Is it easier or harder to study on your own?

I do my best studying alone, because I've figured the subject out in my own way, which seldom translated to others who've reached the same level of understanding as me, so we'd waste time just figuring each other out. Also, I tend to not do a lot of studying when I can chat about something else, which I do.
Heh, also, if a friend isn't at the same point as the rest of us, I become the teacher. Though, teaching helps you learn a subject more thoroughly, and makes you be less Ni by having to actually think of the steps-in-between thoughts.

Strategies: How I write notes in the first place makes studying way easier. I divide a lined page into 2 columns, one 1/3 the page the other 2/3. In the left column is the main body of notes, separated into topics almost like encyclopedia entries, and in the right, beside each definition, is what I am defining. For example, if I was writing about what C is in physics (the speed of light), I put C in the right column, then the definition plus any needed references to other terms in the left. This way you can spot what you need to review really fast, and have all the info for it in one spot.

In school, my main motivation to study was fear of failure. Sad but true, not a whole lot of Higher motivation at work most of the time. While I do like the knowledge and learning, they main thing keeping my grades up was because I got them high and I didn't want them to go back down.

Consistency is mostly in habit. Make it easy to keep doing and I keep doing it. That notes thing is super easy, and with its obvious ease of re-reading I have no reason to want to write in another way.

 

When I study I need help, constant help. I break my introvert rule by saying that studying with other people is far easier for me. Faaaaaaaaaaar!

 

Because on my own I break out into a panic, get frustrated, and either give up or break down crying.

Oh or throw the books at a wall in a tantrum.

Or even run away.

I've done all of these.

 

i learn better on my own, when i can play around and experiment with things and take my time trying to really understand, but i also have a horrible tendency to procrastinate. surrounded by other students, i'm more productive.

 

Alone. The only thing a group brings to the table is external pressure (motivation), and I usually have that.

To study effectively, I write summaries of what I'm reading. If I really want to do good, I'll pace and explain everything relevant about each topic on the exam. Usually I'll have notes to go over, so I'll read the text and notes to make sure I haven't left anything out.

Back in high school, my motivation was simply 'getting good grades'. I knew there were opportunities if I did well, so there wasn't a question of where my motivation would come from. Now that I'm in college, my motivation comes purely from a desire to understand the material. I avoid taking boring courses at nearly all costs, both because there's so many interesting classes I could take anyway as well as because I get stressed out when I put myself in a situation like that. In the event I do, a group is very welcome (necessary motivation).

I don't maintain consistency really, but if you're looking for recommendations I'd agree with Dove.

 

I prefer to study alone when I'm at the preliminary stages of learning the material. I need to take the time to internalize things and explain them to myself. Once I have a grasp of the fundamentals, I don't mind connecting with other people to either reinforce what I've learned or to fill in any gaps. However, in my experience, studying in groups is more often a distraction than anything else. Unless, of course, you're lucky enough to find people who are extremely task-oriented and can turn-off the funny business. I've never been that fortunate.

Depends what it is that I'm doing. I usually start out with a goal in mind, such as an "x number of questions/pages per day," and try to beat it. I usually set that goal a little bit lower than I know I can reasonably accomplish. That way, it doesn't look like such a daunting task, and I'm less prone to procrastinate because I'm not overwhelmed. The trick is, of course, once I'm on a roll, I'll keep going and end up doing more or less what is within my means anyway.

This gets me every time:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA[/ame]

I don't, that's the problem. lol. I just keep getting back on the horse if I fall off.

 

i've so wanted to do that.

 

Nooooooooooooooooo! Poor hunny.
//learns all your accounting stuff and helps you study.

 

I have been known to throw the most epic tantrums you've ever seen.

 

LOL. Same here. My dorm-room door had a huge dent from my calculus text.

 

I don't have to throw my books to make them cooperate. I just glare at them.

 

Is it easier or harder to study on your own whether it's personal study project or a course you're taking?


If it's a subject that I am tackling for the first time, then I'd rather study alone and quietly. I like to mull over all possible aspects of the subject and let my Ni and Ti roam freely till I have a good grasp on it.

