Author: study.skills

Student perspective: The art of embracing dispiriting feedback

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Photo of Tala, the author of the blog postby Tala Youhana, Law student and Bristol Futures Advocate

You’ve put in the substantial cycles of work, you’re certainly no stranger to long hours and late nights at your designated study spot, and you’ve exhausted all the caffeine in your system in hopes of finally receiving spotless reassuring feedback from your tutors. Nonetheless, the threshold you’ve been working tirelessly to meet, still feels out of reach. If this is you, then here are some healthy reminders to help you cope with and defeat the initial discouragement.

1. Accepting the mark is the first checkpoint

Oftentimes, we attempt to rapidly locate the mark before anything else in the feedback form, because it feels like glowing comments are distorted without a glowing mark. In my first year, I had professors disclose their own experiences with disappointing marks and remind us that such marks are not the be all and end all. Marks only go as far as a submission goes, so don’t let that dissuade you from the fact that you’re at university, because you worked hard to be here. Therefore, accepting the mark as a fair reflection of that particular submission would be a promising first step to moving forward. Ultimately, the larger the improvement, the more to be proud of when you’re done!

2. Interrogating the comments objectively involves personal initiative

Now that you’ve accepted your mark as a fair and accurate reflection of your work, you will be well-equipped to objectively evaluate the feedback. If you identify any issues, you will be able to investigate them further by preparing some questions. After this, you can make use of the many helpful resources available to you such as booking office hours with your tutors, revisiting feedback lectures, and perhaps even swapping papers with a peer to identify key feedback patterns, and ultimately gain a holistic understanding of the feedback given. Asking for help where needed reflects strong personal initiative and is actively encouraged.

3. There’s always room for improvement

No matter how you previously performed, it is advisable to keep your targets at least as high as they were prior to the feedback, if not higher! After all, feedback is far from failure, it is as the playful saying goes, “the breakfast of champions”. By visualising your targets clearly, you are then able to create a solid and detailed plan to improve on any skill gaps which you have encountered. The key point to stress here is that asking for help where you feel any doubts, either by consulting with your tutors or by making use of Study Skills and University resources, is a very important step forward, and one which you should be proud of.

To conclude, kindly note that this method is merely a guide and certainly not the only way of embracing feedback effectively- it is just what has worked for me when I had been hesitant with feedback in the past. The silver lining here is that feedback is meant to be critical, but when used wisely, it’s a chance to start over and progress!

How I make notes: From a textbook

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Jasmin, the author of the blog post by Jasmin Rahman, Cellular and Molecular Medicine student and Bristol Futures Advocate

Textbooks can contain so much more content than the lecturer could ever cover in class, but the process of actually writing notes from textbooks can be mind-numbingly boring. In first and second year I often picked up these massive intimidating textbooks that my lecturers recommend, read pages of text for ages and then realised I didn’t understand any of it.

However textbooks are an invaluable resource and can be so helpful in aiding understanding of topics. To effectively learn from them means making your reading a fairly active process, hopefully these tips that have improved my experience can also be helpful for you in improving your textbook notes and making the most effective use of your time

1. Give yourself time

My main takeaway message is: There’s no ‘perfect’ amount of time or secret formula to work out how much time to spend reading textbooks and each textbook has different requirements.

However I’ve always struggled with either rushing through the recommended readings or spending hours reading just a few pages and realising none of it is particularly helpful.

Which leads me to my first tip of: Learn to skim read before starting any notes.

It’s so tempting to just dive in and start highlighting everything, but writing and highlighting the first time you read a passage isn’t effective as it’s difficult to predict whether the sentence is actually important. Main things to look out for whilst skim reading are key words (usually bolded), diagrams and sub-headings.

Finding the balance between skim reading and actual reading can be difficult at first, what worked well for me at the beginning was setting a timer for around 30 seconds a page that way I wasn’t getting caught up in details and could actively prepare for what was coming up next.

