Study Groups
Here's a tip: If
you find yourself socializing, wasting time, or simply not retaining
information from your study group, maybe it is time to change things up a bit.
Choosing a study group is important, choosing the right study group is even
more important. After receiving grades in January, you should be able to
understand the efficiency of your study habits and be able to assess what will
be more beneficial to your educational outcomes the next semester.
If
you do not start off with a group first semester and perform poorly, maybe spring semester may be the
time to seek out help from your fellow students. My recommendations are to
start with people that you are friendly with, create a group of no less than
three people, and try to find people that study similarly.
Starting
to study with friendly people gives you a comfortable environment to be honest
about your study habits and your weaknesses. You don’t have to tell everyone
that you are terrible at writing or multiple choice questions, but letting your
study group in on your weaknesses will help you to overcome them by studying
for those particular weaknesses. Hopefully, that honest dynamic will help you
as a group to be more efficient in studying for this semester’s exams.
I
recommend a group of three people to start because it creates a better problem
solving and creative dialog within the group. It is easy to fall into a trap of
just believing your study partner, but having three in the group may cause you
to discuss more details and eventually help you to understand the course materials.
It is also good to have at least three people because it will help you to stay
focused on the common goal of studying and not socializing.
Try
to find people who study in a similar fashion to the way you study. If you are
a visual learner, find people who like to draw diagrams, flow charts, or simple
pictures to help you remember the details. If you like flashcards and pneumonic
devices, there are likely other people who like to use the same things to learn
the materials, find each other and use them together to tackle this semester.
Even
if you can’t find exactly the right people to study with each semester, finding
a group of like-minded people will be a great support for you throughout your law school experience. Try it, dig in and good
luck!
