It 麻豆精品 S檚 final exam time again, and for many students, exam time means cram time. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a scenario that Becky Piety, director of the Student Academic Resource Center (SARC) and the University Testing Center, has witnessed many times in her 25 years at UCF.
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Many students who find themselves in that situation turn to marathon, all-night study sessions to try to make up for lost time. Between 25%聽 to 50% of students cram for tests, according to Faculty Focus, a teaching-centric publication. 聽But the unhealthy aspects that often accompany cramming actually make it more difficult to learn.
麻豆精品 S淲hen you 麻豆精品 S檙e overcaffeinated, stressed and tired, those are the worst conditions for trying to take in and retain information, 麻豆精品 S� Piety says. 麻豆精品 S淐ramming just leads to burn out, stress and a lot of anxiety. 麻豆精品 S�
Instead of cramming, Piety recommends taking action as soon as you realize you might be unprepared for an upcoming exam.
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Here are some tips and resources Piety recommends to help make last-minute studying a little less stressful and a lot more effective.
Tip 1: Get in the Zone
Find the study environment where you feel the most comfortable and productive. That won 麻豆精品 S檛 always be sitting at your desk at home. Some students seek out someplace quiet, like the library, the Student Academic Resource Center or the All-Knight study locations at Ferrell Commons and Knights Plaza. Others prefer a livelier atmosphere, like a coffee shop or outdoors.
麻豆精品 S淭he important thing is to just settle in and get comfortable, 麻豆精品 S� says Piety.
Tip 2: Break it up
People tend to delay tasks that feel too daunting, so Piety suggests breaking course content into chunks that can then be tackled one at a time. Take the same approach to the blocks of time you dedicate to studying. Rather than trying to study nonstop for hours at a time, break that time up into 25-minute intervals separated by five- or 10-minute breaks.
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Whether you do it in person or remotely, studying in a group can be helpful 麻豆精品 S� especially if you 麻豆精品 S檙e struggling with specific class concepts. One approach Piety recommends for study groups is for each student in the group to pick a topic from the course, then teach the rest of the group about that topic.
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Tip 4: Be Wise About Diet, Sleep and Exercise
Trying to fit study time into already-packed schedules leads many students to throw good diet, sleep and exercise habits out the window. But final exam time is when students should be paying more attention to their health, not less.
麻豆精品 S淭hey need to take care of their whole self when they 麻豆精品 S檙e preparing for final exams, 麻豆精品 S� Piety says.
Plan and be intentional about your meals, and eat a balanced diet so you can keep your energy level high and stay focused. Stay active 麻豆精品 S� rather than reaching for the game controller or your phone during those five- or 10-minute breaks, get up and take a walk. And lastly, make sure you get enough sleep.
麻豆精品 S淪leeping for seven to nine hours a night will help combat fatigue, but it goes beyond that, 麻豆精品 S� says Piety. 麻豆精品 S淎 good night 麻豆精品 S檚 sleep gives a student 麻豆精品 S檚 brain time to shift all of what they 麻豆精品 S檝e been studying from their short-term memory into their long-term memory so they can remember what they learned for that upcoming final. 麻豆精品 S�
Campus and Other Resources:
From April 23-27, SARC is partnering with the student union to host , a series of dozens of final exam review sessions available to students both in-person and online. A schedule of the sessions is available on the SARC website, which is also where students can join live sessions remotely and view video recordings of completed sessions.
Piety also recommends a variety of apps that students may find helpful as they prepare for finals, including Headspace, Buddhify, Insight Timer, Simple Habit and Unplug. Forest and Flora are apps that help students to unplug from their phones and develop habits to help them be more productive and present.
Piety points out that this can be a time of high stress and anxiety even for students who have been preparing for finals since the first day of class. On 聽April 26 at 1 p.m., the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) office is offering a . Students can find more information about the workshop on the . CAPS also offers a 24/7 crisis hotline (407-823-2811) for students who are in distress.
麻豆精品 S淲e see a higher incidence of that around finals time, 麻豆精品 S� says Piety. 麻豆精品 S淲e always recommend that students call that hotline if they feel like they need help. 麻豆精品 S�
Last but not least, students should feel free to reach out to their instructor.
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