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Study Habits and Their Effects on Students

Jeffrey Caputo

Department of Mathematics, Stony Brook University

MAE 447 Directed Readings in Mathematics Education

Dr. Alaa Abd-El-Hafez

5/4/2021
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Study Habits and their Effects on Student

. As the children learn more they are tested on what was taught in the classroom, tests can

consist of a wide range of things depending on the teacher (Numan & Hasan, 2017). However,

all of them have one thing in common, this is that in order for students to perform to the best of

their abilities on tests, it is important to study (Illahi & Khandai, 2015). This means it is also

important for teachers to instill good study habits on their students starting from a young age

(Ossai, 2012). Oftentimes children adopt poor study habits, this can lead to failure of tests and a

poor sense of academic achievement (Illahi & Khandai, 2015). Ntui and Usang (2014), stated

that bad study habits can be the cause of many college student’s problems like withdrawing from

the universities as a whole. Students who form good study habits early on often perform much

higher on tests as well as have an easier time as college students.

Why Do We Study and What Are Study Habits?

Study habits are by definition, a well thought out and deliberate plan of study in which

the students review their material to gain a deeper understanding of it (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015).

Verma (2016) explained that study habits as students’ techniques to help them review on their

own. It is important to study because learning problems are not an uncommon thing in

academics, so therefore it is important for students to study to clear up these problems (Nigenda

et al., 2017). Also, it is imperative we teach students good study habits as in college they will

need these skills but will not have any guidance to obtain them (Yu, 2011). The way a student

studies is based on their academic achievements, if a student prepares for their exams while

employing good study habits then this will reflect through their academic performance (Ebele &

Olofu, 2017). It is very important for students to understand what types of study habits work for

them and which are harmful to their learning experience (Verma, 2016). Study habits can also
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vary from student to student, something that works for one student might not work for another

student and the student might see it better for academic achievement to choose one over the other

(Arora, 2016).

Study habits are usually separated into different sections, good study habits and bad

study habits, good study habits occur when a student practices their material while also knowing

the strategies that work best for them (Ebele & Olofu, 2017). In a study it was found that around

48.2% of students have average study habits, 25.9% of students had below satisfactory study

habits and 16.5% had good study habits. (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015). Study habits not only help

students perform well in school but they also help in career actualization. (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015).

Influences on Study Habits

A child’s study habits can be a result of many things, some examples may be teacher-

related, home-related or school- related (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015). Siahi and Maiyo (2015), found

that teachers’ skills, interactions with students, teachers’ motivation and the type of homework

assigned can affect a child’s study habits. The authors also state that economic status, religion,

culture or family size can also impact a child's methods of study as well as their attitude towards

it. Lastly, it has been found that location of a school, the type of school or its climate can have an

effect on children and their habits as well (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015). The authors also found in their

study that bad study habits are all about the attitude of the student. For instance, a student’s

attitude towards wanting to learn based on the environment they were raised in or how they were

taught at home can affect their determination to study (Maiyo & Siahi, 2015). Not only can bad

study habits be based around the attitude of the student but it can also be based on distractions

around the student, Okesina (2019) states that a student could become distracted by things such

as social media. This can cause them to be on their phone all day instead of studying. In a study
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Okesina found that students in a math class performed better because they studied. However, the

students who had a better attitude towards the material they were learning, had an easier time

studying (Okesina, 2019). This means that a student with a poor attitude towards material they

are learning can lead to bad study habits because they do not feel inspired to review it more

(Capuno et al., 2019).

Socioeconomic Status and How It Affects Study Habits

Okesina (2019) found that in poor households that students may not want to study or may

not have time to study because they need to work to put food on the table for their family.

Memis and Kandimier (2019) explains in an article how a parent’s attitude can affect their

children's study habits and overall performance in school. They state that the attitude and actions

of a child reflect the actions and attitude of their parents. They explain that this is because a

parent is the first educator in a child’s life. From Memis and Kandimier’s research it can be

concluded that the values a parent instills in their child and the attitude a child is taught to have

towards school can play a part in their study habits.

