Marie, why didn't you read the text book? How do expect doing well on the tests if you don't actually read it? Psychology is not English class, you can't just "wing it." Many fine folks here have given you tips and advice and you haven't even tried. How do you expect to even pass the midterm when you haven't read 3 chapters? You already got a D+ on your chapter exam. You are neck deep in poo, lady. You won't be able to use Google search engine to find all your answers for the midterm. I'm incredibly disappointed in you, I hope you you can pack in studying within the next four days.

I'm poopy.

[Perna]

Marie, why didn't you read the text book (real curiosity; not anger, blame, self-shaming)? It can be hard, boring stuff, psychology, can't it? I don't care about how eyeballs work and I don't have any babies to test, much less room for a visual cliff? I bet the chapter exam has the sorts of questions I'll need to study; if I take those questions and write out good, "correct" answers for them now (in my best English class, creative winging language), that will get my imagination working and, with such a good imagination, I can anticipate similar sorts of questions that will probably be on the midterm and research and answer them now, playing around on Google and the Internet.

[atomicc]

I think psychology is absolutely the most amazing thing but I'm a psych major so don't listen to me. If you're in the 101 class though, I can how it can be boring since they give you just little snippets of the bigger picture. It's really important to read the textbook for this kind of stuff though, because it's not all common sense. Especially when it comes to specific theories because many of them are contradictory to each other or even what the masses believe now. If you need any help understanding content you can PM me, but really..reading the textbook is the only way to get it all in. Take good notes as well.

Originally Posted by Perna

Marie, why didn't you read the text book (real curiosity; not anger, blame, self-shaming)? It can be hard, boring stuff, psychology, can't it? I don't care about how eyeballs work and I don't have any babies to test, much less room for a visual cliff? I bet the chapter exam has the sorts of questions I'll need to study; if I take those questions and write out good, "correct" answers for them now (in my best English class, creative winging language), that will get my imagination working and, with such a good imagination, I can anticipate similar sorts of questions that will probably be on the midterm and research and answer them now, playing around on Google and the Internet.

I wish I could give you a good answer as to why I didn't read the book. I have trouble focusing on the pages, and I often immediately forget what I just read. The frustrating part is that I can type up hundreds of lines of CSS and HTML with maybe a few minor frustrations on the way, but reading a textbook is incredibly difficult for me. I don't know how to translate what I know within web design into reading a textbook. I don't know how to get my mind into the "zone" when I do anything web design related. I tried taking a bunch of learning style quizzes, but they are super inaccurate. I'm so disappointed in myself because I don't know how to do it right for my own distracted brain.

Originally Posted by atomicc

I think psychology is absolutely the most amazing thing but I'm a psych major so don't listen to me. If you're in the 101 class though, I can how it can be boring since they give you just little snippets of the bigger picture. It's really important to read the textbook for this kind of stuff though, because it's not all common sense. Especially when it comes to specific theories because many of them are contradictory to each other or even what the masses believe now. If you need any help understanding content you can PM me, but really..reading the textbook is the only way to get it all in. Take good notes as well.

The chapters jump around from psych, biology, neurology, physiology, optics, and They are all actually cool. I legitimately like it, but I don't know what to alter personally to understand the content. I love learning when I understand it, but it brings me to quite a low when I don't understand it.

[SeekingZen]

Hi Marie,

So you say you are interested in psych, so that's a plus you already have in your favor! What psych class is this that your're taking now?

I also have issues w/ reading comprehension and attention, so I can relate. What I did (and got A's in all of my psych classes) is set aside a couple of hours 3 days a week to devote to reading the assigned chapters. Highlight everything that is important & stressed during lectures. Do not cram everything into one long study session b/c you will not have time and you won't remember as much. If you've had Psych of Learning you'll know why already....

If you want an A, I suggest making note cards (flash cards) for all of the important concept/terms/theories. Write them out by hand, do not type them out. It may seem like a huge PIA but writing them out by hand helps you retain the info better. Then, study off your flash cards for a day or two before your exams. Doing it this way was a lot more work, but it worked for me. Also, make up acronyms for anything that will make remembering things like theories easier. Or use picture/story associations to help you remember things for your exam.

You CAN do it, you just have to make it a priority and eliminate distractions. If you have difficulty taking effective notes, maybe you can record your lectures or ask if you can access someone's notes. Your Univ may offer this through their Disability Office or you can see if Chegg offers notes for your class.

