Posts Tagged ‘grades’
How to Improve Your Course Grades Without Stress
Here are some of the important and simple strategies to take to drastically increase your course grades in the school. The strategies are tested and proven steps that have been used by top academic students and lecturers in their studies.
Improve Your Body Condition: Your body and mind are interconnected. So, you should keep both in shape. A good body condition can dramatically improve your course grades tremendously. Think of things like doing physical exercises, eating healthily, etc. However don’t overdo them. If you overdo them , they will lead you to stress and that is something you should keep to a minimum. So, you don’t have to eat like a saint or be marathon exercise fitter. Just a moderate exercise is enough. You can track a given distance each day in the morning and in the evening. This will improve your body condition considerably for better academic, resulting to high grades.
Make Your Study Place Productive: Get a place where you feel comfortable to study without distraction. This can be anywhere and there are no real statistics for places that are better suited for studying than other places. But generally you should avoid a big mess such as where there is television or other distractions. In fact, just ensure that the environment is quiet and conducive for reading.
Reduce Stress To A Minimum: You cannot live completely stress-free, anyway. But you can reduce stress in your life. Being stress-free can help you perform better in your studies and concentrate more to grab good grades in your exams.
Study Harder: You must study in order to get high grades in your courses. You will need to know the questions that have been asked in your semester quizzes and assignments because most of them will be repeated in the exam. So, the more you study harder,  the higher your grades will be. This step can really boost your grade to score those straight A’s in your courses.
There are many other tested strategies and steps that have been used by students to strike good grades in their courses, but try these few ones suggested to see astonishing improvement in your course grades.
Dr. Ben Mbam is a seasoned author, academic guru and educator. He has many great articles on College and University issues.
Getting good grades
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Grades are the measure of college success. Like the salary at a job, the batting average in baseball, or the price of a stock, your grade-point average is an objective indication of how you’re doing. And yet, there’s surprisingly little good information—least of all from professors—about just what you should do to get good grades at college. Here are the 15 best tips from our Professors’ Guide to Getting Good Grades in College—with our best wishes that you get all A’s as you start your college year:
1. Take charge of this thing. College isn’t like high school. There’s no teacher or parent to remind you every day of what you need to do. So step up to bat and take responsibility. What grades you get will depend on what you yourself do.
2. Select, don’t settle. To get good grades in college, it’s very important that you pick the right courses. Pick classes that you think you can do. And be sure to pick the right level in required courses such as math, English comp, sciences, and languages (in some colleges, there are five courses all bearing the name “college math”). Most of all, don’t accept some “standard freshman program” from your adviser. Pick your courses one by one, paying careful attention that some fulfill distribution requirements, some count to a possible major, some satisfy some interest of yours, and at least one is something that somehow “sounds interesting.” You’ll do better if you’ve made the right choices,getting good grades.
3. Don’t overload. Some students think it’s a mark of pride to take as many hours as the college allows. It isn’t. Take four or at the most five courses each semester. And, unless you are very special, don’t take more than one major. Each major comes equipped with 10 or 12 required courses, and you can really kill your GPA if you’re taking lots of required—that is, forced—courses in a major that you’re only half-interested in.
4. Make a plan. Part of getting good grades is balancing off the various things you have to do, week by week. So get a calendar—electronic is good—and enter in all your classes, exams, and papers, and professors’ office hours (more on that later). For the brave, also enter in the hours you plan to study each week for each course. That way, you’ll have a plan for (or at least a fantasy about) what you’ll be doing as the semester progresses.
5. Get your a** to class. Most students have a cutting budget: the number of lectures they can miss in each course and still do well. But if there are 35 class meetings, each class has about 3 percent of the content. Miss seven, and that’s 20 percent. And, if you blow off the class right before Thanksgiving and the professor picks the essay question for the final from that very class . . . well, you can really do major damage to your GPA for the price of one class.