Page indexes are also so helpful in contextualising topics and quickly finding which pages to read. But one of the biggest drawbacks is that sometimes indexes can lead to massive chunks of text where the key topic you’re looking for is a tiny sentence, so I’d really recommend skim reading when doing index searches as it’s definitely saved me so much time!

2. Actively read the textbook

When faced with a big chunk of text, it’s really tempting to ‘log off’ and read passively without really digesting anything. For me, creating a highlighter ‘colour code’ was really useful (see picture) and helped to me engage with notes as you’re forced to actively ‘characterise’ each sentence as you read along.

Reading can also be so monotonous, so having questions in the back of your mind like ‘How does this fit into my lecture/across the course?’ or ‘Could this be an interesting point to include in an essay?’ can be very helpful by keeping the reading focused on the direct benefits.

Writing questions in the margins is one of the cornerstones of active reading, but I’d recommend answering any questions after you’ve finished reading rather than as soon as they pop up. For me it’s so easy going into a googling ‘rabbit-hole’ of questions and it always ends up in procrastination and having only digested about 2 sentences of the reading.

Note: I usually highlight on a tablet, however when using library books I stick a post-it note to the side of the page to note down questions and use index tabs as replacement for highlighting.

On the left hand side, a page from a textbook with sentences highlighted in different colours and questions handwritten in the margins. On the right hand side, a typed page of notes summarising the textbook page.

3. Make personalised notes

A huge part of learning when first trying to understand a topic is being able to recall information. So when it comes to writing notes from a textbook, be cautious that you’re not taking notes after every line by closing the textbook or by moving your eyes away and writing everything you can remember. This enables you to write notes in your own words, with the added benefit that it prevents accidental plagiarism when you’re using notes in open-book exams. For me, being selective in what I wrote has stopped me creating lots of notes directly copied from the textbook that I never actually ended up reading.

The whole purpose of notes is that they’re for you, so write them in a way that makes sense to you and is effective for your learning. As a life sciences student I find the outline method helpful, but there are so many others and if you’re unsure I’d recommend checking out the Study Skills tab on Blackboard to learn more about note-taking methods here.

These are just a few tips that have worked well for me personally and changed the way I make notes, I’d definitely recommend trying out anything that stands out to you. And good luck!

How I make notes: From recorded lectures

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Photo of Gloria, the author of this blog postby Gloria Bosi, Mechanical Engineering student and Bristol Futures Advocate

While a lot of us were lucky to make a long-awaited return to campus this year, hybrid learning means that pre-recorded lectures are still a core part of our academic lives. With new videos coming every week, efficient notetaking is an essential skill to have. It’s not always as easy as it seems! You want to write just enough that you can understand your notes when you look back at them, but not so much that you are just copying the slides. You may also want to pause the video occasionally, but without tripling the time it takes for you to watch it. It’s a delicate balance that needs to be mastered. Lucky for you, I am here to help.

I’m Gloria, a third-year Mechanical Engineering student and Bristol Futures Advocate. With almost 2 years of online university under my belt, I want to share my top tips for taking notes from recorded lectures. I recommend trying the following things:

1. Doing the prep work

Skimming through the lecture slides before watching a recording helps me retain information better. I don’t own a tablet or printer, so there’s no easy way for me to take notes directly on the slides. Peeking in advance allows me to get a better look at any complicated diagrams or words that I need to write down. Once I know what to expect from the slides, I can focus better on what the lecturer is saying in the recording. Most importantly, skimming through the slides helps me build a mental picture of how I want to take notes for the topic.

2. Pausing with caution

Continuously pausing a lecture recording is dangerous business. It can easily double or triple the time it takes to finish watching. If this sounds familiar, try to be pickier about when you choose to pause the video. Ask yourself: did you really miss something that will stop you from understanding the topic as a whole? Another way to save time and avoid pauses is to come up with your own shorthand notations. Remember that your notes are not a textbook, and they don’t need to be written in full sentences. You’re the only one who needs to be able to understand them! If something confuses you or you happen to get stuck, don’t let that stop you from finishing the video. Write a post-it note or mark the sentence that confused you and keep watching. When you finish the lecture recording, you can ask about this on Blackboard discussion forums and return to it when you get a response.

