ESS 415: Developing Virtual Study Skills

Laura Vogt:
Hello, and thank you for tuning in to this week’s (Not So) Secret Guide to Being a Berkeley Engineer. My name is Laura Vogt. I’m the associate director of marketing and communications in the College of Engineering. Today I’m excited to introduce the Engineering Student Services, learning and success specialist, Dr. Sonia Travaglini. So thank you Sonia so much for joining us today.

Sonia Travaglini:
Thank you for having me. I’m delighted to be here.

Laura Vogt:
And this position that you have in Engineering Student Services is new this summer. Can you tell us a little bit more about it and maybe your background as you come into ESS and the College of Engineering?

Sonia Travaglini:
Certainly. Well, I’m a fellow bear. I graduated from my PhD in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley, and during that time I really got interested in teaching and how people learn. So eventually I focused on engineering education, and then I found this marvelous role with the Engineering Student Services team, where we focus really on how people learn, how to optimize your learning and just maximizing your academic life.

Laura Vogt:
And so I think this year, because we’re doing everything virtually and remotely for at least this first semester, I think it’s really important to talk to students about studying and how to make the most of this virtual remote environment. So let’s start off with, how are you going to get a study group together? What tips do you have for making a study group online?

Sonia Travaglini:
Good question. Now it’s always a little difficult and awkward to get study groups together, either in person or online, but that are some helpful tips and tricks you can do. So one of them is to reach out in the lessons on the Zoom, to the TA’s or the professor and ask them, as there’s a good chance other people have been asking too, and they can pair you up together.

Sonia Travaglini:
You could also use the chat function with the permission perhaps of the TA or the professor to ask around in one of the lectures and say, “Hey, I’m really interested in getting a study time going, maybe who would like to join me.”

Sonia Travaglini:
Another good idea is to ask the faculty or instructor to enable a discussion group on bCourses, such as Piazza or the discussions tab, and that’s somewhere where you can then post questions or perhaps post times that you’re available to study together.

Sonia Travaglini:
And then lastly, if you do hate talking or being on video, you can always use Google Docs to make mini teaching documents for each other, maybe something you’re good at you explain and then you ask questions from someone who might be better at something else.

Laura Vogt:
I like those ideas, especially making use of the professors and the TA’s that are there. One of the other things that I think it’s going to be different, but probably important is faculty office hours.

Sonia Travaglini:
Absolutely. TA office hours and faculty office hours are a great resource. They’re often literally just waiting for you to pop by and even just say hello. They can often find other students who are struggling around the same topics or maybe want extra practice on them, and also working as a group is much more powerful than working on your own. So get together in those office hours and leverage the power of the group.

Laura Vogt:
And do you have any hints for once you’re in a study group and you’ve created that connection of how to make the best use of your time?

Sonia Travaglini:
Another great question. Well, I highly recommend setting some learning goals. Could be something just as simple as a weekly topic you want to check out or maybe setting a number of questions that you want to look at.

Sonia Travaglini:
Don’t forget to reflect on those as well. So at the end of the session, go around and see if everyone feels like they’ve got there and if they haven’t maybe set some goals for next time.

Laura Vogt:
Being in this virtual environment, I feel like in my life, just in working from home that we’ve been having to do, I’m having trouble creating the space. Do you have any idea for how to create the space or the time to actually study? Maybe of how to make it so that it can be the most effective?

Sonia Travaglini:
Quite a challenge that one, definitely if you’re around a lot of people, or if your space is really busy. A couple of tips there on the space side, even if it’s just a small space, do segregate it as much as you can from your normal sleeping/living space. So maybe you’re just kind of grabbing a space on the sofa, but you’re particularly maybe getting dressed in your work clothes. So it’s all about tricking your brain into thinking this is a working space.

Sonia Travaglini:
In a similar fashion, there’s noises around you or the sound are very important. So perhaps if you like a quiet study space, either invest in some headphones or some noise canceling earphones, or maybe just some foam earplugs, and if you like sound around you, why not put on some relaxing background sounds that can help mute to those other sounds in the background.

Sonia Travaglini:
In terms of finding times to study, it can be difficult, especially if all your classes are asynchronous. A good idea is to either make sure you tune into those synchronous lectures if they’re on, and try making your video on as well to keep yourself engaged, and you can also use those as time to kind of frame around some extra studying you may do. So maybe afterwards, you reflect with your notes just for five to 10 minutes.

Laura Vogt:
And I have a note here that you had talked about making habits. What kind of habits would you suggest trying to make for your studying?

Sonia Travaglini:
That’s a good one. It’s all about training that brain again. So our brains are really good at noticing patterns and that actually activates the learning pathways that can help us recall and use information. So our brains are always looking for rituals. It could be as simple as making a cup of tea. That’s mine. It lets me know that I’m about to get down to work, or it could be assembling a certain set of pens. Some people even arrange their desks in front of them in a particular way, or it might be a particular tune that you listen to, to psyche yourself up to let you know it’s time to study.

Laura Vogt:
Like playing Eye of the Tiger before you get ready to go out and run a mile or something.

Sonia Travaglini:
It’s absolutely true. And you can really think of yourself like a learning athlete, and athletes themselves often have a lot of processes that they go through to get their brains into that mode of success and you can do that too.

