discuss how study skills support academic learning essay

The importance of study skills in HE for learners to enhance and develop their studies further

B y   Giedrius   Zilionis ,   Senior  Business  Lecturer   and  Alexander Kaiser ,   Health  Lecturer

Study skills are some of the most essential academic tools in Higher Education. All learners have different skills and sometimes these are not fully recognised or developed – simply because, ironically, study skills are not implemented.  By effectively using study skills, learners can discover hidden talents and how well these can be of benefit to them during their studies and beyond.

Benefits of academic skills

There are discussions as to whether or not academic skills should be prioritised in the teaching of undergraduate students, since employers argue that many students are not equipped with the job-related skills that are needed, even after 3 years of degree education (Menz, 2021).  However, according to Hermida (2009) most first-year students lack necessary basic academic skills such as reading, because academic reading differs greatly from the reading that is undertaken in Secondary Education.  Students need to learn academic language and familiarise themselves with the key contributors to their respective fields. Others such as Blades and Gibb (2012) argue that academic skills such as taking responsibility, undertaking research and communicating findings are important when it comes to employability.

Why do we need skills?

Skills are necessary for every aspect of human life. These skills allow us to do something right and well. Skills are learned and developed in academia and work practices. Simply, if a student develops skills well in a particular field they can become an expert in it. Students start learning some key skills at the beginning of their degree which will help them later in their professional life, career and opportunities. Students will have more confidence, motivation, engagement and achieve goals. Therefore, using a skill-based approach can help students grasp concepts faster and strengthen what they already know (Podareducation, 2021.)

Below are additional essential skills that will help students thrive instead of ‘survive’ at LSST.

Transferable skills

In general, transferrable skills are referred to as skills that can be used in a variety of situations. Transferrable skills include basic skills such as literacy and numeracy skills but also extend to what some authors call “employability skills”. These skills are those which provide students with the skills to enhance their chances of getting employed. This includes skills that are non-job-specific (Blades and Gibb, 2012). A large part of employability depends on language efficiency, digital competence as well as social skills and social awareness (Nägele, Stadler, 2017).

This is why at LSST, students are encouraged to begin their development of these skills from the start of their programme where respective modules allow students to develop their academic skills while focusing on a range of challenges that help develop employability skills. For example, students need to familiarise themselves with IT systems, work in multi-cultural groups and come to know about how to learn efficiently. Particularly, group work allows students to explore their leadership skills, time-management skills and sometimes conflict management is needed. Further, students are supported by the academic team to do all these things in a stimulating and safe environment. They are constantly instructed to attempt tasks that lie just outside their abilities before they are assisted to hone their skills.

Digital skills

This digital and technology-driven world requires students to learn digital skills. Degrees are one of the starting points where learners can start or improve their digital skills intensely. Students must use some digital skills during their studies, such as information/data literacy (browsing, searching, and evaluating data); communication and collaboration (interaction via ICT, emails, chats, blogs); digital content creation (programming and copyrights licensing); and problem-solving (technical problems identifying and solving). See CEDEFOP (2021).

Developing and maintaining digital skills is vital in today’s teaching and learning process. Students can enhance their digital skills through learning – online and activities in class. It is essential to learn digital skills from L3 at LSST digital skills usage will lead learners throughout their studies and personal lives.

As educators, we have to support students to recognise the importance of digital skills in the classroom to assister their learning and their employability - and encourage them to build the confidence to transfer their skills to multiple contexts.  Digital skills enable educators and learners to move forward in their professional careers. The importance of skills is necessary for every aspect of human being life. The skills allow us to do something right and well.

Students that start learning and practising key study skills at the beginning of their degree will have more confidence, motivation, engagement and achieve more goals. Therefore, using a skill-based approach can help students grasp concepts faster and strengthen what they already know (Podareducation, 2021.) Learning and improving current skills makes students better communicators too.

Computer skills

Unlike digital skills, computer user skills are those basic skills that are needed to use computers generally.  Computer skills are needed at LSST to assess course material, search for information and access online libraries. Basic computer skills are also needed to write assignments and can be beneficial to stay in touch with lecturers and other students, for example for sharing ideas and formulating opinions. Efficient use of email is essential in today’s world. Some students, may not have all of the required skills yet. Further, research shows that non-traditional students often tend to put in more effort to compensate for this initial lack of skills (Henson, 2013).

All modern businesses are reliant on the efficient computer skills of their employees. Computers are not only used by businesses around the world to complete tasks but are also essential in a fast-moving world as they can be used to plan and organise a variety of tasks more efficiently in a world in which job tasks become more and more versatile. At LSST students have access to IT equipment and can make use of academic support services which may help with the development of IT skills.

Literacy skills

Literacy is the ability to read, write, speak, and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world. According to Unesco (2020), 14% of adults still lack basic literacy skills globally.

In England, 1 in 7 adults, roughly 5.1 million, lack basic literacy skills. England is the only developed country where the literacy and numeracy levels of 16-24 years old are worse than those at 55-65 years old.  43% of adults 16-years and older read at or below the basic level . Their skills are limited to understanding short, simple texts and one-step math problems. (Seedsofliteracy.org, 2015).

Many adults want to improve their literacy skills to get higher-paying jobs. Acquiring stronger literacy skills can open up new careers and often lead to work promotions. Sometimes motivation comes from children who are learning to read themselves.

Improving literacy skills is vital. At LSST, we have several modules such as Preparing for Success, Knowledge and Creativity; Self-development and Responsibility, and Inquiry Based Learning, where students learn the literacy skills to enhance their academic performance further and progress to the next level. Students learn, read, write, present, communicate, and reflect skills during their studies. Regardless of the skills students are needed, lacking  literacy skills  holds a person back at every stage of their life.

Self-development skills

To best support students, it is imperative to understand their motivation to study in Higher Education. More students than ever are beginning to study after a prolonged period of employment (Rozvadska, Novotny, 2019). As opposed to traditional students, non-traditional students more often state financial concerns as motivating factors for studying. They also often are more concerned about academic issues than their traditional counterparts. Further, social issues, such as lack of confidence appear to be more prevalent with non-traditional students (Taylor, House, 2010). In practice, it is important to support students at LSST in a variety of ways. They should be confident that they receive necessary financial support before commencing their studies but it is also important to teach skills that increase self-confidence, such as time-management skills and organisational skills. It has been shown that positive teaching is effective in student empowerment (e.g. Joseph, Murphy, Holford, 2020). As a result, LSST adopts a facility of teachers as facilitators rather than directional teachers, where possible. Students are supported in class but also have access to resources that are designed to support students with social issues as well as financial issues. For example, students are assigned a personal academic tutor, can receive guidance on mental health and can be supported by a dedicated academic support team.

In conclusion, study skills are a fundamental part of academic, professional and personal development. Furthermore, learners can develop these skills at LSST in conjunction with their experience. Additionally, enthusiasm to study and learn skills enhances student confidence and self-assurance. We must all work together to further improve student study skills and learning strategies by making our teaching and learning even more effective and successful.

How to reference this article

Zilionis, G. and Kaiser, A. G.  (2022). The importance of study skills in HE for learners to enhance and develop their studies further in academia . Available at:  https://www.lsst.ac/blogs/ [Note: Please add accessed date here].

Blades, R., Fauth, B., Gibb, J. (2012). ‘ Measuring employability skills. A rapid review to inform development of tools for project evaluation’ . National Children’s Bureau. London.