3. Don’t be afraid to use colour!

Try using different coloured pens to distinguish between notes taken directly from the slides and those based off what the lecturer is saying. If you’re a visual learner like me, this can really help with information retention and memory.

4. Writing summaries

After a long note-taking session, don’t forget to write a brief summary of what you learnt. If possible, check this against the intended learning outcomes of the lecture to ensure you didn’t miss anything.

5. Finding what works for you

Don’t be afraid to try new methods. Remember that there’s no single right way of taking notes! In fact, the same method might not work across different modules if the content delivery varies. In this new hybrid learning environment, it’s especially important to diversify your note-taking approaches and find what works for you. Finally, if you’re not sure how to structure your notes by yourself, you can try an existing method, such as Cornell notes. You can read more about this here.

Hope you enjoyed the post, and leave a comment to let us know your best note-taking tips!

How I make notes: A law student’s guide to making revision notes

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Photo of Tala, the author of the blog postby Tala Youhana, Law student and Bristol Futures Advocate

If you’re a law student, you’re probably familiar with the ‘IRAC’ method, which is traditionally used to solve legal problem questions, so you’re probably wondering why I’m mentioning it in a post about making revision notes. Surprisingly, IRAC (Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion) can provide a very effective guide beyond the remits we’re familiar with, and this post will seek to walk you through the process of using IRAC to make your revision notes.

Firstly, it’s important to emphasize the individualised nature of making notes, whereby there is no single right or wrong approach, so this post should only be used as a guide to help you find a unique approach which works well for you.

 I- Identify the issues

This is where you ask yourself what has worked well for you in the past and what hasn’t. In this stage, keeping an open mind is essential, and can be your most powerful tool. For instance, do you have a preference between digital and hand-written notes? If so, have you tested out both before coming to your conclusion? You may ask yourself questions like, which is easier to refer to when writing essays, which is easier to store, how easy is it to find what you’re looking for, would a hybrid approach be more effective, etc. Seek to identify obstacles you experienced in previous revision sessions and intervene with an effective solution. For me, I used to have difficulty with revisiting incomplete work, so I created a checklist before each lesson in my notes detailing all the work that I need to get done, so that when I was revising, I could immediately find incomplete work which needed revisiting.

R- Make the rules

Law students are expected to navigate numerous types of sources including cases, statutes, lectures, textbooks and articles, so finding a consistent technique that simplifies this is important. For instance, I generally colour code my notes following the same rules in every module: making case names purple, statutes pink, and articles emboldened, to distinguish them. For digital notes, also aim to familiarise yourself with keyboard functions such as “ctrl + f” to help you locate keywords when browsing a long document. Furthermore, incorporating a system of subheadings can be really effective for revision.

Handwritten notes using colour coding and a checklist of outcomes
Some of the rules in action – Notes on law, equity and trusts of land

A- Apply the rules

Once you have found the technique which works for you, your next hurdle would be to stay consistent in applying it, as this will remove the burden of you having to remember each modification you made over time, unless you feel that your previous approach is no longer working for you.

 C- Conclude

Finally, if you have spare time, formulate summaries for each section of your work or leave some room for this, to make it easier for your future self to remember the key elements in each section.

This was a whistle-stop tour to making revision notes for law, and now the rest is over to you to find what works best for you. Good luck!

Student Advocate tips for… time management

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Statue of Gromit (from Wallace and Gromit) decorated with clocks

Our Bristol Futures Student Advocates come from every faculty in the university, and are here to support you to grow your skills and become an even better student.

