SECRETS OF TOP STUDENTS

REVEALED

A short guide on how to score more

Table of Contents
1. Learning Decoded
What learning is not!
Learning Information Is Not Gaining Knowledge
Learning Is Not Performance
Learning Is Not Doing Homework
Learning Is Not Memory

2. Learning How to Learn

Use of Learning Strategies
Checklist of Learning Strategies
Understanding Your Learning Style

3. Benets of Online Learning

4. Tackling Exams
Effective Revision
Active Revision
Key Revision Strategies
Exam Taking Skills
Importance of Practice
Dealing with Exam Anxiety

5. Becoming Students of the Future- The New-Age Learner

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Learning Decoded

Learning is at
its best when
it happens on
its own.

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This ebook is about learning to learn. Strange as it may sound, herein lies
the key to becoming a brilliant student. Lets begin with the concept of
learning.
As a student it is important that you create an environment in which real
learning emerges on its own. You cannot insist on learning. Yes you heard
it right and you might want to tell this to your parents too :)
In the following section we will debunk some popular notions about
learning.

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Learning is not any of these!

Learning Information Is Not Gaining Knowledge
So you know the atomic weights of all the elements, can describe the
water cycle and its stages or you can (if in a senior class) reproduce the
structure of Benzene on paper.
Now, these facts will stay with you for a period of time (say, till the test),
and then when you no longer need them, they will get pushed out of
your memory. Lets face it, information is not knowledge. In order to
qualify as knowledge, information has to be accumulated into a pattern
that is useful somehow in your life. Knowing how to eat healthy to stay
t and using effective strategies to cope with exam anxiety are some
examples of knowledge gained from information.

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Learning Is Not Performance

It is important to understand this distinction. Learning and performance
are two different phenomena. They are related but not the same.
Do you remember that during exams, you could not
recall the answers in spite of having prepared well?
That was not a failure of learning but a failure of
coping with exam stress.
So, an overemphasis on marks, when we set out to
learn is, actually detrimental to real learning. Marks
will follow. Lets focus on learning rst.

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Learning &
performance
are two
different
phenomena

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Learning Is Not Doing Homework

Simply nishing off homework does not ensure that youve learnt. Bet you
can recall those occasions when in spite of nishing homework on a topic,
you drew a blank in a surprise class test the next day!
A lot also depends on the quality of homework - is the HW simply a
practice of skills, or does it also involve learning new skills.

Simply nishing
homework does not
ensure that youve
learnt

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Agreed there is very little that you can do

to inuence the quality of HW you get, but
the least you can do is stop fooling
yourself (and others) into believing that
you have studied, when all you did was
nish your homework!

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Learning Is Not Memory

Memory plays an important role in learning, but surely learning is not
equal to memorising.
Lets understand this further. Suppose, you have crammed the fact that the
earth takes 365 days to complete one revolution around the sun. However,
if this information is not connected to any other
Learning is
information and sits by itself completely unrelated
in your brain, then this fact cannot help create
not equal to
meaningful patterns of knowledge.

memory

If, on the other hand you are able to understand

how earths revolution causes changes in seasons and why different
countries located on different sides of the globe experience the seasons at
different times, then your knowledge is complete.

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Can We Actually
Learn
HOW to Learn?

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Use of Learning Strategies

In order to be an effective learner, it is important that you take
responsibility for your own learning. It is not only important to know What
to learn, but also How to learn.
Learning Strategies are tools that help in the understanding and
remembering new knowledge. Which are some of the learning strategies
that you use most frequently?
The following list will help you identify some of the learning strategies
that are frequently used by you:

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Checklist of Learning Strategies

I draw pictures or diagrams to help me understand a subject.
I make up questions on a subject and try to answer them.
When I am learning something new in a subject, I think back to what I
already know about it.
I discuss what I am doing on a subject with others.
I practise things over and over until I know them well in a subject.
When I dont understand something in a subject I go back over it again.
I make a note of things that I dont understand very well in a subject, so
that I can follow them up.
When I have nished an activity in a subject I look back to see how well
I did.
I organize my time to manage my learning in a subject.
I make plans for how to do the activities in a subject.
I review my concepts to check if I understand the ideas in a subject.