CEDEFOP. (2021).  Digital skills: Challenges and opportunities . [online] Available at: https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/data-insights/digital-skills-challenges-and-opportunities . [Accessed 7 Feb. 2022].

Henson, A.R. (2013). ‘The impact of Computer Efficacy on the Success of the Nontraditional Community College Student’. Dissertations , 301.

Hermida, J. (2009). ‘ The Importance of Teaching Academic Reading Skills in First-Year University Courses . Available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1419247 [Accessed 7 Feb. 2022].

Menz, M. (2020). ‘Integrating Academic Skills and Employability’. Journal of Research in Higher Education . 4(2), 5-17 doi: 10.24193/JRHE.2020.2.1

Joseph, S., Murphy, D., Holford, J. (2020). ‘Positive education: A new look at Freedom to Learn. Oxford Review of Education , 46(5). 549-562

Nägele, C., Stadler, B.E. (2017). ‘Competence and the Need for Transferable Skills’ in Competence- based Vocational and Professional Education, Springer International Publishing, Switzerland

Rozvadská, K., Novotný, P. (2019). The Structure of non-traditional students’ motives for entering higher education. Open Journal per la formazione in rete . 19(2). 133-148

Seedsofliteracy.org, (2015). The Importance of Adult Literacy | Seeds of Literacy . [online] Available at: https://www.seedsofliteracy.org/the-importance-of-adult-literacy/ [Accessed 7 Feb. 2022].

Podareducation.org. (2021).  Importance of Skill Development Curriculum in School | Podar Blogs . [online] Available at: https://www.podareducation.org/blog-importance-of-skill-development-curriculum-in-school [Accessed 1 Feb. 2022].

Taylor, J., House, B. (2010). ‘An Exploration of Identity, Motivations and Concerns of Non-Traditional Students at Different Stages of Higher Education’ Psychology Teaching Review . 16(1). 46-57

Unesco.org. (2020). 14 per cent of adults worldwide still lack basic literacy skills, UNESCO report finds | UIL . [online] Available at: https://uil.unesco.org/literacy/14-cent-adults-worldwide-still-lack-basic-literacy-skills-unesco-report-finds . [Accessed 7 Feb. 2022].

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Study skills for students

Support for students

Whether you are studying for pleasure, to further your career, to increase your knowledge of a subject, to acquire new skills, or to gain a qualification, we hope that you will take advantage of the study skills support we offer at the Department for Continuing Education. Reviewing and developing your study skills will not only boost your confidence and help you succeed, but will also enable you to work more effectively in the time available to you for study.

Developing and improving study skills is a gradual and long-term process. It is also an individual process. If you are new to higher education or have not studied for some time, you may feel worried about tackling your first assignment; taking an exam; or juggling study, family, and work commitments. If you are part- way through a course, or are progressing to a new course, you may feel that it would be useful to brush up your note-taking or writing skills, to acquire some tips on spelling or grammar, or to acquire and practise presentation skills. Whatever your study skills needs, we hope that you will find the support and guidance we provide helpful and that you will enjoy the opportunity to get to know and work with students with similar goals and concerns.

Study Skills Programme

The Study Skills Programme provides guidance across the range of study skills needed at undergraduate level including:

• Managing your time and developing learning strategies
• Reading academic texts critically and effectively
• Taking notes in lectures and from hard or electronic copy
• Planning and writing essays and reports
• Constructing and presenting bibliographies and references
• Developing an academic writing style
• Improving spelling and grammar
• Preparing and delivering presentations
• Revising and sitting examinations

Guidance on using and searching Oxford University’s online library catalogue OLIS and electronic research resources OxLIP using the search and discovery tool SOLO is provided by Rewley House Library .

Workshops and courses

The programme is delivered through:

• A range of half or full day study skills workshops. See our course listings for available education and study skills workshops and courses. 
• Academic Literacy , a ten-week online introductory study skills course. 

Both the study skills workshops and the online introductory academic literacy course are fully supported with handouts and practice exercises. Students are encouraged to discuss study skills problems and solutions and to practise new skills with fellow participants. There is no single formula for successful study. What works for other students may not necessarily work for you. It is important to build upon your own existing skills and abilities but you also need to experiment with tried and tested strategies and techniques in order to find your own preferred and successful methods of study.

Postgraduate students are welcome to attend the workshops or undertake the introductory academic literacy course if they want to refresh their general study skills, but guidance on general and subject-specific postgraduate study skills is provided on individual postgraduate courses.

Further ways to obtain study skills guidance

If you are unable to attend the workshops or register for the online programme, or if you prefer to read about study techniques or merely want to find out about a particular aspect of study, you might like to consult one of our study skills guides, borrow a book from the library or access study skills material online.

Continuing Education study skills guides

The Department has developed a range of study skills guides for students offering advice on tried and tested ways to study effectively.

A copy of our Weekly Classes student handbook, which includes a mini-guide to preparing and writing a range of assignments for our open access courses, can be downloaded as a PDF document by following the link below (please see pages 5-6 ):

• Guide to Producing Coursework  (PDF)

We use the following bespoke guides to support our workshops:

• Introduction to Study Skills
• Building Assignment Writing Skills
• Developing Further Assignment Writing Skills
• Revision and Examination Skills

These are available to current students, either on request from your tutor or from the Rewley House Library reception desk.

There are a large number of books you can consult to find out more about study skills at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Some cover a range of study skills; others focus on specific skills or on individual subject disciplines. The Rewley House Library holds multiple copies of a large selection of study skills publications. You will also find study skills books in your local public library. You may download our list of   recommended study skills texts .

Teaching and learning in Continuing Education

All of our courses are designed to provide a high quality and enjoyable learning experience for part-time adult students. The range of teaching methods and activities varies from course to course, and, depending on the subject taught, may include site visits to archaeological digs, museums, art galleries and heritage buildings in addition to classroom-based teaching.

All courses include seminars, lectures and tutorials in some form. Seminars and lectures are often delivered in a composite form in a single extended session, for example in a two-hour weekly class or six-hour day school. If you would like to find out more about lectures, seminars and tutorials and how best to prepare for them please click for  further information (PDF).

Guidance for students whose first language is not English

If English is not your first language you may have concerns whether you will be able to cope with study at undergraduate level. All of our courses are taught in English and you need to be sufficiently fluent in the English language to work without disadvantage. It is our experience that students require a level of fluency in written and spoken English equivalent to at least the British Council’s IELTS level 7 in order to study effectively and successfully on all courses at the Department for Continuing Education. This level is specified as an entrance requirement for courses which result in the achievement of an Oxford University qualification and is an advisory requirement for all other courses.

For further information about the Department’s English Language Requirement and for links to IELTS and TEFL websites please see the guidance for International Students .

If you require advice and information about language proficiency please contact the Student Support Officer .

Increasing your English language proficiency

If you would like to improve your command of English there are a number of useful web sites which provide useful guidance on increasing language proficiency and preparing for the IELTS and other examinations, including:

www.learnenglish.org.uk This is a British Council website. It provides language advice and a wide range of reading and listening activities in academic, professional/business and leisure subjects.

You can also access a large selection of self-study quizzes focusing on vocabulary, grammar and British culture from the following external website:

www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/quizzes

Studying with us

Academic literacy: an introduction (online).

