VASC Math
Resources for Study Skills
Learning Styles
Study Skills
Skills Tutor Program
Having trouble taking notes in class, studying textbooks effectively, preparing for tests, managing your time? The sites here will give you many tried and true methods for improving your study skills and your understanding of the requirements of successful college work.
People learn in different ways. Some learn best by listening to explanations, others by reading, others by physically doing something. These "learning styles" exist in all of us, but different people have different levels of skill in each one. Knowing what learning styles you prefer can help your studying habits. The sites below explain learning styles and offer an on-line evaluation to show where your strengths are. Try them!
Four Learning Styles--Catherine Jester Learning Disability Specialist, Diablo Valley College
This page offers definitions for one common model for learning styles as well as suggestions for study methods that relate to your particular strengths. Read it over and then take the Learning Styles survey below to see where your strengths lie.
A Learning Style Survey for College--Catherine Jester, Learning Disability Specialist, Diablo Valley College.
This short survey is designed to identify your strongest and weakest learning styles. Warning: this test is not a medical or psychological diagnosis. It is provided for your interest only.
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The sites with interactive modules come first here. However, do not ignore the other sites. Many of them include handy one-page lists of methods and techniques that you can print off and keep on hand to help with studying both in class and out of class. Look for the memory improvement site at the end of the list.
Study Skills Self-Help Information--Cook Counseling Center, Virginia Tech.
There are five interactive modules in a box at the top of the page followed by seventeen non-interactive modules. Very good stuff! Easy to use and good advice.
Prentice Hall's Student Success Site--Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson's Publishing
This site offers nine interactive modules covering test-taking, studying, a study skills assessment (the LASSI test), note-taking, reading, writing, listening, math skills (free interactive test--but covering arithmetic only), and time management. Each of these modules includes as section of goal setting, an article, a quiz, and an opinion poll. Some have additional materials.
Study Tips--Academic Advancement Center, Ohio University
Interactive modules cover the following: Am I keeping up? Calculate your GPA, Memory, Time Management, Handling Reading, Lecture Notes, Exam Preparation, and Concentration. While there is not a lot of depth in this site, every section is interactive, and most involve some form of self-evaluation. The focus is clear, and the advice excellent.
Study Guides and Strategies--Joe Landsberger, Instructional Support Services.
Here you will find non-interactive modules covering Studying, Preparing to Learn, Reading Skills, Classroom Principles, Preparing for Tests, Taking Tests, Writing Basics, Web Truth (using the Web), and Math & Science. Much of this can be printed off.
Mind Tools
Eighty-two non-interactive modules covering Time Management Skills, Stress Control, Study Skills, Memory Skills, Creativity Tools, Mastering Complexity, Effectvie Decision Making, Project Planning, and Management Skills. This site was created for people in business, and is concerned with both personal and career development, but nearly all of its materials are directly applicable to student needs. This is a commercial site, so it has a lot of advertising tied to it. College of the Desert does not endorse or advocate the purchase of any of these materials.
Memory Improvement--Susan Higginson
This site focuses purely on improving your memory, but it includes excellent exercises, tests and straight forward advice.
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SkillsTutor is a fully interactive software package available to registered COD students. It offers instruction in reading, writing, and math. Click on the link below and follow the log-in instructions on the next page.
SkillsTutor Log-In
Web Guide to SkillsTutor
Video
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