When I am comfortable with the topic, I have no qualms about study groups or tutoring someone. The best way to learn is to teach. =)


What strategies do you use to help you study effectively to get it done?

I read the book; summaries first, then respective sections for each point presented.

For sciences, when I am reading, I try to work the examples they offer in the book, and then tackle the assigned problems at the end of the chapter.

For practical and technical courses, there's nothing more research and practice. Courses like drafting or machine processing, it's really hours of practice and hands-on approach.

I have to constantly adapt my methods, but it's basically recognizing the objectives and goals of the course and finding the best way to achieve them.

What are your key motivators or inspirations?

Knowledge and Insight, and then envisioning the applications.

How do you maintain consistency?

I am not sure I understand this question really...

 

When I studied for qualification exams, I would go running every evening, then go sit in a coffee shop with study material. I liked studying alone, but I needed to be someplace where people and things were moving around and interacting. I think that was effective, because studying for exams tended to make me tense. Taking a longer term, more casual approach to 'studying' was definitely good for me.

 

I study best on my own. I can never do things never like study groups. I've done it once and it didn't work. I had to go home and pretty much start my studying over. The people I studied with were extroverts and there was talking here and there -about things that didn't relate to what we were studying. Some of them also studied out loud. That was one of the ways they learned best. There was nothing wrong with that, but it bothered me because I need total silence when studying. The positive part was that we got to work on some problems together, but apart from that I didn't get much studying done for myself. In the past, sometimes when I would study with people around (not necessarily with a study group, just an area where there're people walking by or back and forth, let's say the Library), it would feel like just the presence of other people around prevented me from getting in the zone and concentrating. That's why I usually like going to a secluded place because that's where I can really focus. I don't mind studying with one other person, as long as they're quiet. I had a great study partner once and that worked great because she also liked studying in total quietness. We worked on questions together when necessary and then it was back to utter silence.

 

Is it easier or harder to study on your own whether it's personal study project or a course you're taking?

The words 'group study' make my head hurt. Actually, I usually just feel like other people make me slow down WAY too much and I get extremely impatient. If someone is very proficient then I could probably increase my ability to study by quite a bit through combining efforts/knowledge.

What strategies do you use to help you study effectively to get it done?


I was really spoiled when I was younger with not having to work hard to do well on tests and learning material. My biggest hurdle to effective studying/learning is discipline. As I progressed in material it became much more demanding of my time and effort.

For me to be effective, I need to schedule, I need to keep track of what I am doing and stay on top of it and not procrastinate or underestimate my workload.

What are your key motivators or inspirations?

When I was younger my key motivator was to do better than everyone else. I still am plagued with that at times but I have been learning that 1st place isn't everything, or at least that is what I tell myself over and over, and over. I had a really hard time accepting that I wasn't always best.


How do you maintain consistency?

Maintaining consistency, for me, means maintaining a certain lifestyle. When I am heavily immersed in school/study it means I can't live the same way as when I wasn't in that position. All of my activities have to take school into account and make enough time for study.

 

Is it easier or harder to study on your own whether it's personal study project or a course you're taking?
It honestly depends on the subject. For pretty much every subject, excluding math, it's far easier for me to study on my own, because it's just reading and understanding information for the most part. With math, I like to study wth one or two other people to review, and then study on my own to make sure I actually understand what I'm doing


What strategies do you use to help you study effectively to get it done?
Again, it depends on the course. For my science classes, I take notes in outline form, using different color highlights for definitions, formulas, theorems, etc. And when I study them, i simply condense everything that is highlighted onto one/2 sheets of paper. I will use notecards to study, if the test is vocabulary based. I also will make up songs/look up songs to help memorize what I am learning (In my biology lecture I used a song to memorize all the inputs/outputs of cellular respiration). If it's for a history class,I use DoveAlexa's method, also called Cornell. For math, I have to barricade myself in the quietest corner on the fourth floor of my school library for a few hours to do practice problems.


What are your key motivators or inspirations?
Fear of failure, the fact that I need to keep a high gpa, and that I need to know this material for the MCAT.


How do you maintain consistency?
By prioritizing and keeping a schedule of all my tests and scheduling study time for each one. Also giving yourself free time also can help you stay on track