We asked them to share their top tips for time management. Here’s what they said…

Pretend that you’re working a 9 to 5 Job

My top tip on how to manage time is to  always work from 9-5 on your studies (if you don’t already have a 9-5 job!). How this works is that from Monday to Friday, you should do your uni work, attend classes, make notes, or revise between 9am and 5pm. This is a great tactic as if you find that you’re only in uni in the morning, then you can come home and work till 5pm and still enjoy the rest of your day! On the contrast, if you’ve been in uni straight from 9am till 5pm, then odds are that it was a pretty long and tiresome day and so you can rest assured that you’ve worked your 9-5 already and deserve to rest for the remainder of your day and recharge! I used this studying tactic for 5 years in dental school and it’s meant that all of my evenings are free, I don’t have to cram to catch-up on revision and I can spend my weekends however I like 🥳. Sina, 5th year Dental student

I agree with Sina, I started trying to pretend it’s a 9 to 5 job recently and it’s really been helping me. I still often go over time because there’s just so much to do but I still try and it’s really helpful. At least to try and work a “normal” amount of hours and not cut back on sleep. Martina, 2nd year Medical Biochemistry 

Schedule everything

I schedule societies’ activities, the time I spend with friends, work out, etc I still have a lot of online lectures so what I find useful is listing down all the ones I need to do for the week and also writing down how long they will take me (it’s even more useful if your professors give you a rough indication of how long they think it’s going to take). I then schedule it on my calendar (I like using Google Calendar because it syncs across devices really quickly) and try to stick to the plan. For example, for the readings, if my professor suggested it should take 10 minutes I try to stick to that because it probably means I don’t need to be spending more time than that on it. This way I know I don’t need to be studying it in a lot of details but just read through it to get an overall idea.
When planning I like to leave some extra time, so I either schedule online lectures as longer than planned or actually schedule in a two/three-hour slot on a Friday afternoon that I’m leaving free, this way if I fall behind I know I have some extra time without having to work on weekends and if I don’t fall behind it just means I have more free time! Martina, 2nd year Medical Biochemistry 

Make sure you are aware of all your deadlines and what to do for each one. Then make a plan based on that. Try to finish your task a few days before the hard deadline just to give yourself some extra time for any unexpected situations. Manshika, 3rd year Economics and Finance 

Take advantage of all the moments in your day

There are many brief periods over the course of your day where you are waiting around e.g. on a commute, for an event to begin, for meeting up with a friend, etc.. By adding all these up, it can result in a substantial amount of time. You can turn all these periods where you are usually just waiting around into a useful source of time if you make your work mobile and accessible at all times. I personally always have some work available offline on my phone to read, or quiz myself on, so I make the most of my time. Emma, 4th year Veterinary Science

Bristol Futures Student Advocates run peer support sessions for students in their faculty. Check out the Study Skills Blackboard page to see what’s coming up.

 

 

Meet the Advocates in the Health Sciences team

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Emma, the author of the blog postby Emma Ford, Bristol Futures Advocate

I am very excited to introduce you to your new Health Science Bristol Futures Student Advocates! We are a small group of six, very friendly, current University of Bristol students. This year we hope to share our years of experience with you. You can participate by signing up for our workshops, attending our peer support sessions, and reading our blog. So, watch this space!

 

Carys James

  • Year and course: Veterinary Science – 4th year
  • Fun fact: I have a pet African pygmy hedgehog
  • Study tip: Make sure you go back over lectures throughout the whole course of the year instead of leaving it until a few weeks before exams to cover all of the content. This will keep your memory refreshed and improve it long term.

Sina Gilannejad

  • Year and course: Dentistry – 5th year
  • Fun fact: In first year I featured in the dental school’s YouTube video “a day in the life of a Bristol dental student” and now 33,000 have seen my terrible haircut at the time…
  • Study tip: Ask for help and advice from the older years! They’ve been in your position, got the grades to prove it and can give you pointers on how to pass with flying colours!

Molly Jackson

  • Year and course: 2nd year PhD student – translational health sciences
  • Fun fact: I sold a necklace to the comedian Jon Richardson when I had a job at a jewellery shop.
  • Study tip: Split down your revision into 5 steps to help manage your workload: record, reduce, recite, reflect, and review!

