#gysd

Getting your sh*t done: Study techniques, studying in general

Before explaining to you some techniques to make studying more fun, effective… I want to state that all this knowledge comes from my own school experience, experience as a tutor / teacher assisstant. And I actually do study education, so I am not (only) rambling but there is some research behind my words. Aka I know what I am talking about.

First things first: I have to do some myth busting. learner types (like visual learner, auditory learner, practical learner, blah blah blah) do not exist. It is neither scientifically proven nor does it make sense. Example: You “are a visual learner” and want to learn playing tennis. This would me you will have to watch someone play tennis to learn it. You see, that does not work. You will have to practise. Same applies to learning at school: each subject/topic requires a different approach.

What in fact does exist are different learning strategies:

Cognitive Strategies: vocabulary cards, memory enhancing stategies to remember new concepts/words like pictures, maps,…., writing summaries)

Metacognitive Strategy aka planning is key! So keep a study diary. (some pretty printables can help your planning)

Social Strategies: learn and study in groups, compare your notes, give feedback to each other

More tips:

listen to your teacher. If I tell my students to read a text. I. Mean. It. So read your texts, don’t start your essay the night before it’s due, do your homework, you know the drill.

avoid distraction. Don’t study when hungry, sick, tired,...

take breaks. It is ok to take breaks. It is totally not worth it to study 12hrs straight (neither is it effective). So stop it when it gets too much.

recreate the learning situation during the exam. It can be little things. Like chew a mint gum when studying > chew a mint gum during the exam

the pomodoro technique. it works for me.

study frequently. don’t just start revising two days before your final.

Adulthood Masterpost:

organisation. Get some folders and pretend you have everything under control. one for finances, one for work, one for school, one for bills and one for other important documents (organisation masterpost by @areistotle)

afraid of making phone calls? Try not to stress to much about it. The person on the other side of the line wants that call to end as soon as possible, too. Also practicing helps. Stay friendly and professional.

phone calls are still too much? That’s okay. Look for an e-mail address or an office. I find going somewhere and talking in person less scary than talking on the phone.

pay your bills asap.

keep track of your finances.

living on a budget (my post) useful youtube video

start eating healthy. Remember the food pyramid (here is a vegan version of it)

learn how to cook: here are my recipes, also this website is very helpful: it tells you what to cook with the things you already have at home

Plan! Plan! Plan! Make to-do lists, plan your meals.

tend to forget things? Yes, bullet journals are pretty, creative and can help people. But I just can’t keep up with them. To me it seems like more work than I can get actually use out of it. If you feel like me, I’d recommend you using the calender and reminders function on your phone. More about that here.

managing your period (only for menstruating people of course): Helpful home remedies for cramps: peppermint tea, raspberry leaf tea, vitex pills. Masterpost by @educatier. Note: If you have very heavy or painful periods please go and see a doctor.

sleeping like a baby. if you have trouble with falling asleep maybe try ASMR videos on youtube (some of my favs: x | x | x ) also try to go to bed at the same time everyday. Avoid too much coffein. Lavender will make you sleepy. So drink some tea or get a lotion with lavender in it. (infographic: secret for better sleep). (tips for balancing sleep and education by @brbimstudying)

learn how to do your laundry (overview)

More useful posts in my “adulthood” tag > here

We all know it: school isn’t always fun. Sometimes we have do deal with failure and that isn’t always easy. The first thing that is probably the most important: your worth as a person is not defined by your success. You are stupid just because you failed a class, you are not a bad person. Your self-worth is not defined by your academic results.

Dealing with your emotions. Remember that is it also ok to feel down/sad/depressed/disapointment because of it. Don’t feel bad because you cried over a bad grade, a rejection letter, or a failed class. It is totally ok and not childish. You are a human, you feel emotions. That is totally fine.

Accept it. You will have to accept your result/decline/failure. It is okay and you will be okay.

Talk about it. Try to express your emotions, concerns, and fears. Talk to a friend, your parents, a teacher.