6. Be a robo-notetaker. In many intro courses, the professor’s lectures form the major part of the material tested on the midterm and final. So you should be writing down everything the professor says in the lecture. Don’t worry too much about the structure, and forget about special “note-taking systems” (Cornell Note-Taking System, Mind Mapping, or the “five R’s of good note taking”). Just get it all down—you can always fix it up later.
4-Star Tip. Pay special attention to writing down anything the prof writes on the board and any PowerPoints he or she might use. Be sure to capture any explanations given, as you might have trouble understanding the code words provided without the professor’s explanations,getting good grades.
7. Avoid do-overs. It’s a really bad idea to plan to do things twice: recording the lectures with the idea of listening to them again when you get home, doing the reading three times, copying over your notes the day before the test. Focus as hard as you can the first time and do a really good job.
8. Study like you mean it. At college, you’re expected to prepare an hour or two (sometimes more) for each class meeting. This means budgeting the time each week and finding an appropriate “study environment.” No devices, no social networking, no friends, no eating—just your mind up against the work. We know this can be painful—but all students who get A’s do this (no matter what they tell you).
9. Double up on tests. Before each test, take a practice test you make up, with questions similar to the ones you expect on the real test. Write it out under test conditions (no notes, limited time). Use handouts, study guides, homeworks and labs, old exams, and hints from the prof or TA to construct the test. If you get to a test and the questions look surprising to you, you haven’t really prepared properly.
10. Don’t be a Wiki-potamus. If your course has a research paper, make sure you use proper, scholarly materials. Look to the assignment sheet and/or instructions in lecture or section to see what the prof is expecting. Above all, forget about Wikipedia and blind Google searches: These typically do not yield the sort of content that is right for a college paper.
11. “Hook up” with the prof. The most underused resource at college—and the one most likely to benefit your grade—is the office hour, either in person or electronic. This is really the only time that you can get one-on-one help from a prof or TA. Find out when your teacher wants to meet and in what modality—traditional office hours, E-mail inquiry, Skype, or even Twitter or Facebook,getting good grades.
12. Join a community. Many students, especially in the sciences, improve their grades with “study buddies” or study groups—especially when their cohorts are smarter than they. Try to meet at least once a week—especially in courses in which there are weekly problem sets or quizzes. Students can improve their grades one level (or more) when they commit to working in an organized way with other students.
13. Play all four quarters. Most college courses are “backloaded”: More than half of the grade is left to assignments due in the last month of the semester. Make sure you’re not running out of gas just as the third test, term paper, and final are going on. Some suggestions? Pace yourself, keep up your stress-reducing activities, and don’t forget to eat and sleep.
getting good grades
Extra Pointer. Avoid extensions and incompletes like the plague. Many students, when they fall behind, think the solution lies in asking the professor for more time—or worse yet, a chance to finish the course over vacation or even into the next semester. This is almost always a bad strategy since it’s twice as hard to complete the work without the deadline in place.
14. Do the “extras.” In some courses, there are special, end-of-the-semester activities that can improve your grade. Take advantage of review sessions, extra office hours, and extra credit work. Especially in schools where there are no pluses and minuses, even a little grade improvement can push you over the hump (say, from B plus to A minus—that is, to A).
15. Believe in No. 1. A large part of good grades is good attitude: believing—really believing—that you can do it (and then doing it). Do not let family myths—”you’re just not that good a student,” “you have trouble in math and science,” “your sister is the smart one”—undermine your confidence. Your college took you because they thought you could do well. Prove them right.
Bonus Tip. Make sure you get at least one A each semester. Getting even a single A will change how you think about yourself—and your prospects for future semesters. If you’re at all close, in even one course, work really hard to do it. It’ll change things forever,getting good grades.
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City water agency gets bad grades on service
City water agency gets bad grades on service
Pittsburgh Controller Michael Lamb offered qualified support for the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority’s controversial line-insurance program but skewered the agency’s customer-service operations in an audit he released Tuesday.
