STEP 1: Imagine that one of your best friends is struggling with his classes. He aspires to graduate in exercise science and go on to earn a degree in occupational therapy, but he failed his first two psychology exams. He’s feeling nervous about his performance and comes to you for advice.
During your discussion, you learn that:
- he gets easily frustrated while working on psychology problems after approaching them the way he has always approached problems in his other classes;
- he is sleeping less than five hours a night;
- he works on psychology homework every Tuesday and Thursday night, but not on other days;
- he always keeps his phone on vibrate to check if he gets messages while he studies;
- he usually studies by re-reading the chapter;
- he pulls all-nighters before exams.
STEP 2: Based on this conversation, write an email to your friend (between 200-400 words), explaining to him why his studying habits are ineffective and what steps he might take to improve his learning. Include at least 3 concepts from the course materials in your post. Include appropriate vocabulary from this module on memory and problem-solving. Be sure to cite your textbook or the videos in your response.
STEP 3: Write responses (75-100 words) to at least two of your peers. In your responses, list at least three things that you have learned from your classmate’s post. See if you can come up with additional strategies you have learned about or tried yourself, that might add to this discussion of how to succeed in school.
