Plant Physiology

These suggestions, based on what worked with past students, is suitable for any body of fairly complex, integrated material with lots of content. It is not useful for math or foreign languages, among other fields.

1. Become an active learner. Make the material yours, by revising (recopying, improving) your notes, so that you could give each lecture next time. Explain things to your friends, and have them explain things to you. Draw diagrams as a form of study. Get together with others to 1) make sure you keep up, and 2) trade information and approaches.

2. Play Jeopardy with your notes. Take your notes, then write questions opposite material that answers the questions. A sheet of paper folded in half vertically will work for this. Be sure to compare/contrast (=similarities/differences) whenever you can.

3. Draw diagrams of different sorts. For photosynthesis, you could have a map showing energy levels, another showing the spatial relationships, and a third showing the flow of substances (electrons, protons, etc.). Make charts with comparisons.

4. Make concept maps. Identify the nouns in the vocabulary you are working with, and link these (on paper or on a board) with arrows labeling the relationship between the nouns.

conmap

5. Make cards that have the key facts. These will resemble parts of the concept maps and other maps. The right size is 4x6 inches (10 x 15 cm, if you wish). One side should have a question, or a topic you should be able to expound upon. These are good for substances, structures and processes.

Example: Side A--proton accumulation in the thylakoid lumen. Side B--a diagram showing the two ways it accumulates, and how it is used to make ATP.

Example: Side A--pigments in photosynthesis. Side B--list of pigments and what they do. (You can have one or more card for each pigment, too.)

With a stack of these cards (which you need to make up yourself, as making them is the most important part) you can study in all sorts of places.

6. All of this works best if you do it as you go along. In a class like this, it is exceedingly hard to learn much new material right before the test. Sort of like eating an elephant all at once.

Study Suggestions for Plant Physiology