Read more on Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
4 Ways to Better Grades in School
Have you had one of those “Ah! I get it now!” moments recently? You know, the ones when you hear some piece of advice you’ve heard many times before, only this time it makes sense?
I find that many parents and kids have an “Ah! I get it now!” moment when they finally understand how other students get better grades.
It’s not natural intelligence, better teachers in elementary school or a better seat in class.
Higher grades come from following simple steps each time your child enters a class, does homework and later studies for tests.
These simple steps help students get better grades, attend better schools and land better jobs when it’s over. That’s how powerful they are.
And once they become a habit, they will last a lifetime.
Yet, parents and kids need to be reminded from time to time so that the , “Ah! I get it!” moment comes sooner rather than later.
With competition for top schools and good jobs increasing each year, it’s critical that parents and kids start making the change right now.
Here are four changes that can make a difference immediately.
Tip #1 – Learn how to organize your materials. – Sounds simple, but all great ideas are. Notebooks for each subject, clear notes that are easy to understand later and an assignment book.
Prepare like you want to be the best and you’ll see an immediate improvement. The students that get the best grades are those that have what they need to study at hand. Once they finish with one subject, it’s on to the next. No wasted time.
Tip #2 – Learn how to do homework – Too many kids come home and attack homework with the idea of finishing…not learning. This is a mistake. Homework should be a time to clarify what you are learning; investigate how it ties into what you’ve learned so far; discover what you know and don’t know.
This way, you’re organizing the material in your mind. You’re taking the first step to absorbing what you’ll need later for the test. And when that time comes, you’ll be better prepared.
Tip #3 – Learn to study – There are ways to study that every student should understand. Start with the most important material, classify and organize, summarize, learn to pick out important points.
And most importantly, think about the material as you go over it. Make connections with other topics you’ve covered. You’ll begin to understand with less effort.
Tip #4 – Learn how to memorize efficiently. – In reality, if you follow the first three tips, the memorizing part is basically done. You see, true memorizing strategies don’t occur the night before a test. They are part of the process of learning which, if done correctly, allow you to understand, retain and recall the information without a lot of hard work.
You’ll need memorizing techniques at times but solid preparation is always the first step to understanding.
By combining all four of these suggestions, your child will start to see better grades almost overnight. And the moment will come when you both sit back with smiles on your faces and say, “Ah! I get it!.”
Jim Sarris is a veteran teacher and author of two books on memorizing: Comic Mnemonics for Spanish Verbs and Memorizing Made Easy, a book/DVD that teaches kids valuable study skills that make memorizing occur naturally. No struggles, no hassles, no headaches. For a free chapter and more information, visit Better grades today and receive the first chapter free.
Five Ways to Get Better Grades in College
Grades aren’t everything, but for some people they’re the only thing. Grades are an important way to measure your success in college, but they are not the only results you’re after. You need to find a way to make college personally fulfilling. You need to craft a customized college experience that really floats your boat. When you make college personally rewarding, you grades go through the roof.
Here are five ways to get better grades while in college.
1. Take amazing notes
You need to go to class fully prepared and ready for war. It’s not enough to just sit down and absorb. You need to document all the action as it unfolds. When you take amazing notes, you learn more during and after your lectures. During your lectures, you are more aware of the information that’s being presented to you, because you are processing it on two levels, one mental and one physical. After your lectures, you have a written historical account of all the ideas, dates and references that you were exposed to that day. This record can then be used for assignment execution and test preparation.
2. Bring a unique perspective to every assignment
You need to strive toward originality. If you want to distinguish yourself from your other classmates, you have to bring a unique perspective to every assignment. You can’t recycle old arguments and popular sentiments; you must create a new, imaginative spin. Combine multiple perspectives in a new way. Challenge something or be controversial. If you can back up your original claims with solid analysis, then you’ll get excellent grades on every assignment.
