Study techniques: Nursing student success

Study techniques are strategies used to understand and retain information. They can help with comprehending complex material, enhancing critical thinking, developing clinical judgment, and making studying more efficient.

As a nursing student, you'll discover what study techniques work best for your learning style, personal preferences, and coursework.

So let's explore a few study techniques. Starting with interleaving, this involves mixing up the order of the topics while you study.

This differs from blocking where you focus on one topic for a large amount of time. For instance, when using blocking while preparing for a pharmacology exam on cardiovascular medications, you may begin with a topic like diuretics, and once you feel comfortable with that topic, you move on to calcium channel blockers and then on to anticoagulants and so forth.

In contrast, you can use interleaving by spending a bit of time reviewing diuretics, then calcium channel blockers, and then back to diuretics again.

After that, you'll go to anticoagulants, then back to calcium channel blockers, and finally return to anticoagulants. Because interleaving forces you to switch between topics, it helps you practice retrieving information, which ultimately enhances your long-term memory.

It can also help you improve decision making by showing how topics relate to each other, and this can help you apply the information to real world situations.

Now interleaving can be a challenging way to learn because it requires a lot of planning and organization in the short-term, but if it works for you, you may find you have better long-term results.

Next up is spaced repetition, where you space out your study of topics at increasingly spaced intervals. Typically, for information you're familiar with, you'll have more widely spaced intervals, whereas for information you're less familiar with, you'll have shorter intervals.

This sets you up to review information at the time you're about to forget it. For instance, let's say you're learning about heart failure and you complete the readings, take lecture notes, and answer discussion questions.

You note you feel familiar and confident with the information on cardiac anatomy, but the information about anti-hypertensive medications feels a lot more challenging.

So during subsequent study sessions, you'll review cardiac anatomy less frequently or at more widely spaced intervals, but you'll review antihypertensive medications more frequently or at shorter intervals.

Over time, you'll adjust your intervals based on which information becomes more familiar and which information remains challenging.

Spaced repetition allows you to make the most of your study time by focusing on information you're less familiar with. This lets you study smarter, not longer.

However, spaced repetition can take some effort to set up and requires consistent scheduling to adjust study intervals to your needs.

So it's a good idea to use a planner or even smartphone apps to help you keep track of when you need to review each topic.

OK, let's move on to testing effect. This is a phenomenon where learning improves when you use testing to actively engage with the material by answering questions about previously studied concepts rather than passively rereading your notes or textbook.

Testing can be done using practice questions on your own or even in class with a group of students or your instructor. Many textbooks have practice questions at the end of each section, and digital learning tools like osmosis have quiz builders.

On top of that, you can make your own flashcards, fill in blanks within your notes, or even do a verbal quiz with a study group.

Testing encourages active learning through retrieval of information. This strengthens memory, enhances recall, and helps you comprehend information more deeply.

In addition, reading the rationales to the questions provides feedback on how well you understood the material as well as identifies areas needing more study time.

This is why it's so important to review exams after you take them whenever possible. On the other hand, testing might cause anxiety, especially if you already have test anxiety, and it may not be ideal for abstract concepts.

Last up are study groups, where you'll review information in a group setting. A good study group typically has around 3 to 5 members to ensure everyone remains focused on the topics at hand.

Each study session should have specific objectives, and every member should have a role and come prepared. For example, if you're studying respiratory conditions, each group member might present one topic and develop discussion questions about that topic.

At the end of each session, you can schedule the next meeting, identify goals, and assign each member a role. Study groups promote active learning through peer teaching, discussion, and information retrieval.

Discussing topics can help deepen your understanding while allowing you to hear different perspectives which can fill gaps in your knowledge.

Study groups also provide social support, which can reduce anxiety and increase motivation. Keep in mind though that study groups can be less effective if they're unfocused or dominated by one person.

They may also reinforce misunderstandings if incorrect information is shared. All right, as a quick recap, study techniques are strategies used to understand and retain information.

Effective study techniques can help with comprehending complex material and studying more efficiently. They can also enhance critical thinking and develop clinical judgment.

As a nursing student, you'll discover what study techniques work best for your learning style, personal preferences, and coursework.

Techniques can include interleaving, spaced repetition, testing effect, and study groups.