Laura Vogt:
And I think when we were talking about trying to schedule this time in to do this studying, it has a lot to do with our time management in general. So what kind of tips do you have for making time management a priority in this world?

Sonia Travaglini:
It is difficult to get everything done and I know people often have a lot of other things going on and a lot of other duties as well. I think a really good one is to fight the procrastination. Sounds easy, but it can be quite hard. Don’t leave it all to the last minute. Literally anything can be eaten in small enough bites and learning is quite the same, and a really good way I have a breaking things down is to make a big master list of all the topics you have to do, all the tasks you have to do, and then break those down into sub tasks and break that down into smaller daily goals.

Sonia Travaglini:
So having a daily to do list with just a manageable number of tasks that you feel you can achieve, maybe it’s just sending a couple of email, 10 minutes of revision here, one problem set there, really will actually max out all of your abilities and it builds up over time.

Laura Vogt:
And do you think that it’s better to actually schedule out an entire day so that you have a really rigid schedule or is it based more on your personality?

Sonia Travaglini:
Definitely based more on personality. Something kind of cool about learning, it is totally individualized. It’s as individual as you are. So some people may find that they like very rigid study times where they know it’s Monday, it’s Wednesday, those are my study days. Other people may find it just strikes them when the mood takes them.

Sonia Travaglini:
A good way to find out what your particular way is, is to find a study diary or keep a study diary. Either just note it down on your phone, or just note it down in a notebook, which times, places and methods really worked for you, and then use those as your optimized methods.

Laura Vogt:
Oh, I had a question and now it just totally left my brain.

Sonia Travaglini:
It’ll come back. That’s the good thing about learning and recall is even if it’s not working quite yet, it will in a moment.

Laura Vogt:
One of the notes that we also had was talking about mini rewards. So how can mini rewards help when you’re studying?

Sonia Travaglini:
Oh, so true. See, this is a great thing to pair with those study groups, or maybe with that daily list, you’re going to make, it’s a way of training your brain to actually want to get you to study. Even if it’s a small reward, just one of your favorite shows, a cup of tea, or maybe a quick walk outside. If you do something that’s a reward and makes you happy at the end of your studying, it will actually increase your likelihood to want to study subconsciously.

Laura Vogt:
And I remember what I was going to ask. A lot of our students that are brand new to Berkeley, because they’re coming from high school or community college, so you were once this new person at Berkeley too, did you find that studying for our courses was significantly different than what you would come from? And do you have any tips for how to prepare for it or how to do it differently?

Sonia Travaglini:
Another great question. Yes, they do tend to be a little different. Each institution each university, whether you’re coming from community college or another university, or maybe this is just your first year here, each one is a little bit different and each class is a little bit different and then each instructor teaches at a little bit different.

Sonia Travaglini:
One of the best things I’ve found to do is to have a look at the syllabus. So this is a document that the instructor will have that literally details everything that’s going to happen in the class. When they are, when the office hours are, when the assignments are going to be and if you can’t see it on the bCourses site, ask the instructor or the TA, and they’ll definitely have it.

Sonia Travaglini:
Give it a good read through and try and make yourself a little visual timeline of important dates. This will get your brain used to the idea of what’s going to happen and also helps you structure and plan what you’re going to do.

Laura Vogt:
And I know that a lot of our students are intimidated by the faculty members and might not want to go to office hours. What would you have to say to convince them that office hours a good thing, faculty members aren’t really scary.

Sonia Travaglini:
Just that they are literally there for you and they are actually always pretty impressed because they sometimes are aware that it can be a bit intimidating and it can be a bit of an experience to kind of log on and it’s a little bit awkward online, but they’re usually very pleased to see you and also that connection means that you will get the optimum learning you can get from the instructor, which is very powerful. So don’t be scared. Give it a go even if you just attend once, give it a try.

Laura Vogt:
And do you think that getting used to asking questions is kind of what you need to do, right?

Sonia Travaglini:
Absolutely. And this is great practice for out in industry and in those internships as well. Question asking, especially reflective listening, where you’ve really thought about what’s being talked about and come up with a really pertinent question is deeply valued in industry and in academia. So set yourself a challenge. Maybe it’s just one question a week. Maybe it’s one a class, but go ahead and ask questions.

Laura Vogt:
And I think we’re going to work with you for the semester that we’re going to try to do a couple of maybe workshops.

Sonia Travaglini:
Absolutely. We’ve already had a couple of workshops in study skills and I’m looking forward to some future ones. So if you’re interested in learning or study tips or ways to optimize your academic life, do join us for those.

Laura Vogt:
And is there anything that we didn’t talk about that you want to make sure, or if there’s something that you want to reiterate just one more time?

Sonia Travaglini:
Probably to highlight that everyone is always a little bit challenged at university. It’s a big reach. It’s lots of fun, but it’s always a little bit scary. Everyone always feels like it’s quite a challenge. So don’t be frightened. Give it a go.

Laura Vogt:
Well, thank you so much for joining us today and for giving us some of your studying tips and some good ideas of how to start as we plan this different world of being virtual and emote.

Sonia Travaglini:
Thank you so much for your time and having me here. It’s been a pleasure.

Laura Vogt:
And thank you everyone for tuning in to The (Not So) Secret Guide for Being a Berkeley Engineer. And I’ll podcast with you next week. Bye.