One other suggestion: see if there are any study groups avail for your class. That should help too.

Best of luck to you Marie! Please feel free to PM me too if you have any questions I can help you with. I 'ed every Psych class I ever took, but I still had to study for the A's...

Originally Posted by SeekingZen

Hi Marie,

So you say you are interested in psych, so that's a plus you already have in your favor! What psych class is this that your're taking now?

I also have issues w/ reading comprehension and attention, so I can relate. What I did (and got A's in all of my psych classes) is set aside a couple of hours 3 days a week to devote to reading the assigned chapters. Highlight everything that is important & stressed during lectures. Do not cram everything into one long study session b/c you will not have time and you won't remember as much. If you've had Psych of Learning you'll know why already....

If you want an A, I suggest making note cards (flash cards) for all of the important concept/terms/theories. Write them out by hand, do not type them out. It may seem like a huge PIA but writing them out by hand helps you retain the info better. Then, study off your flash cards for a day or two before your exams. Doing it this way was a lot more work, but it worked for me. Also, make up acronyms for anything that will make remembering things like theories easier. Or use picture/story associations to help you remember things for your exam.

You CAN do it, you just have to make it a priority and eliminate distractions. If you have difficulty taking effective notes, maybe you can record your lectures or ask if you can access someone's notes. Your Univ may offer this through their Disability Office or you can see if Chegg offers notes for your class.

One other suggestion: see if there are any study groups avail for your class. That should help too.

Best of luck to you Marie! Please feel free to PM me too if you have any questions I can help you with. I 'ed every Psych class I ever took, but I still had to study for the A's...

I'm taking an online PSY 101 class.

I tried writing notes by hand, but it seemed like every other sentence was important in my brain. I ended up writing twice the amount of notes of however many pages I read. All the short simple things I thought I needed to know ended up not being on the exam. I know that he randomly puts in questions that are related to random facts within the text. I have no idea if he uses his own psych textbook and my psych textbook to make the exams, but it still seems to not work out for me.

There's usually a powerpoint, a video lecture, and other videos relating the current topic, but my teacher uses a different psych text book for his powerpoints. He says that they have the same topics, but are written in a different order, and it's kind of frustrating.

My peers have recommended that I have the powerpoint open as I read through the text, and write side notes that aren't covered by the powerpoint, but that would mean I'd have to rely on the powerpoint for tests rather than trying to learn and know it. It's incredibly frustrating. I don't know how to handle my textbook.

[SeekingZen]

Hi Marie, You know I thought to myself, "hey I wonder if she may be taking an online class" as I wrote out my suggestions, and then neglected to ask if you were. Sorry!

Since your professor does provide ppt slides, go off those as you read the book, and make your notes based off of the points he focuses on in his slides. These are usually the points that he will focus on for the exams. I know it may be frustrating skipping around the chapter since he may be using a different version of the text, but doing it this way will save you a lot of time! This way you don't have to drive yourself crazy trying to decipher what is important, b/c everything seems so important. Trust me, I had that exact same issue too!

Watch the video lectures a few times if you have to & really concentrate on the topics in his ppt slides and video lectures rather than the supplemental videos. Just look for the key terms and concepts and how they relate to one another. I would take notes from your text book based on the topics in your prof's ppt slides, rather than just your reading of the textbook. But def rely on the ppt slides to guide you in what to take notes on, not as a substitute for writing notes. By writing them out yourself it will help you retain the information.

Does your textbook have an online lab that came with the book? If you have a used book you can usually buy a key code online from the publisher for your specific class/textbook. I've used Pearson's in the past and they provide online practice quizzes and flash cards that really prepare you for the exams.

If you are still having difficulty after doing this, email your professor for suggestions. Since it's an online class, there are likely to be other students who are struggling as well and he may have some suggestions based on how people have done in his other classes. Maybe he can provide the class with a study guide for the exam if you ask.

Good luck! Hope this helps!

The thought of not walking to campus to take the midterm has crossed my mind a few times. I just want to skip it and focus on the new stuff. Ugh.. This is all of my doing..

I have zero confidence in how the test will turn out.

[wisedude]

Don't be too critical on yourself, that is a common flaw in human thinking with serious repercussions.

You should seek out a professional in regards to this issue, I think you need the insight of someone with good skills.