Ok I asked this once a long time ago I am going to ask again. I have a big attention problem. When I read books it is very hard for me to put everything I have into reading. I find myself Reading. ReReading and rereading because either my mind drifted or for other reasons. The question I ask you is what should I do for all of you out there that are like me? I have 2 PC's in my miget appartment that I can mess around with. So what do you all sugest the best way for me to learn all 7 tests are going to be???


Thank so Muck

SKA

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Well for those of us like myself, I reinforce what I read by breaking up the monotony. Best way is to do a quick question/answer session or do some drills fro a test. The other thing is set up a lab and do the exercise so tha twhat you read you tie into what you see happening!

Truthfully I always drift off and have a dozen thing sgoing on at once! That is just me.
I have a friend who reads fro 30 minutes then plays a short computer game, then reads again. He says it works for him.

You need to find what works best for you.

HTH,
GalaxyGal

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Engineer your study methods towards your manner of thinking. If you can only study for short times, arrange your study in short sporadic bursts. I think it may be wise to try to construct a schedule in which each "burst" is dedicated to a particular concept, which may take some planning. This way your retention may omprove rather than by cramming. Also, it may break the monotony by trying to put into practice what you have learned. So, after one of your studying bursts (maybe 20 to 30 minutes long), head for a machine and DO what you have learned to stop it from degenerating into a merely intellectual exercise. Keep trying this until you work out a method that workds for you. Everybody is different, you just have to figure out what technique is most conducive to your long term retention of the material.

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I tend to have the same problem. But, I find myself 'peeking' at future chapters.
I guess reading a book straight through is too boring. Maybe you could read the book out of order. When you don't understand something in the chapter (because you skipped a few), it is more appealing to go back and find out more.

Another way to study out of order is to do practice exams, without fully reading the book. Then research each answer thoroughly. Just make sure that you cover one category at a time.

Just a suggestion.

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A very successful technique that I learned is to use the following method.

First skim the Table of contents of a book that you are going to study. Read each heading and sub heading. Go over it a few times, and see what the topics covered are.

Next. Go to a chapter. Skim over each section heading, and all sub headings, and all bullets.

On your next pass, go over a section and skim it. Don't try to read it in too much depth. Look for key words.

Go to the next section and repeat until you finish a chapter.

On your next pass, do the same thing but try to read the material a little closer. By now you should have an idea of what the material is covering and you're "filling in the holes at this point".

Repeat as many times as needed.

When you get to the end of a chapter. Work ALL of the problems. If a book has questions at the beginning work them also.

The trick is to keep going over the material until you "get it". Do it in little chunks and it isn't so bad. And finally don't think that you aren't getting it because you don't get it the first, second or even third pass. A professor of mine in college said that 33% comprehension is considered incredible. So at the minimum you need to make 3 passes just to get things. Probably 4-5 are need for the typical person.

The trick is the more exposure you get the more it will make sense. Also if you can use different forms of studying you're more likely to understand the material. For instance if you can go to class, then read the book then do hands on, your more likely to learn the material than if you just read.
While this isn't always practical, you do what you can, and try to fill in the blanks any way you can.

Good luck

Tom
A very successful technique that I learned is to use the following method.

First skim the Table of contents of a book that you are going to study. Read each heading and sub heading. Go over it a few times, and see what the topics covered are.

Next. Go to a chapter. Skim over each section heading, and all sub headings, and all bullets.

On your next pass, go over a section and skim it. Don't try to read it in too much depth. Look for key words.

Go to the next section and repeat until you finish a chapter.

On your next pass, do the same thing but try to read the material a little closer. By now you should have an idea of what the material is covering and you're "filling in the holes at this point".

Repeat as many times as needed.

When you get to the end of a chapter. Work ALL of the problems. If a book has questions at the beginning work them also.

The trick is to keep going over the material until you "get it". Do it in little chunks and it isn't so bad. And finally don't think that you aren't getting it because you don't get it the first, second or even third pass. A professor of mine in college said that 33% comprehension is considered incredible. So at the minimum you need to make 3 passes just to get things. Probably 4-5 are need for the typical person.

Tom
CCNA, CNE (Hopefully CCDA soon)

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Tom,

I think I will try that. It seems that it will be more effective because skimming the contents, titles and bullets allows you to see the BIG PICTURE first. Things seem much simpler when you have the big picture.

Thanks

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trinidee,

Send me an email at TFAIGLE@hotmail.com after you use the method and let me know what you think. The great thing about this method is that the things you don't get after a few passes you can just go back and read those sections in more detail.

When I started using this method I got straight A's in Grad school and I've never failed a certification exam using it.


Yes, you get the "big picture" on the first few passes, but as you start to understand things, you start looking for more and more detail. The other cool thing is that you don't get too overwhelmed with stuff. You learn as much as your brain can handle and you pick up more on each pass. When you stop picking up stuff, you either need a new source of info, you've got the material, or you don't and you need help. If you've got it, your ready to ace the exam!

Tom

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That is a great method. I have also read the best way to retain knowledge is to read in 20-25 min. cycles. Take a 5 min break and continue. I have also read that classical music is great to listen to while you are reading. It takes a part of the brain and gives you more attention. These work for me.

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Crazyone A+

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Carzyone:
That is just about what I do.

I have classical music playing and I break every 20 minutes or so, go online for a bit and start again.

Somehow it relaxes me and helps me to focus better.

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