Keep in Touch With Your Instructor: Take advantage of the availability of your professor outside the classroom during office hours or using e-mail to discuss aspects of the course or to ask questions about chemical concepts you do not understand. My e-mail address is pcrawford@semovm.semo.edu. I usually check my e-mail 2-3 times a day and will attempt to answer any mail I receive as quickly as possible. Consider your chemistry instructor to be a resource. I am here to facilitate your learning and understanding of chemistry. Let me hear from you!Top of Page
Getting the Most From Lecture: Attend lecture. Students who regularly attend lectures have a better understanding of the material introduced and earn better grades than those who do not.
Prepare for lecture. Read the sections in the chapter to be discussed in lecture before coming to class. Without some prior knowledge of the topic(s) to be discussed, you may find it difficult to focus on the important points in lecture. This may result in incomplete notes, and you may not have a good enough grasp of the material to be able to ask intelligent questions about concepts you do not understand. The lectures are not meant to replace the textbook. They are meant to compliment and in some cases supplement the material in the text. The text often goes into more detail and provides more example problems than time allows during class meetings.
Ask questions during class when you do not understand the material being discussed.
After lecture, review your notes as soon as possible to keep the material fresh in your mind. Rewrite anything that may not be clear. Compare your notes with other students or ask your instructor to clear up any uncertainties you may have. Pay close attention to the example problems worked in class and rework them after class.Top of Page
How to Read and Understand the Textbook: Do not read the text book too quickly and without thinking about what you are reading. Actively read the chapters. Read the book slowly enough that you are able to constantly think about what you are reading. Reread sections that you do not understand two or more times. Pause periodically to ask yourself questions about the material and to try to understand its applications and importance. Underline important points in the text and take notes from the text. For example, you might want to add relevant material from the text to enhance your lecture notes. Alternatively, you might outline the material in the text.
Work the example practice problems given in the text following the worked-out examples. Be sure to read carefully the very good problem solving strategies outlined in the textbook. In addition to the problems in the text, you might work problems from other chemistry sources, such as another chemistry textbook available in the library or one of the available supplements. The only way to learn to work chemistry related problems is to practice, practice, and then practice some more. Your ultimate goal should be to be able to work chemistry-related problems without having to rely on your notes or the text for help. Remember, the more practice you get solving problems the better you will understand the material. There is one mistake that you should be careful to avoid, however. Never just memorize the way a particular type of problem you encountered is solved without trying to understand why it is solved that way. If you do not truly understand how to solve problems, you may experience difficulty and frustration if a similar problem is encountered on an exam or problem set that is written in a somewhat different manner or that contains unnecessary information.Top of Page
Study Tips: Learning chemistry requires motivation and commitment on your part. Make school a high priority. Do not expect to be highly successful, however you define success, in this course or any course unless you are willing to put in the time and energy required to do so. You are the only person responsible for your learning. You should be willing to work because it is in your best interest, whatever your future plans may be. Your goal should not just be to receive a particular grade, but to truly learn and retain the material. You need and are expected to know many chemical concepts from general chemistry in more advanced chemistry courses. And some other academic fields of study require you to know and understand general chemistry concepts.
Manage your time wisely. Set aside some time everyday for studying chemistry. Ideally, you should devise a study schedule at the start of each week for each class you are taking and stick to it. Generally, the minimum amount of time you should spend studying for any course per week is 2 hours for every hour spent in class. Be sure to take breaks from studying every 1 - 2 hours to avoid getting burned out. Study in an environment that is comfortable and free from distractions that will divert your attention, such as a television or friends wanting to go out on the town.
Form study groups with other CH186 students and meet once or twice a week. Take advantage of the talents of your fellow students and share your talents with them. You can learn from each other as well as from your instructor or the textbook. As with any academic discipline, some students grasp and understand chemistry more easily than others. Help each other understand difficult concepts and learn to work problems. (Note that this is not the same thing as and is not condoning the copying of problem sets from other students. You will learn little if you do not try the problems on your own. Copying answers from problem sets also represents academic misconduct.)
Take advantage of additional supplemental resources for learning and understanding the course material.
Do not "cram" for exams. Begin preparing for an exam well in advance. Do not wait until the night before to begin studying for an exam. For most people, staying up all night does more harm than good to a grade. (Besides, even if you should get a decent grade this way you will not retain the material which you may need to know later in the course or in a more advanced course.) Get a good nights sleep before an exam so that you are alert and can think clearly. All night study should not be needed if you have managed your time wisely and study some everyday.Top of Page
Updated on 01/28/05
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