The Study Skills Collection

Over the past couple of years we’ve been gradually putting together a portfolio of films that help students understand some of the most important and useful Study Skills they can apply to their work as a way of improving things like attention and comprehension.

Each film is available to buy or rent, while the complete collection is available as part of our reasonably-priced subscription library of Sociology, Psychology Criminology and Study Skills films.

The Power of Habits

There’s lots of advice around about the study habits students should be developing to help them succeed.

But that still leaves a big question.

How do they develop the good habits that are going to get them the best grades?

In a series of simple steps, this short film lets you in on some of the secrets of how to develop the kinds of positive study habits that bring long-term academic benefits.

Sleep and Memory

Recent scientific research has shown us the benefits of sleep.

And we’re increasingly aware that good sleep is crucial to memory and learning.

Of course, just getting lots of sleep isn’t going to get you good grades.

You need to understand how to use a knowledge of sleep to your advantage and this short film reveals some of the simple sleep hacks students can use to improve their academic performance.

Active Learning: Cornell Notes

Most students write simple linear notes.

But there is a way to improve the quality of note-taking that makes it more active, inquiring and revision-friendly, without radically changing how they take notes.

It’s called the Cornell Method and it’s been helping to improve academic performance for over 50 years.

This short film takes students through the simple steps they need to follow to transform the way they take notes and improve their chances of academic success.

Retrieval Practice

This short film shows you how to use retrieval practice to improve your understanding and develop your recall to identify gaps in your knowledge.

While most study time is spent trying to get knowledge into your brain, then out again when exams roll around, retrieval practice helps to get it

in and out at the same time.

It’s been shown to create stronger memories than the familiar techniques of re-reading, underlining and highlighting.

Dual Coding

Dual coding involves using verbal and visual cues to help develop your learning and recall. So if you like two-for-one offers, this one’s for you.

Research shows it improves understanding and creates stronger memories, so that’s a bargain.

And combining it with retrieval practice turbo-charges your revision, giving you even more.

Active Listening

As students we spend a lot of time listening. But because we don’t always fully engage with what we’re hearing we frequently miss a lot of important information.

And if we’re not taking something in, we can’t recall it when we really need it.

But it’s not difficult to become a more active listener and in this short film we show you three simple strategies to improve your listening and make you better learners

Metacognition

There’s now evidence that successful students don’t just focus on what they’re learning, but also how they’re learning.

This is called metacognition and this short film illustrates its key stages and how it helps students study smarter without studying harder.

Spaced Repetition

Research has shown that when students learn new information, they’ll usually have forgotten half of it within a day and most of it after a week. This is called the forgetting curve.

This film explains how spaced repetition helps students avoid the forgetting curve and, compared to cramming, remember twice as much information in half as much time.

Better Sleep: Better Grades

There’s increasing evidence linking good sleep to consolidating and strengthening memory.

But supposing students find it difficult to get a good night’s sleep, particularly when faced with upcoming tests or exams?

This film introduces four simple, science-based strategies to help get good sleep and wake alert and ready to study successfully.

Context-Dependent Memory

If you’ve ever returned somewhere and found your mind suddenly filled with memories, you’ve experienced what psychologists call context-dependent memory. Research has shown that our recall of information is much stronger when it’s done in the environment where it was learned.

The three simple strategies outlined in this short film will show you how to take advantage of this to enhance your studies.

Procrastination 1: Avoidance and Denial

Most of us try to avoid doing things we don’t particularly like.

But for students, research has shown procrastination can have particularly serious consequences, such as increasing stress levels and lowering grades.

And the first step to preventing procrastination is to understand the techniques of denial we use that allow it to continue.

Procrastination 2: Prevention Strategies

If procrastination is a problem, how do we prevent it?

While the conventional advice is to focus on the future rewards of studying, this doesn’t actually solve the pressing problem of present procrastination.

This film looks at strategies you can use to overcome this problem.

Procrastination 3: Facing the Fear

A major cause of procrastination is fear: Of failure. Of criticism. Of not reaching the high standards we’ve set for ourselves.

But while it’s one thing to admit this, it’s another to understand how to overcome it. And this is where the story of Joe Simpson – badly injured and left for dead while climbing in the Peruvian Andes – can help.

The film illustrates how you can apply the strategies Simpson used to combat his fear to complete your most intimidating projects.

Mindmaps

Mindmapping is a note-taking technique that research has shown can make information easier to recall, increase our levels of understanding and help structure exam answers.

It does this by dual-coding knowledge, combining text and graphics in simple, personal, evocative and highly memorable ways.

And this short film takes you through the four easy steps you need to follow to create Notes that will supercharge both your reviewing and chances of academic success.