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Studies reveal that students who used only a few of these strategies
reported more difculty coping with schoolwork.
So, start using learning strategies that work for you. Lets make a plan,
beginning today!

Ask Yourself These Questions & Learn Better

What is the topic of todays lesson ?
What will be the important ideas in todays lesson ?
What do you already know about this topic ?
What can you relate this to ?
What will you do to remember the key ideas ?
Is there anything about this topic you dont understand, or are not
clear about ?

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Understanding Your Learning Style

People learn in different ways. While we do use all our senses to collect
information, some of us tend to use one sense more than others while
learning. Knowing ones preference for the mode of learning can help one
learn faster and more effectively.

Learning style refers to the characteristic way in which an individual

acquires, perceives and processes information.
Students are often seen to have more than one preference with regard to
their learning styles and more often than not, students are known to use a
combination of two learning styles. Once you know how you learn best,
you can adjust the way you study to make the most of the study hours.
There are several ways of classifying Learning Styles. One popular method
classies learners thus - Active Vs Reective Learners, Visual Vs Verbal
Learners and Sequential Vs Global Learners, Sensing and Intuitive
Learners, each with their respective learning styles.

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There are several ways of classifying

Learning Styles. Some of them are :

Active
Reective
Visual
Verbal
Sequential
Global
Sensing
Intuitive

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Active Learners

They tend to retain and understand

information best by doing
something active with it
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Study Tips for Active Learners

Study in groups where you can take turns to explain topics to one
another.
Recall the experiments or eld trips related to the topic.
Go back to the laboratory for hands-on work .
Solve previous exam papers.
Practise your answers.
Use plenty of examples, case studies and real-life applications in your
notes.

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Reective Learners

These learners prefer to think

about the problem quietly rst and
prefer working alone
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Study Tips for Reective Learners

Think about what you read and ask possible questions.

Avoid simply reading or memorising the material, you will soon
lose interest.
Try to think of the real-life applications of what you read.
Try writing short summaries of the topic or lesson in your own
words to help you remember what you learn more effectively.

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Visual Learners

These learners remember best

what they see
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Study Tips for Visual Learners

Use plenty of diagrams, sketches, ow-charts or other visual
representation of the study material.
Prepare a concept map by listing key points, enclosing them in boxes or
circles and drawing lines with arrows between concepts to show
connections.
Colour-code your notes with a highlighter so that everything relating to
one topic is in the same color.
Make sure that you have a clear view of your teacher when they are
speaking, so that you can view their body language & expression.
Study with the help of videos and slides wherever possible.

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Verbal Learners

Such learners get more out of

written words
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Study Tips for Verbal Learners

Write summaries or outlines of topics in your own words.
Organize any diagrams, graphs etc into statements.
Take detailed notes during important classes.
Turn reactions, actions, diagrams, charts etc. into words.
Participate in class discussions and debates
Practice with multiple-choice questions (MCQs).
Working in groups can be very effective you can hear classmates
explain concepts and learn even more as you explain things to them.

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Sequential Learners

Such learners understand better

when each step logically follows
from the previous one
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Study Tips for Sequential Learners

When your teacher jumps from one topic to another or skips some steps
in between, you will need to ll in the gaps to follow and understand.
Chapter-wise revision notes and summaries (synopses) can be very
handy for learners such as you.
Strengthen your global thinking skills by relating each new topic to
things you already know.
Get ample practice on application-based questions for effective
learning.

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Global Learners

These learners learn better when

they have the big picture rst
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Study Tips for Global Learners

When your teacher plunges straight into a topic without giving you the
much needed overview or big picture, you can skim through the entire
chapter quickly to get an overview or read the topic heads and subheads to form connections.
Spend time on one subject rather than trying to study too many
subjects on a single day.
Try to relate the subject/topic to things you already know to see how it
connects to other topics and disciplines.

