Study Skills

Study skills are the skills that a person needs to be able to study and learn effectively. The implementation of a formalised study skills programme becomes increasingly important as a learner progresses through the various stages of education and the expectation of a more independent approach to learning becomes greater. The benefits of helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to develop a strong set of study skills are well documented. Knowing how to study and learn enhances pupil motivation and empowers learners. Many higher education students in receipt of the Disabled Students’ Allowance are allocated weekly sessions with a study skills coach. When study skills are taught and mastered, it can make an enormous difference to how effective a learner’s engagement with study is and – importantly – how much enjoyment can be gained from studying. The topic of study skills can be broken down into various categories including:

• Organisation Techniques
• Note-taking and strategic listening 
• Effective reading-comprehension strategies
• Effective writing/composition
• Memory and revision techniques (study strategies)
• Research and referencing
• Examination technique

There are 3 liability areas:

• Test Anxiety
• Attention/ Concentration
• Academic Motivation

The most effective procedure for teaching strategies includes four components:

• Direct explanation
• Modelling by the teacher
• Guided practice
• Application

The following advice and guidance regarding study skills is intended for staff of any education or training setting who work with learners experiencing literacy difficulties.

Helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to maintain high levels of personal organisation could include: 

• Ensuring all their workspaces are conducive to learning
• Encouraging effective use of a diary/planner
• Realistic goal setting
• Providing IT hardware & software to facilitate organised study
• Encouraging sensible time management

Pictured below is an example of a colour-coded revision timetable produced by a post primary pupil using Microsoft Excel, one simple example of how IT can be used to aid a learner’s organisation. 

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Note-taking is something that a learner experiencing literacy difficulties often struggles with and sometimes a piece of Assistive Technology is assigned to help them in this area, for example a digital voice recorder may be assigned to a higher education student to use in lectures, seminars or tutorials. Whether learners make notes independently in a traditional format, or receive some of the assistance, helping learners to develop effective note-taking techniques and determine the purpose that their notes will later serve – is a vital study skill.

Helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to develop effective note-taking techniques could include: 

• Encouraging them to note key words, sub-headings and abbreviations
• Helping them to store their notes in an orderly fashion-correcting and organising their notes
• Providing them with the right equipment / resources to take notes
• Exploring the use of Assistive Technology for note-taking purposes
• Encouraging legibility of notes
• Ensuring that they are asked to note down only what is necessary

Please note that unnecessary copying and dictation should be avoided where practicable for a learner experiencing literacy difficulties.

Strategic listening is a skill that can be taught:

• Prepare to listen
• Become an active listener
• Listening for teacher cues
• Put information all together-TQLR strategies (Tune in, Question, Listen, Review)

Teaching learners the value of utilising their reading skills to gain new knowledge, is crucial to their success in any phase of their education. Some learners experiencing literacy difficulties struggle with the skills involved with accurate and fluent reading. A learner may find their reading affected in many ways: for example, in relation to their reading accuracy, reading comprehension, or reading fluency. Whether a learner accesses text independently, using Assistive Technology, or with the assistance of another person (for example a Classroom Assistant), the mental digestion of information will always be a necessary part of education.

Helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to develop effective reading techniques could include: 

• Encouraging them to ‘read around’ their various subjects/course
• Explore different teaching aids that could assist them with reading
• Identify their preferred learning strategies/ techniques
• Before reading, skim the text looking for headings and key words
• Relate text to their experiences
• Convey the meaning of text in different ways
• Encourage reading for fun, for example books on areas of personal interest or even subtitles on TV shows or films
• Explore whether Assistive Technology could help students to access text, for example the Read Aloud function of Read and Write software
• After reading review the main points 

Whether written independently by hand, via another person acting as a scribe, typed, or using speech recognition technology, the likelihood is that most learners will need to produce extended pieces of writing at some point in their educational journeys, for example essays, assignments or coursework. The skill of engaging in effective extended writing is therefore a crucial study skill. Helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to develop effective extended writing techniques could include: 

• Providing exemplar versions of essays, assignments and coursework
• Teaching learners how to follow a logical structure with their writing
• Encouraging drafting and re-drafting where necessary
• Developing learners’ ability to proof-read and check their own work
• Teaching learners how to access and utilise marking schemes where appropriate
• Teaching logical planning and mind mapping
• Self-regulation strategies and setting goals

Often one of the hardest aspects of extended writing for a learner is getting started, so teaching them how to mind map their thoughts and ideas can really help. Pictured below is an example of a simple mind map that a post primary pupil studying Technology & Design has created to help them decide which areas of research they need to undertake as part of their GCSE coursework.

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Whatever the extent of a pupil’s literacy difficulties and whichever access arrangements he / she might be eligible for, most pupils will need to, at some point, exhibit a skill that they have learnt or demonstrate knowledge that they have acquired, in a formal assessment such as a test or examination. Memory and revision techniques therefore constitute another important study skill. Learning strategies actively engage the pupil with the material to learn and facilitate the acquisition and processing of knowledge.  When a pupil prepares effectively for a test or examination, they tend to feel in control during it. Helping a pupil experiencing literacy difficulties to develop sound memory and revision techniques could include:

• Teaching them visual revision techniques such as how to develop mind maps in order to support memory relating to relevant topics/information which is to be revised
• Teaching them auditory revision techniques such as using easy to remember mnemonics to assist pupils in the recall of information
• Teaching them revision techniques such as producing index cards with revision notes written/typed on them
• Teaching them kinaesthetic revision techniques such as how to highlight key pieces of information to revise
• Improving concentration
• Self-talk
• Making connections with prior learning
• Using concept maps

All learners at some point on their educational journey will need to conduct research, to locate, evaluate, extract, organise and then utilise information in their own work.  Referencing is the acknowledgement of the various sources of this information. Helping a learner experiencing literacy difficulties to develop effective research and referencing techniques could include:

• Encouraging learners to use a range of appropriate sources for research 
• Teaching learners to recognise that whilst online resources such as Wikipedia are often useful, they are not always accurate
• Teaching learners how to recognise credible, quality sources of research
• Encouraging learners to utilise learning resource centres/libraries 
• Developing learners’ critical thinking skills to help them determine whether certain sources’ information may be biased
• Encouraging learners to organise their research effectively to prevent any valuable information being lost 
• Teaching learners to cite any sources used in accordance with their educational provider’s regulations. For example, a higher education student may need to cite sources using a specific version of the Harvard referencing style

Many pupils are wary of formal assessments, such as examinations, because they fear being unable to remember anything that they have revised. Helping a pupil experiencing literacy difficulties to develop effective examination techniques could include:

• Ensuring pupils are familiar with the structure and terminology of ‘past papers’ and marking schemes
• Encouraging pupils to practise sample examination questions under timed conditions (and then providing them with constructive feedback on their performance)
• Developing in pupils a sound understanding of the importance of sleep, hydration and nutrition in the run-up to any examination
• Teaching learners the importance of rest and relaxation
• Aiming to develop in learners a calm and confident approach to examinations
• Encourage learners to equip themselves with all necessary stationery and equipment and arrive at the examination venue in suitable time
• Helping learners to develop a logical strategy towards the completion of examinations – carefully reading the questions, highlighting where necessary, and apportioning an appropriate amount of time to each question
• Encouraging pupils to fully utilise any access arrangements which they are entitled to in a confident manner 
• Encouraging pupils to develop healthy ‘study buddy’ relationships with learners studying for the same examination(s)
• Last, but certainly not least – remind pupils that whilst they should place due importance on their examinations, scoring a certain percentage in an examination does not define them as a person