Some Hints on How to Study CHARLES J. HEIMERZHEIM Brooklyn College of Pharmacy of Long Island University, Brooklyn, New York HIS ARTICLE is inspired by the fact that very T f e w students consciously study the activity which occupies most of their time, i . e., studying. If interrogated regarding the matt,er each will assert that "he has his own method," 6ut when further pressed he usually admits that there is nothing scientific about it. BASIC PSYCHOLOGY INVOLVED IN STUDYING ..:, 1
Since studying is an activity of the mind, the logical approach is to consider some of the important facts which psychologists have proved to be involved in the process of learning. The following are worthy of particular attention : 1. About 90 per cent of all humans belong to what is called the "visual type." They remember best what they see. Their memory of what they hear is distinctly inferior; and when it comes to remembering odors and tastes, they are usually lost. 2. Associating new ideas with those already a part of the mental storehouse helps greatly in memorizing. 3. Coincident sense stimuli applying to the same idea tend to fix things rather firmly in the mind. 4. Periodic reviews help more than "cramming."
Furthermore the use of an inch or two of white space between topics tends to cut down the jumbling of ideas; and writing legibly, and using exclamation points, asterisks, etc., to indicate important statements, all help. (It is obvious that the way you record your lectures on paper will greatly resemble the way the ideas are recorded in your mind.) REWRITING LECTURES AT HOME
Probably the most important phase of home study is the rewriting of lectures. This should be done soon after the lectures have been taken, since there is then less chance of misinterpretation; and of course it should not involve word for word copying. At this time you should check every statement against what you find in your textbooks and in the notes that you have taken previously. Then you should write up the material in the form of review sheets, using the outline 'idea and your own words rather than those of your lecturer. This will tend to organize the ideas in your mind. (Note how all four of the basic psychological advantages come into play in this rewriting of your lectures.). Incidentally it is probably not amiss at this time to urge you, as a student, to discard the TKE "TAKING OF LECTURES" implicit confidence in your teachers which yon acquired There are two good reasons why you should make when you were a child. Teachers are far from infalnotes while listening to lectures: The first is that since l i b l e a n d that goes for textbooks too. Therefore you are probably of the "visual" type, the mental pic- when you rewrite your notes check everything caretures of what you write constitute a distinct aid. The fully. second is that the coincident visual and auditory stimuli PERIODIC REVIEWS VS. "CRAMMING" will tend to "fix" things in your mind. However, you are cautioned not to take lectures verbatim unless the There is no doubt that the student who depends lecturer directs you to, since while doing so you will upon cramming periods just before examinations rehe kept so busy that you will not be able to correlate con- members little after the examinations are over, whereas sciously the visual and auditory stimuli, nor will you be the student who utilizes spaced reviews during the period able to "reason along" with thelecturerby associatingthe of a course gains everlasting knowledge. However the objection might be raised that repetitious reviews are new ideas with those you are already familiar with. In addition there is the matter of assuming a proper uninteresting and, therefore, not of such great value. mental attitude in the lecture room. If you attend the The answer to this objection is that repetitions can be lectures with the idea of "getting the notes" and made interesting if the form of the review is dierent straightening them out at home, you are just wasting each time. In addition to the rewriting of lectures, the your time. The lecture hour should be considered as following constitute interesting forms of review: (1) much a learning period as the quiz hour. Therefore, Writing up questions and answers relating to the mateduring lectures you should listen intently, takmg time rial of the lectures. The value of this lies in the fact out to make notes only after you have crystallized each that it gives the student practice in the very activity in idea in such a way that the writing of a few terse which he is required to engage when taking written statements will give you a proper record. . . . Finally, examinations, i. e., the writing of answers to questions when the lecturer announces that ,he is going to dis- i n his o m words. (2) Having another student quiz cuss a particular topic, immediately write down a topic you. This prepares you for self-expression during heading and underline i t . Then the statements apply- quiz periods. ( 3 ) The preparation of small review ing to that topic will not be all jumbled up with those cards which can he camed in a pocket and referred to applying to the topics immediately before or after. readily. (4) Soliloquy. This is especially helpful to 508
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those students who "cannot study with others." (5) Underlining the statements in your textbook which you have difficulty in remembering; and then periodically rereading only those statements.
