Chapter 9, Test Taking, March 31-April 6

Chapter 9, Test Taking

Please read the chapter on test taking and make comments on two of these questions:

1. Students often say, “I am not a good test taker.” What ideas in this chapter would be helpful to this student?

2. Look at this YouTube video, “Test Stress Reduction the Navy Seals Way.”  This 3 minute video shows some ways to be successful “when the world is on fire.”  Share your comments on the video.  Can the Navy Seals techniques be used in college and in life in general? (Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0S9YsqERT34).  

3. What are some suggestions for dealing with text anxiety?

3. How do you study for a math test?

4. What is the ideal way to review for a test?

5. What are some disadvantages of cramming for a test and how can you avoid cramming?

6. What is your best idea for studying for exams?

7. Comment on another student's post. 

Chapter 8, Taking Notes, Writing and Speaking, March 24-30

This week read the chapter on taking notes, writing and speaking and then make two comments on any of these topics: 


Psychologist and philosopher William James said, “The essence of genius is knowing what to overlook.” How can you take steps toward being a genius by being selective at school, at work or in your personal life? 

Many students have difficulties with writing assignments because of writer’s block. Read the section on writer’s block in the text and comment on some ideas that you can use to overcome it. 

Write some intention statements about what you will do to become a better writer or note taker.

Do you have any ideas about how to relax while speaking in public?

Ask a question or discuss any aspect of college success that is relevant to your college experience at this point.     

Make a comment on another student's post. 

Chapter 7, Improving Memory and Reading, March 17-23

I enjoyed reading about all your goals and time management strategies on the blog last week. Many of you have challenges with work, family, school and social life. Keeping your focus on your priorities, breaking the tasks into small parts and finding a reward will keep you on the right path.

For this week, read the following situations and comment on two of them using ideas from Chapter 7, Improving Memory and Reading. Have a great week.

1.            You just read the assigned chapter in economics and cannot remember what you read. It went in one ear and out the other.

2.            In your anatomy and physiology class, you are required to remember the scientific name for 100 different muscles in the body.

3.            You signed up for a philosophy class because it meets general education requirements. You are not interested in the class at all.

4.            You have a mid-term in your literature class and have to read 400 pages in one month.

5.            You must take American history to graduate from SDSU. You think that history is boring.

6.            You have been introduced to an important business contact and would like to remember his/her name.

7.            You are enrolled in an algebra class. You continually remind yourself that you have never been good at math. You don’t think that you will pass this class.

8.            You have noticed that your grandmother is becoming very forgetful. You want to do whatever is possible to keep your mind healthy as you age.

9.            Comment on any other students' posts.  

Chapter 6, Managing Time and Money, March 10-16

This new chapter is about time management and is one of the most powerful chapters in the text. For this week's discussion, share one of your lifetime goals and describe the time management techniques you will use to accomplish this goal. If there are obstacles in the way, how will you deal with them? 

For your second post, read another student's post and make a comment about it. Sometimes it is helpful to read about other students' goals and how they are managing to accomplish them. The first post can be longer and the second one can be shorter. 

I will share with you one of my lifetime goals and how I used the ideas in this chapter to accomplish it. My lifetime goal was to write a book on how to be successful in college because I struggled as a young college student and learned how to be successful. Then I taught the topic for 30 years. I had some time off from work and set as my goal to write the text. I found myself distracted by things around the home. I would get up in the morning and exercise, make myself a nice breakfast, read the paper and do a few household chores. Soon the day was gone and I had not accomplished my goal. I decided to work on my goal first and then reward myself with exercise and other things that I wanted to do. It was just a matter of rearranging my tasks. I still found it difficult to get started. I used the idea of a leading task. I would just sit at the computer, fill my head with ideas and start to write. Then I would refine the writing the next day. Within 6 months I had the first draft of the text written. Today it is used in about 60 colleges across the country. The CollegeScope material is my latest project. 

Ok, I have shared one of my goals and how I accomplished it. Now it is your turn. Tell about something you accomplished in the past or something you hope to accomplish in the future. See if you can use some of the time management ideas in the text.  

Chapter 5, Planning Your Career and Education, March 3-9

The chapter for this week is "Planning your Career and Education." It has some useful information as you think about your future career. 

Choose any topic below. You can choose 2 topics of 100 words each or one topic for 200 words.

Make a comment about how this semester is going for you. Are you facing any challenges or roadblocks? How can you deal with them?

Add your comment to another student's posting. Can you relate to what they are saying and can you share similar experiences?

What is your generation? Baby Boomer? Generation X? New Millennial? How will your generation affect your future career choices?

Review the employment trends presented in the career chapter. How will these employment trends affect your future career plans?

What tips would you give to a friend before he or she interviewed for a job that was really important?

Go to www.assist.org and explore this site. This site is designed to help you understand the courses needed to transfer to a four year university. Share with the group what you found there.

Go to http://www.cuyamaca.edu/transfer_center and explore this site. This is our Cuyamaca College Transfer site. Share with the group what you found at this site.