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Getting better grades is a mystery to some.

Most people associate getting better grades to studying harder, studying more and for longer hours, cutting back on leisure time in exchange for more time at a desk… hunched over with your nose buried in a textbook of some sorts. None of us, or anyone I know, wants to stay cooped up in a room studying… hoping what they’re reading sticks come time for an exam. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always get us the better grades we need either. Instead we read and re-read … then re-read again… passages and paragraphs and even re-read entire pages or chapters because we can’t remember just what in the world we just read. We ask ourselves, “Is this the only way to better grades?” It’s so frustrating! That’s why the saying “work smarter, not harder” also applies when it comes to studying.

How do we work smarter for better grades?

Well….. we use the secret to getting better grades.

What is the secret to getting better grades?

Think of it like this… let’s say you’re a body builder and you were getting ready for a competition. Now what if I told you the best types of foods to eat, when trying to build muscles, are those that are packed with proteins? Although, there are other foods which have protein in them, but aren’t just jam packed with proteins… which type of foods would you want to eat??? The obvious answer would be foods that are high in protein! Why? Because those are the best types of foods to eat when wanting to build muscles. Simple enough right? The same exact principle applies to an individuals study habits when aiming for better grades.

You see there are 3 different types of learning styles. Some might say 4, but for our purpose we’ll be using 3 since the 4^th style is the “logical learner”. For our purpose we’ll assume everyone needs to understand things logically in order to be able to really learn them and thus get better grades.

How can learning styles help us achieve better grades?

Well… identifying your learning style and focusing your time and energy on studying using your strongest learning style, then reinforcing the information you’re studying with your secondary learning styles are the first couple of steps to unlocking the secret to getting better grades.

So what are the steps we need to follow?

Step 1: Identify your primary learning style.

Step 2: Identify your secondary learning style.

Step 3: Follow the techniques learners in your primary style benefit most from while reinforcing what you’ve learned using the techniques learners in your secondary style benefit most from.

That’s the strategy I use as well as the strategy I’ve taught others to use so they could also achieve better grades. The students I’ve tutored, using this style, achieved more than just better grades. They also ended up saving time while studying, they’ve built confidence needed to continuously get better grades, and they’ve went on to apply those techniques to further themselves in different aspects of life as well. They’ve surpassed even their own expectation of how much their better grades impact their entire learning experience.

The best thing about this strategy is that the better you get at using your learning style, the less time you’ll need to study, while still learning and retaining tons of information. Using your learning style you’ll actually be studying smarter rather than harder and you’ll also be learning more in much less time! That sounds great right? Now on to better grades!

But what is YOUR learning style?

Better Grades Using Learning Styles

See most of us don’t only have 1 learning style. Most of us actually learn in all different styles, but the same way your left or right hand is stronger than the other, or your right or left eye is more dominant than the other… we are also geared towards absorbing information and learning more through one style than the others. Once we identify which learning style is our strongest, we can shape our study methods towards that learning style while reinforcing our primary style with secondary styles, which will round out our entire learning experience. The more learning experience we have of a topic, the easier getting better grades will be.

Different Learning Styles

Now that we have a plan of action, let’s explore what these learning styles are and how we can use our style to get better grades.

The first learning style is the Visual Learner.

A visual learner learns best by seeing. Whether that’s by taking notes and seeing their words written on paper or reading information or through visual aids, like books and video, or through watching a demonstration and seeing someone else perform an activity. Visual learners are great at retaining information they’ve seen and tend to pay very close attention to detail.  Getting better grades isn’t hard for them as long as they stick to the methods that help them learn the best. I know this very well since I’m a visual learner myself.

How can visual learners get better grades?

• Visual learners need to envision what they can’t see. (Envisioning yourself getting better grades is a great tactic!)
• Need to use videos.
• Write things out, make outlines, and make lists to refer back to.
• Assign different numbers or colors to different topics.
• Use visual aids like diagrams, pictures, and charts.
• Use highlighters to mark all the important points of a topic.
• Rewrite your notes, important points, and review these important points frequently.
• Watching someone else solve a problem or put something together.

The more a visual learner sees what they’re learning the more they’ll retain what they’re trying to learn. The more you apply these techniques, the easier getting better grades will become. Better grades will produce even more advancement and you’ll be continuously getting better grades.

