It is no secret that the current global pandemic, and their resulting shutdowns have had a severe effect on the education of children. Many academic institutions were caught off-guard, with few resources available for online teaching. The gap in education can cause a lasting impact on future careers and limit options for further study. Parents and students, to take ownership and be proactive to make studying at home a success.
Studying and revising from home can can be difficult. Here are some of our top tips to ensure your success!
Distractions – By far, one of the hardest adjustments to make, going from a classroom to being at home is no supervision. This can easily lead to getting distracted by other things to do. The key is to minimise obvious distractions.
Turn off the TV or work in a room without one
Pack away any games consoles and mobile phones
Create a new user account on your computer, where games and social media are restricted
Environment – Working in a bad or busy environment can make it impossible to get work completed.
Try to find a quiet space in your home to study, away from distractions.
If you can’t avoid some noise, we suggest ‘closed back’ headphones, which will block out sounds from around you.
Make sure you work at a desk or kitchen table, and not on a couch or in bed with a laptop.
Food & drink – It’s important to stay both hydrated and satiated to be able to concentrate optimally. However, when you are at home, there is always a temptation to keep getting up. Getting a snack, drink, going to the bathroom, or just a break – there are lots of excuses!
If you attend online classes, lunch breaks may already be set for you. If you are studying independently, make sure to plan your time. Set out your lunch break and short break(s) between sessions, so that you don’t interrupt your study constantly.
Set goals and targets – This is especially important if you are preparing for exams or self-study without teacher led classes. Teachers are great at keeping their students on track and focused. However ,what happens when the teacher cannot supervise you? It is up to you (and perhaps your parents), to set the targets for each day to make sure you can cover the learning material and reach your potential. There is nothing more stressful than to have to play catch-up, after falling behind on your work early on.
Ideally, set your targets and stick to them. If you are sick or fall behind, don’t worry. Try to catch up sooner rather than later, the task will only get bigger and bigger.
Online teaching – Only a few schools are set up properly and excel at online teaching. Many schools are struggling to teach large classes over video calls. Some schools are relying on worksheets and self-study to teach. For some students this may be enough, but it is not optimal. For many students, it is going to make them fall behind. They may therefore miss the grades they otherwise deserved and achieved in a normal situation.
