Department of Political Science

HOW SHOULD I STUDY FOR THIS CLASS?

Students often want to know how to prepare for this class. You will need to think about your own study habits and about how you best learn and retain information. In other words, not all students will learn in the same way. However, many of you may benefit if you follow a general approach, such as the following:

Study in a good learning environment. For most of us, that means a setting that is quiet and free of distractions.
Preview the reading by scanning the chapter. At this point, look at words in boldface or italics; look at major division headings; and read marginal notations and information under pictures, charts, and graphs.
Read the text slowly and use a highlighter (marker) to mark important information. Read carefully and highlight only those portions that seem particularly important; mark parts of sentences and not entire sentences. You should THINK about everything you mark and have a reason for marking it. At the same time, do not take this advice to such an extreme that you only mark the items that have already been selected by the author (as indicated by bold and italic text).
Review the highlighted text MANY times. Look for similarities or correlations with lectures. How are they different or similar? Think about WHY these differences or similarities occur.
Many students learn best when they hear information, and small study groups can be very beneficial. Each member should be an active participant, not a "free rider."
Some students learn best when they write out information. If so, write brief outlines or descriptions.
Make effective use of the lecture guides that were distributed in class: use the entries on the handout to develop more extensive lecture notes of your own. That is, use these notes as a general guide and not as a comprehensive set of notes.
Web sites have been created by the publishers of both of your required textbooks. These sites provide a variety of helpful information for students in the Political Science 141/142 classes (including interactive practice quizzes for each chapter).
Maintain a good record of attendance, and keep extensive lecture notes. Use your lecture notes as study aids to provide comparison and correlation with the text. Many exam questions will come directly from class discussion; others will be extracted from the text, or will combine text and lecture materials.

Note: You should begin reading (and reviewing) for the next exam as soon as the first exam is completed; do not wait until right before the exam because most students cannot absorb the data without several readings or reviews.