DISORGANIZED DESK SYNDROME: ARE YOU SUFFERING FROM IT?
It is nothing but lack of concentration on your work, deviating from your work
Studying can be quite a handful, more so if you`re intending to spend your exam packed week at a cluttered desk. If your desk looks like the common playground of the entire class, you need some serious help right now. Here are some quick tips on de-cluttering and organizing your study space.
1. Plan your desk out
Before you begin studying, lay out your desk. Ideally, you should have a concentration space i.e. your main desk space where you lay your text down and study, and a recreation space, which you utilize when you want to take a break.
2. Use simple distractions
Every once in a while you`ll probably want to glance away from your text book and look at something else. So, why not keep a simple distraction handy? This can be anything that interests you; an interesting book to read, a Rubik`s Cube, a Moleskine book where you doodle, anything that could provide you a brief break from your study table.
3. Keep the essentials handy
Every time you study, there are things that you are always going to need, so make space for them at your desk. These include a bottle of water, a packet of biscuits, a pen stand and some rough papers (for notes or just plain scribbles when you get bored).
4. Systematically stock your study material
During the course of the exam week, you`ll find your table getting cluttered with extra study material and sheets of papers that you`ve already written on. This happens because you probably never thought of any space to stock it. To avoid this, create a separate space for all study material; bring it out and put it back as and when required.
5. Customize your space
Make your desk your exam zone. Make sure it`s well ventilated and well stocked. Customize it if you want with a few post-it reminders of your time table or your exam card or something as simple as a motivational quote by your favourite author. It`ll help you relax, stay motivated and study better.
Remember, while some ingenious minds can claim that they can`t work without chaos, if you`re a student, clutter is definitely going to affect your thoughts, mood and consequently your learning. So, clear you space and clear your mind. Happy studying!
2.LEARNING BETTER THROUGH TEACHING:
Almost all of us have stood in front of a chalk board and read aloud to parents, friends or siblings when we were young. Many of us even wanted to be teachers, and the closest we came to that was tutoring a friend a day before the term exams began. Advisors are now saying that we should engage in more behaviour akin to this -- teaching. Simply because teaching is said to be one of the most effective ways of learning. That’s why our mothers would always remember what happened to which king in which chapter of our history books or which author penned what down while in prison.
Research suggests that the more you teach somebody else about a certain subject, the better you get at it. This is true firstly because you will repeat yourself several times to explain a new concept to them. Also, a few other things crop up while providing someone else with information. It is believed that when we impart information to somebody other than ourselves, we begin to question all the material that we have and what we may have taken for granted. We need to go through things step by step, thoroughly so as to explain it. This in turn results in us being a lot more thorough with the subject.
Teaching also puts us in a position of authority as someone who is more knowledgeable than the recipient. This automatically calls for us to be more informed about the subject, get a holistic view of it and consequently have a little more knowledge about it than what is required.
Thus, rather automatically, teaching works wonders especially if you’re trying really hard to learn something. The next time you find yourself bogged down with a paper you find somewhat difficult, teach a friend. The interaction and the exchange of information will definitely help you to learn more and learn better. And if you’re having a problem remembering whatever you’ve taught, just get yourself a few more people and repeat the cycle.