Essay and dissertation writing skills

Planning your essay

Writing your introduction

Structuring your essay

• Writing essays in science subjects
• Brief video guides to support essay planning and writing
• Writing extended essays and dissertations
• Planning your dissertation writing time

Structuring your dissertation

• Top tips for writing longer pieces of work

Advice on planning and writing essays and dissertations

University essays differ from school essays in that they are less concerned with what you know and more concerned with how you construct an argument to answer the question. This means that the starting point for writing a strong essay is to first unpick the question and to then use this to plan your essay before you start putting pen to paper (or finger to keyboard).

A really good starting point for you are these short, downloadable Tips for Successful Essay Writing and Answering the Question resources. Both resources will help you to plan your essay, as well as giving you guidance on how to distinguish between different sorts of essay questions. 

You may find it helpful to watch this seven-minute video on six tips for essay writing which outlines how to interpret essay questions, as well as giving advice on planning and structuring your writing:

Different disciplines will have different expectations for essay structure and you should always refer to your Faculty or Department student handbook or course Canvas site for more specific guidance.

However, broadly speaking, all essays share the following features:

Essays need an introduction to establish and focus the parameters of the discussion that will follow. You may find it helpful to divide the introduction into areas to demonstrate your breadth and engagement with the essay question. You might define specific terms in the introduction to show your engagement with the essay question; for example, ‘This is a large topic which has been variously discussed by many scientists and commentators. The principle tension is between the views of X and Y who define the main issues as…’ Breadth might be demonstrated by showing the range of viewpoints from which the essay question could be considered; for example, ‘A variety of factors including economic, social and political, influence A and B. This essay will focus on the social and economic aspects, with particular emphasis on…..’

Watch this two-minute video to learn more about how to plan and structure an introduction:

The main body of the essay should elaborate on the issues raised in the introduction and develop an argument(s) that answers the question. It should consist of a number of self-contained paragraphs each of which makes a specific point and provides some form of evidence to support the argument being made. Remember that a clear argument requires that each paragraph explicitly relates back to the essay question or the developing argument.

• Conclusion: An essay should end with a conclusion that reiterates the argument in light of the evidence you have provided; you shouldn’t use the conclusion to introduce new information.
• References: You need to include references to the materials you’ve used to write your essay. These might be in the form of footnotes, in-text citations, or a bibliography at the end. Different systems exist for citing references and different disciplines will use various approaches to citation. Ask your tutor which method(s) you should be using for your essay and also consult your Department or Faculty webpages for specific guidance in your discipline. 

Essay writing in science subjects

If you are writing an essay for a science subject you may need to consider additional areas, such as how to present data or diagrams. This five-minute video gives you some advice on how to approach your reading list, planning which information to include in your answer and how to write for your scientific audience – the video is available here:

A PDF providing further guidance on writing science essays for tutorials is available to download.

Short videos to support your essay writing skills

There are many other resources at Oxford that can help support your essay writing skills and if you are short on time, the Oxford Study Skills Centre has produced a number of short (2-minute) videos covering different aspects of essay writing, including:

• Approaching different types of essay questions  
• Structuring your essay  
• Writing an introduction  
• Making use of evidence in your essay writing  
• Writing your conclusion

Extended essays and dissertations

Longer pieces of writing like extended essays and dissertations may seem like quite a challenge from your regular essay writing. The important point is to start with a plan and to focus on what the question is asking. A PDF providing further guidance on planning Humanities and Social Science dissertations is available to download.

Planning your time effectively

Try not to leave the writing until close to your deadline, instead start as soon as you have some ideas to put down onto paper. Your early drafts may never end up in the final work, but the work of committing your ideas to paper helps to formulate not only your ideas, but the method of structuring your writing to read well and conclude firmly.

Although many students and tutors will say that the introduction is often written last, it is a good idea to begin to think about what will go into it early on. For example, the first draft of your introduction should set out your argument, the information you have, and your methods, and it should give a structure to the chapters and sections you will write. Your introduction will probably change as time goes on but it will stand as a guide to your entire extended essay or dissertation and it will help you to keep focused.

The structure of  extended essays or dissertations will vary depending on the question and discipline, but may include some or all of the following:

• The background information to - and context for - your research. This often takes the form of a literature review.
• Explanation of the focus of your work.
• Explanation of the value of this work to scholarship on the topic.
• List of the aims and objectives of the work and also the issues which will not be covered because they are outside its scope.

The main body of your extended essay or dissertation will probably include your methodology, the results of research, and your argument(s) based on your findings.

The conclusion is to summarise the value your research has added to the topic, and any further lines of research you would undertake given more time or resources. 

Tips on writing longer pieces of work

Approaching each chapter of a dissertation as a shorter essay can make the task of writing a dissertation seem less overwhelming. Each chapter will have an introduction, a main body where the argument is developed and substantiated with evidence, and a conclusion to tie things together. Unlike in a regular essay, chapter conclusions may also introduce the chapter that will follow, indicating how the chapters are connected to one another and how the argument will develop through your dissertation.

For further guidance, watch this two-minute video on writing longer pieces of work . 

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Initial Thoughts

Perspectives & resources, is it the responsibility of teachers to teach study skills strategies (opinion question: no resources), which study skills strategies can improve students’ academic performance.

• Page 1: Introduction to Study Skills
• Page 2: Graphic Organizers
• Page 3: Comprehension Strategies
• Page 4: Mnemonics
• Page 5: Note-taking
• Page 6: Materials Organization
• Page 7: Time Management
• Page 8: Self-Regulation
• Page 9: References & Additional Resources
• Page 10: Credits

Executive Functions (Part 2): Strategies to Improve Students’ Academic Performance

This companion to the Executive Functions (Part 1) module reiterates the importance of teachers providing explicit instruction to students with executive function difficulties on the use of effective strategies. It then overviews a number of these strategies: graphic organizers, note-taking, mnemonics, organizing materials, time management, comprehension strategies, and self-regulation strategies (est. completion time: 2.5 hours). If you have not done so already, consider completing part one before beginning this resource:

• Executive Functions (Part 1): Understanding Why Some Students Struggle

Work through the sections of this module in the order presented in the STAR graphic above.

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Study Skills

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What are Study Skills?

Study skills are the skills you need to enable you to study and learn efficiently – they are an important set of transferable life skills.

Our pages provide generic study skills advice – appropriate to learners across all disciplines and in different life circumstances: full and part-time students, those returning to education later in life, those engaged in professional development and anybody who wants to learn how to learn effectively. 

Key points about study skills:

You will develop your own personal approach to study and learning in a way that meets your own individual needs. As you develop your study skills you will discover what works for you, and what doesn’t.

Study skills are not subject specific - they are generic and can be used when studying any area. You will, of course, need to understand the concepts, theories and ideas surrounding your specific subject area. To get the most out of your studies, however, you’ll want to develop your study skills.

You need to practise and develop your study skills.   This will increase your awareness of how you study and you’ll become more confident.  Once mastered, study skills will be beneficial throughout your life.

Study skills are not just for students.   Study skills are transferable - you will take them with you beyond your education into new contexts. For example, organisational skills, time management, prioritising, learning how to analyse, problem solving, and the self-discipline that is required to remain motivated.  Study skills relate closely to the type of skills that employers look for.  (See Transferable Skills and Employability Skills for more.)

At SkillsYouNeed we provide quality content on many life skills – and many of these are relevant to studying.

You’ll find two types of study skills pages – pages that directly relate to skills you need for study (such as How to Write an Essay ) and pages that are more general life skills but which are also important to studying (like Active Listening ).

