Page 12 - SURVIVAL_KIT2016

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DON’T FALL ASLEEP AT YOUR DESK – STAY AWAKE
When you are studying and finding it difficult to concentrate, you may feel yourself dozing off. When this happens, set your kitchen timer or alarm for shorter periods than usual, for example 10 minutes. once it goes off, take a short 5-minute break by stretching your legs and sipping some fruit juice. This will help keep you alert for the next 10 minutes.
DON’T PANIC – STAY CALM
an advantage of establishing good study habits early on in the year, is that it helps you to stay calm in the face of overwhelming work (for example, when you have multiple assignment deadlines for the same day). If you have been keeping up with your academic work by studying regularly, you will be less likely to panic, and will be able to focus on one task at a time.
DON’T FORGET YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES – BECOME
AN ADULT
Most first-year students are at an age where they are not quite adults yet, but they aren’t teenagers either. There are certain responsibilities that come along with becoming an adult. one of these involves taking responsibility for your education. You no longer have teachers or parents constantly reminding you to do your work or finish an assignment. It is your own choice to study and you must take full responsibility for your learning experience. no one is going to remind you about deadlines for your assignments, test dates and so on. It is up to you to remind yourself when your work needs to be handed in, and when you have to write tests and exams.
DON’T CREATE PROBLEMS FOR YOURSELF – BE ORGANISED
You don’t have to be a perfectionist, but try to keep your work neat and easily accessible. Make sure you date all your work so that you can keep it in the correct order. allocate a separate file for each of your subjects.
In addition to keeping your work in order, you should also order your living environment in a way that will cater for your academic needs. Keep your study materials, stationery, notes and textbooks in a clearly defined space. It is difficult to study to your best ability if your room is messy. You don’t have to be obsessive about it, but try to keep your room reasonably clean and tidy. an organised and uncluttered work space encourages an organised and uncluttered mind.
Learn to organise for emergencies. For example, keep a spare light bulb for your desk lamp to avoid the unpleasant situation of a burnt-out bulb on the night before a test or exam. also keep spare pens and paper handy.