Study skills are tools and strategies used to make learning more efficient and organized. Each person learns and studies differently, so time management and planning are important. Visual and auditory learners have different study techniques, and memorization tricks like mnemonics and acronyms can be helpful. Test preparation strategies like outlines and flashcards are also important.
Students from elementary school through a doctoral level program and beyond make use of study skills. This is a broad term that applies to the tools and strategies used to make learning more efficient, organized and successful. The techniques used to organize study time, the methods used to assimilate information and test preparation can be included in the scope of study skills.
Just as each person learns differently, each person studies differently too. Consequently, organizing how, when, and where to study is one of the first, and most important, study skills. For example, some people study best in groups, while others prefer to study alone. Similarly, some people are early risers and absorb information better over coffee, while others get more out of a late night session. Time management and planning of study sessions are the starting point of study habits.
There are several ways a person can learn information. Two of the most common learning styles are visual and auditory; visual learners pick up on items they can see more easily, while auditory learners absorb more by hearing the information. There are, not surprisingly, a variety of study skills based on the different ways people learn. For those who learn best from visual cues, flashcards and videos can be helpful as well as taking notes and reviewing them. Auditory learners may wish to tape record lessons and play them back during study sessions.
Memorization “tricks” are frequently used study skills. Mnemonics are some of the most commonly used devices to help remember voluminous information. A mnemonic is generally a short phrase or word that is used to help remember a longer list. For example, the phrase “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” is a mnemonic device used to remember the order of the planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Acronyms, which use the first letters of a series of words, also work to help someone remember things, like “HOUSES” for the five Great Lakes in the United States: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior.
How a person studies for a test is another set of important study skills. Understanding the information is important, but just as important is being able to access the information when it’s time for testing. Outlines, flashcards, and group question-and-answer sessions are popular methods for test preparation. The strategies used to take a test also fall under the area of study habits. Underlining keywords, rereading the question, and ruling out unlikely answers are all strategies a person can employ when actually taking a test.
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