STUDY SKILLS

How much time will I need?

You can complete the activities in the study skills modules in the time that suits your
personal needs. You will be able to control your learning speed and the time you
spend on each activity. To help you plan for your learning, each activity has a
suggested time for completion.
What equipment will I need?

Pearson’s learning and teaching methods will give you plenty of opportunities to
practice and improve your study skills. You will complete a variety of activities on
the course, some of which will be completed online, and others which will require
you to use your skills to challenge yourself further. Before starting each activity
ensure you have enough time to fully complete it.

How will I learn

Media: You will encounter videos and different interactions throughout the course,
engaging and guiding you on your personal learning journey.

Quizzes and Questions: You will take quizzes and be asked questions throughout
the study skills course, testing your knowledge and understanding of the topics you
are learning about. These are not assessed and are there to help you understand and
reflect on what you are learning.

Tasks: The tasks are often the most important activities because they allow you to
use the skills you are learning about. Some tasks may require you to talk with a
fellow student, or perhaps do a short piece of writing. Tasks will often involve your
Learning Journal or Learning Companion. You can find out more about these in the
following sections in this module.

Research: Academic databases and Google Scholar give you access to 1000s of
online articles relevant to your study. The research tasks in the study skills modules
will help you to navigate and make sense of this information, developing your
investigative skills with the aim of improving your individual learning ability and
efficiency.

Links and Resources: In addition to this we will give you in-course links to extra
resources provided by universities and other organizations, to help you find out
more about each topic. Be sure to look out for links in each course module.

Support: We are always here to guide you through your learning journey. If you
have any questions about the study skills course you can email:
hnglobal@pearson.com
Before starting your first module, make sure you find out about the Learning
Companion and Learning Journal in the following sections.

Your Learning Companion

We will deliver most of the Study Skills content online but at times you will be given
the option to discuss some aspects of your learning to help you gain a better
understanding of a topic. For this, we suggest that you ask someone who knows you
well and who you can trust to be your ‘Learning Companion’ throughout the course.

Who would you choose?

Who do you think would make a suitable Learning Companion?

a fellow student /a neighbor /a family member /a friend

All these people would be suitable options. Anyone who you are comfortable talking
to, has an interest in your study and can encourage you could be your Learning
Companion.

Time commitment

How much time would you expect your learning companion to commit to each week?

30 minutes a week is a reasonable amount of time to expect your learning

companion to commit to. Anything beyond an hour may be hard to schedule and
unrealistic to expect. If they are unable to commit to 30 minutes a week, you will
need to find a more suitable option.

The Learning Companion role

Your Learning Companion activities will include, for example, telling someone about
what you have learned, asking for their opinion and sharing your ideas on a topic.

Typical things that your Learning Companion might help you with include:

- Discussing your goals, helping to make a study timetable

 - Reading a short piece of writing and giving constructive feedback
- Watching you deliver a practice presentation and giving feedback on your
performance

Approaching a potential Learning Companion

When you invite someone to become your Learning Companion you will need to
outline their role and the commitment you require. A Learning Companion does not
need special skills or qualifications. They will, however, need to make the following
commitments to you:

- Spend up to 30 minutes per module of study discussing with you some of the
topics you have covered along with new ideas and concepts.
- Be interested in your learning and development during your studies.
- Encourage you to achieve your goal of developing and improving your study
skills.

What is a Learning Journal?

While taking the HN Global Study Skills course we will ask you to keep a Learning
Journal. This is either a paper or digital record to allow you to reflect on what you
have learnt, any problems you might be having and how your skills are developing.

Some of the activities in the course will specifically ask you to use your Learning
Journal but it can also act as your own personal diary and reference. It will benefit
you to use it as often as possible throughout your studies.
What do I need for a Learning Journal?

What is reflection?

Do you find it difficult to: manage your time effectively? read and research
effectively?

write long essays?

If the answer is yes to any of these questions, then the first step is to reflect on why
this might be.

Writing down your ideas can help you to understand and address why you might be
having difficulties. Learning is not a linear process but a cycle, and one in which
reflection plays an important part.
Reflective writing

https://youtu.be/QoI67VeE3ds

What goes into a piece of reflective writing?

TEXT 1 - What happened? Tell the story of your experience in a short paragraph. If
you are reflecting on an essay, for example, begin with how you prepared and
researched, followed by your approach to the different stages of writing.
(Description)
TEXT 2 - How were you feeling during the experience and how do you feel about it
now? How did your feelings at the time affect your ability to perform or carry out
the task? (Feeling)

TEXT 3 - What was positive and what was negative about the experience?
(Evaluation)

TEXT 4 - Can you make sense of and assess the situation? What are the implications
for your future learning and assignments? Can you identify anything you could have
done differently? (Analysis)

TEXT 5 - What would you do in a similar situation in the future? How would you do
things differently? Think about the things went well and if you would do them again.
(Action plan)
Reflective writing sample text