HELPING STUDENTS STUDY MORE EFFECTIVELY

NECTFL 2013Margaret A. Haggstrom

Loyola University Maryland

Mhaggstrom@loyola.edu

How many times have you heard this?

• “I just can’t learn foreign languages.”

• “I study constantly and am able to do the daily homework, but I fail the major exams.”

• “I don’t understand French (Spanish, Italian, German, etc.)

OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION

I. Memory strategies

II. Ways to help students study and do homework more effectively

III. Your questions and memory or study strategies you have found useful for your students.

THE MEMORY CURVE

• If you do nothing to try to remember what you read, you will forget:

40% in 24 hours

60% in 48 hours

80% in three weeks

MEMORY STRATEGIES

• Intend to learn!

MEMORY STRATEGIES

Seven is a magic number!

MEMORY STRATEGIES

• It is difficult to memorize long lists of unrelated things

bird markerfly gas stationpencils deerapples marketpost office notebookbeetle poinsettia

cranberry child fire extinguisher lion

MEMORY STRATEGIES

LIVING THINGS• Fly, deer, lion, child, bird, beetle

PLACES TO BUY THINGS• Post office, market, gas station

RED THINGS• Apple, poinsettia, fire extinguisher, cranberry

SCHOOL SUPPLIES• Notebooks, marker, pencils

MEMORY TECHNIQUES

• We have a better memory for objects and colors than words

MEMORY STRATEGIES

• Use all of the senses

Margaret Haggstrom:

Margaret Haggstrom:Margaret

Haggstrom

Margaret Haggstrom

MEMORY STRATEGIES

• Students need to organize and categorize what they are trying to memorize in ways that are meaningful to them.

STUDYING MORE EFFECTIVELY

I will outline ways that I have found useful to help students

• Read their textbooks and do homework assignments more effectively

• Self-monitor their comprehension of material• Pinpoint what they don’t understand• Know when they need to get outside help

STUDY STRATEGIES

• Road map!

The dog barks all the time and my daughter keeps her window open with her radio turned up. There is garbage strewn all over the front yard and there are four junk cars in the side yard. I’ve planted onions all around the perimeter of the property. My husband and I often have noisy arguments. He hasn’t mowed the lawn in over a month, but there really isn't much of a lawn anyway; it is mostly weeks, and then, of course, there’s the dog dirt. My four kids do a lot of screaming and we often party until late at night.

OUR ATTEMPTS TO GET RID OF THE NEIGHBORS The dog barks all the time and my daughter keeps

her window open with her radio turned up. There is garbage strewn all over the front yard and there are four junk cars in the side yard. I’ve planted onions all around the perimeter of the property. My husband and I often have noisy arguments. He hasn’t mowed the lawn in over a month, but there really isn't much of a lawn anyway; it is mostly weeks, and then, of course, there’s the dog dirt. My four kids do a lot of screaming and we often party until late at night.

SURVEY SYLLABUS

• How many exams are there?

• How is your class participation grade determined? What do you need to get an A in participation?

• What constitutes an excused absence?

• Etc.

SURVEY TEXTBOOK

For example• Each lesson in our textbook is divided into

several parts. Read the Introduction to your textbook (pp. xx-xx) and then explain what you are to learn in each of the sections (list).

• Each chapter has a cultural theme. What are the cultural themes of the first five chapters?

• What resources do you find in the Appendices of your textbook?

SURVEY TEXTBOOK

• Give an example of when you might consult the Index of your textbook?

• When might you consult the section at the end of your textbook called Lexique?

SQ3R

• SURVEY

• QUESTION

• READ

• RECITE

• REVIEW

SURVEY

• Read the chapter title• Read the introductory and cultural material• Look at the major chapter headings and

subheadings• Notice any charts, vocabulary lists, pictures

and drawings• Read any summary or study questions

QUESTION/READ

• As students read their assignment, they turn the headings and subheadings into questions (Q).

les pronoms d’objet direct

What are the pronoms d’objet direct and how are they used?

READ

• As students read, they actively search for the answers to their questions.

• Students focus on the most important points. • Students are less likely to read mechanically.• Student generated questions are more

effective in increasing comprehension and recall than teacher generated ones.

RECITE

• Helps transfer material from short-term to long-term memory

• Helps them self-monitor their comprehension

• Keeps students from reading mechanically

REVIEW

• After students have completed entire assignment, they go back and say the answers to their questions one more time.

SQ3R

• S(urvey): improves comprehension because students have a “road map” and a context. They’re not just trying to memorize isolated facts.

• Q(uestion) Students focus on the main ideas; identify what they are to learn in each section.

SQ3R

(R)ead : Increases concentration; active rather than passive process

(R)ecite and (R)eview: helps student self-monitor their learning and aids retention of material

Homework exercises from the textbook or workbook

“Plug and chug method”

Leads students to think that they have mastered material when in fact they have not.

SELF-MONITORING THEIR LEARNING

• EXAMPLE

• Est-ce que tu vois Marc? Oui je le vois.

• Est-ce que tu vois Anne? Oui, je la vois.

• Est-ce que tu vois Marc et Anne? Oui, je les vois.

SELF-MONITORING LEARNING

• What concept is the example illustrating?

• Do I understand all of the vocabulary (Do I know what a pronoun is? Do I know what a direct object is?)

Did the man……..the pizza?

SELF-MONITORING THEIR LEARNING

• If the textbook gives more than one example, why? How does each example differ from the others?

• Est-ce que tu vois Marc? Oui je le vois.• Est-ce que tu vois Anne? Oui, je la vois.• Est-ce que tu vois Marc et Anne?• Oui, je les vois.

WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS

“Do I know what I am supposed to do? “Do I understand the directions?”

“ Do I understand all the vocabulary in the examples? If not, which vocabulary words are unclear?”

WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS

• “Do I understand the logic of the examples that illustrate the grammar point I am studying? Do I understand the differences among the various examples given? Could I explain these difference to someone else?”

WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS

• “Can I recognize when I should use the grammar point in question--what will tip me off when I should use it on an exam?

SURVEY

• After completing the survey, students should know what the chapter is generally about and be able to name the major topics it covers.

• The goal of the survey is to define what it is that they are expected to learn in the chapter.

PIN POINT SHEET

• If you are having difficulty with an assignment, talk yourself through your problem.

PIN POINT SHEET

PIN POINT SHEET• Do I understand the instructions?

• Do I understand all the terms (e.g. Do I know what a direct object is? Do I know what a demonstrative adjective is?) Which words am I unclear about?

PIN POINT SHEET

• Do I understand the logic of the example that illustrates the grammar point I am studying?

• Do I understand the differences among the various examples given?

• Can I recognize when I should use the grammar point in question? What will tip me off when I should use it on an exam?

Pin Point Sheet

• By going through these steps, you should be able to pinpoint what you do or do not understand and what kind of help you need from your instructor.