Fun Facts about Visual Learners:

Visual Learners

Visual learners tend to dress well and can remember lots of details with regards to something they’ve seen. In a new environment, they tend to do a lot of looking around and taking in the scenery while in environments they’re familiar with, they tend to recall and reinforce their memories.

The second learning style is the Auditory Learner.

An auditory learner loves listening. They learn best by listening to lectures, engaging in group activities, talking out loud to others, and listening to music (without words) while studying or doing homework. Audio books are their best friends. They enjoy listening to the radio and even with the TV on they tend to listen to it while not really paying attention to the screen.

How can auditory learners get better grades?

• Auditory learners should definitely choose a seat in their classroom from which they could hear clearly. A good rule of thumb is to sit in the front row. It’s not uncommon to see the students who sit in the front row getting better grades than their classmates.
• Record your class lectures using a voice or tape recorder to listen to while not in class.
• Read your notes and books out loud.
• Repeat notes and important points verbally.
• Form groups to discuss study material when preparing for quizzes or exams.
• Always repeat questions to yourself before solving them.

Similar to visual learners, the more an auditory learner listens or hears the information they’re studying the more they’ll retain from what they’re listening to. Retaining more of the information you’ve listened to will ultimately lead to getting better grades.

Fun Facts about Auditory Learners:

Auditory Learners

Auditory learners are very out going and can talk to just about anyone. They don’t need preparation before talking and they have a knack for remembering people’s names.  They are also very good at noticing shifts in a person’s voice associated with how a person is feeling.

The third learning style is the Kinesthetic Learners:

Kinesthetic learners are very handy… literally. They take a hands-on approach to what they’re learning. They enjoy being physically involved in their activities and learn best while in small groups. Kinesthetic learners need frequent movement to keep motivated in their learning. The more motivated they are while learning, the easier it will be for them to get better grades.

How can kinesthetic learners get better grades?

• Kinesthetic learners should study in short burst or blocks.
• They should take frequent breaks (even though it seems counter productive it actually helps).
• They should move around and be free to move around while they’re studying.
• They should use study aids like flash cards, role playing, and associating things to movements.
• Study groups work best for kinesthetic learners.

Kinesthetic learners are probably the trickiest of the 3 types of learners since most people associate learning with staying in one place. When we go to school, we sit in 1 seat in 1 classroom in 1 school. It takes more to keep kinesthetic learners interested in a topic and to actually learn a topic. They should be motivated through means of understanding their learning abilities and enhancing them, through movement with physical activities. Keep kinesthetic learners moving and involved for them to get better grades.

Fun Facts about Kinesthetic Learners:

Kinesthetic Learners

Kinesthetic learners are naturals at sports, dancing, competitions, challenges, and creating things with their hands.

A Solid Strategy To Better Grades

Now all of this sounds good but how do we make sure we can get better grades. That’s not too complicated either once we identify which learning style suits us best. After we identify which learning style is best for us, we need to identify the next closest learning style that suits us. By reinforcing our primary learning style with a secondary learning style, we could enhance our ability to retain information and enhance our probabilities of getting better grades.

For example, I’m mostly a visual learner; however, I have qualities of an auditory learner more than I do of a kinesthetic learner. That tells me, my primary learning style is visual while my secondary learning style is auditory.

When I take a class, I collect all of the visual aids I need, make tons of lists, and organize the information in a way that’s also easy to review. Besides that, I record every one of my lectures. I might not have the time or even the need to listen to the lectures over again but if I ever get stuck, they’re right there for me to refer back to. If I feel I’m a little shaky on a topic, I listen to my recordings. By supplementing my visual learning with auditory learning, I fill in all the cracks in my knowledge and information.

Rounding out your learning experience is the secret to getting better grades.

You see, learning ANYTHING is about collecting experiences. Your experiences are the REAL secrets to getting better grades. The more you experience something in a way that you could retain that experience, the easier it will be to achieve better grades.

Combining your primary learning style with your secondary learning style is a sure fire way to cement the information you’re trying to learn. The easier it is for you to recall information from your experiences, the better grades you’ll get on exams, homework assignments, and quizzes. The more experiences you have using your best learning style the less time you’ll need to study to get better grades. By putting your time and efforts to the best use, you’ll find that you don’t need to spend countless hours at a desk in an uncomfortable position just to achieve better grades.

Remember, the more time you spend working smarter instead of harder to get better grades, the more time you’ll have to do what you really enjoy, like having FUN!

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