So, I just received my scores back for the first biology midterm (1 of 3 exams in the course) and I didn't do too well. Are there any other study habits or ways that I could adapt to, to finish off the class with a decent grade? I'm reading the materials, taking notes, and even asking other peers or TAs for help when I have questions. What are some ways other than these that really helped you succeed in biology?
Study habits for Biology
- Thread starter shakshak
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Ill tell you everything and you will never receive less than at least a 90 from here on out if you follow these tips
1. Always.... ALWAYS read the chapter before lecture and come in to lecture understanding almost everything. whatever you don't understand while reading the chapter, write down on a stickie note and watch Crash Course videos or Google that topic later. Or look at that sticky note in class and ask your professor. You shouldn't look at the lecture to be TEACHING you the material, it should just be to re-enforce your knowledge from what you read or to answer questions that you have
2. I read the chapter 3 times.
1. I read it and highlight important material, knowing that around 80-85% of what I am reading will not stick past the day.. maybe even past the hour.
2. I read it again and write my notes on what I highlighted (These first 2 steps are done before lecture.)
3. I will now re-write my notes with all the knowledge and clarity from each lecture and make them very neat and condensed for each chapter. (I will upload a file of what my Neuroscience notes look like)
I will now study these notes once a week. Usually test is once a month covering 4 chapters, so each week I will have my notes written, and will use each week to study my notes.
Week 1 - Chapter 1
Week 2 - Chapter 2 and Chapter 1
Week 3 - Chapter 3, Chapter 2, Chapter 1.
Week 4 - Study everything, I will study, study, study... try and remember in the shower and driving, while taking a dump etc....
You will be surprised what you can rattle off from memory. The trick is to just start with a topic and then your brain will get rolling with all of the other ideas that you remember from your notes.
Example, while I am taking a shower, I have a Neuroscience test that Monday, on chapters 2,3,4,5. I got in the shower, SPOKE OUT LOUD instantly 1 topic - The Neuron Doctrine -
then from there I was talking about how that was Cajal vs Golgi basically and how Cajal said that all the neurons were not connected to each other like veins and arteries and Golgi said that they were a continuous flow like veins and arteries and Cajal was his student and they were bitter enemies and Cajal ended up being correct when 50 years later the electron microscope was developed and it was proven that they were not connected but rather relied on axons and dendrites which are connected to the soma of the Neuron. which is the cell body of the neuron, it has organelles - the organelles are Mitochondria, Golgi apparatus Smooth ER, Rough ER are protein synthesis sites, protein synthesis is from DNA in the nucleus and the process is transcription/translation this is the Central Dogma of Biology. The way it starts is that DNA is in chromosomes which is in the nucleus but it can not leave the nucleus and it needs to get to the proteins out of the nucleus so MRNA comes and transcribes the messages using transcription factors that will RNA splice introns and exons, introns and exons are the stuff that the DNA is getting expressed on then termination will end the tail which will stop the Gene Expression. It goes to the rough er if it is going to stay in the cell and free ribosomes to deliver them outside of the cell. And even though proteins go outside of the cell it is proven that Axons get there protein directly from the soma and can not live without it and the structure of the Axon is axon hillock which is the beginning than axon terminal is the end and the axon terminal forms a synapse with another neuron to relay information and signals and mitochondria is the reason why axons get there energy from the soma because they have a process called the Krebs cycle which is when it inhales pyretic acid and oxygen and exhales 17 ATP for each pyruvic acid molecule which is the energy from the mitochondria which is shaped like a sausage and has cristae which is the inner structures an d matrix which is the space between it. etc.......
You see what I am talking about. I just started with the Neuron Doctrine and you see where I ended up - started discussing DNA and then ultimately went to ATP. One thing just leads to another when doing this. Like I said you will be surprised. Don't worry about going in order of your notes, main thing is to just see what you know and what you need to look over.
Again, while doing this in the shower or whatever, don't really worry about accuracy, be more concerned with what you don't remember/not sure about. For instance while I was writing this about Neuroscience, I was not so sure about which ribosomes (Rough or free) will bring the proteins out of the cell, so now I know to look at that and double check and doing this will make you surely not forget it.