3. Find an ally in class
You need to have at least one partner in crime for every class that you take. Target someone interesting. Introduce yourself and your intentions. Exchange phone numbers and talk about your coursework outside of class. If you can combine your know-how with someone else? s bucket of accumulated information, then you’ll achieve better marks on your tests and assignments.
4. Get a tutor if you need to
If you need some extra instruction, find a tutor. Tutors will give you a supplemental method of learning that’s conversational and personally tailored to your academic needs. Work on your weaknesses. Get extra help, put in extra time and your grades will improve.
5. Choose courses that really interest you
Love the courses you enroll in, or shop around for better options. Be intrigued by the material and let your curiosity take over.
Discover what study method(s) work best for you. Experiment with a few different approaches, and when you find the one that fits your personality, perfect it. Work on getting betting grades, but put personal growth ahead of GPA considerations.
Take a look at more industry related articles by Chris Stout at CareersandEducation.com . Chris Stout is a frequent contributor with articles pertaining to using Distance Learning and Career Advice.
How to Help your Child Get Great Grades
When parents ask me to coach their teenagers they inevitably want their child’s school grades to improve and seem a little shocked when I say, “Yes, that’s easy.”
Like Susan, who sent her 13-year-old to me. Grace was doing OK at school, however her parents wanted to get her into a better school and to do that her grades needed to improve. Grace was enrolled in one of my coaching programmes and by the end of the programme her predicted C grades had become A and B, with a 100% pass rate in science a previously disliked subject.
How did we do it? The answer is to know your child’s learning style. When you do, you can help them to help themselves. Coupled with understanding what motivates them, what drives them and their perspective of the world, you can motivate any teenager to improve their schoolwork.
So this week I though I would share with you my guide to learning styles:
Learning style is the way in which you learn most easily, knowing this can make studying much easier. People learn in four ways, through reading, listening, doing or graphics and we will discuss each one.
Reading — these people learn mostly by reading and writing; this is predominately the style taught at school. When studying, they read and make lots of notes. This style is known as verbal memory.
Listening — These people learn most by hearing something spoken to them. In class they are likely to enjoy discussion where people are talking and get bored when there is writing to be done. When studying they may read and talk out loud or tape themselves and listen at a later date. They will also ask others to question them so they can speak their answers. This style is knows as tonal memory.
Doing — these people learn by movement in some way. These will be the students constantly fidgeting at school, they cannot sit still. In studying they are likely to walk around and make up rhythmic songs and poems. These students may benefit from studying with either the TV and radio on and also may hum or sing while they are studying. This style is known as rhythm memory.
Graphics — these people learn by seeing pictures, tables or graphs. When studying, they are likely to draw pictures and put information into tables and boxes, they also will enjoy using mind maps. This style is known as design memory.
Action
Think of a time that your child was studying recently and the methods they used.
Which one of these four do you think they are and why? Ask your teen and see if you are right.
Write a list of 5 ways you can support your teenager’s learning style now you have discovered what it is. For example, telling your child to switch off the TV while studying may not be the right things to do, depending on their learning style.
So, if we go back to Grace, she was typical in that her Mum made her do her homework in a room all by herself with no noise. Grace found this very hard and as we worked together we found that she was very high in rhythm memory. So we began to do things like introduce a radio into the room where she was studying, studying while walking around the room and making up songs and poems. The results were incredible. As for the science exam, she made up a song about the valancy table while playing the guitar at the same time — it worked a treat and is just what someone with high rhythm memory needs. I should know, as this is my greatest learning style. When I was in the police, I learned every piece of legislation to a song and I can tell you, it took me all my might not to sing the charges to someone as I was arresting them! In fact if you asked me now, I could still sing the Theft Act to you. You play it, I’ll sing it!
