Life Skills: Study and Learning Aids

How To Study and Take Tests

The Study Process

An average beginning college student has spent over 22,000 hours studying from
the time he or she began school until the twelfth grade. This enormous amount
of time could have been reduced considerably through dynamic study skills. But
most students are never really taught how to study. It's a process they are
expected to learn on their own.

Efficient studying does not simply consist of reading, underlining and

rereading. Your new study process will consist of reading, writing, thinking,
and recalling. It is based on the layered learning process and actually takes
less time that your old method of study. It may seem longer at first, but each
step takes less time, and because it is so well structured, you will have
better recall at test time.

Time and time again students have proved that reading and recalling is much
more effective that spending all their time reading and highlighting. The only
way to learn the material is to become actively involved in absorbing and
integrating it. Study reading is an active process, not a passive one.

The Study Process

Use this procedure to provide a plan of attack for study.

BROWSE:
Entire book
Note vocabulary, degree of difficulty, style, organization

PREVIEW:
Assigned section
Note main ideas, charts, diagrams, maps, illustrations, formulas, topic
sentences, summaries, questions
Write main ideas

READ:
To understand, not to memorize.
Respond as you read; write after each section, depending on material

REVIEW AND CHECK:

Notes on chapter, fill in gaps -- refresh memory
Make sure text and notes agree
RECALL:
Chapter or section, first from memory, then double-check from notes; think
about your material

Prepare By Browsing Through Texts

Survey to get an overview of the book, turning pages quickly so that you spend
about two minutes to gather the information that answers the following
questions:

How is the book organized?

What are the main subject areas?

What do I already know about these areas?

How difficulty is the material, and how difficulty is its presentation?

Begin to structure your notes around the design of the book. Decide how much
material you wish to learn. Draw a chart that will help organize the material.
Place the more important information to the left, details to the right. Leave
more room under topics and titles that involve more pages. Draw these maps and
lines before reading to help your mind organize and store the data better. For
an illustration of how you would set up your paper, see the box at the left.

Preview Assigned Chapter

Move quickly, skimming through the chapter much faster than your usual reading
rate. Your purpose here is to find out what is important and how it is
presented, no to read it. Check all bold-faced headings, turning each into a
question you will answer later. Also check copy under the chapter titles, each
of the subtitles, and the main ideas. This will only take a few seconds a
page, but it will give you important clues to the material and help you later
to read it fasting, because you will be prepared for new ideas. Look over the
visual aids, such as maps, charts, diagrams, illustrations, and pictures to
help you grasp each point more quickly. Then, read any summaries or questions
included at the end of the chapter. Summaries are usually helpful because they
include the points the author thought were most important.

Before proceeding with you study, set two goals. Set a comprehension goal:
how well you knee to know the material. Will you be tested? If so, how
thoroughly? Set a time goal for your particular section or chapter based upon
how well you need to know it. In easy or familiar material, your goal may be
fifteen pages an hour. but whatever your goal, make sure that it is only for
one chapter or section -- setting lengthy or unrealistic goals only leads to
discouragement and failure. By achieving both these goals, you will speed your
study time greatly.
At this stage, you should have in your notes the chapter title, subtitles, and
all major ideas. You should already know a lot about the material.

Read to Understand, Don't Memorize

Now is the time to read the chapter as quickly as you can to understand the
ideas. After each page or major idea, go back to your notes and add the
supporting details to them. Do not proceed more than a page without writing
something down. This is an important key to textbook comprehension and
retention. Respond to the material by continually summarizing it in your
notes, using your own words. The old way of studying was to read and forget.
Get into the habit of reading and responding. You will find even the most
boring books become interesting.

Reduce the use of underling seemingly important thoughts, do not use

highlighter, Magic-marker, or felt-tip pens. Such a study method is premature;
you are not in a position to judge what is most important until you've read the
entire chapter. It postpones learning; you may simply color the material
rather than understand it. It is permanent; have you ever tried to erase it?
It gives all material equal weight. It distracts; have you ever tried to read
a used book marked with highlighter? It devaluates the book; it ruins the
appearance and resale value of the book.

Instead, use a pencil to mark important ideas. Whenever something looks

valuable, put a check mark in the margin, just to the side of the passage.
This marks what is important, but it is not permanent. Later, during a review
you can reevaluate your marks and leave them in place, erase them, or add a
second mark for emphasis. This system is one of the most valuable tools you
can use. Not only is it flexible, but it is quite inexpensive. Continue
reading each chapter, marking what is important with a check and adding your
notes until you are finished.

Review Material
Go back through the chapter and reread it quickly to refresh your memory.
Answer the chapter questions, see relationships, and complete your notes. Look
at your notes. Do you now have details to support each main idea? Can you
study that chapter from your notes. The answers should be yes. Your goal has
been to get the material out of the text into your notes, then into your mind.
Textbooks are often wordy and difficulty to understand. Put the ideals in your
own words and you will learn the material much more quickly.

The following questions can help you evaluate textbooks and other nonfiction
works:

Do you clearly understand the author's goal? If not, check the preface,
foreword, and introduction.
Do you understand how the author has presented his or her material? What do
you thinks is the general method of presentation? What are the main ideas?
Minor one? Check the table of contents for these answers.

What are the conclusions drawn by the author? Do you agree with them? Why did
the author come to those conclusions? If you do not agree, in what areas was
the author weak? Were the author's premises weak, or only his or her
conclusions?

How would you compare the author with anyone else you may have read? Is the
book up-to-date? What else have you read that either reaffirmed or conflicted
with it? In what ways?

Can you now relate the text material to class lecture notes?

Think and Recall Notes

Spend time to integrate and remember your material because this is as important
as reading it. If your notes are unclear, typewriting them, basing your
organization around the main ideas. Think about the concepts presented in the
chapter, and try to explain them in your own words. Practice recalling
information with and without your notes. Try to study as much as possible from
your notes. They are bound to be more understandable than the text. Do not
spend your time reading and rereading your texts. Your exams are a test of
your thinking and recalling abilities, not usually your reading skills. So
practice thinking and recalling your notes and the text material.

Reading for Results

As important as reading is to success in school, many students dislike it.

Those who do like to read are usually good at it. A conclusion one might reach
is that people like to do things they're good at. This section is designed to
help you improve your reading so that even if you still dislike some of your
texts, at least you'll be able to dislike them for less time. First we discuss
rapid reading -- an essential for success in school.

No Limit to Reading Speed

Would it help you if you could read twice as fast as you read now? How about
twenty times as fast, and with better comprehension? If that sounds
impossible, it's not. The human mind is capable of seeing and understanding
material as fast as one can turn pages, and some people do read that fast.
John Stuart Mill, Theodore Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy were all naturally
fast readers, as have been many others. They were what are known as gifted
readers; those who read very fast with excellent comprehension. Gifted readers
come from every walk of life, for reading is a skill not related to age,
occupation, heredity, or intelligence. The only reason that you may not read
fast now is because your natural gifts may have been smothered in school.

The way reading is taught in most public schools is the same technique used a
century ago. Curiously, the average American reads at about the same rate
today as 100 years ago. Most people read between 100 and 400 words per minute,
the national average. But slow readers are severely penalized throughout life
and are simply unable to keep up because of the tremendous volume of reading
required today. It is hoped that schools will change their methods of reading
instruction so that someday all studies will rapid readers. In theory, the
only things that should decide reading rate are the student's background in the
subject, the purpose for reading the particular material, and the ability to
turn pages. Some readers, tested in difficult textbook material, have read
thousands of words per minute with excellent comprehension. That's over a
dozen pages per minute. Yet some of these same superreaders used to read at
rate of only 200 words per minute. So it is certainly possible for the average
reader to increase his or her reading speed considerably.

What limits your reading rate? Poor habits, such as subvocalization

(pronouncing words to yourself), regression (going back to reread material
already covered), prolonged fixation (stopping and staring at one word), and
inefficient eye movement (losing your place and wandering between lines).
These poor habits cause tired eyes, boredom, low speeds, and low comprehension.
It is not ability that you lack, it is training. Because we are taught to read
at 100 to 400 words per minute, we are led to believe this is our "normal
rate". But these rates are no more normal than 10 or 10,000 words per minute.
Improving your rate only takes proper training and time.