Try again or try something different. Keep your head up high. If you failed a test. Take it again. Look at the mistakes you have made and try to improve.

Motivation. Sometimes it is hard to motivate yourself after a failure/rejection. But try to see the positive side. You failed a test: you probably did not understand the topic completely, but you’ve got another change to improve. You were rejected at your dream uni: it wasn’t meant to be. You do not fit into their criteria and you wouldn’t be happy there.

Do not stress out because of it. It is not worth it. Pulling a 6 allnighters in a row to study for the next test is not worth it.

4 Main Steps: Recognise your failure > deal with the emotions > take a deep breath > look into the future.

And again, repeat after me: Your worth is not defined by your academic success

I am that kind of person that loves to scroll through pages of pictures of beautiful bullet journals. I truly admire students who can create such beautiful and helpful pages, that help them planning, documenting, and cater as a creative outlet (love that!) Have I tried to keep one? Yes, I did. Did I fail? Horribly! So, here is my method on staying organized which involes my phone and a small calendar.

Phone: I basically only use the apps that already come with my phone. I use an iPhone but I am pretty sure most phones come with similar functions. The pros of using your phone are:

you basically always carry around your phone with you

your phone will send you notifications concerning your appointments so you do not forget anything

it is very clear and easy to manage

Reminder. I keep 4 different lists and reminders important: (reminder) reminders for meds you have to take daily uni: (reminder) for homework, essay due dates, reminders for study times apartment: (list) things you need for your apartment shopping list: (list) list with things I need to buy

Calendar: I basically use the calendar app for birthdays, appointments, exam reminders/dates

Other useful app: Clue: tracks your period Outlook: for your mails and it also comes with a calendar Evernote: allows you to organise your notes, scan

Besides my phone I also use a real calendar. But I basically only bought it so my teachers think I have my shit together but I actually use it now haha

I use a colour coding system: pink for birthdays, blue for uni (deadlines, exam dates),...

besides that I also write down dates, events, concerts, hobby related things

Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) is an annual celebration of young volunteers around the world led by Youth Service America (YSA). It is designed to encourage youth to participate in community service and service-learning and to honor those who have contributed to their communities through voluntary commitment. GYSD is usually observed on a weekend in April, beginning on Friday and ending on Sunday and this year it was from 20 – 22 April.

To mark this day, we started off by raising awareness of this global day and the SDGs among some tertiary level students in Polokwane, South Africa. These students are doing diverse courses in the field of Engineering and Business studies. He went on further to coordinate a cleanup of lecture rooms and restrooms of Thekwini City College Polokwane Campus with some student volunteers from this institution. This initiative partially covered the aspect of SDG 6 which involves sanitation.

By Bernard Bebe, WFUNA Young Leader of 2016

getting your sh*t done: living on a budget

You are a student living on your own but with little 💸? Here are some tips on how to save money

buy food in bulk. potatos, rice, noodles, beans,... are usually cheaper in bulk

learn how to cook. Eating out is usually very expensive so knowing some basic recipes is a good way to save some money (> some of my recipes)

sharing is caring. You can go shopping together, share food, or cook together. It is not only fun but you can also learn new recipes and spend some quality time 😉

stop buying plastic water bottles. Tab water is cheap or even free (public water fountains, tap water at uni...) It also avoids a loooot of trash. So use a refillable water bottle and save those 💵

more bikes less cars. Ride your bike instead of taking the car. It doesn’t cost you anything and you get some exercise and it is better for our environment.

management is key. Keep track of your expenses. I use an excel table, but you can also use a notebook, or a bullet journal to manange your income and your expenses.

shopping at the dollar store. You can get some things cheaper at the dollar store. I find this post very helpful.

stop buying useless sh*t. I guess this is a no-brainer. But avoid buying trend items

vintage shopping. I know this is not everyone’s cup of tea. It takes some time and you have to be lucky. But consider this: it is cheaper and better for our environment

phone bills. Compare your contract to others, you might spend too much money on things you don’t even need.