An Experiment in How to Study

The need of definite knowledge of how to study was felt very keenly by the writer while attending summer school. The next autumn the problem of how to study was again presented, when it was necessary to teach seventhand eighth-grade classes in one room. The periods for recitation were shortened, and conservation of time was imperative. The seventh grade showed the greatest lack of knowledge of how to study. The girls and boys were lacking in concentration and application. This weakness was evident when paragraphs were assigned for study in class. When the assignment was shortened, the results were no better. Most of the girls and boys were of average intelligence. Two or three were above the average. Yet they complained that it took them a long time to learn a lesson in history or geography. It developed that the pupils' idea of study was to read the sentences of the text over and over, sometimes out loud if conditions permitted, and then to test themselves to find whether the subject matter had been learned word for word. This method was tedious and took unnecessary time. It resulted in the pupil feeling that, should he forget a few words of a sentence, he would lose all that he had attempted to learn. In order to determine the best methods of helping girls and boys to learn how to study, the writer devoted the next year and a half, as opportunity offered, to experimenting with various groups of pupils. Other teachers have encountered the same difficulties during study hours as those the writer has attempted to solve for herself. It is with the sincere hope of aiding her fellow-teachers that the writer presents her experiences. A knowledge of how to study is a pressing need in all grades. After attempting to help classes in various subjects to adopt better