What is Habits of the Mind?

HABITS OF THE MIND
(From the Associate Dean--First-year Experience)

The following list is six "habits of mind" that help students acquire intellectual discipline.
(President Hinckley's goal for BYU's graduates)

• Curiosity
• Questioning
• Observation (through paying attention)
• Analysis (understanding the parts)
• Integration (understanding the whole)
• Persistence

Many opportunities-programs, presentations, concerts, sporting events, socializing with new friends, and so on-are available to you. You should take advantage of them; they constitute an enjoyable part of your university experience.

At the same time, I caution you-based on long experience-to choose wisely how you will employ your time at BYU.

Since BYU is a university, your first task, your first priority, is to begin to master those habits of mind that lead to powerful learning in post-secondary school settings. I urge you not to substitute some other, less significant, goal for that one. You do not have to forego social opportunities in order to focus on acquiring powerful approaches to learning. Nevertheless, since activities other than study are often more appealing, you do have to choose, intentionally, to learn.

For some of you-not all, but a substantial number-taking classes at BYU will be a new experience. Why? Because, compared to secondary school, more attention may be paid at BYU to your ability to develop an idea than to memorize it, to ask questions than to answer them, to distinguish good from bad reference sources than simply to find sources.

Educational research has shown that the study habits students adopt as freshmen generally do not change during their succeeding college years. So, paying attention to the "culture of learning" at BYU early on will increase the likelihood of your academic success

Common Mistakes:

• Not asking questions
• Short-timer mentality before mission
• Finances
• Late nights
• Skipping class
• Missing deadlines
• Avoiding responsibility by relying on others to be responsible for you
• Not advancing above high school level work
• Assuming you are alone
• Forcing a decision about a major/Not researching a major
• Letting growth opportunities pass you by
• Passive learning vs. actively developing positive habits of mind

The following information contains ideas that can make the difference between a mediocre beginning to your college career that brings confusion and discouragement and an exceptional beginning that brings academic success and self-confidence.

Tips on Classroom Note-taking

1. The three important things to do in most classes are read, think and take notes. Thinking provides your mind with the connected ideas that you need. Note-taking is the key to recalling those ideas. Thoughts not written down are usually lost or forgotten. Read and listen for ideas; then, write the ideas down.
2. What is the best way to take notes during class?
• Do not write verbatim quotations. Write things down in your own words. Develop a system of acronyms and abbreviations.
• Do not write anything down that you do not understand. Ask questions until you understand and then write the ideas down in your own words.
• Leave large empty spaces in your notes or only write on half of the page. Use the empty space to integrate your ideas from class lectures and from your reading.
• Try to keep notes under headings, not merely as a string of random words or ideas. Ideas organized under categories are much easier to remember and understand.
• It helps to read the text book on a topic before the lecture on that topic. You will be able to integrate ideas more effectively as you take class notes.
• Take a few minutes as soon as possible after class, or each evening, to review your notes and put "flesh on the skeleton of ideas."
3. Review your notes with others at least weekly.
• Do not write verbatim quotations. Write things down in your own words. Develop a system of acronyms and abbreviations.
• Do not write anything down that you do not understand. Ask questions until you understand and then write the ideas down in your own words.
• Leave large empty spaces in your notes or only write on half of the page. Use the empty space to integrate your ideas from class lectures and from your reading.
• Try to keep notes under headings, not merely as a string of random words or ideas. Ideas organized under categories are much easier to remember and understand.
• It helps to read the text book on a topic before the lecture on that topic. You will be able to integrate ideas more effectively as you take class notes.
• Take a few minutes as soon as possible after class, or each evening, to review your notes and put "flesh on the skeleton of ideas."
4. Hints for More Effective Study
• Prepare ahead of time for class discussion by reading the material to be discussed with the specific goal of gaining a general sense of the topic(s) to be discussed.
• Attend class. Listen carefully. Ask questions (if you don't get a chance to ask questions in class, write them down and get them answered later). Asking questions is one of the most effective means to improve your learning.
• Take notes. Organize and rework your notes after class so that they will provide a useful outline of what was discussed (remember that you will want to review the notes long after the particulars of the lecture are forgotten). It is useful to be able to comment on, amend, and flush out notes later. To facilitate this, leave a lot of empty spaces as you take notes (as mentioned above) so you will have room to integrate reading material.
• Give your class an appropriate amount of time and effort. As a general rule, if you're having difficulty with a class it is because you are not devoting enough time to it.
• Read assigned material with a clear purpose in mind: "What should I get out of this?"
• Try to get the "big picture" (or at least a broader view) and then fit the details in place. For example: Survey the entire reading assignment looking for key introductory and summary statements and then return for a more careful reading. OR, ask yourself what the central points of the lecture were and then see how the details in the lecture fit around and support the central point. Always look for the major connections between the lectures and your reading. Your brain has limited RAM space. So do not fill it with unrelated trivia.
• Pose questions about what it is that you are reading. For example: You can easily convert headings, subheadings, and titles into questions (just rephrase them as a question to be answered) and then attempt to answer the questions as you read. This kind of goal-directed reading really makes a difference. Or, when you complete a paragraph or section, ask yourself what the central point was and then write out your answer. Sketch the supporting arguments in your own words.
• Take both lecture and reading notes in your words; don't just copy material into your notebook. If you cannot articulate the ideas in your own words, the material is not yours-it still belongs to whoever wrote or stated it.
• Review what you have read, section by section and chapter by chapter. Ask yourself whether you could coherently explain the material to someone else. Then go ahead, explain: To someone else! Putting it in your own words is the key.
• Read critically. Challenge the author of whatever it is you're reading. Discover the implicit and explicit assumptions. Critique the style. Decide whether the argument is well made and effective. Are there things that the author hasn't considered? Does the evidence provide support for the argument being made? Is the argument coherent?
• Discuss what you are studying with others. Vigorous discussions within study groups or with roommates, tutors, teaching assistants, parents, friends, or with faculty will sharpen your understanding. Perhaps the best test of your learning is whether or not you can teach it to someone else (or to yourself through writing).
• Write short essays. Explain concepts and ideas to yourself, but don't do this only by "thinking through" the idea or concept in your head. You have to be able to articulate ideas to others either verbally or in writing before they are yours.
• If you don't understand the material, get help. Meet with the professor or the TA sooner rather than later. It is difficult for them to provide much assistance if you either don't ask or if you go to them late in the semester. It is much easier for them to provide assistance along the way.
• Focus study on what you don't know. An effective way of doing this is to keep an "I don't understand." note card handy. When something you hear in a lecture, read in the text, see in a newspaper or magazine, or hear on the news doesn't make sense, put it on the note card. When you sit down to study, you can use this note card as a guide and your study time can then be focused on deepening your present knowledge rather than merely repeating what you know.
• When you encounter a word you do not understand, look it up, write it down, and use it at least once a day in your writing or in conversation for a week. Especially for those of you whose native language is not English, this is a guaranteed way to enrich your learning.
• Don't get discouraged. Discouragement defeats all other rational attempts to learn. Talk to the teacher or the TA's and generate some enthusiasm for the class. Attitude nearly always determines altitude.