Example research essay topic: San Francisco Ca Lecture Notes - 2,327 words

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... s, that university students have a higher metacognition awareness and are far more able to self-regulate. Transcript of Researcher's Questions and Michael's Responses Researcher (R): For my university studies in Education. , I'm doing some research on study skills. There are no right or wrong answers and the data will remain completely confidential. You can stop the interview at any time if you choose. I'm also going to record the interview so that I can write up your exact words, okay?

R: Do you want to sign this consent form for me? R: Okay, now you " re eighteen and in Year 12 is that right? R: The first thing I want you to do is think about an exam that you have had recently. [pause] Can you think of one. M: I dunno, I only did it this week so I haven't got my marks back yet. R: Really, what makes you think you aced it? M: Well we got given the questions before the exam and we were allowed to take a 1 page "cheat sheet" in.

R: Sounds like a cool exam to me! So, ah, what did you do to prepare for it? M: Well I looked at each of the questions and went through the text book I found the answers and wrote them all down. R: Right, so you didnt have to study for it as such?

M: Well sort of. That's how I study for exams anyway... well except for taking the cheat sheet in! R: So do you want to tell me how you normally study for exams...

you know... when you don't have the questions beforehand. M: Well I just go through the textbook and my notes and write them out. R: Is there anything else you do when studying for an exam to help you try and remember stuff?

M: Nah, not really. [pause] Oh yeah! M: The night before an exam I always go to bed before 8. 30 pm! R: Right! Okay, how do you think this helps?

M: Well, you know... if you are tired you can't think straight and you know you won't remember any of the stuff anyway. R: Yeh. So if you are studying you just read through your notes and make more notes right? M: Well...

doing that just seems to bash it through my think head! R: Do you learn all your material the same way for history? R: Are you able to use any other method or do you find that this works the best? M: Nah, this seems to works the best. R: Fair enough! If you were studying for a maths exam and a history exam would you do it differently?

R: Have you had a maths test lately? M: Yeh I had one before the holidays. R: Did you expect the result you got? M: Well you know...

I don't have to write as much stuff out because um you just have to know the formulas as stuff. M: Oh right! Well I just do as many examples of them as I can. R: You do practice papers and stuff?

R: Before the test how do you know whether you know the stuff? M; Well if I have done heaps of examples and got them right I suppose. You just sorta know if you get something or not, don't you? R: Normally! Um, right before you go into an exam what do you do?

M: Well I read over my summaries and try and drill as much stuff as I can in then when I get into the exam I write down as much stuff as I can. You know... just on a scrap piece of paper 'case I forget it. R: If you get stuck on a maths problem in the exam what do you do?

M: Well... I try it and if I can't do it... I leave it and come back to it later if I've got time. R: Do you think that the way you study has changed... um... as you got older?

R: How long do you think you have been preparing for exams like this... sorry... this way? R: That's cool. Do you think there are any factors which affect the way that you study or how well you study? M: Oh yeah!

If there's food around there's no hope for me! No seriously I get distracted really easily so there's gotta be no food and yeh no noise. I can't have music on or anything like that! M: Well I just don't seem to be able to concentrate. R: I'm the same!

Do you think you study better if it is a subject that you like? M: For sure! I study heaps better if I like the subject. [pause] You also dont mind doing it as much, do you? M: I don't really know whether you study better for subjects you like but you probably do more study for them. [pause] You also seem to like subjects that you are better at don't you? You know, most of the time, you don't like stuff you are not good at so yeh the subjects you like you seems learn quicker. R: That's great!

Thanks for your help! Transcript of Researcher's Questions and John's Responses R: For my studies in education I am doing some research into study skills. There are no right or wrong answers and all the data will remain completely confidential. You can stop the interview at any time. Okay? R: You don't mind if I tape record the interview?

R: Can you think about an exam you have had recently for me? R: How did you actually study for it? J: Well... I went through all my lectures to start with and in the first few weeks when I wasn't so busy I came home and rewrote my notes. I use blue and red pen to highlight the important facts. So I rewrote all my notes and then when it came closer to the date I started writing them onto 'cue cards 's o I had all the salient points on the cue cards.

So I basically keep putting them onto cue cards and once I have finished all my exam notes and yeh I've got it all on 'cue cards' and I keep reading them. And every time I read them I remember some more and more and so I take those cue cards out and don't read them again and eventually I'm left with 10 or so 'cue cards'. I go through them and decide if they are likely to be in the exam questions and I have quite mastered it and I keep reading through them until I'm ready to sit for the exam. R: Okay, so how do you actually go about actually remembering the information? J: Like I said if I've got time I like to rewrite my notes but that takes a lot of time. Closer to the date I stop that and just keep reading and putting them onto 'cue cards'...

um... and basically keep reading and... reading my lecture notes... I go through the text book and some past paper... and I prepare my lecture notes and I try and expand on them so I can understand what I am going to have to write about.

