1.5 Chapter Activities

Chapter Takeaways

  • The first year of college is the most critical. Make the commitment to overcome any obstacles to a successful transition and stay committed and motivated to succeed.
  • Although college students differ in many ways, all successful students share certain common traits, including a positive attitude, effective critical thinking skills, good time management skills, effective study skills, interactions with instructors and other students, and good habits for personal health and financial stability.
  • You can learn to maximize your learning by attending to each step of the learning process: preparing, absorbing, capturing, and reviewing.
  • It is important to understand your personal learning style and use it well in classes, while also making the effort to learn in new ways and work with other students for a more effective overall learning experience.
  • Understanding the larger characteristics of college success leads to a richer college experience, supplementing the value of good grades.
  • While it may take a few weeks to develop all the skills needed for success in college, there are many steps you can begin taking today to get moving in the right direction.

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Chapter Review

Check off every action on the following list that you plan to use in your first year of college to help you be as successful as you can be.

Approach classes and homework exactly as I did in high school
View college as a vital experience preparing me for the rest of my life
Manage my time well so that I have enough time to study and start on assignments well ahead of the due dates
Attend classes when I think something important will be said and I can’t find someone to borrow class notes from
Adopt a positive attitude and work on staying motivated to succeed
Give up everything else in life while in college
Talk to my advisor so that I take only those classes where the teacher’s style matches my own learning style
Form study groups with other students different from me so I can take advantage of how they learn as well
Be sure to tell all my instructors what I think they want to hear, not what I might really think
Sit in the back row where I won’t be noticed or get asked a question I might not be able to answer
Make good friendships and interact with a wide range of people on campus
Pay very close attention in class so that I don’t have to be concerned with reviewing the course material later
Prepare for each class every day
If I read too slowly, look for a CliffsNotes summary of the reading so I don’t lose time reading whole textbook chapters
Talk to other students to find out what classes and instructors are easiest to keep my GPA up
Take as many online courses as I can so that I can sleep late and get help from friends doing online assignments
To save time, go first to a friendly instructor to learn about any resources the college may have to help me
Take it easy my first year in college, not worrying about grades, to avoid burnout
Check out tutoring services only as a last resort at the end of the term if I’m in danger of failing
Check the class syllabus for important assignments and exam dates and begin scheduling study periods well ahead of time
Get to know my instructors and other students in the class right away

Make an Action List

Attitude

My most negative attitude toward college is

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Here’s what I’ll do to be more positive:

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Transitioning to College

The most likely problems I’ll have (as a traditional or returning student) transitioning to college are

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Here’s what I’ll do to stay focused in my first year:

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Learning Process

In the past, I have paid too little attention to these steps of the learning process:

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Here’s what I will begin doing now in my classes to fully use all steps of the process:

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Learning Style

This is my preferred learning style:

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I will begin working to strengthen my learning through these other styles:

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Lecture Classes

When I’m bored in a large lecture hall, I frequently do this:

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To pay closer attention, I will try the following:

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College Grades

My grades generally suffer when I

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To ensure I do well in all my classes, I will now begin to focus on

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Immediate Steps to Success

I have not used my time as well as I might because I’ve been doing the following:

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I will immediately start taking these steps to ensure I succeed in my classes:

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RaiderReady: Unmasking the Possibilities of College Success Copyright © 2018 by Texas Tech University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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