Teachers at my school have identified several growth areas in student study skills and we are working collectively to address these deficits. At the beginning of this school year, I gave my students a study skills questionnaire from the University of Central Florida’s student resource center. This thirty-item survey asks students to report whether they rarely, sometimes, or often use specific strategies in their academic practices. The domains assess student practices when reading textbooks, taking notes, studying, memorizing, preparing for tests, and managing their time.
A sample (N=191) of 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12 graders took the survey. The scores ranged from a low of 20 to a high of 270 with a median of 170. The test’s authors suggest that a score of 31-50 in each domain indicates that the study skill area is adequate, whereas a score of 0-30 indicates that this study skills area needs improvement. My students’ average scores are displayed in the table below.
| Reading | Notes | Studying | Memorizing | Test Prep | Time Mgmnt | Total |
| 25.64 | 23.43 | 30.97 | 27.40 | 31.55 | 25.72 | 164.70 |
The items in the survey offer good starting points for student reflections when using exam wrappers or project debriefings. Each student was given their results and discussed their largest growth area with me in a private conference. After each major academic milestone this year (project, test, paper, speech and etc.) my students will reflect on how the activity helped improve their growth. At the end of the year, they will take the survey again to see how they have improved.
I am interested in learning more about how K-12 educators teach study skills, please join me for a Twitter chat on this topic this Thursday, September 21 at 9pm ET/6pm PT. The questions are below:
Teachers are notorious finger pointers. “You should have memorized your multiplication tables in third grade. You should be taking notes and reviewing for tests by 6th grade. You should know how to read a textbook by 8th grade.” The list goes on. This evening of #sstlap is dedicated to teaching study skills. Regardless of where you students are when you get them, where do you want them to be when they leave you? What study skills should students have improved after a year under your tutelage? Get ready to share the glory and the pain as we try to teach our students study skills that they can take with them on their academic journey.
:07 Q1 What is the most significant skill deficit students have when they arrive in your class? How do you learn about and remediate this skills gap?
:14 Q2 How can we be enthusiastic about teaching study skills to our students when we have so much content to deliver?
:21 Q3 What are the best ways to immerse students into a note-taking lesson?
:28 Q4 How does focusing on reading skills instead of delivering content build rapport with students?
:35 Q5 How can you tie student passions to practicing skills like test prep and time management?
:42 Q6 How can you reframe a memorization lesson to make content aquisition fun?
:48 Q7 What apps/technology tools can help teachers transform skills instruction into fun activities?
:54 Q8 #FLIPGRIDFEVER BONUS QUESTION Click on the link and explain your favorite skill-building tool or lesson in 90 seconds instead of 140 characters.
Resources
Archive of 9/21/2017 #sstlap chat
Six degrees of separation history lesson
https://www.teachbeyondthedesk.com/six-degrees
Quizlet Live gamifies study sessions
https://quizlet.com/blog/how-i-made-learning-fun-in-my-classroom-using-quizlet-live
Daniel Pink – To Rhyme is Sublime
http://www.danpink.com/2013/06/how-to-pitch-better-the-rhyming-pitch/
Timed note-taking drills
HistoryRewriter 