Homework is banned in Finland

In previous columns we have discussed the Finland miracle in education. Part of their success, they claim, is that homework is banned in Finland.

Nevertheless, homework (or home study) is well entrenched in the NSW schools’ systems. And teachers include homework as part of the internal school assessment process. The efficiency with which you are able to do private study, is often the difference between success and failure at school, university and in business.

Be organised

Be organised – study time should be study time, not time wasted in a frustrated search for materials and workspace.

Theory books for all subjects should be considered; these books should contain a bare outline of all the topics to be studied in summary form. And they should direct the student to where further information on the topic can be found if needed. In mathematics your theory book would be classed as a formula book. In essay writing subjects you could include mind mapping for different topics.

Each school day is not complete until the notes etc generated for that day have been collated and filed. Take ownership of your notes by personalising them in your own words. This aids memory retention. Develop a day sheet to keep track of routine tasks and special needs; a day planner is an excellent idea.

Many students achieve lower rewards than they deserve simply because their effective study time has been lost because of frustration caused by poor organisational skills.

Organisational skills

Organisational skills are a state of mind and there are simple techniques that can be taught in a one day seminar that can change a C student into an A student and in the process actually reduce the number of study hours required.

A free copy of a comprehensive guide to study skills can be downloaded, at no cost: Click Study Skills to download.

See:  The Weekender  (Page 58)