Struggling with Science Classes

[Lady Belle]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

So every time I have to do my reading, it takes me sssooo long to finish a chapter and retain the material. I'm talking about around 2-4 hours. It kills my confidence that I finish it feeling like a dummy.
I just had my first Bio 102 test, based on 14 chapters, and I only score a 78, with the class avg being 63. I cried pretty hard at this score, as he does not curve nor drop any test scores.
My next test in in 4 weeks and on 13 chapters.
Does anyone have any tips on how to get better at studying.

 

[popopopop]

Geeze, what sort of book are you using that covers that many chapters? Was the test more from powerpoint or more from the book?

 

[Lady Belle]

His powerpoints are usually condensed versions of the book, which has 56 chapters (though it covers 1 year of Bio). 25 of the 50 test questions were reworded from 8 quizzes he gave (2/wk, 25 question each). But in general, I am just having such a hard time getting thru the readings.

 

[kraskadva]

Is he trying to finish the whole book in one semester? Because he will at that rate...

Best advice is to stop reading the book, and focus instead on studying from the PPTs and quizzes. The PPTs will give you the book material he's interested in having you know (which most likely means you can ignore the parts of the book that he doesn't cover in the PPT**) and knowing the quizzes backwards and forwards sounds like pretty high-yield material. Study smarter, not harder.

Another way to study smarter is to find someone who took his class last year and see if you can get last year's tests from them. They make great study guides...

**Unless you've specifically seen something for the book on the test that wasn't covered in the PPT.
This is something you could go ask the professor about though...tell him you're having a hard time getting through all the reading and ask if he will only be testing on the material covered in class/the PPTs. If he says yes, then definitely stop beating yourself over the head with the textbook.

 

[Lady Belle]

Thank you very much for your tips. I will look back on the past quizzes and compare them to the lectures. My feeling has been that the quizzes are based on the textbook reading as they go into more detail. But I will need to confirm by comparing them. He is constantly saying to do the reading before the class, but it is so hard to follow along.
Perhaps using his lecture notes plus all the practice questions that are on mindtap cengage site we use to help identify concepts I don't understand might be more helpful then doing all the textbook reading.

 

[kraskadva]

I wouldn't want to say don't read the textbook at all, but with that kind of volume, there's no way he's covering everything. If he's cherry-picking from the text, then you should too.
Perhaps also compare his PPTs to the book and see if he's skipping entire sections. If he is, and doesn't say you're responsible for the material on your own, then likely he won't be testing on it and you can skip those parts of the reading to just focus on fleshing out what he does cover. If he posts the PPTs before class, I would recommend comparing these to the book before you start reading. (and also printing out and taking notes on them in class- this often helped me take better notes and get more out of lectures instead of trying to copy everything down.)

Best of luck!

 

[chooks]

The average was 63 and you got a 78 -- although the prof doesn't curve it looks like you did pretty well comparatively. So maybe you are being hard on yourself. Very few people could slog through many chapters of a bio book without getting distracted. That being said, the pace of med school is pretty darn quick so improving your study skills now will pay dividends as you progress towards your goals.

The advice given above to study smarter and not harder is very good. As one person above suggested - have the PPTs in a format you can annotate (paper based, tablet, etc...) so that you do not spend so much time writing things down. Trying to read in depth before the class sounds like it is not really working, so maybe just focus on skimming the highlights of the text to help make the lectures more understandable and memorable. Try to hit the material 3 times in 24 hours in some way (The other sources of material/concepts presentation (mindtap, etc...) is probably a great way to get another exposure to the material) Lastly, and probably most importantly, try to find some way to make the material your "own" -- make a study guide, flash cards, whatever that engages you and keeps you learning rather than drifting off. That can be a challenge if the volume is high and the professor is trying to weed people out with trivia rather than helping to guide people through the subject matter though.

