Effective Study Methods To Increase Productivity At College

Effective Study Methods To Increase Productivity At College

BY ALYSSA SELLORS

 

Amongst all those hunger quenching hostel nights at the nearby Maggi-point or the countless hours spent over the phone just because you forgot your girlfriend’s birthday or the evening football matches on the field, studies often take a backseat unless exams are only a day away. Judging by the time-crunch every student faces (which is kind of their own doing), indulging in smart study methods seems like the way to go unless you want to repeat a subject come summer vacations.

Here’s a little anecdote of how students can make their learning experience more productive and efficient:

 

 

• Education Videos And Their Procurement: One of the most exasperating tools that helps a student understand the intricate details of each subject is through educational videos that are available on the web. These videos have been abstracted by highly experienced professors from all around the world to help you have an enriching experience. So, next time when you decide to squeeze up all your monthly Internet bytes over a continuous Game-of-Thrones-watching-spree, think again!

But how do we extract these videos from their main source in order to view them anytime at our own comfort? This is where Vidmate enters the fray. This amazing software lets you download educational videos in the desired format and the quality that you prefer. This is indeed a great app for students who want to take e-learning to the next level.

So, if you miss your classes or were busy cracking up jokes with your best friend during the lectures, Vidmate is there at your disposal.

 

• Open Coursework Material: Many universities and schools have put their entire material like videos, books and other graphic material online for the whole world to access and use it. This data has been provided by some of the topmost universities of the world.

One of the most comprehensive coursework materials have been produced by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, popularly known as MIT. Another great example is Stanford’s Engineering Everywhere, a platform which helps you watch videos, download content and do a whole lot more than simply ‘reading’ data.

 

• Three-dimensional applications: This is a nascent and emerging field but it has helped many students all around the world take a deeper look into the concepts. These are flash applications that allow you to change the setting of the system and see how the system works.

 For example, many such electric circuits are available which allow you to set the voltage and the appliances together to see how much current and power does each appliance consume. On a higher note, many appliances allow you to handle a transistor or a radio circuit to see how they work and study the dependence of the quantities on each other.

 

• E-Solutions and Doubt-clearing: Many sites and solution providers have started consolidated services to help students study in a wholesome manner. Sites like ‘Meritnation’ provide key features like pointers, solutions to your books and many other services like asking doubts to expert faculty and more.

LERNR is the new kid on the block which is the brainchild of fellow IITians and has gained immense popularity due its unique curriculum. If you’re looking to take the plunge, this would be a good place to start!

 

 

• Online Courses: This is by far the most balanced option to learn creatively and make the best of both worlds. Sites like EdX and Coursera offer amazing courses, capstone projects and specializations in all kinds of fields. The process if synonymous to SimpliLearn.com but here’s a catch, the certificates that you get from Coursera are actually signed by instructors with seals and logos from juggernaut universities like Stanford, Harvard and MIT. Many other top universities around the world conduct their courses through Coursera. This is a brilliant way to get international certification. Plus, the price for each course varies from INR 1,700 to INR 3,000 which is very cheap when compared to their Indian counterparts that have far lesser value (These are non-credit courses).

 Another site, namely Stanford Online offers premium certificate courses from the prestigious Stanford University without any third party platform like Coursera and they actually provide credits for your undergraduate degree.
Google also offers multiple courses in its applications for free. To get certified after completion of the course, you can pay INR 650 and schedule a test. All you need to do is pass the test and give your resume that much needed edge and voila!

 

 

• Motivational Books and Videos: You should definitely try to watch motivational videos and other great thought-provoking videos on YouTube and TEDx. Also, you might wanna read books like ‘You Can Win – Shiv Khera’ or ‘Surprising Truth about what motivates us – Daniel Pink’. Indeed, these books and videos act as catalyst to the champion inside you. P.S. – The ‘Eye of the tiger’ Rocky video will work just the same!

 

 

• Planning Schedules and Reading Blogs: Another great way to increase productivity is to be efficient, have a great schedule and avoid mistakes. Sites like Letsintern.com publish amazing amount of articles and interviews that highlight how to be more productive. They share real-life stories of people who’ve made it big without necessarily having all the amenities at their disposal.

 Talking about the status quo, your productivity is directly proportional to the number of Coursera and International Certificates you can flaunt. These resources not only help you learn new things, but they help you find the right subject and topic that will help you rise and touch the horizon. The seeds that you sow today will reap mangoes and probably roses tomorrow.Indeed, there are many more resources available on the Internet; you just need to look harder for them.

About the Author:  Alyssa Sellors has been teaching English and Journalism for seven years. Currently she works for a number of online publications as a freelance writer and contributor.