Chelsie Bailey

  • Year and course: final year vet.
  • Fun fact: I have a first degree in animal behaviour and welfare from Bristol.
  • Study tip: Study over longer period (e.g., months) instead of cramming lots into a few weeks to allow my very dyslexic brain to have time to process it and understand.

Jess Mounty

  • Year and course: 4th year Veterinary Science
  • Fun fact: Before starting at Bristol, I studied Zoology at UCL
  • Study tip: I have found it helpful to treat University like a full-time job, sticking to 9am-5pm working hours

Emma Ford

  • Year and course: 4th year veterinary science
  • Fun fact: No one can ever guess where I am from because my accent is quite uncharacteristic from growing up in international schools.
  • Study tip: Make your own questions when going over your notes! It helps your brain work, and the better you get at it, the more your questions will start to resemble the ones you could get on your exams! It’s especially helpful if you can get other students involved so you make a database of questions! It’s a great resource to build over the course of the year so when you get to exams you have a lot of questions to practice!

 

You can find current drop-in times & locations for Health Science students on our Peer Support page on Blackboard.

 

 

 

 

Meet the Advocates in the Social Sciences and Law team

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by Michelle Kafe, Bristol Futures Advocate

This year the Study Skills department has some amazing new and returning Student Advocates. The Social Sciences and Law division has a dedicated team of students, all of whom are more than excited to dive into the year ahead.

Up first, we have Michelle Kafe, who is a second year LLB Law student. The aspect of Law she most enjoys is finding and applying as much legislation as she can to support her arguments. As a first-time advocate, Michelle has already had great experiences teaching workshops and looks forward to further engaging with this in the future.

Corrin Bramley is in her third year of postgraduate research study at Bristol, working towards a PhD in Politics with a project about political leadership in the United States. An interesting fact about Corrin is that she is quite the voyager and has lived in multiple places across England and Scotland -not including her exciting year abroad in California! Corrin most enjoys the independent nature of her studies and has a deep appreciation for how this allows her to apply the skills from previous education into creating her very own passion-project.

Ali Strokova is a third-year student in BSc Education Studies. This is Ali’s first year as a Student Advocate and she has already shown her enthusiasm and a readiness to support her peers and show them that they are not alone in their educational struggles. A fun fact about Ali is that she likes to microwave her ice-cream before eating it!

Anaya PriceAnaya Price is from Trinidad and Tobago and is in her second year of undergraduate LLB Law. Anaya credits the pleasure of her course to her specifically chosen modules -namely Family Law, Medical Law and Crime Justice and Society- which she feels have real-life appeal and are expressed daily in our society. As a first-time advocate, she is excited to meet new people, help, and also learn from others.

 

 

Born and raised in Italy, our next advocate, Manshika Arjoon, is a third year Economics and Finance student. This is Manshika’s second year of being a Student Advocate and she delights in her ability to share her university experiences and insights with other students. She also looks forward to holding in-person sessions, as this was not possible in her last year.

Tala YouhanaTala Youhana has joined the Student Advocate team this year and looks forward to being part of a friendly team and community of students, as well as engaging with the breadth of activities we have planned. As a second-year law student, Tala values the distinction between black-letter law and the open nature of its applications to society. Tala has already shown her enthusiasm via her involvement in writing articles and running workshops for the Study Skills team. A fun fact about Tara is that she has never won a game of Monopoly!

 

Evidently, the entire team is excited to begin the new academic year, take on new challenges, and provide support for our peers. This fantastic group of students -and a few more- are ready to run workshops, host drop-in sessions and lead tutorials in the most encouraging and useful way possible.

You can find current drop-in times & locations for Social Science & Law students on our Peer Support page on Blackboard.

 

 

 

 

Meet the Advocates in the Life Sciences team

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We are Bristol Futures Advocates from the faculty of Life Sciences. Our role is to support you in your studies and help you expand your skills.