Sarah Newton is one of the world?s leading teen coaches. She enjoys a high profile and is one of the only Teen Coaches to have hosted her own eight part TV series ?My Teen?s a nightmare ? I?m Moving Out?. Her first book ” Help! My Teenager is an Alien – the everyday situation guide for parents” was launched in March 2007 by Penguin and rarely drops out of the top ten parenting teenager books. Sarah believes that parents can have great relationships with their teenagers and still get all the boring things done and to this end she offers everyday practical advice. To get Free access to Sarah?s “3 easy proven techniques to instantly reduce stress in your home and dramatically improve the relationship with your teen” go to http://www.sarahnewton.com
Five Tips for Improving your Grades in College
Although college is about more than just academic achievement, your grades are an important indicator of your overall success and commitment to the material you’ve chosen to study. Take your grades seriously, but first and foremost, learn the material. If you are interested, comfortable and familiar with your subject matter, good grades will be easy to achieve.
Here are five tips to help you improve your grades in college.
1. Get to know your professors
Forge friendships with the instructors that you respect. Visit them during office hours. Ask questions, debate and just talk about life. Respect your instructor’s time, and know when your stay is up. Be honest, open and enthusiastic, and you will be drawn more closely toward the material that you are studying. If you’ve befriended your professors, you will notice the difference in your grades. You’re interest level will increase, and your ability to conduct damage control during awkward situations will also be enhanced. You are more likely to succeed in you course if your professors know who you are, what you stand for and why you are interested in their class.
2. Love your classes
Be genuinely passionate about the courses you select. Follow you interests and personal tastes. Choose a schedule that you can manage and enjoy. Mix it up from quarter to quarter. Don’t take all your GEs at once, and don’t just take classes in your major. Take courses that sound intriguing, and if you realize you made a mistake, bail out while you still have time. Shop around for classes that seem cool to you. IF you enjoy what you’re studying you will earn better grades.
3. Live with people who respect your desire to study
If you live with someone who blares horrible, horrible music on a nightly basis, you academic performance will suffer as a result. Associate with people who can handle their business. Don’t live with someone who’s not going to respect your privacy or need to work in peace. There’s a time for work and a time for play. Know when you have to get your stuff done, and live in a place where you can work peacefully.
4. Manage your time like there’s no tomorrow
You need to have total control over your schedule .You will be juggling different commitments and priorities constantly, so you need to have superior time management skills. College is an opportunity that needs to be ceased daily. You only have a limited time to make the most out of your college experience.
5. Don’t overload your schedule
Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Don’t kill yourself with full-time jobs, 20 unit quarters and social obligations. If you have a bunch of hard classes, toss in something light. In order to keep your grades excellent, you need to keep your schedule balanced.
College is personal. Spend your time wisely. Associate with productive people and cool professors. Manage your time, balance your schedule and love your classes. The more you care, the better your grades will be.
Take a look at more industry related articles by Chris Stout at CareersandEducation.com . Chris Stout is a frequent contributor with articles pertaining to using Distance Learning and Career Advice.
Study Tips for Better High School Diploma Grades
High school diploma along with better grades will surely get you better job prospects. Companies normally prefer candidates with good grades and that to in the first attempt of the exam. Many of you study at the last moment and manage to pass; however you may not be able to recollect what you studied hurriedly in the long run. High school is the place where you can grow intellectually. So make the most of the high school and try getting better scores to be ahead in the competition. Better grades will also help you to get admission in better universities in the world for further studies. Just a little effort at the right time will help you do better during the exams.
Always do your homework. Whatever work or studies you are asked to complete at home; do it. If you pay attention in the class, half your studies are completed there, only if you have been concentrating. Plan out your studies via a planner and decide which subject you would like to study when. For doing homework you can choose two three students from your class, whom you can get in touch with for homework related queries. These friends will help you when you miss out on class, when you are unwell.
When you do your homework do not get distracted, as you are not only completing the assignment but also learning the content. Doing homework regularly will help you at the time of your exam, when you won’t have to spend more time learning the lessons. As you have gone through it before, studying it at the time of exam will be a revision for you. Doing homework will surely help you in getting better grades.
