Look inside

Here you can see the topics covered, followed by some sample pages, to give you a flavour of the book.

The sample pages require Adobe Acrobat Reader. You can download this software for free from Adobe.com.

Chapter 1 Investing in yourself

1. Who this book is for
2. How this book works
3. Investing in your own development
4. The challenge of studying
5. What does it take to be a skilful student?
6. Being a reflective learner
7. Thinking about how you learn

Sample page from chapter 1 (PDF, 280k)

Chapter 2 Taking control of your studies

1. Taking responsibility for your own learning
2. Managing the work
3. Managing time
4. Managing your study circumstances
5. Managing your morale
6. Being a successful self-manager

Sample page from chapter 2 (PDF, 270k)

Chapter 3 Using a computer to study

1. Studying in the ICT age
2. Getting started
3. Useful things you can do with a word-processor
4. Organising files
5. ‘Talking’ online
6. eLearning
7. Conclusion

Sample page from chapter 3 (PDF, 490k)

Chapter 4 Understanding how you learn

1. Developing ideas about learning
2. What does learning mean?
3. Why do they write that way?
4. Reading , listening, speaking and writing
5. Becoming knowledgeable

Sample page from chapter 4 (PDF, 320k)

Chapter 5 Reading

1. Reading is easy, isn’t it?
2. The experience of reading
3. Getting round obstacles
4. How quickly should you read?
5. Reading actively
6. Reading critically
7. Are you a good reader?
8. Conclusion

Sample page from chapter 5 (PDF, 460k)

Chapter 6 Making notes

1. Thinking on paper
2. Capturing knowledge
3. Supporting your memory
4. Organising knowledge
5. Supporting creativity
6. Making notes strategically

Sample page from chapter 6 (PDF, 510k)

Chapter 7 Learning through talk

1. Talk in higher learning
2. Learning through group discussion
3. Giving a presentation
4. Listening to talk

Sample page from chapter 7 (PDF, 430k)

Chapter 8 Working with numbers and charts

1. Numbers and studying
2. Living with numbers
3. Describing the world
4. Describing with tables
5. Describing with graphs and charts
6. Using numbers intelligently
7. Review

Sample page from chapter 8 (PDF, 440k)

Chapter 9 Researching online

1. A world of information at your fingertips
2. Finding information
3. Evaluating information
4. Misuse of online information
5. Conclusion

Sample page from chapter 9 (PDF, 520k)

Chapter 10 Writing the way ‘they’ want

1. Getting to grips with writing
2. What are you meant to write?
3. Argument and structure
4. ‘Proper English’
5. Strong, clear writing
6. Using your own and other people’s words
7. The academic way of writing
8. What is a good essay?
9. Review

Sample page from chapter 10 (PDF, 450k)

Chapter 11 Managing the writing process

1. The challenge of writing
2. Stages in the writing process
3. Expressing ideas in writing
4. Making your essay flow
5. The experience of writing
6. Taking control of writing

Sample page from chapter 11 (PDF, 460k)

Chapter 12 Preparing for examinations

1. The positive side of exams
2. Myths about exams
3. What to avoid
4. Revising for exams
5. Getting ‘geared-up’ just before the exam
6. Working out your tactics for the exam
7. Will you do yourself justice in the exam?

Sample page from chapter 12 (PDF, 570k)