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Sensing Learners

These learners enjoy learning facts

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Study Tips for Sensing Learners

When the subject you are studying is abstract, ask for specic examples
and procedures and nd out how the concepts apply in practice. This
will help you learn better.
Try to focus more on understanding the material rather than
memorising the facts.
Develop innovative thinking. Begin by approaching every
situation/question in a new way to come up with different solutions.

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Intuitive Learners

Such learners prefer discovering

possibilities and relationships
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Study Tips for Intuitive Learners

When the subject you are studying requires memorisation and rote
substitution in formulae, try looking for theories that link the facts or
try to nd the connections yourself.
During exams, take time to read the entire question before you start
answering to avoid careless mistakes. If you have time, go through your
answers carefully.

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Benets of
Online Learning

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Benets of Online Learning

Get Personal attention.
Always!

Learning via
Textbooks alone

Online Learning
- Meritnation.com

Tutor-driven learning

Personalised learning

No scope for personalisation

One-on-one learning. Completely

personalised

One tutor for many many

students. No personalization.

Learn at your own speed

You can read a textbook as

slowly as you want

You control how fast you learn.

Didnt understand that concept?
Watch the video as many times
as you want!

Pace of learning is dened by

the teacher. Remember how
you felt when the teacher
was too fast?

Uniformity & consistency

Everyone gets the same quality

book

Content made by the best minds in

education, passed after several
rounds of testing & backed with
regular updation to keep up with
changes in syllabus/trends

Are there better tutors for

Maths in locality A as compared
to B? What about days when
your tutor is in a bad mood?

Study anytime

You can pick up the book

anytime and resume where
you left off. Except when the
lights are off ;)

With online learning you are

always connected. Study whenever
you want, even the midnight
before exams!

Tuitions are usually time bound

and xed. Dont want to study
now? Sorry! No choice.

Study anywhere

You really wont be carrying

your 5 kg backpack full of
books everywhere

Just whip out your phone or laptop

& you are ready to start studying

You will have to wait for your

next scheduled tuition class
to clear your doubt!

Gamied (fun) learning

Ever seen a book with a game

in it?

Online learning is just like a game.

Points, avatars, badges & more
help you stay motivated & jump
on to the next topic.

Nope

Active / Engaged learning

Passive reading of textbook

makes it difcult for the learner
to engage with the material

Self-directed, interactive learning

keeps the student actively engaged
& motivated

Unless a tutor is extremely

innovative, active learning
remains a distant dream

Multi-sensory learning

Learning is limited to the

visual mode

Rich animations and multimedia

content in an interactive gamied
format combine the best of
audio-visual learning

Largely limited to lecture mode,

though a small number of
enterprising tutors are trying
to incorporate multimedia
elements into their teaching

Be your own Boss

Make learning Fun

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Identify Your Weak Spots

Assessments limited to textbook

questions. No Reports

One-on-one learning. Completely

personalised

Assessments in the form of

weekly tests, are not
accompanied with detailed
performance reports

Collaborative learning

A textbook does not lend itself

easily to collaborative learning
or learning with peers

Online Q&A forums like Ask &

Answer help you learn by linking
up with the smartest students
all over the world

No scope for collaborative

learning

Comparative
benchmarking
with peers

No scope to know how you fare

vis-a-vis others your age

Features like Live Test Series in

Maths & Science help you compare
your performance with the best
minds all over the world

You can compare your

performance at best with
only other batchmates in
the tuition centre

Affordability

Affordable but limited

An extremely cost-effective option

at 1/10 th the cost of tuitions

The cost of tuitions is going

through the roof!

Time saving

Only time involved is that

spent studying

Time-saving: everything that you

need, is available at the click of a
mouse without having to step out!

A lot of precious time is spent

traveling to and from tuitions

Sophisticated assessments
& feedback reports

Learn with Friends

Save time & money

Blended Learning Boosts Achievement

A recent study conducted by the U.S.
Department of Education found that
students involved in blended learning
programmes generally performed
better than students who participated
in face-to-face instruction.

