There’s only one way to study – right? Wrong!
It's time to debunk some common study myths.
This article was first published in Teachers Matter Magazine, the magazine of Spectrum Education. For more information visit www.teachersmattermagazine.com.
It’s 2023 and I don’t know about you, but I feel like the public dialogue about studying hasn’t changed in, well, too long.
Being in the Internet age, there is of course an ocean of information about studying available, but is it good information? Will it actually help teenagers learn effectively and get the grades they’re capable of?
I think some of the information swirling around out there needs a refresh, and some of it actually just needs to go in the bin.
To that end, below are three myths about studying I reckon are in need of a good debunking.
1. Study needs to be pretty and perfect
It’s not just their bodies that the likes of Instagram are telling teenagers need to look ‘perfect’.
I fear that Instagram feeds full of complimenting pastel-coloured notebooks, personalised stickers and calligraphy-styled notes will lead some teens to think that unless their study notes look worthy of professional photography they’re no good.
But this simply is not true. The aesthetics of studying, generally, do not matter.
Yes, sometimes it’s important to be neat — setting out maths problems for instance.
But generally, and certainly when it comes to exam study, who cares whether notes look good. The important thing is, do they work?!
How a student gets through the gauntlet of exam study should only depend on one thing — what works for them.
Maybe they are naturally a ‘neat’ person who does benefit from setting out their desk and notes beautifully. But maybe they have zero interest in glitter pens and thrive with just a plain ol’ notebook and ball point pen, happy to study in a darkened room so messy you can’t see the floor.
Both extremes and everything in between is fine as long as the system is working.
One of my most academically-qualified mates from high school had (and still has) handwriting so horrendous he could barely read it himself. I shudder to think what his study desk would have looked like.
But as my Masters-in-microbiology-and-zoology-friend demonstrates, the important part of studying lies far beneath the aesthetics.
What matters is that students can take in, process, and retain information in whatever way works for them; not whether their study notes would win any graphic design awards.
2. There’s only one way to study properly
Some study information out there is like bad diet advice — just do this and the weight will fall off! — oversimplified and generic.
But actually, the absolute key to studying effectively is figuring out what works for you. Students study most effectively in their own unique way. The study techniques that I deploy for my exam study won’t work for all other students.
I call this process — each student’s unique method of studying (particularly for exams) — their Study System.
While the ‘lead actors’ of studying are likely to appear in most students’ Study Systems (study notes, past exams, practice essays etc) there is plenty of room for different approaches.
Do they like handwriting study notes? Typing them? Maybe a mixture? Does watching educational videos help? Flash cards? Talking concepts over with a friend? Listening to music? Complete silence?
The take home is that we are all unique individuals and that individuality extends to how we study effectively.
3. Everyone should go to university
We’re still really hung up on this one.
Going to university after school is still the option most heavily marketed to high school students.
But there’s a problem. A lot of teenagers don’t want to go to university!
We need to move away from banging on the same university drum, and open teenagers’ worlds to see that there are myriad positive pathways to pursue after school that can offer up happy and fulfilled lives.
To my mind, keeping university as the measure of ‘success’ after school is completely counterproductive for many of our young people.
If a teenager knows they don’t want to go to university, what other incentives are they being offered to try hard at school? What’s in it for them? Too often they’re not given a satisfactory answer.
This is a huge waste of potential, because for thousands of teenagers, going to university won’t be the appropriate option, and we should be encouraging them to pursue their other, perhaps less academic, interests.
I suppose the theme running through these points is individuality.
The school system has to cater to the needs of thousands of students all at once, but it can’t nurture and motivate every teenager equally, with every one having unique talents and interests.
It’s therefore up to us as parents to acknowledge our kid’s individuality and help them get to wherever it is they might want to go.
Thanks heaps for reading.
Clare
P.S. I mention having a Study System above. This is my entire purpose of Cram Lab — to help your teen figure out what their Study System is. I have a tonne of free resources over at cramlab.org to help get your teen started.