The best part about all this is that its not really such hard work. Its more just getting out of your comfort zone and talking about your notes in the shower instead of listening to music or looking at your notes while laying in bed when you have 10 min to kill before your ride comes to pick you up and take you to the theater to see "The Nun" to re-enforce a topic instead of browsing facebook for those 10 min (Very specific case because I just fell victim to this 1.5 hours ago, - I am currently sitting in the theatre lobby right now and writing this because that movie is VERY SCARY and wasn't in the mood of making in my pants for the second time in 25 minutes) Again, not such hard work, more of just a matter of you putting aside something that really isn't so important anyways (Facebook, Instagram.)
Hard work is Orgo/Genchem/Physics and stuff like that where you need to do problem after problem, and then when you run out of problems you have to find more problems and do those. Though Chem 2..... that was a completely different story, don't even know what that was... that class was HARD!!! Finished with B-
The reason that I really wrote a lot for this was because
A) Not watching "The Nun" because it is to scary and have some time to kill while my friends are finishing it and
B) I would like to help you learn the method to put you through college and Dental school and really have an affect on your schooling and your success in your classes. (Not sure if affect or effect, someone can reply and clarify that up for me because I would really like to know. Maybe throw in an example of each word in a sentence. Thank you)
Sorry that this was written with bad grammar/sentence fragments etc.. I am writing this on my phone in a theater lobby still shaking from fear that the old catholic lady standing across from me ordering her popcorn wants to devour my soul, preventing me from the afterlife)
Do this process, get an A, and then come back and thank me!
Also, I accept payment if you wish to thank me in that manner.
Kidding, just get the A and we will be even!!!
As promised, here is what my Neuroscience notes look like from Chapter 2 so you can get an idea... this is final draft, Spent maybe 2-3 Hours on it.
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Do your best to understand the broader picture, and try to recognize how everything you're learning fits together. It'll make learning all the small details much easier. It'll also help for when you relearn all the information again in dental school. Establish a strong bio background in undergrad.
Ill tell you everything and you will never receive less than at least a 90 from here on out if you follow these tips
1. Always.... ALWAYS read the chapter before lecture and come in to lecture understanding almost everything. whatever you don't understand while reading the chapter, write down on a stickie note and watch Crash Course videos or Google that topic later. Or look at that sticky note in class and ask your professor. You shouldn't look at the lecture to be TEACHING you the material, it should just be to re-enforce your knowledge from what you read or to answer questions that you have
2. I read the chapter 3 times.
1. I read it and highlight important material, knowing that around 80-85% of what I am reading will not stick past the day.. maybe even past the hour.
2. I read it again and write my notes on what I highlighted (These first 2 steps are done before lecture.)
3. I will now re-write my notes with all the knowledge and clarity from each lecture and make them very neat and condensed for each chapter. (I will upload a file of what my Neuroscience notes look like)
I will now study these notes once a week. Usually test is once a month covering 4 chapters, so each week I will have my notes written, and will use each week to study my notes.
Week 1 - Chapter 1
Week 2 - Chapter 2 and Chapter 1
Week 3 - Chapter 3, Chapter 2, Chapter 1.
Week 4 - Study everything, I will study, study, study... try and remember in the shower and driving, while taking a dump etc....
You will be surprised what you can rattle off from memory. The trick is to just start with a topic and then your brain will get rolling with all of the other ideas that you remember from your notes.
