How do I concentrate better as a mixed learner?
Anonymous student asks:
I find it hard to concentrate most of the time — as a mixed learner how do I cope with this? Sometimes I get the urge to read spontaneously but then it goes. I need help please.
Our response:
Hi AnonymousThanks for your question! It's a really good one.When it comes to improving concentration, our first recommendation is to try to schedule your study time in advance. The easiest way of doing this is probably to make a timetable, and schedule in times for your study. The reason why this can be really helpful is because you are more likely to do something when you've decided to do it in advance.In other words, you are LESS likely to study when you only do it when you 'feel like it'. Improving your concentration is partly a matter of improving your discipline, and making a study timetable can be a great way of starting to improve your self-discipline, and in turn your concentration.We would also recommend scheduling your study so that you study in chunks of time. For example, you might find it really helpful to study for say, an hour at a time, then take a short break, and then do another hour of study, and so on. Studying in smaller chunks of time makes studying seem like less of a burden and less daunting.The key for you will be to figure out what length of time you study most productively for. It might be an hour, it might be 30 minutes, it might be a few hours! That's what you to figure out.Since you're a mixed learner, you might also find that using a range of different study techniques helps keep you focused while you're studying, rather than just using the same study technique (for instance, writing study notes or reading) for hours on end. Perhaps when you feel yourself losing focus, that might be time to try using a different technique, or switching topics. This should help prevent you from getting bored/distracted/losing concentration when you're studying so quickly.Also, if you find that you lose focus quickly when you're reading, perhaps you need to try doing something else alongside your reading. For instance, we found it helpful to mix reading with writing study notes — so we were doing both at the same time. It can be really hard to just read read read, and retain what you're reading and stay focused for an extended period of time. But writing study notes, or watching a video on the topic while you're reading, can help keep you engaged for longer before you lose concentration.Finally, if you haven't already, check out these articles on concentration — they have more tips that you might find useful:
- Will music improve your concentration while you study?
- How to Maintain Concentration While Studying (Part 1)
- How to Maintain Concentration While Studying (Part 2)
We'll leave it there for now so you have a chance to try out these tips, but let us know if you would like us to explain anything further :)All the best with your studies, we're sure you'll do great!Thanks again for getting in touch.The Study Gurus