A book cannot give the kind of help necessary to make a dramatic increase in
your reading skills. But, until you can get some professional help from a well
-trained, rapid reading instructor, there are some positive steps you can take.

Hand Reading
As children, we were generally taught not to underline words with our
fingertips. But this method actually helps increase speed and comprehension.
It builds speed in reading because it prevents unnecessary backing up and
rereading, which consumes about one-sixth of your reading time. It also
prevents unneeded, prolonged fixations -- the habit of staring at one word or
phrase for a long period. Reading with your hand on the page improves your
comprehension because it directs your attention to a spot instead of allowing
your eyes and minds to wander. Simply place your fingertip under the first
word and move it along at a comfortable rate, underlining each word. Be sure
to pick up your finger at the end of each line, lifting it to begin the next
one. Read directly above your fingertip, and watch your rate soar.
How To Adjust Speed
Do not read everything at the same rate. You should read light fiction quickly
and technical texts at about one-half that rate. When you read easy material,
speed up and you will enjoy reading more. A common misconception is that
reading fasting ruins enjoyment. This is not true. When you were in the first
grade, you probably read at a rate of 10 to 50 words per minute. Now you may
read 100 to 500 words per minute, a full ten times faster! Did you lose any
enjoyment from books? Of course not, and in fact, you may enjoy books more now
than when you read slowly. Decide upon your purpose and read to seek the level
of comprehension you require. When your purpose in reading is entertainment,
read faster than usual. If you are responsible for retaining the material,
take notes often, reread difficult passages, and read at your maximum rate of
comprehension, not to memorize.

See Yourself as a Good Reader

Do you see yourself as a slow reader or as a fast reader? Your actions are
consistent with your conception of yourself. Always push yourself, being aware
of what you need to get out of the material. Believe you can get what you
want, when you want it and you will have no problem achieving your goal.
Seeing yourself as a fast reader can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Sit back, close your eyes, and picture yourself sitting down at a desk reading
rapidly with excellent comprehension. Imagine yourself at a desk or table you
know well, moving down the page, not only comprehending what you have read, but
quickly recalling it from your notes. Practice this once or twice a day for
about two minutes each time. Within several weeks you should see a notable
improvement in your reading speed.

Range of Vision
One reason you might read slowly is that you read with a narrow, constricted,
"hard focus;" you have disciplined your eyes to see only a couple of words at a
time. This severely limits your speed. Your reading focus is different from
your usual vision. The difference is easy to explain. What do you see when
you look outside your window? Do your eyes focus only on a spit three-quarters
of an inch by five-eights of an inch? What you see is an entire panorama with
everything in focus. You should see a page in the same way.

In order to regain your usual range of vision for reading, you will need some
practice. This will require the use of both hands and a large book. Flip
through the pages of the book quickly, turning them from the top with your left
hand and pulling your eyes down the page by brushing down each page with the
edge of your right hand. Your fingers should be extended and relaxed. Follow
your hand down each page with your eyes, trying to see as many words as
possible. Start by brushing each page in two or three seconds, gradually
reducing the time spent on each page until you can go as fast as you can turn
pages. P ace yourself, starting at twenty pages a minute, slowly increasing to
one hundred pages a minute within one to two months. This practice work helps
your eyes see more words at a time by preventing zooming in or focusing only on
individual words. Practice for five minutes a day for several weeks. Remember
that it is unlikely that you'll read faster without practicing. Reading is a
skill, and as with any other skill, all the instruction in the world won't help
you unless you actually practice what you learn.

Some students are afraid if they go fasting, they'll miss words. But they
already know most of the words they are about to see. There are over 600,000
words in our language, but 400 of them compromise sixty-five percent of printed
material. These are structure words that have no meaning, but they tie the
sentence together. For example, in the second sentence of this paragraph, the
structure words are but, of the, about, to. Remove those words and the
sentence is choppy, but still readable. "They already know most words the are
see". Since you've read those 400 words many times, don't let them slow down
your reading by dwelling on them.

A famous psychologist, James Cattell, determined through research that our

untrained visual capacity is about four words in one-hundredth of a second.
That is 400 words a second or 24,000 words per minute that we're capable of
seeing and understanding. Australian psychologist John Ross has reported that
the human mind can process depth information in 0.0002 seconds. He defines
depth information as nonfiction technical material. Some students may wonder
whether or not they can comprehend material by reading at a faster rate. You
can. Just practice and you'll see results immediately.

Do not worry about understanding everything when you read fast. You can see and
understand everything, but merely reading something does not ensure retention.
You will retain information by practicing recall, not be reading more slowly.
Usually, the more slowly you read, the more the mid wanders with little
comprehension and recall.

The ideal level on which to read is a purely mental or intellectual plane: Do

not clog or block information in your mind by negative emotions, such as
anxiety, worrying, and fear of "not getting it". If you develop an open,
positive, "go-for-it" attitude, you'll read much better.

At higher rates of speed, it's also helpful to talk to yourself. Discuss the
topic of each paragraph for additional clarity and reinforcement. Conceptual
vocalization, the skill of thinking out loud, enables you to better process
ideas and concepts.

In order to get the comprehension you need at faster speeds, it helps to have
an adequate background in the material. You can get background information in
several ways: (1) from reading other material on that subject, (2) from
personal experience, and (3) from prereading. The purpose of prereading is to
become familiar with the main ideas and to organize those ideas into a pattern.
This organizing step is crucial to developing speed in reading textbook
material.

One other hint that will help you read faster is often overlooked: Hold your
book four to six inches father away from your eyes than usual. Your eyes won't
have to work so hard because the father objects are from your eyes, the less
movement it takes to seem them all. So be sure your material is at least
fifteen inches from your eyes, you'll enjoy increased speed and comprehension,
and reduce fatigue.

Improving Concentration
Readers with the best comprehension are usually fast readers. The more slowly
you read, the more chances there are for your to day dream and lose
concentration and hence, comprehension. Comprehending well is a process and a
habit, not a mystery. Actually, comprehension is a twofold process: (1)
perceiving and organizing information, and (2) relating that information to
what you already know. Several factors determine the degree of comprehension
you'll get from the material you read. Those factors are your background in
that subject, your reading skills, and the organization and presentation of
that material.

There is virtually no comprehension when the reader does not have the necessary
vocabulary and background. Comprehension is largely dependent on how well the
reader already knows the subject. Because background increases the vocabulary
and subject familiarity, get the most amount of prior knowledge you can. Then
processing becomes almost subliminal, it happens so fast. When the reader has
an extensive background, there is even a point at which material can be read
prior to conscious awareness. Background is the reason of a beginning law
student might read at 70 to 200 words per minute, yet a practicing attorney can
read the same material much faster. Therefore, the first habit to get into
that will build comprehension is to gain the necessary background for that
subject. Two excellent ways to accomplish this are listening to lectures and
reading other, easier material on the same subject.

Greater Meaning
Reading is an active process, not passive. Anticipate ideas and read for a
purpose -- to answer your questions -- by actively searching for the
information you want. Have questions in mind before you read, not afterward.
If you begin reading a book with questions, you'll complete your reading with
the answers. Think about the important points and read to understand them. Be
confident that you can get what you want, and you will. Do not argue with the
author while reading. Save critical analysis for later, so you will not slow
yourself down, lose concentration, and miss the flow of the material. Put
pencil checks in the margins of the sections you would like to go back to.
Understanding, Not Memorizing
In order to have a smooth, continuous flow of information in your mind, don't
stop to memorize facts. Save that process for later when you study your notes,
and then continue. At all times you should read as rapidly as you can
understand the ideas.

Cultivate a Positive Attitude

You must care about what you are reading or studying. If you don't, create a
need to care. Use positive reinforcement. You might say to yourself, "Once I
get this reading done, I'll be able to do something I enjoy more". Done use
negative reinforcement or a self-threat, such as, "If I don't get an A in this
class, I'll lose my scholarship." If you maintain a strong, receptive
attitude, you will find comprehension will be easier because you are not
fighting yourself. Fighting reading is much like panicking while swimming.
The secret is to relax.