Example, while I am taking a shower, I have a Neuroscience test that Monday, on chapters 2,3,4,5. I got in the shower, SPOKE OUT LOUD instantly 1 topic - The Neuron Doctrine -
then from there I was talking about how that was Cajal vs Golgi basically and how Cajal said that all the neurons were not connected to each other like veins and arteries and Golgi said that they were a continuous flow like veins and arteries and Cajal was his student and they were bitter enemies and Cajal ended up being correct when 50 years later the electron microscope was developed and it was proven that they were not connected but rather relied on axons and dendrites which are connected to the soma of the Neuron. which is the cell body of the neuron, it has organelles - the organelles are Mitochondria, Golgi apparatus Smooth ER, Rough ER are protein synthesis sites, protein synthesis is from DNA in the nucleus and the process is transcription/translation this is the Central Dogma of Biology. The way it starts is that DNA is in chromosomes which is in the nucleus but it can not leave the nucleus and it needs to get to the proteins out of the nucleus so MRNA comes and transcribes the messages using transcription factors that will RNA splice introns and exons, introns and exons are the stuff that the DNA is getting expressed on then termination will end the tail which will stop the Gene Expression. It goes to the rough er if it is going to stay in the cell and free ribosomes to deliver them outside of the cell. And even though proteins go outside of the cell it is proven that Axons get there protein directly from the soma and can not live without it and the structure of the Axon is axon hillock which is the beginning than axon terminal is the end and the axon terminal forms a synapse with another neuron to relay information and signals and mitochondria is the reason why axons get there energy from the soma because they have a process called the Krebs cycle which is when it inhales pyretic acid and oxygen and exhales 17 ATP for each pyruvic acid molecule which is the energy from the mitochondria which is shaped like a sausage and has cristae which is the inner structures an d matrix which is the space between it. etc.......
You see what I am talking about. I just started with the Neuron Doctrine and you see where I ended up - started discussing DNA and then ultimately went to ATP. One thing just leads to another when doing this. Like I said you will be surprised. Don't worry about going in order of your notes, main thing is to just see what you know and what you need to look over.
Again, while doing this in the shower or whatever, don't really worry about accuracy, be more concerned with what you don't remember/not sure about. For instance while I was writing this about Neuroscience, I was not so sure about which ribosomes (Rough or free) will bring the proteins out of the cell, so now I know to look at that and double check and doing this will make you surely not forget it.
The best part about all this is that its not really such hard work. Its more just getting out of your comfort zone and talking about your notes in the shower instead of listening to music or looking at your notes while laying in bed when you have 10 min to kill before your ride comes to pick you up and take you to the theater to see "The Nun" to re-enforce a topic instead of browsing facebook for those 10 min (Very specific case because I just fell victim to this 1.5 hours ago, - I am currently sitting in the theatre lobby right now and writing this because that movie is VERY SCARY and wasn't in the mood of making in my pants for the second time in 25 minutes) Again, not such hard work, more of just a matter of you putting aside something that really isn't so important anyways (Facebook, Instagram.)
Hard work is Orgo/Genchem/Physics and stuff like that where you need to do problem after problem, and then when you run out of problems you have to find more problems and do those. Though Chem 2..... that was a completely different story, don't even know what that was... that class was HARD!!! Finished with B-
The reason that I really wrote a lot for this was because
A) Not watching "The Nun" because it is to scary and have some time to kill while my friends are finishing it and
B) I would like to help you learn the method to put you through college and Dental school and really have an affect on your schooling and your success in your classes. (Not sure if affect or effect, someone can reply and clarify that up for me because I would really like to know. Maybe throw in an example of each word in a sentence. Thank you)
Sorry that this was written with bad grammar/sentence fragments etc.. I am writing this on my phone in a theater lobby still shaking from fear that the old catholic lady standing across from me ordering her popcorn wants to devour my soul, preventing me from the afterlife)
Do this process, get an A, and then come back and thank me!
Also, I accept payment if you wish to thank me in that manner.
Kidding, just get the A and we will be even!!!
As promised, here is what my Neuroscience notes look like from Chapter 2 so you can get an idea... this is final draft, Spent maybe 2-3 Hours on it.
looks comprehensive for a single course in undergrad, but for dental school this might be a bit too tedious fyi
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I agree with this. I have never done things to such detail, yet I received As in my courses. However, you have to find what works for you personally because everyone is different. I agree with @Life of Pablo you need to connect the dots to other things that are similar as you progress through the course. Always ask yourself "What do I already know and how does this concept/fact relate?"
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Always ask why, and be able to teach the materials to your friends. You will quickly find the gaps in your knowledge when the roles are reversed. Also try and find a study group that will push you and keep you motivated. Keep your head up and keep grinding!