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Face-to-Face
Learning

Self-Paced
Learning

Online
Collaborative
Learning

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The Unique Advantages of Online Learning

In addition to the obvious benets of exibility, convenience and cost
effectiveness, online learning offers certain unique advantages that can
give students the much needed competitive edge.
1. Weak area identication using sophisticated technology:
As a result you focus only on those topics/concepts that you
are weak in for maximum advantage. A very effective study
strategy that is difcult to implement without the aid of
technology.
2. Social Learning:
Peer review and collaboration through social media features,
that help you connect with and learn from the smartest
students in India.
And hey! There is an interesting advantage to the component
of social learning.

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Online Learning & Social Skills?

Studies reveal that when interacting online,

students learn that it is important to
emphasize positives, celebrate success, be
constructive and also learn how to take
criticism. Thus, online learning is a good
forum to learn conscientiousness, teamwork
and resilience.

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Gamied Learning:
Why Should You Try Game-based Learning?
Research has proved that games are effective learning tools. People learn
more from a game than from other modes of learning.

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There are 3 very essential conditions required for learning. The elements
in a game meet these conditions easily. Heres how:
1. Motivation to Start and Remain Engaged
Game goals, challenges, conict cooperation, reward
structures (feedback, points, achievements such as badges)
easily full this requirement.
2. Relevant Practice That Prods for recall
Reward structures that unfold in the context of game levels
(or avatars as in Meritnation.com) seamlessly ensure that a
student continues to play and learn.
3. Specic and Timely Feedback
Timely feedback on performance that guides and corrects. Reward
structures and game feedback loops take care of this aspect.

There are 3 very essential conditions required for learning. The elements
in a game meet these conditions easily. Heres how:

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EXAMS!
How to Give Your
Best Shot?

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Active Revision
In order to make your revisions more than simply cramming all of what
you have studied into an already overcrowded brain, heres what you need
to do:

Key Revision Strategies

Ask Questions: Try asking questions - Why is this so? How do these
areas relate to each other for quicker revision?
Revise Everyday: Dont leave your revision until 2-3 weeks before the
exam. Revision should be a continuous process. Log on to websites like
Meritnation.com everyday to revise all that you studied in school. Doing
so
will leave you less stressed.
Make a Revision Time Table: Look at your syllabus and prepare a list
of topics you need to revise before exams. Start off with a smaller
number of hours and increase these week by week.

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Break up the Day: Intersperse interesting subjects with those that you
nd relatively boring to help maintain your concentration levels.
Organise Your Notes: Condense your notes into brief summaries of the
main points of the topic. Meritnations Revision Notes and Synopsis come
in real handy here.
Practice: Answering questions from past exam papers. Sample papers
and previous years board papers on Meritnation are very popular with
students.
Simulate Exam Conditions: Attempt answers under timed conditions.
Full length test papers like the ones readily available on Meritnation
make this easy. And thats not all! You can even check your answers
against the model answers provided.

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Take Short Breaks: For every hour you study, take 5-10 minutes off.
Dont work longer than 3 hours at a time. Do something completely
different.
Group Study: Work with other students in group revision sessions.
Discuss topics and share information within the group. Peer collaboration
and various other social learning opportunities provided by
Meritnation.com have served as fertile learning grounds.
Follow a Healthy Routine: During revision time, try to maintain a
normal routine. Eat well and get adequate rest.

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Importance of Practice
Practicing skills over time causes 'neural pathways' in the brain to work
better.
To improve your performance:
You need to practice frequently.
Get lots of feedback so you practice correctly.
Keep a track of your errors learning from your mistakes can help you
immensely.

You Can Learn From Your Errors Too!

Understand the Error- Look for something about the error that you
can remember to help you avoid making it again.
Rushed Errors- Commonly referred to as careless mistakes.
Repeated Errors- Continually making errors of a particular type probably
indicates that you may not have a good grasp over the concept at hand.
Cant nd the Error? - If you can nd the error and/or don't understand
why it was an error, its time to get help with the concept.

