ACA 122 - Final Exam Practice

What are the expectations of college reading assignments?

1) Learn the material on the assigned pages and be ready for a quiz. 2)Make note of the material on the assigned pages you don't understand and ask questions. 3)Begin some foundation work on this concept, so you will be prepared for lecture or in-depth analysis of the concept in class. 4)Comprehend what's on these pages and be prepared to contribute to class discussion on this topic in the next class. 5)Know this material for an upcoming class activity.

How should one prepare for reading?

1) Prepare Yourself Make sure you are ready to learn and have set realistic expectations. Set an intention. (Be specific about how much you want to read in a certain amount of time.) Estimate your reading time effectively. If you are reviewing a topic you are familiar with, it's a good idea to skim. Eat well and be rested. 2) Prepare Your Environment Create a space that's conducive to learning new material.

Hybrid Course

A Hybrid Course features a combination of weekly face-to-face class meetings and weekly online activities and assignments.

Work-Based Learning (Co-Op)

A common type of off-campus learning environment that community college students may experience is cooperative education (co-op). Most students in career and technical programs participate in some form of co-op experience. Co-op classes are a great opportunity to practice soft skills, such as punctuality and appropriate workplace language.

Acronym

An Acronym is a word that helps you remember information and the order of items. (Ex: PEMDAS = Parenthesis Exponents Multiplication Division Addition Subtraction, FANBOYS = For-And-Nor-But-Or-Yet-So)

Acrostic Sentence

An Acrostic Sentence allows you to remember the order of steps or events as well. (Ex: My Very Earthly Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas = Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto)

What is annotation and why is it important?

Annotating is taking notes while you read. Why annotate? Annotating forces students to interact with the material, which helps make sense of the ideas presented and allows readers to recall the information later.

Explain the most effective way to take notes before, during and after class.

Before Class - Have notes separated/organized for each class. Prepare yourself mentally by ridding your mind of distractions. Be physically prepared - be rested, fed, etc. Review notes from previous class. During Class - Only have necessary supplies on desk. Stay focused. Remember SOARS. After Class - Look over notes to see if you need to clarify anything. Write a one-minute summary.

Completing the Practice in the Textbook

Complete the ones you have not been assigned if the material was covered in class.

Curriculum Courses

Curriculum Courses award college credit toward a certificate, diploma, or degree. All courses on your Plan of Study are curriculum courses.

Color Coding Your Notes

Develope a system in which different colors correspond to different types of notes, and when reviewing your day's notes, color-code the information.

Note Taking - Cornell Method

Divide your note-taking paper into three sections. Questions on the left, notes on the right, and summaries at the bottom.

Scholarships

Do not have to be repaid but often have eligibility stipulations.

Grants

Do not have to be repaid.

Clinicals

During Clinicals, students practice their newly learned skills in a variety of real-world settings under the supervision of an instructor or preceptor. Clinicals give students further opportunities for hands-on practice of the concepts and skills they have learned.

When should you take notes while in class and what should you make note of?

During class write down any information that SOARS: Singled out, On the board, Asked, Repeated, or Stressed.

Note Taking - Two Column

Fold the paper in half, making a crease down the center. Take notes on the right side, write questions on the left side.

Reviewing Graded Work

Go back and look at what you missed.

Making Flash Cards

Helpful when you have a large volume of very specific information to review, such as definitions of key terms, numerous dates, or important vocabulary; and when there are multiple pieces of information to remember for a single concept or idea, such as the steps to investigate a leak in a line or the three most common comma splice errors.

Honors Courses

Honors Courses are for students who want to participate in advanced learning experiences. Courses designated as honors classes each semester often require independent study components (often an honors project) that are designed in collaboration with the instructor and/or an honors program coordinator or committee.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

If you receive a financial aid award, then you'll need to demonstrate satisfactory academic progress in order to maintain your financial aid eligibility. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) is defined by the United States Department of Education as meeting the following standards: Maintaining a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher. Maintaining a cumulative credit hour completion rate of 67 percent or higher. Not attempting more than 150 percent of the course hours required for graduation.

KWL

KWL is a technique to focus your studying so that you're aware of your strengths and improve on weak areas. To use KWL, begin by writing everything you know or think you know (K) about the topic. Then write down what you want to learn (W) or need to learn about the topic. After finding answers, write down what you learned (L).

Labs

Labs give students the opportunity to apply the theories and concepts the learn in the classroom. Labs provide much-needed hands-on practice with new skills and concepts.

Non-Curriculum Courses

Non-Curriculum Courses are classes for personal growth or skills-building and are usually offered through three departments.

Online Courses

Online Courses use the college's learning management system (such as Blackboard, Moodle, or Sakai) for all instructional purposes.

What does PSAR stand for?

PSAR: Prepare, Survey, Annotate, Review.

Rhymes

Rhymes are used to remember very detailed information, such as the last dates of the 12 months. (Ex: "Thirty days has September...")

Visualizing

Seeing the material, especially in motion, will allow you to absorb the information and remember it better.

Service Learning

Service Learning includes a volunteer or community service experience that directly supports the learning outcomes of the course and meets a demonstrated need in the community.

Explain what it means to survey a reading assignment.

Start by looking at the table of contents in the beginning of the book to see what you'll be learning and how it fits with other course information. Look for chapter headings and subheading and turn these into questions. Find connections between the material and you personal life or previous academic experience. Scan the chapter for bold or italicized words.

Transfer Assured Admissions Policy (TAAP)

The TAAP policy assures admission to any North Carolina Community College graduate holding an AA or AS degree. Although the UNC System cannot assure admission to a specific campus or program, it can assure admission to at least one of the 16 constituent institutions.

Creating Cheat Sheets

The act of making a Cheat Sheet will cause you to recognize which information you haven't masted, and then consolidate and review important information.

Direct Loans

The federal government issues subsidized (need based, lower interest rate) loans and unsubsidized (non-need based and higher interest rate) loans that must be repaid. To start the process, you must complete and submit the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) online.

Work Study

The school you attend provides part-time job opportunities that help pay for college.

Forming Study Groups

Three to five members - keep it small.

Note Taking - Informal Outline

Visually organizes the presented material by spacing information out on the page. Allows you to show relationships between ideas without spelling them out.

Creating Self-Tests

You can use the questions the instructor posted in class. The questions at the beginning/end of the sections, chapters, etc. of your textbook.

Informal Outline

allows you to quickly visualize the detail and importance of items.

Concept Maps

are helpful when there is a lot of material of varying importance or specificity to process. (Allows you to see connections between ideas.)

Mnemonic Devices

are memory tools that allow you to recall a large amount of specific information by creating a memorable word, sentence, or rhyme.

Venn Diagrams

are useful to compare and contrast two to three items.

Preparation Studying

is targeted study that readies you for a specific application of your knowledge.

Maintenance Studying

is the reviewing and reading you complete after each class to learn new material.

What is active reading and why is it important?

1) Active reading forces you to interact with the presented ideas through annotating, or taking notes while you read. 2) Active reading requires you to ask questions, compare new information with you past knowledge and experiences, note your reactions and judgements on what you've read, and consolidate ideas in brief summaries.