Upgrade Poor Habits

It's difficult to comprehend what you read when you are tired, sleepy,
depressed, or in pain. Some students complaint that their comprehension is
poor while doing their reading at three in the morning. At that hour, many
couldn't comprehend the morning newspaper. It is critical to be not only
alert, but relaxed. Be comfortable and in tune with the subject of the book.
Reading posture definitely affects comprehension. Sit at a desk when possible.
Study in an upright position with the book flat on the table, fifteen inches or
more away. The more stretched out and relaxed your study position, the more
you will encourage its usual result -- drowsiness, poor concentration or sleep.
If you want comprehension, speed, and retention, sit up alertly and act like
you are serious about accomplishing the task.

Layered Learning Process

The study procedure described in the previous section is an extremely useful
tool for comprehension. Basically it involves approaching the material on
several levels, and taking notes after each. As a review, here are the steps:

Browse through the material, becoming aware of its structure, complexity, and
organization.

Prepare and preview the material more slowly, noting bold-faced headings,
summaries, subtitles, visual aids, and topic sentences. Add main ideas to your
notes. Set your purpose: Exactly what level of comprehension do you need?
How far away is the exam? With your purpose in mind, set a realistic chapter
or section goal.

Read the material, a chapter at a time, moving as quickly as you can understand
the ideas. Stop after each page and add details to your main ideas.
Review your notes and text, filling in gaps, viewing the overall content and
organization, and refreshing your memory.

Think about and recall the information.

Organize
Your mind seeks organization, logical sequences, and order. Give it a chance
to comprehend the material by grouping ideas and details into meaningful
blocks. Restructure the material into easy-to-picture thoughts. Use every
positive combination of thought pictures that will work. When you perceive the
unity and structure of the material you are studying, you will grasp its
meaning much faster. Strive toward understanding the structure as well as the
details.

Write As You Read

Get in the habit of immediately recalling on paper what you have read. Because
you will understand each point better, the following point will be that much
clearer. Comprehension depends upon understanding each preceding idea. The
better you understand and recall one idea, the more likely you will understand
the next. Stick to each part of the study process, and you will find
comprehension becoming a habit.

Reading Points to Remember

Read for speed
1. Realize that there is no limit to your speed.
2. Read with your hand.
3. Learn to adjust your rates according to
material and purpose
4. See yourself as a good reader.
5. See more words at a time.

Read for comprehension

1. Read quickly to improve concentration.
2. Read actively for greater meaning.
3. Read to understand, not to memorize
4. Maintain a positive attitude.
5. Upgrade poor physical habits.
6. Use the layered learning process:
Browse
Preview
Read
Review
Recall
7. Organize what you read.
8. Write as you read.

Taking Notes
Efficient notes are vital to straight A's. Most of your studying should be
done from notes taken in class and from the text. Your notes show how ell you
understand material presented. Students are not usually taught how to take
concise, creative notes. Most have to learn from others or through trial and
error. Learn the following basics and then use your creativity to develop the
formats that work best for you and the subjects in which you are interested.

Summarize, Don't Duplicate

Your notes should not be a re-creation, but rather a synopsis, a synthesis.
Accuracy is your first consideration. But beyond that, try to reconstruct the
material in your own words. This is the beauty of good notes: They are more
understandable and interesting than a text or lecture. Include as many
examples as time or necessity permits.

Shorthand
It is time consuming to spell out each word you choose to include in your
notes. You can phonetically abbreviate by using the consonants of a word to
create a phonetic representation that you will be able to write rapidly and
interpret easily for review. Look at the following sentence from a lecture
given in a literature class:

Jean-Paul Sartre is a French existentialist who was born in Paris in 1905.

Your notes might read as follows:

Sartre, exis, Paris 1905.

Use as many symbols and abbreviations from math as you can. the following
table shows some symbols that can be used for shortcuts in notetaking.

Titles And Headings

The thoughts and ideas you record will not all be of the same importance. With
some practice, you will begin to automatically write more important ideas in
larger size print and details in a much smaller size. Such variations will
help you remember your notes more easily and make them more fun to take down.
Another helpful method is the use of geometric shapes to identify and
categorize ideas. The following table shows some examples.

Format of Subject
Each subject group has basic characteristics that help you organize your
information and thoughts on that particular subject. Notetaking stumps many
students because in some textbooks the information on each page is not well
organized. Some books may go for a dozen pages without bold-faced headings or
changes in organization. Difficulty in studying and taking notes often arises
from such textbooks. Fortunately, most textbooks are better written today than
they were years ago. Many have chapter summaries, bold-faced headings, and
questions to answer. But when you use a book that does not indicate what is
important by its format, use the information in the table that follows to help
organize your notes and study procedure. It includes the basic formats for
three main subject areas.

In order to take notes well, you must be proficient at sorting information. To

understand an idea, you need to see its parts as well as its whole. Depending
on the subject, the parts are quite predictable. First, find the main idea; it
is often in that first two sentences of each paragraph. To do that, look for
phrases like "most importantly", "first of all", "it must be emphasized
that..." Any similar phrase is the author's way of telling you that something
important is being said.

Second, find supporting details and examples to explain the main ideas. These
usually follow the main idea and often includes stories or data, such as names
and dates.

Next, isolate the information you need by sorting actual facts from filler
data, such as the author's personal experiences and opinions. This is easy
because the facts are often proper names, places, or numbers. Once isolated
from the facts, the remaining material can often be identified as filler.

Texts often follow a sequence. For example, math texts might follow this
sequence: Background information, statement of laws, axioms, or theorems,
examples, problems presented to be solved. When you take notes for a math
class, don't simply copy an important theorem. Ensure comprehension by
examining other parts of the sequence of information.

Creative Approach
The more unusual and eye-catching your notes are, the more you will enjoy
studying them and the easier it will be for to recall the information contained
in them. Don't use a standard outline form. Its two major drawbacks are
inflexibility and difficulty in recalling. Use pictures, cartoons, arrows,
different colored pens, and different size headings. Helpful, creative notes
take very little practice, but if you need some ideas, refer to the samples
that follow.

Keep Notes Together

An ingenious way to learn a subject quickly and with better understanding is to
take notes in tandem. Take class lecture notes on a page opposite the notes
you took while studying the text.

Ideally, you should read the text and take notes prior to the class lecture.
Put your notes on the left-hand side of your paper, leaving the right half for
class work. Then when the professor lectures, you will not only understand his
or her comments better, but you won't have to write as much. If you keep class
and study notes on the same topic together on a page, you will take fewer notes
and understand more. Other students in class may be writing frantically while
you relax and jot down only an occasional supporting detail. Even if you can't
take text notes in advance, bring your lecture notes home and reverse the
process.

Steps to Better Recall

Pay Attention
Being aware is the first step to developing better recall. Begin to notice the
part of the page on which information is located. Notice how it's presented,
and take an extra look at visual aids. Surprisingly, many people do not even
know what color their walls and curtains are, what their license plate number
is, or even their Social Security number. Knowing these things may not be very
important, but learning to be more aware of your surroundings can be very
helpful in developing memory skills.

Get Information Right

Make sure that you correctly understand the data. This sounds like a simple
rule, but particularly in the case of remembering statistics, people rarely
focus on the numbers themselves. They pay attention to the significance of the
numbers. At gatherings where new people are introduced, make sure you
understand a person's name and its spelling. Then repeat it for clarification
and reinforcement.

Develop A Positive Attitude

Telling yourself you can remember is part of developing a healthy self-image.
Faith in yourself relaxes and encourages stronger mental processes through
opening previously closed thought channels. We can only do what we believe we
can.

The Need To Remember

Most of the time, the incentive to remember information is already there. But
every object of memory is made much stronger when you intensify your desire to
recall. If you met someone at a party who interested you, your desire to
remember the right name and phone number would be strong. Similarly, when you
know you'll be tested on a book, your efforts increase appreciably.

Understand
Although it may sound obvious, make sure you thoroughly understand what you
want to remember. This rule applies equally to poetry, mathematics, history,
sciences, and related fields. If something makes sense, it's much easier to
recall.

Be Creative
One of the most powerful ways to recall is to unleash your imagination. Turn
your text material into pictures, change names into pictures, exaggerate, and
be artistic. Try to put some color into the data; associate the information
with sight, sound, taste, and smell.

