Using a diary to forward plan the submission dates could help you manage your time. You could also use your diary to note down details of critical events during your teaching practice to enable you to reflect on them later.
Study skills
If you are unsure of anything while you are studying, or have any concerns, don’t be afraid to ask for help. It’s best that you get clarification prior to submitting any work for assessment, in case you have misinterpreted or misunderstood something.
Tips for studying:
• Don’t miss the first class if it’s an attended programme; you will learn so much about the qualification and what is required of you. You will also meet your teachers, assessors and peers to enable you to build working relationships.
• Create a support network with your peers so that you can talk to and motivate each other.
• Check how much time you have for studying each week, and make a commitment to yourself to set a certain amount aside. This could be when you don’t have any family or other commitments, or during an evening or weekend. If you commute, you could use this time to read, or use a digital device to listen to, watch or research certain topics online.
• Break your study tasks down into smaller, more manageable parts that will easily fit into your schedule.
• Try not to let your studies overtake your family life. It’s important to fit your studies around your other activities yet remember you have made a commitment to achieving a qualification.
• Ask your family and friends to help, for example, talking through the topics you are studying.
• Set yourself realistic goals. Don’t try to do too much too soon, just be honest with yourself about what you can achieve in the early stages.
• Don’t hesitate to ask for help when you need it, and to network with your peers. You could keep in touch via email, social networking or a specific online learning platform.
• Ask your assessor if there are any past questions and sample answers you can see. This will help you understand what is required and how to structure your own work.
• Don’t be tempted to copy anyone else’s work or anything from the internet, a book or a journal (without correct referencing) as this is plagiarism. Most organisations use software to check for this. You can’t always rely on the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia or some other websites as they might not be factually correct.
If you are attending a taught programme, it would be useful to make notes during the sessions, to which you can refer later. This could be on handouts given by your teacher or printed copies of a visual presentation. If you have a laptop or tablet, you could make notes electronically during the session (providing this is acceptable). When making notes, also try to remain focused on what is happening in the room, otherwise you might miss something. You could write quickly by cutting out vowels, for example, tchr for teacher. You could also cut out small words such as an, are, at, is and the. Whichever way you make your notes, make sure you will know what they mean when you look back at them. If you are reading handouts, textbooks and/or journals, you might like to use a highlighter pen or underline certain words to draw attention to them. You could also make notes in the margins, but only do this if they belong to you, not on ones borrowed from others or libraries. If you are using the latter, you could use sticky notes instead.
During attended teaching programmes, you might be required to take part in group work or give short presentations to your peers. Use this as an opportunity to work with others and to gain new skills and knowledge. If you are working towards a qualification via an online or distance learning programme, you might not meet your teacher or your peers in person. However, you might be able to communicate with them either by email or through an online internet-based system, often called a learning platform, or a virtual learning environment (VLE).
You might need support to help you improve aspects such as English, maths and digital skills. This might be available at the organisation where you are studying, or you could attend other relevant programmes. If you don’t have access to a computer at home, you could use one at a local library or an internet cafe. Most smartphones enable you to download applications, which might also be appropriate to use.
Activity
Make a note of the skills you feel you already have regarding how to study; for example, creating an organised and clear work space and setting a regular time aside each week. How can you improve these skills to make sure you can meet the requirements of working towards a qualification over time? What else do you feel contributes to effective study skills? Research the internet or read a relevant study skills book to find out more. See the books and website lists at the end of this chapter.
Academic writing and referencing
Depending upon the level of qualification you are taking, you may be required to write in an academic way. This will involve citing text from relevant sources such as books, journals and websites. You will need to reference these in a certain way. If you are required to do this, you will need to check with your assessor which academic writing and referencing style to use, and whether it is mandatory or optional. The Harvard system is the style that is generally used and standardises the approach. However, other styles could be used; just make sure you are consistent throughout your work. There are many books and websites available which will give you further advice regarding this, some of which are listed at the end of this chapter.
It is important to reference your work to:
• acknowledge the work of other writers, authors and theorists
• assist the reader to locate your sources for their own reference and to confirm they are correct
• avoid plagiarism (i.e. using the work of others without acknowledging it)
• provide evidence of your reading and research
• use existing knowledge and theories to support your writing (whether as a direct quote or paraphrased into your own words).
Referencing from a book
When using text and quotes from different sources, for example, a book, you will need to cite them correctly. This will include using exactly what has been written (including any errors) and stating the author, date of publication and page number after anything you use. The full details of the book can then be included in a reference list at the end of your work.
Example
If you are describing ground rules, you could write the following and cite relevant text from a book to back up what you are saying:
Ground rules should be agreed at the start of a new programme. “Ground rules … are boundaries and rules to help create suitable conditions within which learners (and yourself) can safely work and learn” (Gravells, 2017, page 185). It is important to establish these early to ensure the programme runs smoothly. If learners do not feel safe, they might not return again, or their learning could be affected.
Any text you insert should be within quotation marks, often known as speech marks (“ ”). If any words are missed out, using three dots (…) will indicate this. The name of the author, the year of publication of the book and the page number should be in brackets directly afterwards. At the end