R: So you don't actually have any tricks for remembering the stuff? You don't make patterns out of the words or anything like that? J: With Orthopaedics it's basically a lot of facts and it's just remembering and rewriting the facts and sometimes I might use a pneumonic but it's not that easy to use a pneumonic because basically, you know "A patient presents with. " And you " ve got to know what the facts are. R: Okay can you think of another exam you have had recently? R: Okay. So did you have to prepare for it differently?

J: So it was a practical exam. It wasn't a theory exam. Apart from reading lecture notes it was basically practising with friends. R: How to you manage to remember practical information as opposed to the theoretical information?

J: I think I read somewhere that it takes two weeks to form a ingrain so basically we get together twice a week and draw a name out of a hat and try and remember the name and the name gives you a clue and you " ve got to remember all your contacts are and you " ve just got to keep practising. Yeh basically you see that name of the adjustment and your brain's got to think okay and just before you do the adjustment take a deep breath and think of all the things you have gone through with your friends. And thinking what are the important points and hopefully you have done enough practice that it becomes automated. R: Um... Do you think motivation affects your ability to study? J: Definitely, I think doing 10 or so Masters subjects if you are not motivated I think it becomes tough to sit there and rewrite your lecture notes and to try to remember so many facts.

Motivation plays a big part. R: Do you think there is anything else that affects your study? J: Definitely the environment you are studying in and how you are feeling, lack of sleep, I suppose relationships all play a part R: Right. In an exam if you get stuck on a questions what do you do? J: Um, it all depends on if it is a theory or a practical. If it is say a theory question I'll think about it but I'll only think about it for say 30 secs 'cause if I know it I'll know t straight away.

So if I'm in a theory I'll just leave it and if I'm doing another question and I think of something that answers the question I have left I'll come back to it but basically I'll leave it and try to get marks elsewhere and come back to the question. In a practical exam I suppose try and reread the question take a deep breath and you should know it and hopefully it will come back to you and if it doesnt ask the examiner if I can come back to it and hopefully it come back to me. R: Do you think there is anything that happens in an exam that reminds you of anything that you have forgotten? You know do you think there is anything... "Oh... I was studying that on a Wednesday after... " Do you try and make a process of your study so that you can try and remember it?

J: Not so much days but I read my notes a few times and I think I can almost pinpoint what lecture it was at, who gave the lecture and what his emphasis was. Sometime I can remember what 'cue card' it was on and I try to visualize what I was remembering. Sometimes it is difficult when you " ve got fact after fact but at least if you can't remember the whole of it you can get some marks. R: Right okay. Are you generally pleased with the results you get? J: Practical more so than theory.

I'm one of the only ones who hasn't failed a practical station so I'm pretty happy with that. Theory sometimes I do really well other times not so well. R: If in one theory subject you have different sorts of exams say multiple choice versus essays. Do you prepare differently? J: Yeh. We have some True / False exams and you know...

with them you think that you don't actually have to remember it... psychologically... you just think that you will have to recognize it... so you don't tend to study it as well. Whereas with other sorts of tests you know you have to know the facts so you actually remember them. R: Well that's it!

Thanks for your help! Berk, L. E. (1997). Child Development. (4 th ed. ). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Collins, N.

D. (1994). Metacognition and Reading to Learn. (Report No. EDO-CS- 94 - 09). Washington, DC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading, English, and Communication, Bloomington, in Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED). (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. 376 - 427) Fleming, S.

P. , Cornwell, J. M. , et al. (1993, April). Developmental Changes in the Factor Structure of a A Self-Report Measure of Study Activities. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Atlanta, GA. Hagan, A. S. , Reed, J.

H. , et al. (1192, April). Motivational and Cognitive Factors Affecting Involvement in Goal Pursuit: A Reconfirmation of Extension of Research. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA. Murray-Harvey & Keeps, J. P. (1994, April). Students' Learning Processes and Progress in Higher Education.

Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA. Rafoth, M. A. , Leal, L. & De Fax, L. (1993). Strategies for Learning and Remembering: Study Skills Across the Curriculum Washington, DC: National Education Association.

Slavin, R. E. (1997). Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice. (5 th ed. ). Boston: Allen and Bacon.

Wharton, P. (1999). Metacognition. Lecture presented at Macquarie University, Sydney. Williams, J. E. (1995, April).

Use of Learning and Study Skills among Students Differing in Self-Regulated Learning Efficacy. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA. Williams, J. E. (1996, April).

Promoting Rural Students' Academic Achievements: An Examination of Self-Regulated Learning Strategies. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New York, NY. Williams, J. E. (1997, March). Relating Affective and Cognitive Study Strategies to Self-Regulated Learning for Rural At-Risk Students.

Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Assocation, Chicago, IL. Bibliography:

Research essay sample on San Francisco Ca Lecture Notes