Who Can Help Me With...?

Many services and departments exist at LWIT to assist students with everything from writing to financial aid to childcare and more. Click here to access a list of the on-campus resources available at LWIT. If you have any questions, you can write them as comments to this post or stop by W207 and talk with an adviser.

The Start of a New Quarter

A new quarter begins again on Monday! Like a new year, many of us think about all the ways we can make this a great quarter, better than the last. One of my resolutions at the start of each new quarter is to manage my time better, in other words, to avoid procrastination. And, every quarter, I feel like deadlines sneak up on me, or I find a lot of more interesting or "important" things to do instead of working on a paper or project. Unfortunately, I have not found a magic formula or study tip that makes my tendency to put things off until the last minute disappear. However, each quarter I am a little better than the last. Here are a few things that have helped me and other students manage time well.

Use A Planner

Stop by TRiO and pick up a free LWIT student planner. The planner has two sections: monthly calendars and weekly calendars with plenty of space for each day. On the monthly calendars, write in all of the major deadlines you have for class. This can keep assignment due dates from sneaking up on you. The weekly/daily calendars are great for making checklists for each day.

You can also use this handy, one-page quarter calendar to keep track of assignment deadlines. Quarter calendars saved me during school a number of times. When everything is on one page, posted somewhere I see it on a regular basis (like the front of my binder), deadlines do not catch me by surprise. Fill out the quarter calendar as soon as you have you syllabi for each class.

Schedule Time for School and for Fun

On your monthly calendars, include family gatherings, dates, or get-togethers with friends. Scheduled time for fun can help you keep up with school deadlines. One way people plan their homework and fun is to get all of their homework done before Sunday, so Sunday is a free day to do whatever they want. Also, plan times to celebrate when you complete a major assignment or after you take a test. Having something to look forward to can help you stay motivated.

Take breaks. Set a timer for the amount of time you plan to study (usually an hour is a good length) and then take a break. Make sure you come back from your breaks, though. Try setting a break timer as well.

Keep Your Goals in Mind

There often comes a point in the quarter when we just want to be done. When everything is overwhelming. At those points, remember your short term and long term goals. Do you hope to get a certain grade in the class? Do you want to finish every assignment on time? What degree do you want to earn and why? I recently learned the importance of having a team of personal advisers, people who know my goals and dreams, who I can go to when I need support. Seek out the people who support your goals, and go to them when you need encouragement.
 

Student Discounts!

Recently, a student asked, "What are these student discounts I have heard about?" Student discounts are available at movie theaters, event venues, restaurants, etc. All you need is your student ID card. Anywhere you see a Student price listed, simply present you student ID to pay the discounted rate.

Student ID cards are free for LWIT students. Stop by the Information Center on the 2nd floor of the West Building, present a photo ID and your student number, and get you photo taken. Your card will be ready in minutes.

Your student ID card is also required to check out materials from the Library.

Stop by the Information Center and get your student ID card today! The Information Center is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Test Taking: Finals (Part 3)

Many of us share an experience: we prepared well for an exam but when it came time to take the test, we went blank or panicked or confused information. Sometimes when we walk out of tests, we suddenly remember what we forgot just minutes before. A lot of these issues have to do with heightened anxiety. Here are a few strategies for reducing anxiety so you can better recall and communicate information on an exam.

• First, try the Data Dump. Click here to learn about the technique that works well for a lot of students. 
• Breathe. And, breathe again.
• Read the directions carefully.
• Read all of the question before answering. If it is a multiple choice question, read all of the options before selecting your response. Remember, you are looking for the best answer.
• Don't spend too much time on one problem or question. Answer everything you know first and come back to the more challenging questions. Figure out about how much time you can spend on each problem and move on if you are getting close and can't think of an answer.
• For essay questions, make a short outline or rough draft first. That way, if you need to change or add something, you won't feel like you have to start over.
• For multiple choice questions, trust your first response. Don't change it unless you are very sure your first answer was wrong.
• Think positively. If you start to feel panicked, write STOP on your scratch paper and tell yourself, "I can come back to this later. I am going to answer questions I know first." Refer to your Data Dump.

Plan to reward yourself when you are done with the exam. Get a cookie or donut from your favorite bakery. Go out with friends from class. Go for a hike. Go home and read a book you want to read. Celebrate your accomplishment - not after you get the grade, but right after you complete the test. You have done something difficult and stressful and quite impressive, something that makes people fear going back to school. Great work!

Test Taking: Finals (Part 2)

This is the second part of a three part series on preparing on for finals. Included are tips for the night before your exam and the morning of. The information in this post was compiled by Counseling Services at Lake Washington Institute of Technology with some additional information added by the post author.