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Dealing with Exam Anxiety

It is quite normal to feel some anxiety before exams and feel those
butteries in your stomach as exams approach. In fact, ndings suggest
that for some students a little bit of pressure spurs them on and
enables them to get down and do some serious work! It is when the
stress levels go beyond a point that the alarm bells should start
ringing! Heres a simple 3-step process to help you effectively manage
exam-triggered anxiety:
Step 1: Recognize The uncomfortable physical and emotional
experiences in the body as symptoms of anxiety. Heres a quick check
list.
Tick ( ) on the checkbox if you experience any of the emotional &
physical symptoms before or during exams:
Racing heartbeat
Sweaty palms
Stiffness at the back of the neck
Nausea or diarrhoea
Light-headedness or fainting
Feeling of going blank
Frustration
Experiencing distracting thoughts of failure and of poor performance
Feeling overwhelmed
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If you have answered a Yes or in three or more elds, then it is

possible that the anxiety you experience before or during your exams,
prevents you from doing your best.
Step 2: Classify your worries as those that lie within your circle of
inuence and those that are outside your circle of inuence and over
which, therefore, you have no direct control.
Here is an example of a Worry Diary entry to help you classify your
worries so that you can deal with them more effectively. Go ahead and
prepare your own worry diary. You will soon realise that while some
worries are real, some are at best hypothetical.

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Classify Your Worries in This Manner

Reasons for Worry

Under Direct
Control

Beyond
Control

Incomplete science project

for assessment
Probability of a difcult
Maths exam

Step 3: Practice calm breathing and try to improve your problemsolving ability. Rather than worrying about a problem, try to look out for
solutions to tackle it. In other words, try to actively think through what
you plan to do about the situation.
Prepare your own Anxiety Buster Plan. Following is an example of an
Anxiety Buster Plan.

Situation
Upcoming Chemistry
exam.

Your Worry
Thoughts/Script

What Are You Going

To Do about It?

I still have 5 more chapters

to nish. I will not be able to
pass this exam.

I will focus only on Chemistry

today & tomorrow. Will also
attempt a test on Meritnation
and go through the Revision
Notes, so that I feel condent
before the exam.

Any other

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Exam-Taking Skills
A lot will depend on how you attempt the question paper on the day of
the exam. Here are some pointers that you can keep in mind:
Listen to the instructions given.
Read the instructions on the paper.
Read the paper carefully.
Decide which questions you are going to answer and in what order. You
might feel better starting with the question you feel most condent
about.
Dont write everything you know about a topic. Be selective from the
information you know.
Analyse the question. Underline or highlight key words and phrases. Ask
yourself what the question is asking.
Plan and structure your answer. Does it have an introduction and a
conclusion ? Does it answer the question ?
Look carefully at the allocation of marks for each section. This will help
you apportion your time correctly.
Answer the required number of questions. Keep a watch on time.
Remember, you dont get marks for questions you have not attempted.
Allow ve minutes at the end of each question to read through your
work.

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Becoming Students
of the Future:
The New-Age Learner

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In this digital age, where the use of smartphones and tablets is steadily
increasing among students, the way we approach learning too has to
undergo a 360 degree change. The new approach for this digital age
should well be Find, Filter & Apply. Soon, you as students will no longer
need to know everything. All you will need to know is just how to nd it,
how to lter to get the most relevant information, and to apply it.
CBSEs open text-based assessment (OTBA) can be seen as a positive
step in the direction of encouraging students to apply their knowledge
to the problem at hand.

The depiction below highlights the skills current students need in order
to meet the ever changing needs of the global market.

Beyond the 3Rs - the new skills the world is looking for

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We at Meritnation are committed to continue in our efforts to add value

to the lives of our students in order to help them become global
students of the future.
We hope you enjoyed reading this ebook. Do send in your suggestions/
feedback on possible topics for more such downloadable ebooks.
Drop in a mail at care@meritnation.com or call 011-40705070
We wish you the very best for all your endeavours.
Happy Studying!
Team Meritnation

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Meritnation is India's largest online education platform and is

trusted by over 70 lakh students. We have the world's most advanced
Study Material with 7000+ Animated Videos, an unlimited question
bank and comprehensive Sample Papers.
We offer a gamied learning experience and adaptive computerassisted analytics that help you learn at your own pace. This ensures
a strong foundation and a complete mastery of all topics.

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email: care@meritnation.com

011-40705070