How to make the move from textbook to homework?

[BearShark]

Hey,
I am a physics major and a new semester is about to begin. I think my biggest problem study wise is that I would go over the lecture notes and sometimes the textbook too, yet always feel ill equipped to tackle the homework problems.

Currently my strategy is to go over the text, highlighting anything I find odd so I can ask the professor in his office hours. I sometimes make my own summary too. However I feel like this does not prepare me to solve problems on the subject and if I don't practice something I do not retain it.

So, do people have any advice? I feel like I'm doing the whole "review" thing wrong.

Thanks!

 

[Doc Al]

For reviewing the book or the lectures, try to use retrieval practice as much as you can. That means pulling things from your memory. Put the book and notes away, grab a blank sheet of paper, and write down everything you can recall as best you can. (Just rereading the book or your notes is not enough! It's very easy to think you've got it when you're looking at the book.)

Also try to space out your review and practice sessions. Studying 1 hour a day for three days is more productive than studying one 3-hour block.

None of that replaces the need for solving problems! Try to solve as many problems as you can. If you've struggled with a problem but finally "get it", try to solve it again a week later. (No looking up the solutions!) To save time, you can practice "setting up" the solution of problems without grinding through the arithmetic/algebra, but don't kid yourself -- practice is key!

If you have a problem set and solutions, resist the temptation to prematurely look at the solution. You must struggle with it on your own. (Again, it's easy to fool yourself into thinking you've got it when you look at the solution!)