Simidele Davis

Catherine Hawkins
General Psychology 1150-02
January 28, 2013
Study Skills Assignment
1. Out of the 16 questions, I got 15 of the questions correct.
2. (a.) The first of the three most important things I learned from this assignment is that there are
two levels of processing information. Those two levels are identified as shallow and deep.
Shallow processing of information involves trying to retain information through the use of
methods that do not allow one to thoroughly understand the information they are trying to
retain. Examples of these methods include: memorizing isolated facts, writing information on
note cards without understanding the information, and simply reading the text and nothing
more. Deep processing of information is done by looking through the material in such a way that
allows students to relate the material to other concepts they may know and personal
experiences, so that the student may come to understand the material. Examples of deep
processing include: Asking question to test conceptual understanding, closing the book and
writing out all the information understood, and relating the material to personal experiences or
already known information. Before watching the assigned videos, I had never recognized that
there are two different levels of learning information. I had always thought that the depth of my
thinking did not matter, but it was the strategies and techniques that I had used to study that
mattered. (b.) The second of the three most important things I learned from this assignment is
that using specific learning strategies do not determine how well a person can learn material. I
now know that using learning strategies that were thought to be beneficial will not help if the
student is not thinking and regarding information on a level that allows them to understand it. If

a student is studying and they are taking notes from a text, the notes will not be of any help
unless the student reviews the notes and thinks critically about what they wrote. The same also
can apply to other learning strategies. For example, recording a lecture may be useful in regards
to filling in gaps in notes, but if the student does not use the recordings in a way to understand
the material, such as resuscitation in ones own words, they are missing the opportunity to truly
understand the material. Due to this assignment, I have been able to reflect on my own learning
strategies. I have noticed that I have a habit of reading a text without asking questions or
connecting concepts. I now know that I can fix this problem by taking the time to make
annotations, which will cause me to think about the material. (c.) The third most important
thing I learned is that metacognition in high school and metacognition in college are very
different and that they require different things from students. In my opinion, high school
metacognition means only being able to recall information because assessments are not written
in such a way that calls for an understanding of the material that is taught. Studying to be able
to recall information is what leaves many students in a rut in their freshman year of college,
realizing that recalling information is not enough. Students getting used to college also may not
be accustomed to putting forth such effort to obtain good grades in college because of the little
effort they put forth to do well in high school. From what Ive experienced, metacognition in
college calls for much more. In college I have noticed that I cannot just recall information
because doing so is an excellent way to get by with Cs, seeing as how test are written for
comprehension and sometimes applicability of knowledge. I have realized that I have to
comprehend the information that I take in and not only for just the chapter or unit test, but for
the duration of the course. I have also realized that if I want to get As that I must not only
comprehend the material, but know it so well that I can explain it to others without difficulty.

3. I believe that I learned the most from the questions I got right. I believe this because personally I
am a person that likes to be right, so if I am right I think that it solidifies the information in my
head. I also believe that I learned more from the questions I got right because getting the
answer right the first time does not allow me to confuse what is correct with the other options,
unlike the question I answered incorrectly.