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Glad to hear, this is exactly the right thing!</p>
<p>Its unfortunate that in 12 years of schooling, they are unlikely to devote even one day to telling you how to study effectively. Here are a few tips: [ul][<em>]There is a good book to read called “What Smart Students Know” that was written by a co-founder of the Princeton Review Prep schools. To do well you are going to have to spend time studying, more than you might think. [</em>]Good students find they spend 6-10 hours per week on each class in college, especially probable if it is a math/science class. [<em>]Spaced study is better for learning than trying to “cram”. You are much better off studying 90 minutes on each of 5 days then spending the same time on Sunday trying to catch up. [</em>]For many subjects there are workbooks such as the “Chemistry Problem Solver”. These are incredible tools and I don’t know why schools don’t pass them out along with the textbook. The chapters have worked problems, hundreds of them. There is no rule that says you can only do the assigned problems from your text. Using these books should be a big part of those hours previously mentioned. [<em>]There are free software tools such as Anki that implement spaced-repetition programs, proven to be the most efficient way to memorize things. [</em>]In college, get to know your profs. Not brown-nosing, but show your interest in your subjects and see if you can go farther. One day you may need recs and you want them to be strong and personal. [/ul]There are tons of websites you can visit for advice, and your college is likely to have a learning center as well. Two links to get you started are [On</a> Becoming a Math Whiz: My Advice to a New MIT Student](<a href=“http://■■■■■■■.com/3zh9frh]On”>On Becoming a Math Whiz: My Advice to a New MIT Student - Cal Newport) and [How</a> to Ace Calculus: The Art of Doing Well in Technical Courses](<a href=“http://■■■■■■■.com/aok5qn]How”>How to Ace Calculus: The Art of Doing Well in Technical Courses - Cal Newport) Read thru the story at [Teaching</a> linear algebra](<a href=“http://bentilly.blogspot.com/2009/09/teaching-linear-algebra.html]Teaching”>Random Observations: Teaching linear algebra) and see how that prof forced students to rehearse material with great results; the advice earlier focuses on doing that yourself. </p>
<p>The downfall of many students is confusing recognition with recall (won’t be a problem if you follow the advice above). When you do the homework you have the book right there and can thumb back to see how similar problems were solved. After a while the approaches become familiar, and then when you review the book before the test they may seem even more so, but as you’ve discovered once you face a test and can’t refer back you can’t recall what you need. Two academic links discussing this are</p>
<p>[Why</a> Students Think They Understand—When They Don’t](<a href=“http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/ae/winter0304/willingham.cfm]Why”>Ask the Cognitive Scientist: Why Students Think They Understand—When They Don't) </p>
<p>[Practice</a> Makes Perfect—but Only If You Practice Beyond the Point of Perfection](<a href=“http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/ae/spring2004/willingham.cfm]Practice”>Ask the Cognitive Scientist: Practice Makes Perfect—But Only If You Practice beyond the Point of Perfection)</p>