Our Study Skills Pages Include:

Getting Organised to Study

Getting organised is an important first step to effective study.  Our page covers the basic organisation skills you need to consider – fundamentals such as where and when to study and the importance of developing a network of contacts who can help you when you need it.

This page covers some of the basic principles of time management – with reference to study. If you manage your time badly then you will be less productive, which can lead to stress and anxiety. This page will help you by outlining the importance of a personal study timetable and how to set goals and prioritise your time.

Sources of Information for Study

Learn what is meant by, and the importance of, primary, secondary and tertiary documents and how you may source such information in a library or online.

By understanding different writing styles you can put what you read into perspective. This page covers the main writing styles that you are likely to come across, including academic, journal, and journalistic styles.

When studying, it is likely that you will need to read a lot of information – and you will wish to use this time effectively as possible by developing your reading skills. Discover ways that you can engage with your reading, form links, understand opinions and put ideas and research into perspective. In short, develop your reading skills.

Critical Reading and Reading Strategies

This page explains what is meant by critical reading and critical thinking – skills which are fundamental to true learning, personal development and advancement. The page also covers how to develop a personal reading strategy and use SQ3R to help you manage your reading.

Note-Taking

Learning to take notes effectively is not only important to study but also in many other situations, at work and in your personal life.  Develop your note-taking skills with our pages: Note-Taking for Verbal Exchanges and Note-Taking for Reading .

It pays to carefully think about and plan an essay or other piece of written work before you start writing.  This page provides you with a framework for planning which will help ensure your work is relevant, well-constructed and produced efficiently.

Essay Writing

Learn about the processes involved in writing an essay, or other piece of assessed work.  Avoid common mistakes and follow best practice to help ensure that the work you produce is of a high quality.

How to Write a Dissertation or Thesis

Working on a dissertation, thesis or other research project can be the most challenging part of study. Our guide offers practical advice and explains how to work on each part of a research document, including:

• How to Write a Research Proposal
• Ethical Issues in Research
• Researching and Writing a Literature Review
• Writing your Methodology
• Writing up your Results and Discussion

Learning how to reference correctly is vital if you are a student. This page not only covers why you should reference, and what may happen if you don’t, but also includes some detailed guidelines on how to reference different types of materials.

As a learner you will be required to engage with theory, but exactly what is a theory?  A theory is an attempt to provide understanding - theories attempt to answer the question, 'why?' and therefore satisfy our curiosity.  Learn more about theories and how they are usually developed.

Before you submit your assignment for school, university or work, run through a series of final checks.  Avoid potentially embarrassing or costly mistakes and increase the credibility of your work.

Reflecting On Marked Work

This page, for students, encourages you to engage in the feedback you receive from a marker when your work is returned.  Don’t just look at the bottom line, the mark, but understand the comments and feedback and learn from any mistakes.

Revision Skills

Revising for examinations can be a real challenge for many people. Learn and practice some key skills to make your revision time as productive and effective as possible, leaving you better prepared for exams and tests.

Further Reading from Skills You Need

The Skills You Need Guide for Students

Develop the skills you need to make the most of your time as a student.

Our eBooks are ideal for students at all stages of education, school, college and university. They are full of easy-to-follow practical information that will help you to learn more effectively and get better grades.

Other Areas Related to Study

Writing Skills

The writing skills section of SkillsYouNeed includes many other pages that we hope you’ll find useful.

Our pages: Spelling , Grammar and Punctuation for example can help with assignment writing.  You may also find information on our pages: Gender Neutral Writing and Clichés to Avoid useful.

Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills are the skills we use every day to interact with others and many are relevant to effective study.

For example see:  Listening Skills , Problem Solving and Decision Making , Questioning and Types of Questions , Verbal Communication and Effective Speaking .

Personal Skills

Our Personal Skills section covers areas of personal development . 

Useful pages for study include:  Building Confidence and Self-Esteem , Tips for Dealing with Stress , Relaxation Techniques , and Self-Motivation .

Start with: Getting Organised to Study

See also: Employability Skills for Graduates How to Systemize Your Study Develop Your Online Learning Skills and Get More from Your Online Classes

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How can I develop my academic skills?

Related articles (3).

Develop your academic skills

Tips, advice, and opportunities for academic skills development

Where to get help with your academic study skills

• Library Skills .
• Academic Communication Centre .
• Digital Skills Development .
• LinkedIn Learning UCL .

Develop the right skills for your future

It is a good idea to think about how the academic skills you are developing are setting you up to succeed in your future professions. UCL Careers has created a skills hub to help you d evelop the skills, strengths, and qualities employers are typically looking for.

Browse academic skills by subject-area

With your UCL username and password, you're able to access over 16,000 courses through LinkedIn Learning for free. 

Academic Writing 

Ucl writing support and resources .

• UCL Academic Communication Centre  offers tutorials, workshops, courses, webinars, writing retreats and asynchronous resources to support students across UCL with their writing.
• IOE Academic Writing Centre  provides tutorials, webinars and online resources to IOE students.
• Students’ Union UCL Language + Writing  peer-to-peer support for students with English as an additional language.
• UCL’s Survey of English Usage  produces apps on academic writing (free), spelling and punctuation (free) and grammar (various costs).
• UCL Student Disability Services  has produced some excellent guides on reading, note-taking, essay writing, revision techniques and time management.
• Academic Integrity  at UCL provides guidance on areas such as referencing conventions.
• UCL also has a licence for   LinkedIn Learning,  the online video training provider. LinkedIn Learning has several short courses on writing, such as writing in plain English.

External Writing Resources 

• Guide to writing essays, the Royal Literary Fund.
• Guide to writing dissertations, the Royal Literary Fund.
• How to write in Plain English,  the Plain English Campaign (pdf).
• Essay and Report Writing Skills Course, The Open University (free course).
• Writing What You Know , The Open University (free course).
• Writing in Plain English , LinkedIn Learning.

Digital Skills 

• Digital Education at UCL Moodle course , supporting you to be a successful digital learner.
• Digital Skills Development , UCL home page to book online and face-to-face courses.
• UCL DigiLearn , A library of online videos covering UCL IT essentials.
• Succeeding in a Digital World Course , The Open University (free course).

Presenting 

• How to give a good (enough) presentation , UCL.
• Creating accessible PowerPoint presentations , UCL Digital Skills Development.
• Talk the Talk , The Open University (free course).
• Delivery Tips for Speaking in Public , LinkedIn Learning.
• Giving a talk or making a presentation : study skills guide from UCL SSEES.
• Giving a presentation : UCL Institute of Archaeology study skills guide.

Finding information, referencing and Plagiarism

• Searching for information , Libraryskills@UCL.
• Evaluating information , Libraryskills@UCL.
• Kick-starting your literature review , UCL Digital Skills Development.
• References, citations, and avoiding plagiarism , UCL Libguides.
• Referencing and Plagiarism , UCL PDF.
• Reference Management Software , UCL Libguides.
• Academic Integrity  at UCL:  What is Academic Integrity, why is it important, and what happens if you breach it?
• UCL’s notetaking tips .
• UCL Notetaking Techniques Course .
• The Open University How to Take Notes Course .
• The Open University Effective Notetaking Course , LinkedIn Learning.