Aisling MahonyAisling Mahony

Hi, I’m Aisling! I’m currently in my third year at Bristol studying Biochemistry and this is my second year as an advocate on the Life Sciences team. I decided to work in the Bristol Futures team after the pandemic caused a switch to online learning. I had used the Personal Development Plan throughout my first year of university to help plan my growth both within my studies and in my career journey, so I understood how beneficial Bristol Futures and Study Skills can be to students. My experience as an advocate has been really rewarding and I’ve really enjoyed working with other advocates in the Life Sciences team to deliver workshops and run peer support sessions.

Breanna Goff

Hello, my name is Breanna and I am a third-year Psychology student. I have been working as a student advocate for a month now and I am loving it so far. I was interested in becoming an advocate as I wanted to contribute to the ever-developing learning environment we offer to Bristol students. The job itself is also really flexible for anyone looking for a job within uni. Since being a student advocate, I have worked with the amazing Life Sciences team to create workshops and develop future plans for Study Skills as a whole. Not only has this been an enjoyable experience so far but it has also allowed me to refine my own study skills to apply to my degree.

Carol HuangCarol Huang

Hey, I’m Carol. I’m a year 2 Plant Sciences student from the School of Biological Sciences. Throughout my first year Study Skills tutorials have helped me break down reports and essays, it really helps to have a look from a generic perspective to stop me from getting carried away in subject knowledge and forgetting the basics.

 

 

Emily Thomas

Hello, my name is Emily and I’m a year 3 student in Biomedical Sciences. I started working as an advocate this year, I thought it would be a great way to develop professional skills whilst contributing to the wider university community. I really valued the opportunities offered by Bristol Futures as a whole such as the Bristol Plus Award and found the online resources on Blackboard have some helpful tips on how to adjust to university-style learning and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. This made me keen to get involved as I already had experience with Bristol Futures as a student.

Martina MattioliMartina Mattioli

Hey, I’m Martina! I began my journey as a student advocate in September and it’s been a great experience so far! It’s really rewarding to be able to help students both in drop-in sessions and workshops. I really enjoy the sense of community Bristol Futures tries to build; it isn’t always easy to feel a part of something at university because there is so much going on. I decided to become a student advocate because during my first year Study Skills tutors helped me a lot in my studies and adjusting not only to studying at university but also online learning and I wanted to be able to do the same for other students.

Jasmin Rahman

Hello, I’m Jasmin, I’m in my 3rd year of Cellular and Molecular Medicine. I have been a Bristol Futures advocate for a year and since starting my advocate role I have definitely become a more self-aware learner. It’s taught me to experiment with my learning rather than sticking to old revision methods as a force of habit. I’ve really enjoyed engaging with so many different students last year and I’m looking forward to doing more in-person advocate work this year!

Sabrina ChoongSabrina Choong

Hi, I’m Sabrina! I’m a 3rd-year Biochemistry student. This is my second year as a Bristol Futures advocate, I joined because I wanted to try something new and to feel what being a part of the university community is like as not just a student. It’s been really enjoyable being able to meet new people and help other students like myself integrate better into university life. As a student what I found the most helpful thing about Study Skills are the workshops. If you don’t use any other services or features in Study Skills, I urge you to try out workshops you think might be useful to you because it has helped me immensely throughout university.

 

Book a workshop with us or come find us at our Drop-in sessions from 1pm-2pm on:

  • Mondays online
  • Wednesday in the Biomedical Sciences Café
  • Friday in the atrium of the Life Sciences building

We look forward to meeting you!

You can find current drop-in times & locations for Life Science students on our Peer Support page on Blackboard.

 

How I make notes: For essay planning

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Photo of Breanna, the author of the postby Breanna Goff, Psychology student and Bristol Futures Advocate

Hello! My name is Breanna and I am a third year Psychology student at Bristol University. My degree sometimes feels like essay upon essay, so I have a few tips up my sleeve from the past couple of years.

 

 

 

When faced with a challenging and complex essay question, it feels like the final product is so far out of reach. Where do I start? What will it look like? And how long will it take? I like to remind myself that every student (and probably every professor) knows this feeling well. So how would I start?