Good luck and try not to get discouraged. My very first inorganic chem test was 49 -- two points above the class average of 47, so you are definitely not seeing the end to your med school ambitions with your current score 🙂

- chooks

 

[popopopop]

Thank you very much for your tips. I will look back on the past quizzes and compare them to the lectures. My feeling has been that the quizzes are based on the textbook reading as they go into more detail. But I will need to confirm by comparing them. He is constantly saying to do the reading before the class, but it is so hard to follow along.
Perhaps using his lecture notes plus all the practice questions that are on mindtap cengage site we use to help identify concepts I don't understand might be more helpful then doing all the textbook reading.

Don't forget back of the book problems. Sometimes the assigned homework doesn't necessarily reflect what's taught in the class either. If you can't learn from a source, use a secondary source to learn. In my case, I learned most of physics/cell bio through youtube and chemistry through ucdavis' chemwiki.

 

[jl lin]

My very first inorganic chem test was 49 -- two points above the class average of 47, so you are definitely not seeing the end to your med school ambitions with your current score 🙂

- chooks

Ouch, that's so painful and humbling.

 

[makingthejump]

When it comes to science classes, its ALL about studying efficiently. Science has sooo much information that can be taught, yet each professor emphasizes his or her own particular topics. Therefore, reading the book is by far one of the most time consuming, and inefficient methods of studying. My advice is to do 3 things:

1) Go to lecture and give it your dedicated attention for the entire time without taking notes

2) Later that evening, skim through the powerpoint notes that your professor discussed that day in class

3) Never use any outside resources to study, only use them to supplement. In other words, use your powerpoints exclusively, but if there is a topic on the powerpoint that confuses you, read about it quickly online with a visual. This method is more effective than learning the material from another source (a textbook, kahn, etc) and then crosschecking with your powerpoint notes to see if the professor covered it. Remember, your professor is giving the exam and he or she will put questions on the exam that interest him or her and that are therefore discussed within his or her powerpoint notes, not the book.

 

[Apollo1]

Concur w/ others saying to use PP as the basis for studying. I've found that a pre-read through a chapter is good for a definitional understanding of the material, and you can use that to help tailor the functional understanding the teacher is trying to impress.

 

[popopopop]

When it comes to science classes, its ALL about studying efficiently. Science has sooo much information that can be taught, yet each professor emphasizes his or her own particular topics. Therefore, reading the book is by far one of the most time consuming, and inefficient methods of studying. My advice is to do 3 things:

1) Go to lecture and give it your dedicated attention for the entire time without taking notes

2) Later that evening, skim through the powerpoint notes that your professor discussed that day in class

3) Never use any outside resources to study, only use them to supplement. In other words, use your powerpoints exclusively, but if there is a topic on the powerpoint that confuses you, read about it quickly online with a visual. This method is more effective than learning the material from another source (a textbook, kahn, etc) and then crosschecking with your powerpoint notes to see if the professor covered it. Remember, your professor is giving the exam and he or she will put questions on the exam that interest him or her and that are therefore discussed within his or her powerpoint notes, not the book.

Just want to re-emphasize that #3 is what I meant by a secondary source. Sometimes seeing an animation about a complicated process through youtube is more effective than reading about it. Professors will often put minute details from their own lecture to see if students are reviewing their notes. You can't replace the pp slides.

 

[Lady Belle]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
I feel so much better. I thought that the majority of people were flying through the chapters fully understanding everything.
I will definitely be incorporating these tips into my studying, as I cannot finish this semester successfully the way things are going.

 

[Astharia]

What exactly is your bio covering? Is it biological diversity? If so, I've found that making my own outlines and study guides is the most helpful. So far class averages have been 61% in my class and I've consistently scored 90-95%.

 

[Lady Belle]

Wow, that's amazing Kelslayne! Any tips on how you are doing your outline and study guides.

Here are the topics
Exam 2:
The tree of life and Overview of animals (major phyla only) , Animal Body and Homeostasis , Osmoregulation and Urinary Systems , Nervous System I: Information Flow & The Neuron , Nervous System II: Sensory System , Digestive System , Circulatory System and Respiration , Reproductive System.

Exam 3
Overview of green plants , Plant forms and growth , Transport in plants , Plant defenses and responses to the environment , Plant nutrition , Plant reproduction , Ecology and the Biosphere , Population ecology , Community ecology , Ecosystems , Conservation Biology .

 

[Astharia]

I'll message you.