Use Repetition
Immediately after a learning activity, preferably within an hour, refresh your
memory through a review. We use both long-term and short-term memory, and most
of what we take in goes into our short term memory. For example, when you look
up a number in the phone book, you remember it just long enough to dial it.
Then you promptly forget it. This is, of course, short-term memory. To
transfer memory data to long-term recall, we need to repeat it and use it for
reinforcement. The ideal way to study and memorize is to spend six sessions,
each lasting one hour, on a subject, rather than six hours straight. In this
way, data are reinforced sufficiently to be filed in long-term memory.

Create Mental Pictures

Often called the key to memorizing, mental pictures enable your mind to work in
its more natural state. Usually, your mind stores images and pictures, not
words. When you think of milk, do you picture the four letters m-i-l-k? Most
people picture a glass or carton of milk. By the normal storage system, by
creating mental pictures, you can remember data much more easily. Change words
and ideas into pictures and simply study the pictures, not the words.

Your memory skills will improve if you practice creating mental pictures about
what you want to recall. The more unusual and absurd the mental picture you
create, the more likely you will be to recall the word or information
associated with it.

Use the following ideas to create vivid mental pictures:

1. Imagine some kind of action taking place.

2. Form an image that is out of proportion.
3. Create in your mind an exaggerated
version of the subject.
4. Substitute and reverse a normal role. For example,
in order to remember to mail a letter, imagine the
letter carrying you out to the mailbox and stuffing
you inside.

Memory Skills By Association

Probably the simplest method of remembering is by association, the process of
recalling one item because another reminding you of it. This system requires no
more than some awareness and a quick mental picture. For example, if you
wanted to remember to bring a pen to class, simply imagine black, gooey ink all
over the door knob where you live. Make a quick but strong mental picture of
it. Then when you leave for class, reaching for the door knob will trigger the
mental picture of ink, and you'll remember your pen.

Improve your memory skills by practicing word associations using mental

pictures. For example, in associating the words table and dance, first form a
clear picture of a table in your mind. Visualize a tablet that you use
frequently, one familiar to you. In order to associate table with dance, image
the table, standing up on two legs, dancing wildly, with the other two legs
spinning in the air. Because it is such an absurd picture, it will stick in
your mind. Each time you think table, you will also think dance.

Linking words can continue in a similar manner. If you wished to next link the
word dance to duck, for example, you might create a mental picture of a huge,
six-foot-tall, all white, overfed, pot-bellied duck dancing and whirling, with
feathers flying.

Using the method of linking through mental pictures, you have created a chain
of associations: table to dance, dance to duck. In this way, you never try to
memorize more than one word at a time. The process is all done with mental
pictures. The system of forming associations by using the link method will
help you to memorize lists of names, places, events, items, or almost anything.

Contrasting Subjects
Apparently our subconscious needs time to sort and categorize information for
long-term storage and retrieval. To facilitate this process, do not study two
similar subjects back to back. Instead, work on a dissimilar subject in the
interval. For example, do not follow the study of algebra with calculus, or
Spanish with Italian.

Interference
Cut down on distractions that might ordinarily follow a study session. It is
best to study before a restful, quiet time or even before bed. Then your mind
will have time to relax, sort and store the necessary information.

Study Wholes
Whether the subject is a Shakespearean play or an assignment in anatomy, your
mind functions best with complete pictures to remember. Even if you have to
memorize only one part of a chapter, become familiar with all of it. For
example, if you had to explain to someone why a local beach has low and high
tides, it would be much easier if you also discussed how our tides are simply
opposite from those on the other side of the world. For some reason our recall
varies even within the whole picture we are learning. Use the BEM concept for
better recall: We remember material best from the beginning, second best from
the end and our recall is weakest on the middle. Therefore, spend more time on
the middle to allow for that tendency.

Practice Material
Frequently review, repeat, recite, and use the material you wish to remember.
Almost any information learned becomes familiar, and even second nature,
through usage. Try to integrate the data into daily usage. There is no
substitute for practice.

Practice Under All Conditions

If you practice recalling only under "prime" conditions, information may elude
you during test time. When you have critical information to remember, create
flash cards on 3 x 5 inch index cards to take with you. Then whenever you have
a break, at meal time, while relaxing, or in the library, study the cards and
practice recalling.

Preparing for Tests

The first and most obvious preparation for taking tests is to study beforehand.
But an effective study procedure that will help ensure success is one that is
planned from the beginning of the course and carried on, step by step,
throughout the school term.

First Few Weeks

To ace your tests, start the first week of school. Find out about your
instructor. What is his or her favorite topic or author. Is student
creativity encouraged, or is the class run by the rules? What kind of
classwork is expected? Exactly what will your studying entail? Try to read
ahead in your texts. Take notes before you go to class; it saves time and
increases your understanding. As you red, ask questions of yourself or bring
them to class. Add class lecture notes to your home text notes, always trying
to consolidate and unify them.

Middle of Course
Try to study a little every day. This is a lot more effective and less
stressful than cramming. Ask questions when you don't understand course
material. Don't put them off, or you will forget about them. See your
professor for extra help early in the term, not the day before a test. This
shows a genuine interest on your part, and the extra contact will pay off at
test time. Most important, be sure to introduce yourself and make the most
favorable impression you can. In your particular fields of interest, it's also
helpful to ask your professor if he or she has any suggested reading material
outside of assigned class texts. The secret is to show some genuine interest in
your class subject. You'll find that if you approach most subjects with an open
mind and a positive attitude, there will be a wealth of material to stimulate
and interest you. Allow your interest to extend to your professor. He or she
is like anyone else and appreciates the personal touch.

Read as much background material as possible. The more you read about a topic,
the greater your understanding of it, and the faster you will be able to read
it. Gaining a wide background in a subject area will give you a big edge at
test time. Another student may read the text and be able to recall most of it,
but you will have the advantage even if you can recall only part of the
additional reading you have done. You should also check your notes
occasionally to make sure they are familiar and understandable.

Last Week Before Exam

Find out what kind of exam will be given, and alter your studying accordingly.
If an objective test is scheduled, use memory techniques and concentrate on
details. For a subjective or essay exam, the best approach is to get a wide
background in that subject, stressing ideas rather than details. Concentrate
on knowing something about almost everything. Rework your notes into a new
format, trying to see the material from new angles. Review sessions are
helpful, but only get together with others if they are good students.
Otherwise, you will be readily "soaked" for information, and learn nothing
yourself. A C student usually doesn't enlighten an hour student.

Last Few Days

At this point, start identifying what you don't know. Many students review by
going over material they already know well. Often, parts they don't know are
ignored, making their study process ineffective. Don't pat yourself on the
back for what you do know: Find out what you don't know. Remember this secret
about how to study for tests: If your test is a final, turn to the index of
your textbook and start with the first entry. Ask yourself if you understand
that term, and continue until you come across an unfamiliar term. Look it up
in the text, read about it, then take notes on it so you won't forget again.
This system allows you to check yourself on every term, idea, person, and
detail in the entire textbook. If your test is only on chapters seven and
eight, turn to the table of contents and find out which pages those chapters
cover. Suppose those chapters include pages 77 to 102. Turn to the index
again, and start at the beginning again. But this time, look down the right
side, noting only the terms on pages 77 to 102. This way you will only study
the chapters you will be tested on.

Turn to the end of your text chapters and review the summary or listing of the
author's questions.

This can be helpful in directing your study efforts. At many colleges and
universities, tests used during previous terms are kept on file in the library.
These can be a gold mine because many professors don't rewrite a test each
term. Often the tests used may just be scrambled questions from old tests.
The prepared student has an easy A.

Many students find the use of homemade flash cards ideal, because they are
portable and often fun to use. You might put a possible test question on one
side and the answer on the other. Make notes on any data you seem to forget
easily. Certain things appear very easy to remember, and other seem easy to
forget. But remember if you forget it once, you will forget it again unless
you write it down.

A positive attitude is crucial the few days prior to an exam. The upcoming
test is not an execution. It is a chance to show what you have learned. Your
instructors want you to get good grades because it reflects on their teaching
success. Most instructors feel badly when students do poorly because that
mirrors their failure to communicate important concepts. Look at the exam as a
challenge and an opportunity to show what you have learned. If you admit to
yourself that you probably won't know the answer to every question you won't
get discouraged when you can't find the correct response.