All good essays begin with good notes.

Understanding the foundations.

When starting to think about an essay, it’s crucial that I fully understand the foundation of the topic. I take time to fill in the gaps of my learning- adding to my lecture notes by reading topic overviews and recommended starter papers provided. I usually annotate my lecture slides to ensure I am aligning my understanding with the learning objectives set by my lecturer. By doing this, I not only consolidate my knowledge of the area, but I am creating a strong set of notes which can easily be referred to and utilized in the introduction of my essay.

Time to explore.

Now I have developed some solid notes about the topic’s foundation, its time to explore the field. I usually look over my notes and highlight areas which interest me the most regarding my essay question. Here, I create a word document with several colour coded headings of areas I want to explore. I read several papers into each option and make short notes on each. For example, I will summarise the findings of each paper and jot down how this finding relates to the essay question, adding points for critical analysis where I can. Now, the most important lesson I have learned in my experience of essay note taking is to always make note of the source I have obtained my information from. I do this by pasting the article title next to my summary notes. Trust me, when you have read 50+ articles for your essay, it becomes difficult to remember which paper stated which fact.

Finding my focus.

It’s time to narrow my choices down. I look over the notes of areas I have explored and review what addresses my essay question most effectively. After deciding on a rough narrative, I assess which specific papers I can utilize in my essay. This may take a bit of time and some extra reading; I usually focus on 3-5 key papers in the main body of my essay. When I have selected these, I make more extensive notes by answering the 5 following bullet points for each:

  • What is the aim of the paper?
  • How did the researcher study this area?
  • What did they find out?
  • How does this relate to my essay question?
  • Are there any points for critical analysis?

I have found using these prompts is highly useful when note taking as, when I come to write my essay, I have already outlined the structure of each paragraph effectively.

5 bullet points answering the 5 questions above about a paper on the links between overeating and sleep deprivation
Notes on a psychology research paper answering the 5 bullet points

Now, as I begin to write up my essay, I can be confident in the extensive notes I have taken. My detailed lecture notes help me write my introduction by giving me a solid foundational understanding. My exploration notes have helped me determine the most effective narrative for my question. And finally, my detailed notes of key studies will allow me to write my essay with ease and direction. The final product is within arm’s reach!

 

 

Student Advocate tips for… making the most of lectures

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Students in a banked lecture theatre

Our Bristol Futures Student Advocates come from every faculty in the university, and are here to support you to grow your skills and become an even better student.

We asked them to share their top tips for making the most of lectures. Here’s what they said…

Don’t copy everything!

If you just copy what the lecturer wrote down, you are not going to absorb and digest what the lecturer’s main point is. Even worse, you wouldn’t know if the lecturer makes a mistake. Instead, pay full attention to listening to what the lecturer is saying first. After a few sentences, think about what is the main point conveyed in what is written down on the board (or presented on the slide). And then, use your own words to jot down any key points. If you can’t catch them, need not to worry! Simply watch the recorded lecture later and pause as you go. If the lecture is not recorded, it would be nice if you can email the lecturer asking for clarification on such topics. They would be happy to help!

You will be panicked by the fact that while everyone in the hall is ferociously writing, while you are sitting there, only listening. But remember, you are also paying your full attention to the lecture, and you have done nothing less than your classmates did! Ryan, 2nd year Mathematics

Use questions for learning

As you watch the lecture clearly flag any concepts/areas that you don’t fully understand and formulate (and write down) specific questions that you think could get you the answers you need.

This habit helps provide structure and direction to your reflection/revision process after the lecture, as you know exactly what you need to follow up on talking to the lecturer or extra research/reading. I have found this makes my learning more efficient (by saving you from repeatedly covering content you know/understand in order to locate what you are less clear on) and more effective (as your learning becomes targeted to any weak points).  Emily, 3rd year Biomedical Sciences

 

Bristol Futures Student Advocates run peer support sessions for students in their faculty. Check out the Study Skills Blackboard page to see what’s coming up.