Friday, December 19, 2014

Approach to Powerful Studying



As an academic life coach for teenagers, I used to think that if I just helped my overwhelmed clients organize & manage their study time better, they’d perform better at school and be ready for the rigor of college. However, no matter how many strategies I taught, they were still floundering on tests!

Nothing seemed to work until I discovered a creative new way to talk about studying, which I’m calling The Anti-Boring Approach to Powerful Studying. Since I’ve been using this approach, my clients have created lasting, powerful new study processes that result in higher confidence and vastly improved grades.
I’ve also discovered that if adults change the way they talk about studying with students, their kids’ learning breakthrough is magnified.

Think about it this way: what I fondly call the “S” word has become a dirty word to students. Everyone uses it so much that it’s lost any meaning.
Conversations including “Have you studied?” and “I’m going to study.” can sound meaningful, but don’t get to the heart of the issue.

“Study” doesn’t actually describe the actions that need to take place. Families can reduce arguments and eliminate nagging when they better understand the issues:
  • How will homework time be best spent?
  • What actions should a student take to learn material?
  • Is there a way to learn more in less time?
  • How will a student know he or she if ready for a test?

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