Last Hours
You have already run the hardest part of the race. If you have kept up during
the term, you have already passed the exam; now it is the difference between an
A and a B. Others may have exam fever, but you can relax a bit. Get a full
night's sleep and be sure to eat and get some exercise the day of the exam.
That encourages better blood circulation and hence a better supply of oxygen to
your brain during exam time. You will be able to think more clearly. It is
best to exercise in moderation so that you are invigorated rather tan
exhausted. A brisk walk before the test is a good way to get exercise. Eat
good foods, but eat lightly or not at all within an hour of your test. If you
do eat, your body's energy and blood supply will be drawn toward your stomach
for digestion instead of toward your brain, where it is needed during test
time.

Be sure to review all notes and texts. Browse through each chapter, making
certain to expose your mind to as much information as possible. If you have
kept up, this will be a review and cramming won't be necessary. Your
confidence and calm mental attitude will encourage recall at test time. A
review on the night before the test should only take two or three hours. On
the day of the exam, arrive five to ten minutes early at your class. The best
way to relax is to prepare mentally. Get the seat you want in class and
practice recalling.

Exam
Now you can cash in your efforts. First, look over the entire exam. This will
help you allot your time wisely. Note the types of questions, which are given
the most point value, and which are most difficult. Do not pick up your pen
for a few minutes. Stop to think about your attack plan. Be relaxed and calm
while you plan your approach. A good test taker doesn't fight tests; the
secret is to relax.

Interpret and rephrase questions several ways to be sure you understand them.
Then, start with the easiest problems first, and work quickly and neatly. Be
sure to keep in mind the test directions as you answer. Don't overread
questions by assuming they are more complex than they appear at first. Read
them for what you believe is the intent of the question. Notice crucial or key
words in each question, such as "show", "contrast", "define", and other similar
directions. Try to answer every question unless you have absolutely no idea of
the answer; points are often subtracted from your grade for wrong answers.

Taking Objective Tests

Objective tests are those that include questions in true-false, multiple
-choice, matching, or fill-in format. The answer is usually provided, but the
student must decide among several possibilities.

True-False
True-false questions are the easiest test questions for the obvious reason that
you have at least a fifty-fifty chance of getting the right answer. First, be
sure you have read the question correctly. Look for such words as always or
never. These words often indicate a false answer. Such words as often,
usually, rarely, and sometimes can indicate a true answer. Decide if the
statement is totally true before you mark it true. Answer what the tester
intended, not what you read into the question. For example, the statement,
"General Motors produces compact cars," is true. If the question had read,
"General Motors alone produces compact cars," then it would have been false.
On true-false questions, stick with your first impression. Studies have shown
over and over that your first impression is usually right, so be slow to change
your answer, if at all. remember, a statement is more likely to be true if it
is a fairly long stand; it takes more qualifiers to make a true statement than
a false one.

Multiple-Choice
An important rule to remember when answering multiple-choice questions: Read
the answers first. This way, you'll view each answer separately and equally,
without "jumping" on the first and easiest one. Look for an answer that not
only seems right on its own, but completes the question smoothly. if the
question asks why something occurs, then your answer must be a cause. Try to
eliminate any obviously poor answers. Suspect as a possible right answer such
phrases as "all of the above", "none of the above", or "two of the above".
Check the wording of questions to notice qualifying phrases, such as "all of
the following are true except " or "which two of the below are not".
Statistically, the least likely correct answer on a multiple-choice question is
the first choice. When in doubt, pick the longer of the two answers. But,
just as in true-false sections, always put something down. Even an educated
guess is better than leaving the question blank and getting it wrong for sure.

Sentence Completion
These generally ask for an exact word from memory. They don't allow for much
error, so make sure your answer is a logical part of the sentence as a whole.
Use the length and number of blanks given as a hint. Make sure the grammar is
consistent. When in doubt, guess. Even if it's a generalized guess, you may
get partial credit. If you are unsure of two possibilities, include both and
hope for half-credit.

Essay Tests
When answering questions on an essay test, begin by making an outline.
Assemble and organize the main points. Check the wording of the question to
make sure you are interpreting the question correctly. For example, if the
question asks you to compare and contrast, do not give a description or a
discussion. Begin your essay by using the same words in your answer that are
in the question. Keep your answer to the point. Always write something in
answer to a question, even if you don't have much to say.

Think and write by using this format:

1. Introduction -- Introduce your topic.

2. Background -- Give historical or philosophical background data to orient

the reader to the topic.

3. Thesis and Arguments -- State the main points including causes, effects,
methods used, dates, places, and results.

4. Conclusion -- Include the significance of each event, and finish up with a

summary.

When totally stumped for an answer on an essay, think about book titles, famous
names, places, dates, wars, economics, and politics. Usually something will
trigger ideas. If you know nothing about the essay question, invest your own
question on the subject and answer it. You'll usually get at least partial
credit. That's better than nothing.
Aftermath
When you complete a test, be sure to reread all your answers. Check the wording
of the questions again. Eliminate careless errors, and you can save a lot of
disappointment later. Take as much time as you need. When you think you have
finished the test, turn it upside down on your desk. Think about it for a few
minutes, giving your mind some time to relax and come up with some answers. if
you still agree with what you have written, then turn it in. But sometimes
those few moments spent just thinking about the questions will help you recall
the answer that gets an A.

Once your corrected test is returned, look it over. Check your errors, and
find out not what they were, but what kinds of errors they were. Were they
from answering questions too quickly, poor organization, a missed assignment,
or incorrect notes? Understand why you made errors, and avoid the problem on
the next test.

Preparing for Tests

1. First few weeks of classes:
Find out about your instructor.
Read ahead.
Take notes before class.
2. Midcourse:
Study every day.
Ask questions.
See your teacher.
Read background material.
3. The last week before the test:
Find out about exam format.
Rework notes.
4. Last few days before test:
Brush up on your weak areas.
Think positively.
5. Hours before the exam:
Sleep well.
Exercise.
Eat lightly.
Review your notes.
6. Exam time:
Read thoroughly.
Budget your time.
Interpret questions.

Taking Objective Tests

1. True-false:
Look for key words.
Trust your first impression.
2. Multiple choice:
Read answers first.
Eliminate poor choices.
Check wording of question.
3. Sentence completion or fill-in:
Make sure answer is logical.
Make sure grammar is consistent.
When in doubt, guess.

Taking Essay Tests

1. Outline.
2. Assemble and organize.
3. Write your introduction, background,
thesis and conclusion.
4. Reread.

Term Papers: Steps to Success

What Is a Term Paper?

A term paper or research paper is an opportunity for you to show several
things: (1) that you can examine a topic in detail, (2) that you know research
methods, (3) that you know your way around a library, (4) that you can organize
a bulk of information in a proper way, and (5) that you can write clearly. So
remember that a research paper is an opportunity to show how good a student
your are. Do not approach the task of writing one as a terrible burden, a task
to be avoided as long as possible.

When you are preparing a research paper, you will be reading books and articles
written by others about your topic. You will be tempted to use their knowledge
as if it were your own. If you do, you may be guilty of plagiarism.

It is inevitable, however, that you use the ideas that others have thought
about your topic. The way to do so honestly, avoiding plagiarism, is to tell
your readers who created the ideas you are using. The way to tell your readers
is to write footnotes or end notes, giving the name of the work and the author
whose ideas you have used. Later in this chapter you will find information
about the form such notes should take.

Nine Steps
Like other jobs you have as a student, the task of writing a research paper can
be broken down into sequential steps. There are nine steps in research.

1. The first is to read general literature in the subject area you choose to
examine. It may seem strange to begin reading before you have chosen a topic,
but you will find that by reading general information on the subject, you will
be able to choose a specific topic that interests you and for which there is
sufficient material to do a paper.

In order to read general literature, you must have an idea about your topic.
For example, if you have received an assignment in history to write a paper on
something that happened in the years from 1609 to 1865, you should think about
the specific era you want to examine. Is it the Revolution, the War of 1812,
or the writing of the Constitution? Then, once you have chosen the general
area, you go to the reference section of your library and read articles in the
encyclopedias and specialized reference works dealing with U.S. history, such
as the Dictionary of American Biography. You can also read sections of a
standard textbook on U.S. history.

2. As you read the general literature, you should be looking for a suitable
topic. Finding your topic is the second step in writing a paper.