Critical thinking, reading and writing

• Critical Thinking , The Open University.
• Developing your Thinking Skills , The Open University.
• Critical Thinking, LinkedIn Learning.
• Critical Reading and Writing, UCL.
• How to be a Critical Reader , The Open University.
• Groups and Teamwork , The Open University.
• Working with Diverse Teams , The Open University.
• What's the difference between collaboration and collusion?  UCL Academic Integrity course.

Independent Learning 

• Independent research , Libraryskills@UCL.
• Improving your own learning and performance , The Open University.
• Personal Productivity , LinkedIn Learning UCL playlist.

Research Skills

• Short UCL courses on " Research Skills ".
• Free  research skills courses from the Open University.

Study skills (Learning Development)

• Academic integrity
• Skills for study
• Research skills
• Study skills
• Self-management skills
• Referencing and plagiarism This link opens in a new window
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• Study skills checklist Use this study skills checklist to assess how confident you are when it comes to key academic and self-management skills.

Use this toolkit to help you complete the different stages of the assignment process. It provides information on which study skills to develop, academic offences to avoid, links to resources, and the support available in the library.

Individual assessments should be entirely your own work. You are not permitted to work with other students on the same assignment.

Understanding the assignment brief

You need to understand what you are being asked to do before you can research or write an assignment.

• Is there an assignment brief, learning outcomes or additional guidance?
• What type of assignment is it? Is it an essay, report, problem question?
• Highlight key words, terms, and concepts.  This will help you identify the topic and area you need to focus on.

As you pull the assignment question apart, write down the different strands to explore, along with any keywords and areas that you are not familiar with. Think about what your initial response to the question would be.

Skills to develop:

• critical thinking
• time management
• organisation
• Approach or instruction words
• Critical thinking
• Skills for study: Critical thinking
• Skills for study: Time management
• Writing Development guides and webinars

Preliminary reading

You will need to do some preliminary reading around the topic. Look at your online reading list and the notes you have taken as you will have covered the main theme in your lectures and seminars.

• Do an initial search on the library website for books and articles that will help you gain a deeper understanding of the topic.
• Make notes on the key elements and identify keywords and phrases to help you research.
• Continue to think about how you are going to answer the question.
• Start to make a basic plan consisting of the main points.
• note-making
• Reading at university
• Note-taking
• Skills for study: Reading and note-making

The first two steps will give you a deeper understanding of the topic, and ideas on what to focus on to answer the different strands to the question. Using the list of keywords and phrases collated when breaking down your assignment question and during your preliminary reading, you can begin to find evidence to support your ideas and themes.

The best place to start your research is the advanced search on the library website . The library website provides access to a large collection of books, ebooks and journal articles that are not freely available on the internet, and you can be confident when searching that all literature found is a good academic source. To get the best from your search:

• Develop a search strategy by writing down a list of keywords and phrases you can use in your research.
• Expand your list by considering alternatives.
• Start your research by typing one or two keywords into either the main search box or the Advanced Search on the library website.
• Add additional keywords to reduce the number of documents retrieved.
• note-taking
• Developing a search strategy
• Finding information: an introduction to the advanced search of the library website
• Webinar: Finding information
• Skills for study: Research principles
• Find your Subject

Planning and writing

When you have found and read a variety of literature you can begin to think about what themes you are going to discuss. Create your assignment structure (introduction, main body and conclusion) and plan what you are going to discuss in the main body, which ideas/themes you are going to include and what order they should appear in. Try to ensure that the main body flows by introducing themes in a logical order. The text in the body of the essay should be broken down into paragraphs, with each paragraph covering one main point. Consider the evidence you are going to use to support your main points. A detailed plan will make it easier to start the actual writing. You don’t always have to start with the introduction. You may find it easier to focus on the ideas/themes in the main body before writing the introduction and conclusion.

• academic writing
• Skills for study: Writing skills
• Introductions and conclusions
• Apostrophes

Referencing

Referencing is important in academic writing and an essential part of any of your assessments. It:

• allows you to acknowledge your sources
• gives academic credibility to your work
• demonstrates your knowledge of a subject area
• prevents accusations of plagiarism.

You should always reference a source when:

• direct quoting
• summarising a theory
• discussing someone else's opinion
• using case studies
• using statistics or visual data
• but not when stating your own opinion, observation or experience.

Don’t underestimate how long referencing takes. Ensure you have all the information and a basic understanding of the required format. Provide a reference every time you include information that is not your own. Failure to do this is plagiarism, an academic offence. Check your references against the examples given in the relevant referencing handbook. Click here for more information on referencing.

• referencing
• proof-reading
• Our referencing guides and help with referencing
• Quoting and paraphrasing
• Time management

Editing and proof-reading

It is important to edit and proof-read both the main part of your assignment and your references. The university does not provide a proof-reading service, but you can get support with how to edit and proof-read your work. As you are proof-reading, ask yourself:

• Have I met the assignment brief and learning outcomes?
• Is my writing clear and in a logical order?
• How to edit and proof-read
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Supporting academic transition: a focus on academic essay writing

Practical suggestions for supporting first year students’ essay writing skills, based on feedback received from oxford students.

This guidance was written by postgraduate students participating in the Centre for Teaching and Learning’s Student Experience Internship Scheme 2021 , and is based on interviews they undertook with Oxford students .

Each interviewee was asked to reflect on an early academic experience at Oxford (or their expectations of Oxford), and invited to share what would have improved this experience. While these interviews clearly do not represent all Oxford students, the themes that emerged across these interviews form the basis of this guidance and are further supported by evidence from educational research.

Communicating expectations and providing clear guidelines 

My very first essay was an incredibly broad question, which was about the emergence of agriculture; it was something like ‘How and when did agriculture emerge?’. We were given a reading list that had maybe about 12 readings on it. There wasn't a lot of indication in terms of what we should read, or how much. We did have a few sub questions to think about, but there were a lot of questions and not really a lot of guidance given on how long the essay should be. So, we were just thrown into the deep end. - Undergraduate Student in Archaeology  

Some practical suggestions for supporting first year students’ essay writing skills:

• When setting essays, it is helpful to consider how the topics and questions you are assigning may be unclear or overwhelming for first year students, particularly if your students are accustomed to a more structured approach to assignments, and/or are less familiar with the conventions associated with writing in your academic discipline.  
• Consider providing your students with brief guides to academic writing in your discipline at the start of Michaelmas term. You can then signpost students to these in your feedback on their work throughout the year. This is a relatively efficient way to provide in-demand writing support at the start of term and can be shared with all students via email, Canvas and/or as hard copies at introductory meetings. Once produced, these writing support resources can be used for multiple cohorts, with only minimal editing required and are an effective way to communicate, and reiterate, your expectations. There are also general guides for academic writing that are available on the University’s Study skills and training webpages  https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills/essay
• Essential content for introductions. 
• Basic pointers on structuring paragraphs and developing academic arguments. 
• Examples of different writing styles.
• Signposting to existing writing support, for example, ‘Essay and dissertation writing skills’  https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills/essay .

For each piece of academic writing that you set your students, clarify your expectations about:

• How long the piece of writing should be.
• How you would like the writing to be structured and formatted.  
• What style of academic referencing conventions should be used. 
• How and when the essay should be submitted.
• You could also ask students to demonstrate how they have used any of your previous feedback to enhance their academic writing in subsequent work.

The Centre for Teaching and Learning has developed some practical teaching ideas for supporting students to understand what makes excellent examined work, and the criteria by which they will be assessed . The collection includes examples of teaching from academics around the university, as well as activities specifically designed for the Oxford context. 

