How to make the most out of your study time and turn that passing grade into a 4.0. by Justin

How to make the most out of your study time and turn that passing grade into a 4.0. by Justin - May 2016 Scholarship Essay

While wasting my time through high school and studying for hours on end, I eventually became aware that there was an easier way to make As on tests, to remember every line in a speech or poem, and to not forget what I was planning to do tomorrow at 6pm with…..wait was it Jim or Tony? Two words, Mnemonic devices.
We as humans are imperfect creatures, with imperfect memories. We cannot possibly remember every detail because if so we would potentially go insane due to the cognitive overload. Therefore we go through our lives, not paying adequate attention to anything that isn’t immediately interesting or that would stimulate us enough to be deserving of our full attention. This is why we sleep in class, do not study, and potentially get horrible grades! So what can help you remember the boring and seemingly un-memorizable bits of information you need to know in order to ace that test? The mnemonic device comes to aid you! That thing you were doing tomorrow at 6pm now because you remember you thought of a popular meat snack when you made the plans with Jim! You also know it wasn’t with Tony because you would of thought of a tiger whose great! Pair what you need to know with an intrinsic word, idea, or pattern in order to aid your memory! Math teachers cling to P.E.M.D.A.S. to help algebra students recall which mathematical operation they have to do first and geology teachers explain the differences between stalactites and stalagmites by giving the simile that stalactites have to hold tight to the ceiling so they do not fall, and stalagmites have to be mighty in order to push up from it.
While these devices may not work for all of your testing information, they surely can be useful in putting a dent into the time you spend, and the overall amount of things you have to purely memorize. So give it a try, and use the power of association to you benefit!