esting to ascertain whatpercentage of first-year students know the meaning of the suffix, "-lysis." The dictionaries say i t refers to a "loosening" or a "dissolution" but I personally like to think that it imparts the idea of a "decomposition." Considering words like "hyTHE USE OF MNEMONICS drolysis," "pyrolysis," "electrolysis," "photolysis," and Some highly descriptive courses involve the memoriz- "chemolysis." These might be thought to refer to ing of a mass of facts, and not much else. They are "decomposition due to the action of water, heat, elecrelatively uninteresting to the student who likes to tric current, light, and chemicals," respectively. Likereason and that is why such a student very often makes wise the words "hemolysis," "leucolysis," "osteolysis," poor grades in them. The use of mnemonics solves #, neurolysis," "erythrocytolysis," etc., mean "decomthis problem: Most everyone knows the use of the position of blood, white blood cells, bone, nerve tissue, word "VIBGYOR" by students of physics. It en- and red blood cells, respectively. It is obvious that if the student learns the meaniug ables them to remember the colors of the solar spectrum, in their proper order: violet, indigo, blue, green, of "-lysis" in his freshman year he will be in a position to yellow, orange, and red. But students should not be understand the scientific terms listed above as soon as satisfied to use only the few memory helps which their he comes to them; that is, of course, if he is familiar teachers pass on to them. They should make up their with the ideas imparted by the rather common preown. For instance, the following are some of the ideas fixes occurring in these combinations. And so it is that the author used when he was an undergraduate that the embryonic collegian can help himself immeasurably if he will assiduously break up scientific terms into student. These may or may not be original. 1. The coincidence that "V" was the Roman nu- their components. An unabridged dictionary is then all meral standing for five, and a t the same time the sym- he needs, and if he hasn't one a t home he ought to buy bol for vanadium, fixed the position of the element one. Dollar for dollar, there is no better book value indelibly in the 6fth vertical column of the Periodic on the market. Table. THE IMPORTANCE OF GENERALIZATIONS 2. The words "chromo" and "Western Union" recorded the periodic relationship of chromium and If you ask a trained chemist whether or not sodium molybdenum in the one case, and tungsten and uranium phosphate is soluble he will give you the proper answer in the other. immediately. He will not have to think back to 3. The words "multiple" and "meta" were applied what he has learned about that particular salt because to remember that the groups attached to the benzene he knows that, with few exceptions (of which sodium ring which contain mulliple bondiugs between atoms phosphate is not one), nearly all sodium, potassium, tend to be meta directing, e. g., the nitro, carboxy, ni- and ammonium salts are soluble. Furthermore that trile, and aldehyde groups. same chemist would think you were spoofing if you 4. The correspondence in the "end" letters of the asked him whether or not chromic nitrate were soluble, words "blue" and "base," and in the words "red" and because he would take it for granted that everyone "acid" suggested the meanings of the "end" reactions knows that all the common nitrates are soluble. But in the use of litmus paper. ask the neophyte similar questions on solubilities and 5. "Alkalies" being one word and "alkaline earths" he will usually admit that he has only hazy ideas rebeing two, these two groups were forever dierenti- garding the answers. ated on the basis of the valencies of 1and 2. The value of solubility generalizations to students of Many more mnemonics similar to those above might qualitative analysis is inestimable and it was with that be listed. The time given to the making up of mnemou- idea in mind that I compiled a rather complete chart ics is not wasted as many students think. However which was published in the August, 1941, issue of the there is a particular "knack" which you must acquire. JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION.The following Some students compose memory helps which themselves are a few of the generalizations found in the chart: are more difficult to remember than the f a d s they are (1) Most of the commonly used salts of the monosupposed to bring to mind. Others know the tricks of basic acids are soluble, with the exception of iodates, the game. For instance, alliteration helps you to recall fluorides, metaphosphates, cyanides, and thiocyanates. example number three above, etc. Above all, every (2) Most of the salts of the di-, tri-, and tetrabasic student should spend some of his time making ufi mnemon- acids are insoluble, with the exception of sulfates and ics. thiosulfates. (And of course the sodium, potassium, and ammonium salts of these acids are soluble.) (3) THE MASTERY OI' SCIENTIFIC TERMS Nearly all oxides, hydroxides, and basic salts are insoluIt is a well-known fact that the majority of scientific ble, the hydroxides of sodium, potassium, ammonium, terms are nothing but combinations of Latin or Greek and barium being exceptions, as are also the basic niprefixes and suffixes. Yet the average college fresh- trate and basic acetate of lead. (4) Practically all silver man is woefully lacking in even the most elementary salts are insoluble, the nitrate, chlorate, perchlorate, ideas of etymology. For instance, it would be inter- and fluoride being exceptions, etc.
Getting back to the trained chemist again: If you ask him whether or not we might expect substitution into the ring of uitrobeuzene to take place in the "meta" position he will immediately answer in the affirmative because some orientation rule he has memorized constitutes his clue. Or if we ask him whether or not acetone gives the "iodoform" reaction he will again know the answer because he knows that any compound which contains the ~~&/grou~
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should give it.
In other
0 words, the practical chemist has his mind full of as many generalizations as he has been able to cull during his years of experience. That he finds them valuable must be apparent to all. I t follows, therefore, that the chemistry freshman must make a real effort to gather statements of this type, without waiting to get them from his teacher. Incidentally, the laws of chemistry constitute some of the most useful genera'zations, and the student cannot hope to get along unless he masters them thoroughly. SOME ADDITIONAL IDEAS
1. Unless you concentrate deeply while studying you will accomplish little. You do your best work
when you are absolutely alone and in as quiet a place as possible. 2. You cannot hope to excel as a student unless your mind is 100 per cent "on the alert." Studying while mentally fatigued represents just so much time wasted, so get a t least eight hours of sleep every night; and watch your health otherwise by adhering to a proper diet and avoiding alcoholic liquors, etc. 3. When you don't know a theory or fact be "big" about it. Admit that you lack the knowledge and then make it your business to acquire it. And when examination papers are returned to you be sure you go over your mistakes. The greatest men have made mistakes all through their careers but they have become great because they have avoided makimg the same mistakes over and over again. CONCLUSION
The ideas set forth in this article do not represent an "open sesame" to the easy acquisition of knowledge. There is still one more idea to be added and that is that you will never learn how to study unless you study, and study, and study. When a marathon runner prepares for a race he runs, and runs, and runs. Understand?