Acknowledging challenges and developing students’ confidence  

Many students starting University as either under- or postgraduates, lack confidence in their academic writing abilities. For students’ first attempts at writing try to make sure you are clear in letting them know you are not expecting perfection!

Just receiving verbal confirmation that, you know, ‘don't worry, this is your first essay. We don't expect it to be amazing. This is just the starting point. Just give it a go’ is reassuring.  - Undergraduate student in Archaeology and Anthropology

• For more guidance on providing effective feedback, see the Oxford Teaching Ideas on making feedback inclusive and giving effective feedback . 

What I found after I started collaborating with my friend on the essay was that I'm more similar to my peers than I realise and everyone else is just as anxious and just as nervous as I am. In that sense, I wish I didn't kind of panic so much and that I wasn’t so isolated.  - Undergraduate student in English

Encouraging students to use the university libraries  

All new students are usually invited, and expected, to attend library inductions at their college and department/faculty libraries. For postgraduate students new to Oxford, additional guidance to the university’s libraries may be necessary, as they are more often expected to incorporate their own research into essays rather than working from a set of readings provided by their tutor/supervisor.  

• You could draw your students’ attention to the guidance provided by The Bodleian Libraries on using libraries, locating sources, and developing research skills through their Bodleian iSkills workshops .  

Providing opportunities for peer review

I thought that the structure of critiquing each other's essays, while it was a little bit daunting, was a very useful task for us to do, a useful skill for us to develop. Thinking as scholars, critiquing work, noticing the strengths and weaknesses in other people's essays, helps you notice the strengths and weaknesses in your own work as well.  - Undergraduate student in English

• Where appropriate, you may wish to provide students with the opportunity to read and critique one another’s writing. Academic peer networks take time to form organically, so by implementing them in your teaching, you can provide students with opportunities to learn the skills of providing constructive feedback and critique, as well as learning how to respond to feedback. For more information on utilising peer feedback, see the Oxford Teaching Idea on peer feedback .  

There are many resources for students that explain how to write academically in different disciplines. The following are some examples of Oxford-specific writing resources:  

• This guide from the Saïd Business School lays out in detail how students can plan, structure, and write their essays. 
• Dr Peter Judge has written a guide on writing essays for Medical and Life Science students .
• The MPLS Division provides guidance for Communication Skills , including writing.
• Academic writing at Master’s level: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills/postgrad-taught-skills .
• Study skills and training webpages: https://www.ox.ac.uk/students/academic/guidance/skills/essay .
• The Oxford Language Centre’s Academic English courses primarily address skills for international and postgraduate students and these run both before and during term. 

We encourage you to adapt and build upon the material in any medium or format to suit your individual teaching purposes (for non-commercial purposes only). If distributing your adapted material, we ask that you credit the Centre for Teaching and Learning.

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Academic Skills - Effective note taking

A short guide to making effective notes in lectures.

Active listening in lectures

Prepare for lectures by reading recommended material in advance. Be an active not passive listener by making notes during the lecture, because:

• lecturers give more information in a lecture than is shown on the slides/handouts
• lecturers give hints/tips for assignment writing,
• note taking helps you extend your attention span.

Why are you making notes? Ask yourself – what do I already know about the subject? What additional information do I need? What questions do I want to answer?

Listen carefully to the start of a lecture to establish the structure of the session. Listen for ‘signposts’ e.g., ‘there are three key points’, ‘I want to emphasise’.

How do you make notes?

Research shows that writing notes by hand is more effective than typing them .

Linear notes are the simplest style of notes, both for reading and listening. Notes are written down the page, one line after the other. The use of numbering/lettering can help distinguish the main points.

Pattern notes are notes which are not linear and are therefore beneficial to visual learners. There are lots of different Patterns, think about how you can use them, perhaps in combination with linear notes.

• Mind map  - A mind map, also known as a spider-gram, is a diagram in which ideas are linked to each other by lines, usually starting from the middle and working outwards. Although it can be used at any time, it is best when there is one main topic
• Flow chart  - Useful if you want to show a process or a change over time.
• Table  - This is most used when two different things are compared.

Formatting and writing style

In general, it is good to make use of:

• key words and phrases
• subheadings (to group information)
• number points
• linked up points (use arrows, dotted lines)

Take notes in your own words. Do not write full sentences. Develop your own shorthand but make sure you can read your notes later.

Do not cram too much on the page . Use wide margins to leave room to add additional notes later.

Keep track of your notes

• Organise your notes so that you can easily find what you are looking for. If you have several pages on one topic, include page numbers.
• Add a Title to your notes and date them.
• Always record the source/s of your notes – which you will need to reference in your assignment.
• Review your notes as soon as you can after making them – do they make sense?
• Highlight important points: draw ‘boxes’ or ‘rings’ in colour round sections of notes to make them stand out.
• Add to your notes but only copy them out in ‘neat’ if you change the notes.

This resource was provided by Wrexham University and is part of the University Ready hub .

Find more resources like this on the hub homepage.

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A collection of resources from all of Wales' universities to help you get started with higher education.

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Study skills are not the answer to students’ academic woes

Author 1 's' : '')>, kendall richards, lecturer, edinburgh napier university.

Kendall Richards is a lecturer at the School of Computing, Edinburgh Napier University (UK).

Nick Pilcher

Nick Pilcher is a lecturer and programme leader at The Business School, Edinburgh Napier University (UK).

• academic support
• Teaching & Learning

‘Study skills”, “academic skills”, “study support”: whatever you call them, units such as these are commonplace in higher education.

Delivered from centralised units commonly based in the library, such support for students, in the words of one university, aims to offer “a wealth of resources for both home and international students who want to make the transition between ordinary English and the academic language expected from you in your work at university”.

Some library services even have mascots such as Worcester University Library Services’ Reffie the Referencing Raptor. Some go further, with peripatetic workshops that offer to embed academic skills into specific subjects.

In essence, this whole system is saying: you may be coming from a background that means academic work is challenging or unfamiliar to you, or you may be struggling with your assessments and how to approach them. Don’t worry, the support exists to help you.

We want to emphasise here exactly what this is promising and the high stakes nature and importance of it. We’d argue that these claims and the support approaches they recommend have to be underpinned by a number of key tenets in order for them to be pedagogically viable, and these tenets have to be ones that those delivering and accessing the support believe in (otherwise the whole foundations of the system collapse).

• What the centres are delivering has to be definable – because if it isn’t, they’ll all be doing different things.
• What the centres are teaching has to be of transferable relevance to all subject areas – because if it isn’t, there is little point in teaching it as it won’t be relevant for all students.
• Centres must be able to embed study skills into different subject areas – if they cannot, then what would be the value in trying to do this?
• Students’ success must be in some way the result of them having successfully attained study skills – because if it wasn’t, what would be the point in them spending time learning them?

In our view, each of these tenets are baseless from a pedagogical perspective.

Immovable, unknowable, ineffable

With regard to the first, nothing that these centres offer is definable, because they are called different names and all subjects approach them in their own unique ways. For example, the way that a nursing student is expected to “critically analyse” a procedure will involve completely different abilities and knowledge from the way a mechanical engineering student is expected to “critically analyse” a procedure.

If both students went to the skills hub and it was suggested they attend a study skills class, it would have to be assumed that the same class for such diverse subjects can teach them to “critically analyse” in their respective subjects.

