Education has always been a necessary parameter for self-development. We start our education in kindergarten then primary then high school and then college. Through all these stages of education, we learn a lot and that constant thought of performing better in our exams keep hitting mind. Grades are surely not a parameter to judge someone's intelligence, but maintaining a decent score to qualify for a better school or to outshine others is important to everyone. Well, who doesn't want a great academic performance? Study habits are the most important factor for academic performance and play a special role in students' academic achievements. Below are few tips if followed will surely improve your grades.
1. Always pay attention in lectures
Believe me, this is the most important tip that one needs to follow to score good marks. When you concentrate on what is being taught by the teacher/professor half of your work is done then and there only. Your self-study input almost gets reduced by 50%. While concentrating on the lecture, you can take notes, and when the lecture is over just revise it before the next class. You will not feel the burden of studies, you will keep it up with what is going in the class and your confidence level will be increased. You will be able to solve assignments with ease and you will not have pending assignments and self-study piling up.
2. Stop Procrastination
Procrastination is an act of delaying things because we don't feel/want to do it at that very moment. This is very common among students. We tend to keep delaying things. Exams are two months away and we say like, " it's okay, there is a lot of time, I will study tomorrow". Tomorrow never comes. When exams are due 3-4 days then we realize that a lot amount of time has got wasted and then we regret it. But now the time has gone. The same goes for assignments and homework. If the due date for an assignment is two weeks later we tend to delay it and in the last hour of do and die situation, we complete our assignments anyhow. So keep a habit of starting the assignments and self-study on the very day something related to it is taught. This will save your time and a last-minute rush won't happen.
3. Keep Revising the Notes
Revision is the key to remember what you have studied. Many students often tend to forget what they have studied. So this is mainly possible because they lack revision. A habit of making notes in class proves very useful. The very first revision should be just after the lecture gets over. Then every weekend you can spare one hour for the second revision. In this way, you must take cycles of revising your notes and you will never have to learn anything.
4. Practice Practice and Practice
Understanding concepts is not enough to ace in your academics, applying concepts in questions is very important. When we practice questions, we get an idea about the type of questions that are asked in the exam. Previous year's questions are like a gold mine, just dig in how much you can and it will prove beneficial. Previous year's question reduces our study load because we get an idea about the type of questions that are asked in exams, so we need not waste time on other questions which are not much asked. So, practice questions from sample question papers, your school/college preferred books and previous year questions are a must.
5. Making short notes
After you are done studying a chapter, then try to summarise the whole chapter on a single sheet of paper. In this way, you will be able to remember how much you have studied. The syllabus will seem a lot less after making short notes. These short notes can consist of formulae, important concepts and definitions. Everything you have studied, try to write it in a minimum number of words. Code language can also be used. Keep revising these short notes and these short notes prove very helpful one day before exams.
6. Prioritising health and proper sleep
Your health greatly impacts your academic performance, so prioritize your health and fitness. Keep 30 minutes of your schedule for exercising. Include healthy food in your diet. Exercising regularly will keep you feel positive and fit. Meditation helps to concentrate better in studies. Proper sleep is very important to remain focused in studies. Many students do sleep properly because they feel sleeping for more hours will hamper their studies. But reducing sleeping hours will make you feel weak and inactive, so a proper sleep of 6-8hours is mandatory.
