The end of the semester is fast approaching.

Next Monday May 7 is the deadline for study hours.
The study hours you have earned by the end of the day will be a determining factor in your grade.

Next Friday May 11 is the deadline for all testing, including notebooks and post-tests.
The AAC will close at 2:00 pm.  No tests will be started after 1:15 pm.

The AAC will NOT be open Saturday May 12.
The AAC is NOT open during Final Exams. 
Friday May 11 is the final deadline.

This Friday May 4 The AAC closes at 2:00 pm as usual.
This Saturday May 5 The AAC closes at 1:00 pm as usual. 

Do not delay taking your last test(s) until the very end.

The AAC is always very busy, and, when the testing seats are filled, you will be required to wait.

If you are enrolling for the Fall 2012 semester and doing a class search for AAC 130 Medical Terminology, you will no longer find it.

In the fall, the medical terminology course will move from the Academic Achievement Center (AAC) to the Health Careers (HC) department.

To find it, search under its new prefix and name, HC 130 Medical Terminology for the Health Professions.

The class will no longer meet in the Academic Achievement Center.  Instead it will be held in the Olathe Health Education Center (OHEC) located on the campus of the Olathe Medical Center.

The class format is also changing.  Rather than being self-instructional with flexible scheduling, the class will be offered as a traditional lecture.

For more information, contact the new coordinator Jane Zaccardi

If you have enrolled in AAC 100 or AAC 120 Section 701, please stop by the Academic Achievement Center in LIB 227 for an orientation session as soon as possible so you can begin work on your class.

You may stop in anytime during regular operating hours.  No appointment is necessary.  Please bring your JCCC ID.

The Academic Achievement Center will be open this week through Saturday March 10.  The AAC will then close for Spring Break until Monday March 19.

Students in AAC 100 and 120 Sections 700 should complete their work by Saturday March 10.

Students in AAC 100 and 120 Sections 701 should visit the AAC the week of March 19 to begin work on their classes.  Please check your JCCC email accounts for information.

Here is a link to another interesting article on the Study Hacks blog:

Study Hacks:  "If Your're Busy Your're Doing Something Wrong"

Once again, the important point is this:  it is not the amount of effort, but rather well-directed effort that determines success.  Effort is the essential first step, but no amount of time spent on a task can overcome bad study strategies.

A point I would question is the implied value of "marathon" practice.  The article states that 3.5 hours of practice a day, divided into two sessions, is enough for the elite achievers.  While this may work for musicians (the subject of the article), I think this ignores the value of distributed practice-- studying several times a day, every day, but in short, directed sessions.

And again in this context I define studying as practicing the recall of information.  This is a different activity from extracting new information through reading a textbook, attending class, or completing homework assignments, which does require significant blocks of time.

A colleague sent me a link to a series of videos created by a cognitive psychologist at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.

These videos are excellent because they focus on the mental activities necessary to learn something.  Most students equate studying with "looking at something."  This means mindlessly re-reading the textbook or their classroom notes over and over.

Studying really means engaging with and manipulating the content mentally so that new connections are made within the brain.  While there are various ways to do this, the tried and true way is the "grunt" work of self-testing.

Cover up the notes and textbook pages and ask yourself a question about the topic.  Then try to answer it verbally.  Check your answer against your notes.  Did you get it?  No?  Then do it again. And again...  And again...  And again...   until you have perfect recall of the information.  

Then do it all over again with another question.  It's tedious.  It's hard work.  That's studying.

But it can also be rewarding.  With mastery comes achievement and with achievement comes a buoyant feeling.  "I did it!" "I really know this stuff!"

While all of the episodes are valuable, the most significant are Episodes 2, 3, and 4.

How to Get the Most Out of Studying

If you are interested in enrolling in an AAC class for the Spring 2012 semester, please follow this hyperlink for detailed information:

General Information for Prospective Students

If you are interested in our AAC 130 Medical Terminology class, please follow this link to some important information:

About AAC 130 Medical Terminology

If you have additional questions after reading or listening to this information, please contact Jeff Merritt via email: jmerritt@jccc.edu

Students enrolled in AAC 100-701 Study Skills or AAC 120-701 Individualized Study must visit the AAC this week for an orientation session.  For details check your JCCC student email account.