1.Effective note taking

1. Effective note taking

It is important when taking notes to keep them in a nice order, so you know where you will find them when looking back for revision. Good note taking skills is the key to good studying. I find that that a hardback notepad and a folder with dividers to keep my notes organised in is very helpful and they can easily be tracked back.

 Note taking:

• ·         Promotes engaged listening.

• ·         Provides a record of learning.

• ·         Promotes memory during and after study.

Taking notes in a lecture is very pointless unless u recap on the information that is written down and taking in, it is proven that 30 minutes after a lecture up to 50% of the content within may be forgotten.  Lecture notes should not be the only notes we have, blogs, newspaper articles and books should be used too.  The purpose of note-taking is simple: to help you study better and more quickly. This means your notes don’t have to contain everything, they have to contain the most important things.

I find that a hardback notepad and a folder with dividers to keep my notes organised in is very helpful and they can easily be tracked back.

Here are 5 tips on note taking for students:

•   Go to class prepared.    
•   Improve your listening skills 
•    Develop a note-taking method that works for you..    
•    Play close attention to content.      
• Review and edit your notes

6. Havard Referencing

6. Harvard Referencing

When starting College in September we were introduced to referencing called Harvard Referencing.  To be honest I never even heard of it before I started college, so this was all knew to me.  It is still quite difficult to get the hang off and takes a lot of time. Harvard referencing is a worldwide recognised style of referencing which is used in the majority of assignments and college based work.  It is important to reference to show anyone who reads your work that you understand the topic and can demonstrate your own thoughts on this. To prove that you have read widely and deeply and know what you are talking about. To enable the reader to locate where you obtained each quote or idea and by providing the original source you are acknowledging that you have read the work and recognise the original author’s ideas. Failing to reference correctly will result in plagiarism.

Example of referencing:

Author: Contribution/Chapter in a Book

Format:

Author - Surname, Initials. (Year of publication - in brackets). Title of chapter/contribution. In: Authoror Editor of Publication - Surname, Initials with (ed.) or (eds.) – in brackets, if relevant. Book Title - initalics or underlined. Series title and volume - if available. Edition - if not the first. Place of Publication:Publisher.

9.Time Management

9.Time Management

Time is the ultimate Currency. Since becoming a student time is so important, sometimes you would wish there were more hours in the day. Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. so we have to prioritise our time, assess the importance and urgency of tasks then , make sure the most urgent task gets completed and are not put off and left to the last minute.  We should always avoid time wasting, anything will distract us, even the littlest of things such as putting out the bins, emptying the dish washer, but those chores are time wasters and not getting your work done for you.

Since becoming a student, and having a part time job it has been very hard sometimes as I need to have time for both, I know college is a full time course but without my job, college would not be possible for me.  I always have to make study time around my shifts to give myself some study time.

Here are some time management strategies.

Prioritise – Organise the importance of the work and get the most important one done first. Avoid time wasting.

Be specific- Make the work as specific as possible. This means you will do it, if the work is clear.
Break the task into bite-size chunks- If the work is clearly broken down, it will be easier to start.  
Use all available time- When you are pushed for time don’t cut out study time, it can be done in short periods or in between classes.
Structure the environment- Pick a study place where you are happy and no distractions.
Establish a routine- Studying regularly is better than studying unregularly.

4.Effective Presentation

4.Effective Presenation
The first thing I think of when I hear the words ``presentation`` is nerves, it makes me sick with nerves. On my second week in college we were asked by our lecturer to present an effective presentation in front of the class group. Starting college alone was a  nerve wrecking experience for me, but this worried me as I had a fear of public speaking, well i taught I did.

A few days passed and I experienced some difficulty on what topic to choose and also a difficulty on finding the confidence to face the crowd and keep the audience attention without losing their interest. We could choose anything we wanted to talk about, i decided i will discuss a topic I am familiar with as I feel this topic is close to my heart as I have a family member who this topic relates to.
In 2010, I  completed a P.L.C in Community Care, we were asked to create a booklet on a disease of our choice, so I choose Cervical Cancer as it is a very common diease in women. I felt I had quiet a lot of knowledge about this disease due to personal experience.

Typing up the presenation onto the powerpoint slide show was fine, we were giving a clear guide format so I had an Introduction,  main body and a conclusion.It was easliy done and just took up little time,  the hard task was talking for five mintues without forgetting the message I was conveying and showing my nervousness to my class peers. I practiced sevreal times and it was only lasting 3 mintues, so I figured that I had to get more information, I researched some more information on the disease I had choose and a lady named Jade Goody had gotton cervial cancer and did not fight the diease, unfortunatly she paassed away. This lady raised so much awareness on cervical cancer such as regular checks and smear tests. I felt talking about this lady would interest my auidence as Jade was a famous girl for a number of reasons.

The day had come and my slot was up, so here goes….I was so nervous, I drew attention to the fact that I was nervous which I shouldnt have done and regretted after the presentation. When I stood up I felt sick with the nerves and really did not want to do it, but with presuing from my classmates I went ahead and did it. It went quiet well and I was happy after it was over with. Public speaking is a a very useful skill and I have learned how important is it and will really work on it.