Study Habits and Gender

Another thing that can affect study habits is gender, in an article about study habits and

academic achievement it was found that girls who had better study habits performed better

academically than girls who had poor study habits (Nadeem, et al., 2014). This stems from the

fact that many girls have lower self esteem and compare themselves to the men who are

predominately higher in education, especially in India, so therefore they have worse study skills

because they feel they do not have the ability to do it (Nadeem, et al., 2014). However, Okesina

(2019), found that not only does bad study habits stem from a poor family but could also be

based on gender. Ultimately it has been found that there is no significant difference between
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male and female study habits, but this rather comes from social, economic, and family influences

(Arora, 2016; Aluja & Blanch, 2004; Nuthana & Yenagi, 2009; Illahi & Khandai, 2015). In

another study it was found that there is a difference in how males and females study but not their

quality of study habits (Alzahrani et al., 2018).

The Relationship Between Study Habits and Academic Achievement

Academic Achievement is the degree or level of success obtained by academic work, it is

important for a student to have a high level of academic achievement because it drives them to

work harder and learn more (Arora, 2016). It has been found that study habits have a direct

correlation with academic achievement, it was found in a sample of 300 students that those who

studied more had a higher sense of academic achievement even if they had lower grades since

the student had to work for it (Okesina, 2019). Contrary to study habits, it has been shown that

girls do have higher levels of academic achievement (Illahi & Khandai, 2015). It has also been

shown that even students who have low scholastic aptitudes and good study habits that can

obtain better grades than students who have high aptitudes and bad study habits (Aluja & Blanch,

2004). In another article that explains what study habits can do for academic achievement, the

author says, “It is believed that student who lacks effective and efficient means of studying

would be building on shaking foundation and consequently have weak foundation” (Odiri, 2015).

Going back to what was said before, poverty can be a huge issue on study habits and academic

achievement, it can affect academic performance by having students become emotionally

unstable and therefore not care as much about their academic lives (McKenzie, 2019).

Not only having good study habits, but having a good amount of study time is useful as

well, it was found that students who have good study habits and study for an effective amount of

time have less test anxiety and higher levels of academic achievement (Numan & Hasan, 2017).
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It was found that study habits like concentrating on studying, studying over time and not

cramming, following a schedule and having proper rest periods have shown to have positive

effects on students academic performance (Arora, 2016). According to a study done on which

study habits have the best effect on academic achievement, it was found that taking down notes

in class and spending time studying them over later was the most efficient method of study

(Oluwatimilehin & Owoyele, 2012). However, this can change if the teacher gives too much

work and too many exams. It was found in a study that in a mathematics class that 71% of

students had said they have low academic achievement because their teacher gave too much

work and focused on exams (Oluwatimilehin & Owoyele, 2012).

How To Promote Good Study Habits

Since study habits have such a huge affect on academic achievement which can affect the

morality of students, it is imperative that we teach students good study habits early on in their

lives (Ossai, 2012). Ossai (2012) has found that proactive counselling is the best way to help

students with their study habits. The best way to do this is by starting the counselling at a very

young age, have it be culturally appropriate, have a wide range of strategies to use, and most

importantly should be focused on students who are below the poverty line (Ossai, 2012). It was

found in another study that the teacher input is just as important for study habits as well, when a

teacher gives positive feedback to a student and grows a connection with them it has shown to

benefit a student’s study habits through motivation (Aquino, 2011). In the same study, Aquino

found a big issue students have is time management skills, so if we are able to teach students

better habits and have them stick to it, it tends to have a more positive result. The last thing the

article mentions is that many students have low study motivation, this causes students who even
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know the material well, to not retain the information provided in class and in turn do not care

about their own learning (Aquino 2011).

Homework can also be a valuable tool, it has been shown that teachers that assign

homework have students who have better study habits since the homework itself promotes

studying (Javaid et al., 2017). This is not just paper homework, it has also been found that online

homework has been shown to increase the odds of a final grade and improving their study habits

(Salame & Hanna, 2020). Salame & Hanna have also found that using sites like ALEKS where it

has guided lessons and problems have shown the best results in helping students achieve better

study habits. It has also been shown that doing homework can help students participate in class

which then in turn gives them more motivation to study because of their higher level of academic

achievement (Yu, 2011). Having parents help students with homework is also a great way to

promote better study habits, it was found that parents, even those who do not have a higher

education, can still help promote better study habits (Corno & Xu).
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