This is a complete transcript of the SULS panel discussion for study technique held in Semester 1, 2020. The panel was moderated by Natalie Leung (Vice President (Education) 2020) and consisted of Dr Natalie Silver (NS), Dr Kym Sheehan (KS) and Charlotte Trent (CT).
How should I begin study for a unit?
KS: The first thing you need to do is to have a look at the unit of study outline to understand what the unit is about. The next thing I suggest you do is to look at the week by week schedule of what's going to happen. Finally, I suggest you look at the assessment schedule to get an understanding of the final assessment and what assessments might be on the way.
CT: Everyone muddles their way through the first weeks at least, before you start getting into a habit. You can find out what the unit is about through the unit of study, and through the reading list on eReserve. Try and make sure you’re on top of your notes and your readings, that’s a good way to keep at it.
What is the difference between a casebook and a textbook and is one better?
CT: I, personally, prefer the casebook. The casebook has all the cases in it, whereas the textbook tends to describe a lot more of the theory that might be in place or what is happening between the academics. Personally, I think you should pay a lot more attention to the case book.
KS: You can either buy the case book or just read the cases online. But I think reading the textbook can help a lot of students. Often if you don’t have an idea of what’s happening in this area of law, the textbook can help give students a really good overview. For the tutorials, I would read the cases. But a case book is probably going to be essential if it’s prescribed.
NS: If you read the textbook before the lecture, you’ll already have an idea of what they’re talking about. After the lecture, you can then look more in-depth into the case law.
Should I stick to the Unit of Study Outline or should I read beyond it?
NS: I would say stick to the Unit of Study because it’s very comprehensive. In fact, many students can’t always do the readings in the Unit of Study outline. In the subjects I teach, there is no research assignment so there’s no need to go beyond the Unit of Study.
CT: A few subjects will give you your case list in your exams, so it’s a very good idea to be familiar with them because it’s the bulk of your theory. If you want to do extra readings, out of curiosity, you can do that, but it’s not necessary.
How is preparing for a tutorial different to preparing for a lecture?
KS: I already said before that you should prepare for a lecture by reading the corresponding textbook chapter. However, to prepare for a tutorial, you need to complete the tutorial problems. The important thing is that you give yourself enough time for the problems. When you first do the problems, it’ll take some time because you don’t know where you’re going, but if you do that before you come to the tutorial, then you’ll get more out of it. You don’t want the first time you attempt a problem question to be in the exam.
CT: Doing a tutorial question every week is like practising for an exam. You’re doing, maybe 26 hours, of work that you won’t need to do at the end of the semester.
NS: We want to encourage tutorial participation, which may just be asking questions.
What happens when I miss a tutorial or lecture? Should I try and catch up or should I just focus on the rest of the semester?
CT: Again, that’s really dependent on the subject. For the bulk of subjects, that one week’s worth of content will probably carry over to next week and the weeks after that. It's really important to at least try and catch up whether it’s by talking to your friends about what you've missed out on or talking to a tutor. If it does happen, as long as you catch up, it's okay.
KS: Lectures are typically recorded so if you can't attend a lecture then you listen to the recordings. One bad habit that some students get into is bulking up week by week, thinking “I'll listen to it eventually”. I suggest you try and catch up quickly. If you miss a tutorial, once again, you need to catch up on what you missed out on. But how you do that is a bit more complex because they're not typically recorded. One way is chatting with your friends and then another way is also chatting with your tutor. We always get impressed when people have done a bit of work. If you've missed the tutorial, try the tutorial problems and then ask for help.
NS: For some subjects, you can attend a makeup class.
KS: Certainly. But there’s a courtesy thing that is expected. Make sure to let the tutor of your makeup class know, and to let the tutor for your normal class know.
NS: Another thing about falling behind is that, in compulsory units, you've got compulsory mid-semester exams or assignments that are going to be on those early topics, so you want to keep up with the material.
CT: Another good way to figure out what you have missed are PASS sessions, or Peer Assisted Study Sessions. They’re an hour of peer-directed study sessions. They’re not going to be much help if you didn’t do any of the material, but it might be a good way of figuring out the key ideas of materials and figuring out where to start. They’re not the be-all and end-all, but they’re a very good resource in order to kickstart studying sessions.
What are your favourite study methods or study techniques?
CT: I’m a big proponent for studying pretty much from week two onwards. I've already started making scaffolds and making case notes and, for me, the process of writing out things over and is a really good method. If I’m going into an open book exam with my scaffold, there are one or two dot points along with key case names and so I'm not worried about running out of time and just flicking through my notes. It also means I've entrenched a lot of that knowledge in just my brain through the process of repetition.
KS: When you come with answers to the tutorial question, you should write out a fresh answer to that problem within 24 hours of the tutorial, when the information is still fresh. That way, you have an answer to the questions before you get into the exam period.
Do you have tips and strategies for avoiding procrastination?
CT: I think it’s just sitting down and doing something. There is nothing better than just trying to start. If you’re inundated with readings, you’ll probably push it off. So, it’s important to make it more manageable. And it’s highly dependent on you as a person.
KS: I think it’s really important to use your time well which might mean reading on the bus or train. I strongly recommend getting into exercise or some other good habits. One thing you want to do is to keep healthy and exercise can also help clear your head.
NS: One thing that becomes really important in law are study groups. This might be going over tute questions, building sets of notes and sharing information but they also bring in the social aspect of studying.
CT: Study groups do help because they force you to dedicate time to subjects. I think the biggest thing I struggled in through first year was the inundation of guilt if I wasn't studying or reading. But it’s perfectly fine to go a day without law study.
Check out the 2020 SULS Education Guide here: suls.org.au/publications