Reflection Paper
1. Submit a 2-page, 12-point font, Times New Roman, and double-spaced, paper. Use spell and grammar check.
2. In your own words, describe your learning style. Discuss the four dimensions of your learning style on the Learning Styles Assessment. My learning style is ESTJ, which means Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking and Judging.
3. In your own words, describe the study strategies, and additional information learned as related to your learning style. Provide concrete examples. For instance, my professor gave an example, I am a perceiver, and do not always estimate time for a task well. As a result of my learning style assessment, I developed a strategy to break every project into smaller projects to better estimate how long the project will require. My study strategies are Cornell Note Taking System. Develop summary sheets, charts, or diagrams to help with the review. Be brief. You don’t want to simply recopy your notes; you are trying to condense and paraphrase. Use flashcards sparingly. Some students spend hours making cards but don’t allow enough time to use them. Cards can be useful for memorizing isolated facts (such as drugs for a pharmacy class), but they are not as helpful for learning ideas. That said, quizzing yourself can be very helpful. One way to avoid the busy work of making cards is by using a two-column system for taking lecture notes (the Cornell System). As you take notes in class, you are creating a method for quizzing yourself later. Narrow your focus. If you try to learn everything that might be tested, you may spread yourself too thin and not be able to learn anything thoroughly. Pay close attention to the following: study guides, review sessions, topics mentioned in the class before the exam, material written on the board or overhead. For each of your classes, spend a few minutes going over the notes you took that day – filling in gaps, clarifying points, thinking about the major concepts. Use a two-column system for taking notes, with headings or questions to the left and details on the right. When it’s time to study, cover the right side of the notes and quiz yourself. Constantly paraphrase as you read: “Oh, I see, she’s saying ___.” top at the end of a paragraph or section to highlight a phrase or to write a brief note in the margin. (Most students find that using a combined approach provides the most flexibility.) Focus on charts, diagrams, and outlines, especially in the sciences. If the textbook is very difficult, buy a review book or look online for a summary of the material. Use these resources to preview a given chapter in your text. Understanding the simplified version beforehand helps with comprehension, and it usually won’t increase your study time because you will be able to read your textbook more quickly. Space out your study sessions. Research indicates that you will learn more if you study a topic for a short period on three separate occasions rather than studying for a longer period just once. Spend a significant amount of study time on quizzing yourself. Research indicates that the cognitive process of retrieval helps cement material into your memory. The other advantage is that quizzing yourself will tell you how well you know the material and how much more time you need to spend studying. Ask the professor for a copy of an old exam or at least a few sample questions. Analyze how the professor words questions and also look for patterns of thinking. What does the professor think is important and how does he/she ask a question? Give yourself 2 to 4 practice exams before taking an exam in a problem-solving course such as math, physics, or chemistry. If the professor makes a practice exam available, use that as a model and write your own additional exams. Also, use questions at the end of a chapter. Do at least one timed practice exam. Many math exams can be difficult to finish in time, so you need to practice working under time constraints. (The more practice problems you do, the faster you will get.)
4. Summarize how the Learning Styles experience relates to your psychology; include the definition of psychology and why learning about your own psychology is important. The textbook is the only acceptable source for definitions.
5. MLA Citations for definitions
Example MLA Citation for the SMART Goal Reflection:
Psychology is “the systematic, objective study of our mental activity and our behavior” (Grison, Heatherton, and Gazzaniga 5).
Work Cited Page for textbook reference.
Work Cited
Grison, S., Heatherton, T.F., & Gazzaniga, M.S. (2017). Psychology in your life (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Norton