At the same time, these “skills” do not transfer, not only because they differ across subject areas but also because they are likely not even “skills” at all and would be better described as abilities or knowledge.

We have heard as much from students themselves. In fact the only thing that we have found that students really value is actual subject help, from experts. Recent sites run by and for UK university student communities feature students complaining that study skills units failed to improve their academic success.

For example, this quote found on the Student Room from a student on a study skills bridging course illustrates the issue:

If S[tudy] S[kills] assignments helped you with the academic subject assignments, perhaps they’d be worthwhile. But I just found them to be a completely separate entity and they didn’t help with the real assignments, they just took my time and focus off them!

In other words, any attempt to embed study skills is akin to trying to “embed” a maths course into a course on the history of renaissance art.

If a student performs well, if they present well, or they do a report well, it’s not because they have good study skills, rather, it’s because they know their subject. If one of us were to give a presentation on the reasons why Nazi Germany’s Operation Blau offensive in the Soviet Union in 1942 failed, we could do so because we know the subject.

If we were instead to attempt a presentation on why the recent helicopter flight on Mars succeeded, we would not be able to do so. For someone to suggest to us that we could do the first because we had good study skills and couldn’t do the latter because we had poor study skills would seem preposterous and the purest example that springs to our minds of one of Nietzsche’s four great errors of confusing cause and effect.

Help where students truly need it

It would be great if such a one-size-suits-all approach did exist, this is a fantasy that encourages users to believe and clap their hands. Perhaps somewhat underwhelmingly, we suggest that the action that students, lecturers, institutions, and HE in general need to take is … to provide support in the subject.

We need to forget any illusions of “study skills” that universities can cheaply and conveniently deliver and are transferable across all areas and, instead, teach the subject.

This means that centralised units need to be decentralised, more people need to be employed on academic contracts to teach the subjects themselves, and that all study skills specialists need to be teaching actual academic subjects.

If students are struggling or need support in their degrees, they don’t need more study skills, they need help with the subjects of their degrees. Because subject knowledge is what creates success and it is this students need help with.

If these centres don’t actually help students, then why are they there? We explore the question of whose interests these centres actually serve in our article for Teaching in Higher Education : “Study Skills: neoliberalism’s perfect Tinkerbell.”

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I might be biased because my partner is an academic skills advisor, but I would disagree with a lot of this. I work for an SU Advice service advising on appeals and mitigating circumstances and so many students I see struggle with writing a clear, well structured and compelling argument to explain how their personal circumstances have affected their academic work. The students have the ‘subject knowledge’ in this instance since the subject they are writing about is their own experience and no-one knows what they went through better than they do themselves. Yet it’s all too common for their statements to be written in non-chronological order that makes it very confusing to follow. They often struggle to refer to their evidence to support what they are saying and repeat themselves or include irrelevant information. They frequently provide no analysis on how their circumstances affected their work and don’t show insight into how they can avoid this in future. Study skills would focus on areas like this: how to write clearly; how to structure an argument; how to select and use evidence; how to proof read effectively to guard against repetition; how to decide whether information is relevant or not and how to be analytical or reflective (and the difference between those terms).

I of course don’t like the trend in higher education to get rid of lecturers and replace multiple lecturers with one academic skills advisor to cut corners and save on costs, but in speaking out against this please don’t forget that academic skills advisors can bring real value to students and help them develop important skills for study and for work. This needs to be present alongside fully staffed academic departments, so that students can benefit from subject specific knowledge and study skills support.

The example of a successful presentation here is an odd one. Yes, subject knowledge is essential for the presentation to be a success, but surely there is a ‘skills’ element to it as well? The student can know the subject inside out, but if they don’t know how to plan, structure or deliver a presentation, they’re not going to do too well? Most mark schemes will have a bit more than ‘Displayed excellent and wide ranging knowledge of the subject matter’.

I do agree that there can be challenges with centralised ‘skills support’, as it is often too easy to simply direct students to the library or skills centre, placing the onus on the student to upskill themselves and giving teaching staff an out when it comes to building skills development into the curriculum (students who may seek out this additional support are often those with the least additional time to spare). I also agree that a ‘one size fits all’ approach is often inadequate in many areas of skills development, but in my experience many libraries and skills centres do deliver bespoke support within the context of programmes, often co-creating or delivering material alongside academic staff. I expect many staff working in these areas would actually cite under-funding and a lack of resource as key reasons why their support cannot be more tailored and subject specific.

Skills development should be an integrated part of the day-to-day experience of students within their courses; woven into the teaching and assessment approach within modules. In many ways I think that they should be gaining these skills by stealth, without classes being badged as a ‘skills sessions’. The answer is for librarians and skills advisers to work with academics to integrate this effectively, while continuing to provide 1:1 support to students who seek their expertise.

Quite annoyed to see Worcester’s study skills offer so badly misrepresented. Yes there are generic sessions on topics like referencing but there is also deep subject-specific support from academic liaison librarians who are actually very well embedded in their academic Schools and in many cases considered to be a core part of the course team. Your example of referencing trips you up, speaking as a librarian if there’s one thing that needs delivering in a consistent way it’s referencing and I’ve seen plenty of examples of academics doing a frankly awful job, getting aspects of their own subject area’s referencing style wrong and failing to inject enthusiasm or deep knowledge of the how and why or referencing into sessions. This is exactly why specialists exist.

Well said Phil. One of the things we have learned from the Covid experience is the value of professional services roles, such as librarians, working with teaching academics to support students with their academic skills, be they delivered through study skills centres or as part of academic library liaison work. In particular, librarians know how to get the best out of digital resources that students need, such as e-books and databases, in a way that academics often simply don’t. My background is HE but I currently work primarily with FE colleges, many of whose students are making the leap into HE, often from a position of disadvantage. For them, academic study skills support from the library is not only essential, it can be transformative. Collaboration between academics and specialist professional roles is more important than ever and I’ll continue to refer to Worcester as a good example of this in my work.

Thank you for this article.

Are current centralised study skills fit for purpose? No, I don’t think so. Should we give up on trying to teach students how to study effectively? No, we just need to do it in a more scholarly, integrated and convincing way.

The main contention of this piece appears to be that centralised generic study skills provisions are not fit for purpose, predominantly because of their “one size fits all approach” and the fact that they are often divorced from subject content. Very similar points were made by Wingate (2006) in an article called “Down with Study Skills”. However, Wingate also identified what I perceive as one of the two bigger problems commonly associated with study skills provisions, i.e. advice is frequently not transparently informed by the science of learning. If an academic institution endeavours to help its students study more effectively, then its first duty is to make sure that these efforts are underpinned by academic research on how people learn, communicate & Collaborate.

The second major flaw (related to the first) is that study skills provisions do not take account of the psychology of persuasion and refutation. We know that many students habitually use ineffective approaches to studying that feel more effective than they are, which makes them (understandably) resistant to advice on how to study. Look at the situation from their perspective: “My approach to studying has got me into university and it feels like it works, so why should I change?”

A precursor for improving the way that students study is debunking myths about learning and addressing faulty metacognition. Just telling students what to do, won’t cut it. Especially if the guidance appears to be devoid of the academic credibility we expect them to demonstrate in their own work and seemingly not integrated into their degree subject. Unfortunately, this is too often characteristic of study skills instruction.