After you have chosen your topic, limit it. Think about the particular aspect
you are going to examine. For example, if you decided to do research on the
writing of the U.S. Constitution, you could limit your topic to the role of
James Madison in the writing of the Constitution, or the seventeenth century
political philosophers, who influenced the writers of the Constitution, or
perhaps the role of Benjamin Franklin in the writing of the Constitution. By
limiting your topic, you are making it specific. you will be able to guide
your research and avoid reading works that pertain to your general area of
research, but not to your specific topic. This limiting of your topic becomes
a great time saver.

3. The next step in the process of writing a research paper is to write a

working outline. A working outline is a preliminary organizer for your
research. You will make your thesis statement, saying what it is that you will
try to prove, and then divide your topic into its natural, general divisions.
You do not need to make this outline detailed -- merely a statement of the
major areas of the topic. For example, to continue, let's see what a
preliminary outline might be for the topic, "the role of James Madison in
writing the Constitution.

I. Thesis statement: Madison, the "architect"

of our Constitution.
II. Early life
A. Childhood, adolescence, things Madison studied
B. What Madison did during the Revolution
III. How the Constitution was written
A. Nature of government under "Articles of
Confederation"; failure of that government.
B. Convening of the Constitutional Convention
C. How the Convention operated
1. Factions
a. Supporters of "Articles"
b. "Federalists"
2. Major ideas that were proposed
IV. Role of Madison
A. His faction
B. Importance to that faction
C. His accomplishments
1. When Convention opened
2. As the Federalists' proposals came forth
D. Madison's proposals
V. Final form of Constitution
A. Brief survey of theoretical model of
U.S. Government
B. Madison's contribution
VI. Conclusion showing that thesis statement is proved

4. The fourth step is doing a research paper is to write bibliography cards of

the books and articles you will read. Use 3 by 5 cards, one book or article per
card.

To find the names of the books, use all the resources of the reference room of
the library. Encyclopedia articles will recommend books to read for further
study; indexes, such as the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature, will
provide help. Use the card catalogue of the books in the library. As the
reference librarians for help; they are a resource too!

When you have found a likely book or article, put down all the publisher's
information on your card. For a book, put the full name of the author, the
full title (including subtitle), the name of the publisher, the place of
publication, and the copyright date. For articles, write the name of the
author (if given), title of the article (if given), the name of the magazine or
encyclopedia, the date of issue of the particular magazine or encyclopedia, the
page numbers of the article. If you are reading an encyclopedia article,
include all the publishing information that you would include for any book.
These bibliography cards will contact all the information you need when writing
footnotes or bibliographies.

5. The fifth step is to read the works and take notes. Take your notes on 5 x
8 or 4 x 6 cards, one note to a card. Write only on one side of the card. If
your note runs over one card, write on a second card rather than on the back of
the first card. That way, when you lay the cards on your desk as you write,
you won't have to turn them over to see what is on the back and you will save
time.

At the top of each card, write an abbreviation of the title of the work cited
and the pages in the work from which the note came. Write down direct
quotations if you must, but it is better to put the notes in your own words.
Keep your cards in a box or packet -- don't lose hem.
6. After you have taken your notes, write a detailed outline of your paper.
This outline is the one from which you will write your paper, so make it as
detailed as you can. Make the arrangement of your ideas clear and logical.

7. Then assemble your note cards, putting them in the order of your final
outline, and begin to write your first draft.

8. After your rough draft, revise and revise again, until you are satisfied
with your paper.

9. Finally, put your paper in the form required by your teacher, using
acceptable footnote and bibliography formats.

Being Systematic
The first thing you should do when assigned a research paper is to write down a
schedule. Allot time for each of the nine steps, allowing about one-third of
the total time for steps 1-4, about one-third for reading and taking notes, and
the remaining third for composing the paper, steps 6-9.

To allot time for the stems, start your estimates from the date of the paper is
due and work backward. For example, you have received an assignment from your
history professor and have been told that the research paper must be turned in
on the last day of the term, nine weeks later.

Write a schedule like the one below, and put the date the paper is due next to
step 9. Then, next to step 5, put the date of the day that is three weeks
before the end of the term. Then, next to step 4, put the date of the day that
is the six weeks before the end of the term.

After you have divided the available time into the major parts, subdivide the
major areas. In our example you were given nine weeks to complete the
assignment. Your division would be something like this: Of the three weeks for
steps 1-4, allow yourself about five days for general reading, about two days
for selecting your working bibliography; of the three weeks you allow yourself
for writing, estimate that your outline will take five days, composing the
rough draft about five days, revising about six days, preparing the final copy
about five days, and preparing the final copy about five days.

Once your schedule is in place, you are ready to begin. As you search through
the general literature, be systematic in your efforts. Being systematic is
perhaps the key to success in doing research. Look carefully at all the
available general literature, and then when you begin to collect your
bibliography, be systematic in the writing of the cards. When you are writing
your notes, be systematic again. Make sure every notation is clear, especially
the page numbers, so that you will not have to retrace your steps and redo some
research because you couldn't remember from which source a good idea came.
Footnotes and Bibliography
You must give the source for every idea and quotation you use in your paper.
Otherwise you are being academically dishonest.

Give the sources for the ideas you use in proper footnotes or end note form.
Footnotes and end notes follow the same form. However, they appear in
different places in your paper. As the names suggest, footnotes are put at the
foot of the page on which the citation occurs, and end notes at the end of the
paper. Use whichever type your professor prefers.

Footnotes and end notes must contain the following information.

For a book:
1. Author's complete name, first name first
2. Title of work underlined
3. Editor, compiler, or translator if there is one
("edited by," etc.)
4. Series, if any, volume in the series
5. Edition number, if book is not the first edition
(2nd ed., e.g.)
6. Number of volumes, if there are more than one.
7. Publication facts, in parentheses:
city of publication
publisher
publication date
8. Volume number, if there is more than one volume
9. Number of page on which the idea or quotation appears

For an article:
1. Author's name, if given
2. Article title, in quotation marks
3. Title of magazine or journal (underlined)
in which article appears
4. Volume number and issue number of magazine or journal
5. Page number on which idea or quotation appears.

Heart are two footnote examples.

For a book:

John J. Audubon, Birds of America, (New York, Macmillan, 1946), p. 14.

For an article:

Allan Devoe, "Our Feathered Friends", Nature Magazine 21 (October 1951) pp. 21
-23.

It is likely that you will want to cite the same work a number of times in the
course of your paper. it would be awkward and time consuming to write the full
citation each time. To save yourself time and effort, you may use shortened
reference. The first time a reference to a book or an article appears, it must
be given in full; however, subsequent references may appear in shortened form.

There are two methods of shortening reference. One involves given the last
name of the author, a shortened version of the book or article title, and the
appropriate page number. For example:

Albert Einstein, The World As I See It (Princeton University Press, 1949), p.

84.

becomes

2. Einstein, The World, p. 104.

The second method involves omitting the book or article, title and giving only
the author's last name followed by a comma and the appropriate page reference.

You should be aware that some scholars still use certain abbreviations to
shorten footnote and bibliography reference, but this practice has fallen out
of use to a great degree. The following list is given only to make you aware
of these abbreviations. The three most frequently used are ibid. (Latin,
meaning the same place), op. cit. (Latin, meaning the work cited or quoted),
and loc. cit. (Latin, meaning the place cited). Here are some more examples:
anon. -- anonymous
c. or ca. -- circa (about; used only with dates)
cf -- compare or confer
ch., chaps. -- chapter, chapters
col., cols -- column, columns
e.g. -- exempli gratia (for example)
et. seq. -- et sequens (and following)
f., ff. -- following page, following pages
fac. -- facsimile
fig., figs. -- figure, figures
l, ll -- line, lines
id, idem -- in the same place
i.e. -- id est (that is)
ms., mss. -- manuscript, manuscripts
n. -- note
n.b. -- nota bene (note well)
n.d. -- no date
no., nos. -- number, numbers
n.p. -- no publisher
n.s. -- new series
p., pp -- page, pages
pseud. -- pseudonym
sec., secs. -- section, sections
sic -- thus
[sic] -- error in original
v. -- verse
viz -- namely
vol., vols. -- volume, volumes

Footnotes, like a sound bibliography, make your paper more scholarly and
interesting. It is better to use too many than too few, but they can be
overdone. Use them to reflect your honesty in recognizing the important
sources from which you have gathered information and to add interest in your
theme. Look at one or two of your textbooks or several scholarly books in your
school library for effective methods of footnotes and bibliographies.

