Slow and Steady Wins the Race by Tracy

Slow and Steady Wins the Race by Tracy - January 2014 Scholarship Essay

The most effective study method I have used is flash cards. I have tried nearly every study method known to man and have never been able to take in information for tests. All through high school, I was able to pass my classes by retaking tests and resubmitting essays. When I began high school, that all changed. I was unable to retake the quiz I only received a 60 on, and was only given one chance to take the chapter test.

One of my professors pulled me aside one day and asked if he could help me in any way. I only had a 63 in his class, but he could tell I had really been trying. I explained to him all the study methods I had tried and how none of them seemed to help anymore than the others. He could not understand why nothing seemed to be helping.

After talking for a few minutes, he suggested the use of flashcards rather than my other methods. I made flashcards to prepare for my next quiz and I earned a 70. My next quiz went up even higher and the trend continued throughout the remainder of the semester. When I was notified of an overall grade of an 83 for that class, I was ecstatic. My professor was blown away by how much my grade had improved.

Although the grades in my other classed were not nearly as low as the class talked about prior, I was also able to improve those grades thanks to the help of flashcards. I had never used flashcards because I did not want to spend the time making them, but in the end I realized the time is what made them worth it.