Loudspeaker (Jan-Aug 1931)

HOW TO STUDY Continued from page 8 in real effort necessary to excell in anything, or the man who all his life has merely played at swimming? Is it not probably true also that the man who merely played did not get as much real enjoyment out of his playing as the other did when working hardest to accomplish what he set out to do. The same thing holds true of studying anything. The one who earnestly and honestly tries, never willing to admit that what others can do he cannot do, is the one who is headed for success. He is also the one who gets the most enduring enjoyment out of life. In beginning to study, remember one more thing, namely, the hardest effort comes at first. Once one really forms the habit of studying, it ceases to be an effort. The more one learns, the easier studying becomes. Things which seemed difficult have a way of becoming easy when tackled with courage, and the satisfaction of accomplishment far outweighs the effort expended. HOW TO READ Practically any line of studying involves reading, since practically all of the knowledge won by the human race sooner or later finds its way into books. Books are a record of the accumulated experience of mankind, and if we are to profit by the things which others have found out, we must get a large part of our knowledge from the printed page. Few people read effectively. They read the words, but the ideas remain vague. When they have finished reading a book, unless it happens to be a story, they would find it difficult to remember accurately and clearly a half dozen things included in the book, and those things would more likely be disconnected illustrations than the fundamental truths which the illustrations were meant to clarify. To get out of this bad habit, try repeating to yourself at the end of each paragraph the gist of the subject matter contained in it. With oractice this should become easy. With a little more practice, one can readily recall the essential ideas of a whole chapter. To do this, something more than mere memory is necessary. The subject matter must be understood. One must think as he reads, see why things are so, note the various steps through which the author arrives at a conclusion, weigh the evidence, try to draw conclusions independent of those drawn in the book. Do not accept blindly anything merely because it is printed in a book. Ask yourself whether a statement sounds reasonable. If it does not sound reasonable, is it because it is clearly contrary to common sense or may it not sound unreasonable merely because you know so little about the subject. In the latter case, consider the reliability of the author. Is he in the habit of making wild statements, does he tend to exaggerate, have you found him to be inaccurate or careless, or purposely misleading? This habit of weighing the evidence, of basing conclusions on facts rather than on prejudice, is one of the most valuable advantages to be gained from careful systematic study. When reading, have a dictionary close at hand and use it. Make sure that you know the meaning of every word you read. This is especially important when reading scientific articles, where accurate knowledge of the meaning of terms is necessary to a correct knowledge of the subject. Moreover, keep a record of the things read, so that if you ever wish to apply the knowledge you may quickly and easily find the article in question to refresh or to make sure of the accuracy of your memory. Also make a list of things not understood, so that you can look them up in further detail in some other book or ask someone who knows to explain them to you. T e >1 fy -t-xv o