At the end of your paper you will write a list of the books you used. This
list is called the bibliography. There are two kinds of bibliographies: One
contains only those works from which you quoted or got ideas (all properly
footnoted, of course), and the other contains those works that you consulted.
This latter type includes all the works you cited and also other works that
pertain to your topic, but which you did not use as sources. Make sure to ask
your teacher which kind of bibliography is required for your paper.

Again, as in footnoting, a proper format is necessary. You must include all

information necessary for someone else to be able to find the book or magazine
in a library. the form of the bibliography entry is slightly different from
the footnote entry.

For a book:
1. Author's complete name, last name first,
followed by a period
2. Title of work, underlined, followed by a period
3. Editor, compiler, or translator, if there is one,
followed by a period
4. Edition, if not the first, followed by a period
5. Number of volumes, if more than one,
followed by a period
6. Publication facts:
city of publication, followed by a colon
publisher, followed by a comma
publication date, followed by a period

For an article:
1. Author's name, last name first, followed by a period
2. Article title, in quotation marks, followed by a period
3. Publication facts:
Name of magazine, journal or book, underlined,
followed by a comma
Volume number of magazine or journal
Publication date, in parentheses, followed by a comma
4. Page numbers, inclusive, of the article,
followed by a period

Below are two examples of bibliography entries:

Audubon, John J. Birds of America. New York: Macmillan, 1946.

Devoe, Allan. "Our Feathered Friends." Nature Magazine, 21 (October 1951), pp.
21-23.

Bibliographies are usually divided into sections -- books first and then
articles. Sometimes they are divided into sections for primary sources
(eyewitness accounts) and secondary sources (people writing about something
that they themselves did not witness). In each section of the bibliography the
entries are alphabetical, according to the last name of the author, or if the
author's name is not given, according to the first word of the title.

A Word of Caution
The term paper or research theme, if approached by the student as a difficult
and time-consuming burden, usually turns out to be a boring and padded piece of
work that boldly betrays the writer's lack of interest. If the them is looked
upon as a challenge and a chance for discovery and creative work, the product
is what one would expect -- a well-written essay, reflecting wide reading and
grasp of material, and intellectually stimulating to the instructor who reads
it.

Originality in the term paper is always of great value, but your grade is
probably derived more from the scope of the paper -- scope referring o the
extent of the writer's reading on the subject before he or she starts to write.
Originality, like all other inventiveness, is not the gift of all, but there is
no student who cannot read widely and fulfill the basic obligation of having a
good working knowledge of the subject. Only by first doing extensive study
does the writer ever arrive at the place where the imaginative consideration of
the ideas of others may bring into existence new ideas from other sources, so
the student who is deluded by thinking that he or she can write a successful
paper without extensive background reading will doubtless be rudely
disillusioned by a poor grade.

Practice for Better Term Papers

1. Make a schedule of the nine steps in research, and assign a date for
completion of each step. Put the schedule in your workplace.

2. Allow one-third of your allotted time for writing.

3. Use all resources of your library, including the librarian.

4. If you find you have chosen a topic for which you can't gain ready access to
information, change your topic, and revise your work schedule. You should be
able to tell whether you need to change when you try to compile your working
bibliography. If you can't find many books and articles, take the hint -- you
will have a difficult time gathering notes and writing your paper.

5. Be systematic in taking your notes. Make sure that every page number is
accurate and that you will be able to find the passage cited if you are asked
to do so.

The Library: How to Use It

How to Find a Book

Your libraries provide both atmosphere and incentive for serious study. The
library habit could become one of your best study habits. It is the purpose of
this section to prepare you to find what you want in the library and make you
familiar with what is available there.

Knowing the parts of a book -- title, author, publisher, date of publication,

edition -- is the first step toward finding what you want in the library. With
this information you are prepared to determine whether the book you want is in
the library, and for this you use the card catalogue.

The card catalogue is an alphabetical index to all the books in the library.
cards are filed alphabetically, beginning with the first important word of the
title. In addition to the title card there are also author and subject cards.
The title card is the quickest if you know what book you want:

TITLE CARD
598.2 Audubon bird guide
P Pough, Richard G.
Audubon bird guide; eastern land birds
Doubleday, 1946

Suppose you read the book and decide that you would like to read some more of
the author's works. You return he book you have read to the library and check
the author card for additional books. There is an author card for each
separate work of the author. For example, let us imagine you have read John
Kieran's An Introduction to Birds and are checking the author cards for more
books by him. On the author card his name is listed Kieran, John. If the
library has his Birds of New York City, it will be first. The next author car
will probably list Footnotes on Nature; and the third, arranged alphabetically,
will be the book you have just returned, Introduction to Birds. The author
card usually gives the most complete information regarding the book, but it may
contain the same facts as the other cards:

AUTHOR CARD
598.2 Pough, Richard H.
Audubon bird guide; eastern land birds
Doubleday, 1946
Birds

Suppose you wish to pursue your study of birds but do not know authors or
titles. A third card is available to help you. It is called the subject card
and it may be indexed as a general subject (BIRDS) or as a specific subject
(SONGBIRDS). Subject cards are either printed with the subject in capitals or
in red ink to distinguish them:

SUBJECT CARD
BIRDS
598.2 Pough, Richard H.
P Audubon bird guide; eastern land birds
Doubleday, 1946

SUBJECT CARD
(MORE COMPLETE)
AMERICAN FOLKWAYS
917.63 Kane, Harnett Thomas 1910
K Deep Delta Country, Duell 1944
XX, 283 p. maps. Selected bibliography
pp. 273-80

Subject cards are not used for fiction, except historical novels of critically
recognized merit.

You cannot carry the file to show the librarian what you want. You must write
(sometimes special forms are provided) the following information: (1) call
number, (2) author's name, (3) title, (4) volume and edition, and (5) your own
name.

The numbers on the cards are symbols in a classification system, providing you
with a call number by which you request the book. The same number tells the
librarian in what section of the library, on what shelf, and in what specific
place on the shelf the book is to be found.

Systems of Classification
There are two widely used systems of classification: the Dewey Decimal system
and the Library of Congress system. The Dewey Decimal system is the one you
will probably use most often. It was developed at Amherst College in 1873 and
catalogues all knowledge under ten divisions, each division being assigned a
group of numbers.

If you go to the section of the library shelving Applied Science, 600-699, you
see immediately that each division is further divided. For example, 600-610
has general books or collections dealing with applied science. Medicine is
classified under 610. Books on engineering being with 520 and are further
broken down by smaller decimals. A glance at the history shelves reveals that
900-909 includes general works of history; 910 is geography; and so on by
decimal subdivision. English is subdivided into literature of nations, then
further catalogued. For example, English literature is 820; English poetry
821; English drama 822, and so on to 829.99. English poetry, 821, is further
subdivided; 821.1 is early English poetry; and so on to 821.9, each subdivision
designating a specific period. A little observation will make it easy for you
to find the exact spot in a particular section of the library where your
subject can be pinpointed.

The Library of Congress system of classification designates the main divisions

of knowledge by letters instead of numbers. Subdivisions in the Library of
Congress system are made by the addition of a second letter and whole numbers.
No detailed explanation is given of this system beyond the letter
classification of knowledge.

Library of Congress System

Letter Main Divisions
A General Works
B Philosophy and Religion
C History -- Auxiliary Sciences
D History -- Topography (except American)
E-F American History -- Topography
G Geography -- Anthropology
H Social Sciences
J Political Sciences
K Law
L Education
M Music
N Fine Arts
P Language -- Literature (nonfiction)
Q Sciences
R Medicine
S Agriculture
T Technology
U Military Science
V Naval Science
Z Bibliography and Library Science
P and Z Literature (fiction)

Fiction and Biography

Fiction and biography are usually arranged in a section set aside for each, and
the cataloguing is usually simplified. This is always true of fiction. In the
fiction section, the books are arranged alphabetically by the author's last
name. In case of two or more books by the same author, they are shelved
alphabetically by title. Some libraries use the classification symbol F or Fic
plus the first letter of the author's last name.

