective, especially on essay and discussion exams, so think about this. To graduate magna cum laude, you need to go for "A"s in every course. If you are in a course and an "A" is 90 to 100 and you have an 89.3 average, you better hope you have impressed your professor.
Or, if you are close to making an "A," you might be able to persuade your professor to let you do an extra credit assignment that will tip the scale and get you your "A." It can and does happen.
Of course, if you need a "C" to graduate, and a "C" is 70 to 80, and your average is 69.3, it is even MORE critical that you have a good relationship with your professor. You probably will have to suck up and beg, but you will be much better off by knowing something about your professor and having a good relationship with him or her.
5 Tips To Exam Success
Ever step into an examination hall not knowing what to expect, feeling so unprepared or whatever you've studied throughout the night seems to have gone missing all of a sudden? Fret not, with these 5 simple exam tips; it will arm you with the right strategies and mentality to enter the examination hall filled with confidence and ready to take on the challenge.
However, can we all come to consensus that there is no way that we can do so on the night before the exam? Yes! I strongly believe that there is no such thing as pure luck in examination and the only way we can do well is to be prepared. So what I'm about the share with you are tips that will enable you to empower yourself in preparations for the exam.
Tip 1 - Create a study schedule. Well, this may sound like a no brainer, sadly, not everyone is doing it. The key in creating a study schedule is so as to give priority to subjects that you are slightly weaker in so that you can practice the questions more. You should also never be complacent with subjects that you are confident or less worried about, allocate a period especially for them. A well prepared study schedule also allows you to have a work life balance, and more importantly helping you to understand the subject you're studying better.
Tip 2 - Use a mind map. Mind maps are very powerful tool which many refuse to believe or have yet to experience. Mind maps allow you to summarize the whole chapter or subject within a single sheet of paper. Now why is this so? Would you rather be flipping through pages after pages of long textbooks essays or have the whole textbook sized down to 10 A4 pages? I would definitely choose the latter. Drawing mind maps enables you to digest the key concepts in the chapter and helps in linking up ideas or procedures, depending on the subject you're on. This method not only helps in saving time, but more importantly to allow you to understand it quickly when you browse through your own mind maps, for you are none the wiser.
Tip 3 - Study beforehand. Many people that I've came across are very skeptical and complacent when it comes to studying before the lecturer or professor teaches. Common replies are, "He's going to teach tomorrow, why start earlier?" or "I wouldn't have understood anything if I studied on my own." These are common excuses and I can always counter that by saying, "if you don't understand it, will it make a difference when the lecturer is teaching you the same thing you were going to read?" Sure someone else can counter that again, it just goes to show that he/she is finding excuses to not put in effort. The importance in studying beforehand is so as to give you a general idea on what is about to be taught, to grasp the concept with the help of a mind map. Now, you might not be able to fully understand what is being mentioned, but will it make better sense when the lecturer is going through it now? By not reading up, you are equally clueless when then lecturer is going through the lesson. Remember, prior knowledge always help in your understanding.
Tip 4 - Make a list of questions. Always jot down on a separate note pad should you have any questions when going through your own revision, this is important as it serves as a constant reminder that these are the burning questions that you have to get answers to. By listing questions, you commit yourself into doing whatever it takes to get those answers you desire. By not doing so, you will easily forget them the next day. You should never highlight questions on your textbook as it will confuse you when you've understood them already.
Tip 5 - Stay committed and share. The above tips can only be useful if you are committed to do them every single day. Creating a study schedule can be easy, but I cannot say the same for being committed to it. We all know how powerful distractions like Facebook, YouTube or 9gag can be. Hence, to want to do well, we must always maintain focus at our end state and vision how we want to enjoy our academic success. Now sharing, by helping fellow mates should they have any questions, allows you to realize that you might have left out some important concepts. I strongly believe that by teaching, we are learning at the same time too.
Now, these 5 empowering tips as mentioned earlier are meant to help you prepare for an examination and not to be used as a last minute guide. When you have painstakingly committed yourself to the above strategies, I can assure you that you will be well prepared for any paper you are about to take. Motivate yourself to make the best out of the limited time we all have and not fall into the temptations of Facebook, etc. With that, I wish you all the best in your academic success.