I am a firm believer that one of the main reasons that individuals fail to perform well in math is because they don’t know how to study math. More importantly, they don’t have a method of studying math that works for them. All of us are unique, and therefore, it makes sense that the way that we come to understand quantitative concepts is unique as well.

Therefore, doing well in math, I believe, involves developing a study habit and learning ourselves and trying different techniques to discover what uniquely helps us learn math. I had to do this myself. Even though grade school math subjects were relatively straightforward for me, I realized upon getting to the college level that my study habits weren’t nearly as good as I thought. I had to go through my own process of developing studying techniques that worked for me, and I hope to help you based on what I learned.

The Three Es of Studying (for math)

“Where do I start?” you may ask. I’m glad you asked.

In an effort to help you learn how you study, I thought over my time in school and came up with a loose studying framework that I’ve titled “The Three Es of Studying.” This framework broadly details my approach to study, and I’ve made it broad so that you, hopefully, can customize it to work for your individual needs.

1. Expose

First thing is to expose yourself to the math material. This is not a very intensive study stage; it involves you passively taking in what you’re learning. Some examples include:

• Listening to your math lecture
• Watching a math tutorial
• Reading the chapter and chapter examples before class

While you could take notes during this stage – something that I would probably do – this is not necessarily the stage to take detailed notes. That comes later.

2. Examine

So, you’ve read the book, attended class and gotten notes from your teacher at this point. In this stage, you review the material with the intention of trying to understand what it means. Take actions such as the following:

• Read through problems step-by-step, asking yourself as you go if you understand what you’re reviewing
• Take notes, then take notes on your notes
• Do example problems and/or homework problems with your notes open, being careful to do your work exactly how the example problems are structured
• Ask questions (VERY important)

Group work can be helpful at this stage; however, I believe it is important to “struggle” through problems initially on your own. Contrary to popular belief, struggling isn’t a problem, and, in fact, is a sign of learning! If you’re not struggling at least a little bit, it means that you already know the material.

3. Execute

This is the ‘do’ stage. To execute means to do the assignment with no notes and no help, checking your answers afterward. You’re testing your knowledge and your recall without training wheels at this point.

When you check your answers, see what you missed, if anything, and correct at those points, noting where you went wrong so that you can pinpoint your most frequent areas of misunderstanding.

This is a stage where asking questions – after you complete the assignment – is again a good idea. Ask questions of your teacher, tutor, or study group member(s). Now, you’ll already be given assignments that test your knowledge in class, but to really maximize your learning, test your knowledge outside of class. You can use end-of-chapter reviews, as well as online math help materials such as Khan Academy, IXL and Delta Math.

If you’d like to see me discuss The Three Es of Studying, I invite you to watch the video below where I explain in more detail. Once you’ve learned a method of study that works for you, you’ve effectively set yourself up for success in your future studies as well.