WHY STUDY GROUPS ARE SO USEFUL
A study group for a college class is very helpful for many reasons. A study group can help you get a much better grade. Also, you can meet people in your class in study group sessions and get to know them better. Plus, the people in your group can help you focus on important study topics in class so you can cover more in less time. Non-traditional students can meet other types of students in a study group. In addition, you will even feel more comfortable in class after meeting in your study group several times.
STUDY GROUPS IN PERSON VS. ONLINE GROUPS
You can form study groups in person or online. I find in-person study groups easier, but it’s nice to have both types of groups. Most of my study group experiences come from groups created for face-to-face classes, but I had at least one study group online. They both helped me a lot. If you have the option of having your study group meet online or in person, I would choose in person, because it is so much more fun. They can talk and get to know each other much more easily. But online study groups are good too. You can make a profile in these groups and they will help you break the ice with other members of your group.
CHOOSING A GOOD TIME TO HOLD A STUDY MEETING
Most of the time when a study group was formed, everyone met first after class to decide when we would meet. Some people would like the study group to meet after class. Some would want to meet before class (that was generally my idea). Others thought it would be helpful to gather extra time before a trial test. We all voted for when everyone could attend. Most of the time, my groups decided to meet before class for a week or two. This would not require an additional trip to school, and it was helpful to meet in an area in the same building as the class so that we could go directly to class after meeting each other.
DIVIDING THE WORK
We had to prepare for some difficult exams and tests; so my study groups used to divide the work into sections. One person covered a topic or question and the others did the rest. We also made test cards and brought them to meetings. Sometimes we question each other, using cards or questions that we brought. This helped a lot to focus on what we knew and what we did not know, and it helped each of us to know what it was that we needed to study the most.
In addition, making the cards also helped us learn the material. The effort of writing questions helped me learn the facts better. We also help each other by reminding each other of assignments and answering questions from others.
DOING THE MEETINGS
Sometimes work or family responsibilities interfered with meetings and some people were unable to attend one or more meetings. But usually we still had enough people to make each study group worthwhile. I found that having more than two people total in the study group really made sense. If I only had one other person, if that person missed the study group meeting, they wouldn’t be able to study with anyone at all, and it was a waste of time. This didn’t matter as much with three or more people in the group.
ASK PEOPLE ABOUT BEING IN A STUDY GROUP
At first I was shy to ask people around me if I was in a study group. But he knew he needed the help and he knew that others probably needed it too. I had to force myself to ask the people around me. I tried to ask people before class, or at least before the teacher arrived. And of course I asked people who I thought were smart, had a good work ethic, and seemed friendly. Also, because I asked the people who were there early, I got the more motivated students to join. I would stop asking after four or five people said yes, because a larger group seemed too big.
Then I made a list of everyone’s name, phone number, and email, and gave everyone mine as well. I asked everyone if we could talk after class and decide when to stay after that. If someone had a class immediately after that, we offered to call or email them to find out when it was good for him or her. But it usually didn’t take long to decide when it was good for everyone.
Everything fell into place easily after that. We all decide when and how often to meet, and whether or not to have special study sessions right before an exam. Sometimes we would meet in the class building and sometimes in other places on campus.
After I started my first study group, it was easier to start with other groups, because I got used to it and wasn’t that shy or nervous about it. I was surprised to find that many other people also thought that a study group was a good idea!
SOME PEOPLE SAID NO
Not everyone wanted to be in a study group. When I asked people around me in class if they wanted to be in a study group, some people just said no. I didn’t let this bother me. Even if only two or three people would be interested, I thought it was still a large enough group. The largest group I had when I was in college was about six people. The smallest was two (which I don’t recommend because sometimes someone forgets about it and then you don’t get a good profit from it. But if those are all the members you can get, then I would do it anyway.
WHAT MY STUDY GROUPS ACHIEVED
I truly believe that having study groups for class (especially difficult classes) made a huge difference to my grades. I think it helped at least one grade point every time I was in a study group. Also, the study groups really helped before the tests. Talking to other people and hearing what they thought would be on the test really made me remember the facts much better than just trying to put them in on my own.
Also, many times, people in the study group had noticed points that the teacher said were not even in my notes. Then I would see these things in the test and remember them. What a great boost that was. I found that I felt more prepared and was not as nervous before testing as well. That helped me a lot.
The other people in my study groups told me that they were also happy to join the group. They said it made learning much easier for them. I agreed with them!
AN ADDITIONAL BENEFIT FOR STUDY GROUPS
I think I really connected better with other students by being in a study group with them. Sometimes we talked about things other than class, and that made study groups so much more fun. We got to know more personal things about each other, like what everyone’s lives were like at home and what people’s hobbies and interests were. It was a great way to make friends. Most of the people in each group were much younger, but when we had time (in study group time) to get to know each other, it was easier to be friends. That made going to class and studying a lot more fun.
Now I had people I knew in class with me. It made being in class so much more comfortable. I found it more fun to wait for the teacher to arrive and it also made group work more enjoyable. And today some of us still keep in touch. I feel like I really made good friends this way. I also felt more connected.
It was easier to be in class and also less intimidating. I felt a lot more comfortable, and people talked to me more, too. It was a win-win situation for everyone to meet the people in my study groups, plus it really helped me improve my grades.
So … I would definitely recommend being in a study group if you are taking a face-to-face class or an online class. It sure helped me!