As of right now, students are fixating on the impending midterms on January 18th and 19th; a time accompanied by chaos and stress for all grades in their preparations for these exams. However, there are a multitude of ways in which a student can alleviate some of these pressures. Of course, the most practical (and obvious) way is to study, so here are tips offered by some faculty and peers on how to go about this.
The main tip when it comes to studying is all about time, time, and time. Senior Alexis Antal expressed her habit to “procrastinate everything,” and all peers alike find themselves in this situation. When studying for a test over months of material, pulling all-nighters will not retain enough necessary information; studying small increments periodically will. Managing your available time to review “little bits often,” as recommended by science educator Mrs. Queen, allows for a proper study habit. It also cuts down on mental fatigue, and adequate sleep increases your performance twice-fold. Overall, time management not only greatly improves efforts for tests, it also is a practical life skill used for any task or trial.
A major struggle while studying is simply maintaining a long attention span, and, because of the large influx of information and entertainment at our fingertips, technology is probably the number one distraction. Mrs. Queen quipped she would turn “off [her] Commodore 64” in order to focus, and Mrs. Kasten, an English instructor, also finds it optimal to “remove the temptation of devices.” As students, finding a quiet environment free of phones, TV’s, and other miscellaneous distractions amplifies study progress and concentration. However, when it comes to listening to music, numerous students have stated the opposite: they improve studying when listening to certain genres rather than absolute silence. Classical music or audios with natural sounds can boost focus level and reduce stress, but if it attracts more of their attention, it’s better without it.
If you discover it to be difficult to find good resources for studying, multiple teachers provide easy access to resources such as subject-specific YouTube videos, Khan Academy, or other online study tools. Some classmates, such as sophomore Andreas Tsikouris, “definitely use Quizlet, and other people” as reliable study material for quizzes. Furthermore, some students find it useful to utilize friends and other peers at resources, and they create study groups and spend time hanging out while also reviewing all of their test material. An easy resource to make yourself, too, can be term-definition flashcards.
Midterms won’t be the last time these events occur; at the end of the year, finals will roll around and bring all the same emotions with it. So, if you want to achieve confidence for these, or any, tests, simply putting more effort throughout the semester will help immensely. Mr. Richard “Rico” Black, a world history teacher, stated his students should be successful in these upcoming midterms if they paid attention and studied over the course of his class. One of the current seniors, Parker Gromen, agrees that his attentiveness in his classes allows him little study time for these big exams.
Therefore, if you find yourself overwhelmed with stress for the exams, take some of this advice and incorporate it into your study habits.