Biography is usually classified by the letter B or the number 92. However,

some libraries classify individual biographies under 921 and collective
biographies under 920. The B and 92 classifications also carry the first
letter of the last name of the person written about. Thus, a biography of
Abraham Lincoln is designated B or 92. Biographies are arranged on the shelf
alphabetically by the last name of the person written about. In case of more
than one biography written about the same man, arrangement is alphabetical by
the author's name. Collective biographies are arranged alphabetically
according to the author or compiler's name.

Here is a card for collective biography. Some of the information is explained

below:

(1)
920 Rome-Biography
P Plutarch
Plutarch Lives. The translation called Dryden's.
Corrected from Greek and revised by A.H. Clough--
(2) 5 v. Boston, Little, Brown and Co. 1872
(3) L.C. DE7.P5 1872 8-14601

(1) Call number

(2) Five volumes
(3) Library of Congress Catalogue number

With this information fresh in your mind, visit your library. Discover the ease
with which you can find your way from one section to another and remember it so
you will not have to roam. Wandering from section to section and from shelf to
shelf each time you visit the library wastes your time and is probably annoying
to people who are trying to concentrate on their work.

Reference Books
Reference books provide invaluable help to the student by making important
information easily accessible. This is the whole function of the reference
section of the library. As you prepare themes, reports, essays, or research
papers, you can help yourself get a good start by using these books. They not
only give you general information about a topic, but direct you to other works
that cover your topic in greater depth.

Reference sections of libraries contain many different kinds of works, and what
follows here is merely a guide to some basic kinds of reference books.

Perhaps the first book to catch your eye in the reference section of the
library will be an unabridged dictionary, a book of such size that it has its
own special rack. An unabridged dictionary contains nearly all the works in
the language, giving definitions, showing pronunciation, and presenting
information about the origin and history of each word. As well as entries
about works, such a dictionary contains biographical and geographic
information, abbreviations, tables of weights and measures, and commonly used
foreign phrases. Two unabridged dictionaries often found are the Merriam
-Webster's unabridged dictionary and the Random House unabridged dictionary of
the English language. The most comprehensive of all of the dictionaries is the
Oxford English Dictionary. It is many volumes long, and because of the
exhaustive length and the high quality of its scholarship, it is the most
respected authority on words.

In order to use these massive books, you need to know the abbreviations the
editors have used. Abbreviations and their means are listed in either the
front or back. Be sure to consult this list whenever you are in doubt about
the meaning of an entry.

In addition to dictionaries, reference sections of libraries may contain

thesauruses of words, usually Roget's or a modernized version of this work. A
thesaurus is a compilation of synonyms and so is valuable to anyone doing any
kind of writing.

Another source of good information about words is The New Century Cyclopedia of
Names, which provides an abundance of information about the origins, history,
and meaning of names used in English. Two sources of information about English
as spoken and written in the United States are H.L. Mencken's The American
Language and Bergen Evans' Dictionary of Contemporary American Usage.

In your English class you may be asked to write essays about works of
literature. The reference section of the library contains many examples of
literary criticism and much information about authors. Contemporary Literary
Criticism is a collection of reviews of books by living authors. Twentieth
Century Literary Criticism contains biographical essays about authors, as well
as collections of reviews of works but is filled with biographical information
about living authors, including lists of titles of their written works. Book
Review Digest is perhaps the standard reference of literary criticism, for it
contains excerpts from reviews of almost all published nonfiction and fiction.
Any work of nonfiction that receives two reviews in periodicals or journals are
listed, and so is any work of fiction that receives four reviews.

Whenever you are asked to do a research paper, one place to look for a topic is
in general encyclopedias. Encyclopedias, their very name derived from the
Greek enkyklios (encircle) and paideia (education), enclose in one volume or
set of volumes masses of information on nearly any conceivable topic.

Every reference section of libraries contains encyclopedias; some libraries

have several. Most common are World Book, especially written for younger
people, Americana, Britannica, and Colliers, but there are others as well.
Most encyclopedias update their information by adding a volume, called an
annual or a yearbook, each year for a decade or so after publication.

All encyclopedias are arranged alphabetically by subject, and most contain

indexes to both topics and contributing authors. The essays in encyclopedias
are written by experts, give information in a clear, compact form and often
contain a brief bibliography of other works that pertain to the essay's topic.

In addition to these encyclopedias of many volumes, there is an excellent

single-volume work, The Columbia Encyclopedia. It covers the vast array of
human knowledge, but necessarily devotes less space to topics than a multiple
-volumed work.

There are also specialized encyclopedias that deal with particular subjects and
are limited to particular fields of knowledge, such as art, science,
technology, music, or history. Libraries sometimes have encyclopedias that
limit their scope to particular religions and ethnic groups, such as the
Catholic Encyclopedia or the Jewish Encyclopedia.

For information on contemporary events you can turn to one or another of the
yearbooks that you might find in the reference section. Facts on File is an
annual collection of digests of news articles on current events, and all
subjects are indexed for easy use. Annuals, such as the World Almanac contain
up-to-date statistics, some valuable facts about government agencies and
personnel, sports, scientific developments, and information on many other
topics. Both national and state governments produce yearbooks of various
kinds. You will find all of these works to be great assistance if you have to
prepare a paper on contemporary developments.

Most reference sections contain numerous biographical dictionaries. Some

volumes are specifically devoted, for example, to musicians, writers, or
statesmen. Others give sketches of noteworthy persons from every walk of life.
Who's Who in America, Dictionary of American Biography, Webster's Biographical
Dictionary, and Chamber's Biographical Dictionary are general works. The
Dictionary of National Biography is devoted to noteworthy citizens of Great
Britain. Current Biography, published in magazine form several times a year,
and put in book form by years, is a place to gather facts on someone who has
become prominent in the immediate present.

In addition to contemporary material afforded by yearbooks, there are many

interesting and valuable articles in magazines and newspapers. The Reader's
Guide to Periodical Literature is the standard reference to magazine articles.
The Reader's Guide is published twice a month and lists alphabetically, by
author, subject, and title, the significant articles from more than a hundred
magazines. The New York Times Index is a guide to the articles found in that
newspaper. The Index is published monthly and lists alphabetically, by
subject, articles and editorials that appeared in the newspaper.

Records and Films

Many libraries have good audiovisual departments containing recordings of
famous speeches, color slides of paintings, architectural illustrations, and
other pictures relating to geography, history, and all other aspects of
knowledge. Ask the librarian for help in unlocking their treasure chest of
visual materials.

A great deal of material is available to libraries through microfilms and

microcards. Vast quantities of information have been reduced in volume and in
cost by these techniques, and so many libraries have been able to expand their
holdings. Most microfilm or microcard holdings are of newspapers, periodicals,
or rare books. As you do research for history papers or perhaps for an English
paper, you may find articles you want to read are on film. Ask you librarian
for help in finding the articles you want and in using the microfilm reading
machine.

Tests given to both high-school and college students reveal that those who make
the highest marks are those who know how to use the library and do use it. It
is the place most conducive to study, the place that provides the greatest
storehouse of material from which to learn; so learn to use it and use it to
boost your marks, widen your horizons, and enlarge your life.

Better Library Use

1. Form the library habit. It is a place for quiet study and exciting
discovery.

2. Learn the meaning of "call number" and the use of author, title, and subject
catalogue cards.

3. Know the Dewey Decimal system and the location of the several divisions in
your school or public library.
4. Know the methods of arranging fiction and biography used by your library;
arrangements vary from one library to another.

5. Study the reference section to learn generally what is available, its

location, and the use to which the various materials may be put.

6. Learn to make a working bibliography as you find material on the topic you
are studying. For a model bibliography, check several at the ends of articles
in one or two encyclopedias. Use the card method (3 by 5 index cards) of
making your bibliography so you can rearrange at will. Know the difference
between a working and an exhaustive bibliography (an exhaustive bibliography
lists everything ever written on the topic). Choose a limited topic, some
significant yet not too well known historical character, and discover the
excitement and methodical investigation involved in preparing a complete
bibliography. Be sure to limit your topic -- not Financiers of the American
Revolution, rather Haym Saloman -- not the Mimic (Mimidae) Family of birds,
rather the Mockingbird.