I hope everyone did or is doing well during this mid-term week before spring break. I had taken one test which would count as 40 % of my final grade (Yes, it is big). I had CFS 388 (Human Sexuality) exam on Wednesday. The exam was introduced rather vaguely. The professor has told us that it would be comprised of 50% lecture and 50% text materials. I had the book and he provided informations on which sections to study for, so for the first 50%, I wasn't worried. However, the other 50% which was to be solely on lectures whether it was on the lecture board or from the Professor's mouth, its area was quite huge. Luckily, I had many strategies available to me to prepare for this exam. The method I chose was Plug-In. There couldn't have been any better method for an exam like this one. I just needed to concentrate on the 50% of the exam that were from the lectures as I had other 50% of the material already covered with information from the Professor and the text. 
The Plug-In strategy was rather straight-forward. It was similar to the strategy I had used for exams long before I had taken CLS105. I had lots of notes prepared that covered all the lectures from CFS388. Now, I just had to create the questions that would be exam-friendly. The exam was to have 50 questions. So I had frequently used this strategy until I would be near that number. I also knew that there would be lots of True or False questions on the test. So, I had used the second half of the questions to be in a manner of true or false.
It is true that when you know the exam's format, it is much more easier to study for the exam. I am glad to see that you knew the format of the exam, and made anticipating questions as the format. I guess it really helped you a lot. Personally, I have trouble writing down notes that the professor speaks. I guess if I had taken that class, I would not get a good grade and struggle a lot. Good to see that you had notes prepared that covered all the lectures.
ReplyDeleteIt is good to see how you utilized your Plug In notes. I never thought of making as much questions as the actual exam covers. My NSD 225 course covers 75 questions and short answers every exam. If I was to make that many questions on my own, hands down, I would be done studying! It is good that you had your notes from lectures and that you knew the format of the test. Whether they are TRUE/FALSE, multiple choice, short answer questions, making the questions out of the notes and the text does really help. I will try to make as many questions as possible when I study. By the time I make as many questions as my exams, I would be thorough with studying. Nice usage of PlugIn notes.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I prefer taking notes on a laptop as well, I find it hard to concentrate reading and memorizing them when I look at them later on. I think it's because of the blank white spaces that somehow does not make me concentrate well. This is why I use the notebooks and write on hands for notes. I think if I had a mac, I could use the plug in note application just as Chan had posted, but since I don't I would stick with writing notes in my notebook. Anyways, it seems to work very well for you and I hope you continue to use it so!
ReplyDeletePlug-in strategy looks great and its good note taking strategy for organizing notes into neat fashion. I also utilized this strategy to my other courses and it served me very well. I think I will be using this strategy quite a lot in the coming semesters.
ReplyDeleteYour Plug-in strategy looks solid mayne! I have used the same strategy and the method was perfect for me. The graphic organizer that was plugged in on the left side of the note really helped to summarize the major concepts and tie all the points together. I think this makes the studying more easier and efficient. I hope you keep using this strategy in future and keep up the good work going! Peace
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