1.1: Before we begin...

Discussion

Given the evaluative connotations in English of the words ‘deep’ and ‘surface’, the approach of deep-holistic learners would appear to be more highly valued. The attitudes associated with their approach also tie in with what was said above about being active learners. They appear to take responsibility for their learning by being more in control of the study process overall.

Strategies advocated for managing your assignments may be said to conform to the deep-holistic approach to learning. They are deep-holistic because they require you to:

• rely on your own understanding of the material you are working with;
• relate your work to the purpose of an assignment, for example, keep it within the framework of the title set for an essay;
• organise the whole assignment in a coherent and consistent fashion.

Making notes by copying down sentences exactly as they are written in a textbook, however, could be indicative of a surface-atomistic approach whereby you are doing something mechanically, hoping that it stays in your memory rather than actively engaging with the ideas in the text, and trying to see things the way the writer was seeing them.

Such a strategy is not the most productive use of your time. Time is better spent actually thinking about what you are reading, processing the information as it were, asking yourself questions about it and how it relates to other aspects of the subject.

Choosing the Approach and the Strategy to Suit the Circumstances

The usefulness of the approach to learning is also determined by the tasks that have to be carried out. Some tasks may be better performed by an approach that is more surface-atomistic in orientation. For example, in cases where you are tested on the precise definitions of things, as in some multiple-choice tasks, it is better to memorise those definitions in order to be able to reproduce them.

In the case of taking care over spelling, the detailed precision required here might be labelled surface-atomistic, as it is focusing on words rather than the meaning behind the words. However, this is nonetheless necessary. The approaches can therefore be best evaluated in relation to tasks rather than as absolutes.

Organisational Strategies and Attitude in the Study Process

You need to have strategies for practical organisation. These might include systems to help with note-taking and filing which are at the same time linked to learning or routines of time management and strategies for revision.

You need a positive and constructive attitude towards change – both conceptual change where you might have to shift your position on certain issues or ideas, and changes in the things that you have to deal with from day to day. You meet new ideas, new challenges, and new people.

Your learning happens on different levels, on the level of understanding a range of different subject content, on the level of how you interact both with texts and people, and on the level of meeting institutional requirements. All of these levels interrelate in the study process, but you will sometimes have to prioritise one over the others.

Your judgement over what to prioritise and when is something else that you need to develop as you go through your programme of study.

You also have to be prepared to put a lot of effort into things you possibly find difficult or time-consuming, as well as disciplining yourself to make sure you do what you have to do. You may occasionally have to conjure up some enthusiasm where none is there naturally. The point is that your attitude both towards learning and towards how you learn is important.