Do not keep any last minute study. Go through your lessons well in advance before exams. This will allow you to get answers to your queries from teachers and classmates. If you study at the last moment, you may not be able to get help for your queries and you may lose out on something important. If possible get a friend along and study, but make sure you don’t spend time chatting. Some can study well in the group and some need privacy. Realize which environment suits you best.
Once you are done with your studies, you can take a test. Test how much have matter you have stored in your brain. Many students have a problem when it comes to writing the exam. They either fall short of time or the anxiety of exams doesn’t allow them to do well. To increase your speed, you can set an alarm and complete a paper in the given time. Be honest to yourself and this will help you do well in the exam and you will earn more marks, which you would have lost if you where unable to complete the paper.
When you are preparing for exam, you can write down the main points on a separate sheet of paper and read them before you leave for the exam. With the fear of exam, do not overburden your self with studies. Your brain desires a break and it is a must for not letting yourself over stress.
When you sit down for exam, keep your cool. Read and understand the questions. Attempt the easy ones first and then move on to the ones you feel are tough. After you finish writing, read your answers and check if you have written all the points. At the end of it, only your hard work is going to be paid. If you have done your lessons regularly with dedication you are sure to score well.
Do you know how to choose a High School Diploma? It is best to do your homework before you enroll. FYI a High School Diploma GED is not the same. Visit this website for a free (limited time) report http://www.citizenschool.com.
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Tips For Getting Better College Grades
It does not matter if you are enrolled at a small college or a student at a large university. If you want to improve your grades and raise your grade point average, here is what you need to do:
1. Create a study plan. Divide up a total amount of weekly study time according to how much time you are likely to need to devote to each subject. Draw up a weekly schedule. Find out when large projects are going to come due and include extra time for them in the calendar. This will make it easy to decide when to start work on each project.
2. Do your homework. Grades are very often based on timely homework hand-ins. Keep up with your assignments and turn them in on time.
3. Ask your teachers for suggestions to help you learn more and improve your work in areas where you are weak.
4. Learn from your mistakes. Getting a bad grade can help you figure out where you went wrong and to avoid making the same mistake again. This will allow you to do better in the future.
5. Get a tutor. If you seem unable to keep up with a particular subject, get help from a tutor to catch up. This could be a classmate, a senior, or someone appointed by the school. Some schools also have assistance available on campus through places such as writing centers.
6. Study with friends. Getting over inertia and actually beginning study or homework can be tough. Create or join a study circle. Meet friends and do your work together.
7. Attend All Your Classes. Most students end up skipping classes. If you want good grades, however, you must attend most of your classes:
-It allows you to absorb classroom material just by sitting in the classroom, and following and participating in the lectures and discussions.
-It allows you to make your presence noticeable and can help you to form a mentoring relationship with your professors.
-Professors often have bonus participation points that are awarded to students who are active in class discussions.
-It allows you to earn attendance points and can directly impact your grade.
8. Understand the expectations of your professors. Learn the class syllabus handed out during the first week and stick to the deadlines and the requirements.
9. Communicate with the professors if you are struggling and unable to keep up. The professor may not be aware of your difficulty, so meet the professor away from class and ask for the help you need.
10. Organize. You can easily get swamped by the many due dates, team meetings, and so on:
-Use a planner.
-Use the system once you set it up.
-Keep all papers like homework, tests, and class papers accessible.
-Don’t throw out old homework or tests; you may need them to study for future tests.
-Tackle the harder work first so that you have enough time to complete it.
-Take enough breaks. You can try rewarding yourself by taking a break for completing a large or difficult task.
-Break more difficult or complicated projects into smaller, more manageable pieces, assigning deadlines to each part.
-Do not overextend. Don’t get involved in more clubs and organizations than you can manage.
Above all, concentrate and study early and often. If you need help, feel free to ask your professors or the school.
Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution’s Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.