The Night Before

• Be prepared (see Part 1 in this series). Do not cram or do last minute review.
• Get plenty of sleep.
• If you find yourself lying in bed, thinking about the test information over and over, unable to sleep, you can try the STOP technique. Hold your hand in front of your face, focus on it, and say the word stop out loud. You can also write down the things that are on your mind. Set a timer, though, and tell yourself that when it goes off, it is time to stop writing and go to sleep.
• Avoid use of drugs and alcohol.
• Exercise to relieve anxiety.
• Do an activity that helps you relax. Play a board game with your family, work on your car, bake or prepare a nice dinner, etc.
• Check your supplies.
• Be positive!
• Write yourself a note and tape it to your mirror so you also see it in the morning. Simply remind yourself that you know the material and are capable of doing well.

Testing Day

• Shower to wake up.
• Have a moderate, healthy breakfast.
• Wear comfortable clothes.
• Arrive early at the test site.
• Bring all materials you will need to class (bring extra pencils or pens).
• Do not discuss the subject with classmates while waiting.
• Choose a seat that is comfortable.
• If possible, choose the seat you normally sit in. Matching your testing environment to the one you learned the material in can help with memory.
• Turn off the cell phone.
• Use deep breathing to help you relax.
• Use positive affirmations ("I have done this before, I can do this again").

Many of us save our studying for the night before and morning of the test. This increases anxiety, uses less reliable memory, and leads us to "store" information in a disorganized way, making it harder to retrieve later. Study in the days leading up to the exam, and save the night before and morning of to do things that will help you relax.

Test Taking: Finals (Part 1)

Start reviewing now!

All right, that said, here are a few tips for preparing for finals. This is the first post in a three part series. The next two parts will cover what to do the night before and the day of the test and what to do during the test in order to test at your best.

Preparing for Finals:

• Start today! Plan to review for twenty minutes everyday for each class.
• Review and organize your class notes. Highlight key terms. Add any information you have learned since you took the notes.
• Review the textbook material. Make flashcards or a list of terms and definitions. If there are review questions at the end of each chapter, see if you can answer those, look up the right answers, and add those to your study notes.
• Ask your classmates if they would like to be in a study group. Plan to meet at least twice before the final - once to compare notes and the review you have done already and a second or third time to quiz one another.
• Try not to study for more than two hours straight. Our minds get exhausted just like our bodies. Take breaks. Set a timer for your study time and also set one for your breaks; sometimes it is hard to come back to studying.
• Find someone you can teach the material to. Ask a family member or friend to set aside time to be your student. You are also welcome to come by the Learning Lab and teach the material to one of the facilitators (see Learning Lab hours to the right).
• Get plenty of sleep in the days leading up to finals and exercise when you can. Both sleep and exercise help reduce anxiety and keep your mind clear as you study.

Preparing for finals will not only help you do well on your tests, but it will also give you more confidence and reduce your anxiety on test day.

English: Reviewing and Improving Your Papers

Click on the images here to see a tool you can use to review and improve your writing. Be sure to use the resources listed below as well and feel free to come by the Learning Lab (hours to the right).

Your Instructor!

Your number one resource is your instructor. Meeting with your instructor during office hours will allow for the opportunity to learn the instructor’s preferences. It also communicates that your are serious about your class work and creates a stronger connection with the instructor.

Writing Center in the ASC

Mr. Lake works with students in the Academic Skills Center during scheduled times. He is full-time English faculty and cares immensely about student success. He understands the writing process and does an excellent job of determining how to best help you progress as a writer.

Purdue OWL

The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) is available 24/7 at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/.

A Writer’s Reference

If you had to purchase A Writer’s Reference for class, use it! It is a great resource when you have grammar and formatting questions.

Peer Editors

Seek out classmates who understand the assignment and ask to exchange papers for revising and editing. Peer editors tend to focus on the issues that have been addressed in class and reinforce prior learning. In addition, peer editing gives you an opportunity to edit someone else’s work, which enhances self-editing skills as well.

Test Taking: Data Dump

Do you get anxious for tests? Go blank? Feel like there is too much to remember and mix things up? Leave a test and suddenly recall something you knew you knew?

Data Dump is a technique that can help you relax, overcome going blank, and remember key ideas.

When you first get a test, before looking at any of the questions, turn the test over and write down the main ideas you remember from studying. These could include definitions, formulas, memory aids, whatever you recall.

Data Dump does a lot to help you relax and remember:

• It gives you information to refer to when you can't quite remember how to do a problem, what the main formula is, what a key definition is, etc.
• It reminds your brain, "Hey, you know stuff! Look at all that," when you go blank.
• It can trigger other information. Our brains create mental cues when we learn and group information that goes together. Seeing one formula or definition can lead to another and another and so on.

On your next test, give Data Dump a try. Check back here for more test taking tips. Also, you can stop by the Learning Lab in W204F to learn other study skills.

Learning Lab Hours: Monday and Tuesday 1:00-4:00 p.m., Wednesday 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. and 1:00-3:00 p.m., and Friday 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.