<p>Im currently in General Biology II and am struggling. We have four exams which are worth the majority of our grade and then a lab which is worth a quarter. On the first exam i got a 71. not great but could be way worse. i took an exam last friday and don't know how i did but definitely did not ace it. i've tried talking to the teacher and changed my studying approach after the first exam but I still feel as if I'm struggling to pass the class. Lab isn't easy either so it isn't much of a grade booster</p>
<p>Perhaps writting things down on flash cards and quiz yourself that way?</p>
<p>i did that for last week’s test and it definitely helped but its almost like the test material is just very hard specifically the way questions are asked</p>
<p>I’m not a big believer in flash cards.
In my class, the exams are based in lecture so I just read and reread and reread the lecture slides. If there are structures or pathways, I write them out over and over again while explaining the process out loud if possible.</p>
<p>Khanacademy</p>
<p>^Sal is a saint.</p>
<p>only did a little better on the second exam that i found out about earlier today. very frustrating</p>
<p>Bio can be a little tricky because it’s mostly memorization, but also involves understanding how things work together conceptually/as a system.</p>
<p>What worked for me in gen bio (and what I’m doing now to study for the bio GRE) is to study things by concept and see how they work together. I like to draw pictures with labels and notes. IE mitosis. It’s not enough to just write a flashcard saying “kinetochore is the protein structure on chromatids where the spindle fibers attach during cell division to pull sister chromatids apart.” and then remember what a kinetochore is among the bajillion other definitions you’ve put onto flash cards.</p>
<p>What worked for me was organizing things by concept/theme/system, and learning how all the parts work together. In this example, I’d draw a cell going through the phases of mitosis. For metaphase, I’d draw the chromosomes on the metaphase plate. I’d label them. I’d label the kinetochore, and maybe write its definition. I might write a reminder to myself that Chromatid is just a word for chromosome, when that chromosome is attached to the duplicate chromosome and together they are “sister chromatids”. I might remind myself that a chromasome/chromatid is tightly wound DNA around histone proteins. I’d draw spindle fibers, maybe noting that they’re composed of microtubules and are organized by centrioles. Etc, etc etc.</p>
<p>My point is, it was more helpful for me to view things as a whole first, and then look at each component, reminding myself of their word definitions when necessary. I remember being in bio I/II and looking at all the bolded words, them copying them onto notecards. I didn’t do so hot in bio I/II, probably because I hadn’t learned to study. By the time I was in upper levels like molecular cell or biochem, I was ONLY drawing big pictures, then labeling with definitions. Saved a lot of notecards.</p>
<p>Not sure that this is helpful, but it worked for me. Everyone learns differently, so sometimes you just have to put in some extra time to try different methods and figure out what works best for you.</p>
<p>Are you doing the reading? I’ve found bio to be one of the things where the reading can be very helpful.</p>
<p>Outlining the reading and/or the lecture slides could be something to check out. You could try going through the outlines to make a study guide as well. Be sure to always copy down diagrams. </p>
<p>Flash cards can be helpful for some people but personally I find it more helpful to just kind of know how everything falls together.</p>
<p>For bio I do two things and have gotten A’s on all my exams. I basically sit down for hours each day and read and reread all of my lecture notes until a I have memorized everything. Then I make notecards for the lecture worksheets and constantly quiz my sled with them, I never used notecards in high school but they seem to be working for me. Honestly for bio the material is alot so you just have to sit down and take the time to memorize the information bio is mainly just memorization you don’t really have to apply or understand concepts to solve a problem.</p>
<p>^^Emily2007, I have to say that I really like your idea. Drawing can not only help you learn the terms but the image you draw will remain in your memory. I will definitely be using this in my bio class.</p>
<p>I took a bio class at a local CC and what helped me most: reading. First id outline the chapter by writing down important points (helps the info stick in your brain, even if you dont realuze it!) and then read. And when I say read, I mean read your book, then your notes, then your book again, then your outline, then your book a third time, then your notes a second time, then your book a fourth time, then your outline.</p>
<p>I received a 98 in the class and got the highest grades on all the tests.</p>
<p>I agree with Emily, she really has some great points.</p>
<p>I used to break the reading up into chunks. I would read one chunk of the reading, close my book and take notes on what I remembered. Then I would go back and fill out the holes that my memory left. After I finished all of the reading I made a “master study guide.” I outlined the entire chapter, filled in the big concepts, important charts and any other problems or specific things that my teacher emphasized. I used this master outline to study. </p>
<p>I also was a fan of making diagrams or copying the charts from the book over and over. I am a very visual learner and that helped me.</p>
<p>Perhaps the hardest thing about Biology II is that it is largely conceptual. While the little details matter, it was really the big picture that was the take home message (at least in my course). I struggled at first because I am a detail oriented person, but once I learned how everything fit together it became much easier. I got an A in Bio II. Its hard but possible. I don’t agree with the above posters that say route memorization is the only way. If you learn to find a system that works for you, then you don’t need to spend hours reading and rereading your notes.</p>