In my view, evidence-based advice on learning needs to emerge from the shadow of “Study Skills”. By treating advice on studying as if it is detached from scholarship (perhaps in a misguided attempt to make it more palatable) & divorced from subject matter, institutions have undermined its utility and credibility in the student body. In addressing this, we need to be careful not to “throw the baby out with the bath water”. We cannot address flaws in the way students approach studying by simply re-directing efforts to subject level support on degree specific topics. Students spend the lion’s share of their scholarly time studying independently, so we must always be mindful of not focusing too much on what happens inside the lecture theatre at the expense of what happens outside of it. It would also be rather unfair to leave lecturers who might be interested in the science of learning unsupported in locating and communicating the salient advice to students. What we need to do is significantly improve the communication and adoption of evidence-based advice on studying and persuasion from psychology to help students (& those who support them) integrate & model effective approaches to studying into the curriculum.

As far as I can see, many institutions have managed to blunder into a situation where the one topic that most needs to be transparently informed by good scholarship (i.e. how to study effectively) has become the most divorced from the research that should directly inform it and the curriculum it should be located within. This, most certainly, needs attention.

This article comes across as setting up a straw person to rail against organisational structures and practices more than address what is the underlying issue which I take to be what Paul Penn notes, that we need to be more scholarly. Indeed I like to think of Universities as inclusive networks of scholarly practitioners in which all staff and all students are able to make contributions to their community of scholarly practice and can learn about and develop their personal scholarship within and across the network of communities.

By acknowledging students as also being scholars we fit in with the notion that students are full partners in learning and teaching and that we (staff) do teaching, learning and support with students (a relational exchange) rather than for students (a transactional exchange).

Thus academic communities are communities of practice around cognate subject areas that are embodied in the collective scholarship of and for discovery, integration and application but are also expressed through individual praxis (the process by which knowledge, understanding, concepts and theories are enacted, embodied, or realised). In this framework students are largely undertaking scholarship for learning and application, while the scholarship undertaken by academic staff is but one strand of scholarly activity, albeit through scholarship of and for discovery and application seen in research and knowledge exchange. Thus it is the skills of scholarship (for teaching and learning) that we need to work with, skills that may be similar across different subject areas or be unique to a subject area. And these scholarship skills may be congruent with the skills needed to pursue a career or profession based on that subject or not, but then the formulation and framing of skills work roles is a yet another matter.

In making the above observations I would stress that my intention is not to criticise or undermine the efforts of the dedicated and hardworking folks (be they lecturers, librarians, specialists or other support staff) that are trying to help students succeed. I’m conscious that it’s easy for institutional level criticism to be misconstrued as a swipe at the staff on the frontline, which can be very demoralising.

Rather, my intention is to highlight the institutional level need for teaching and learning policy to commit to meaningfully embed the scholarship related to effective studying into their support provisions and provide adequate resources for staff to achieve this where it is lacking.

thanks Paul – and as you know, I’ve long been pushing for Learning Development to be professionalised with appropriate, evidence-based expertise, rather than the ‘you’ve done a degree, you can teach others how to!’ low-skilled basis and pedagogically problematic ‘giving students the skills’ discourse on which many of these roles are constituted, if not actually enacted. The issue really is with how this provision is constructed and positioned at that institutional level, as there is much excellent practice at the front line, and a genuine space for those who can act as skilled intermediaries helping surface what academic colleagues may implicit know but find it hard to teach, in a student-centred and integrated way. Generic, central, uninformed, untheorised ‘study skills’ is a nonsense, and many of us in the field have long known this and have tried to negotiate a way through it…..

The article is very pertinent and wise. Study skills could and should be taught within the home discipline of students. Gaps between students on the same courses are generally knowledge as well as skills-related and they should be dealt with by the home department. Too many students complain that the Study Skills tutors are overly dogmatic and generally miss the point as they are at best “generalists”.

I have never commented upon a WonkHE article before but I feel compelled to share my views about this article. I get the sense that the author’s have a very narrow view of “study skills” support and what those teams might accomplish at Edinburgh Napier. In fact, I go as far as to urge the authors to really engage and understand what these experts do at their institution. They are not “support” staff who are just messing about with study skills. These professional experts who spend their careers teaching, undertaking scholarly practice and publishing research about what they do. This article reeks of the attitude that we have been up against for decades and isn’t helpful, collegiate or fair. I have statistical evidence that proves the sustained impact of this important work upon attainment and progression. In fact, please have a read of an article published last year to demonstrate exactly this: Loddick, A. and Coulson, K. V. (2020) The Impact of Learning Development Tutorials on Student Attainment. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. Volume 17. Available from: https://journal.aldinhe.ac.uk/index.php/jldhe/article/view/558/415 .

Kate – your article says causality cannot be claimed, but here you are claiming causality.

Here is what your article says:

“One of the limitations of this study is that of causality. While there are differences in attainment for students who have tutorials with Learning Development, we cannot say that is it the tutorials that caused this. It is possible that students who have tutorials with Learning Development are of a higher attainment level before seeing the team or the fact that they have chosen to seek support means that they are already engaged in the learning process.”

I work in this area too (as a librarian) and the students who seek me out tend to be higher achievers. Not always, as I get referrals from academics, but on average.

One of the points made by the authors of the above in their article referred to is the lack of evidence of impact which includes control groups; and in fact studies with control groups tend to show no impact. Your piece – published in the house journal of your area of work – does not prove your effectiveness I’m afraid. Similarly evidence based on testimonials is flawed.

Interesting points, James. Could you share the relevant studies “with control groups [which] tend to show no impact”? It can be challenging to set up ethical research in education which uses meaningful control groups, so I’d be very interested to see the body of research to which you refer.

Your implied criticism of Kate for publishing in a journal within her area of work seems a little harsh considering normal conventions of academia follow this pattern.

You’re right to say that evidence (solely?) based on testimonials is flawed. For this reason it is surprising that the authors of this WonkHE article make very strident claims, but base them on no other empirical evidence than a single student testimonial.

S. White – there is a paucity of literature with control groups it seems – it’s almost impossible to do. The authors’ ‘Tinkerbell’ article refers to Ramsden, 1987 and that is all, so its neither overwhelming nor up-to-date. The only other one I know is Conway and Ross (1984) – Getting what you want by revising what you had. They chose to look at a study skills program as an example of cognitive dissonance experienced by participants. This is interesting on why user testimonials are flawed.

You might find something in Gibbs (1981) book ‘Teaching students to learn’ which has been a big influence on me. He has quite a lot to say on the effectiveness of teaching study techniques, and cites a number of studies that show a lack of effectiveness. He also draws attention to claims made on the basis of correlation. He claims to have heard of students being advised to sit at the front because students who sit near the front tend to do better.

There is also a good meta-analysis available – quite old – and looks at HE and school interventions. Its quite complex, but they found that the older the students, the less the impact. I appreciate a lot has changed in HE though:

Hattie, J., Biggs, J., Purdie, N. (1996). Effects of learning skills interventions on student learning: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 66 (2), pp. 99-136 URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/00346543066002099

The WonkHe article makes rhetorical arguments but that doesn’t mean its without merit; their ‘Tinkerbell’ article does as well, but cites more. The ‘Tinkerbell’ article itself is not without flaws – I’d have like to have seen some distinction between different modes of support and yes to reflect on good and bad practice but I think they shine a light on problems in this area, which I think it takes ‘outsiders’ to highlight.

Interesting points James. It can be challenging to set up ethical studies involving meaningful control groups in education. I’d be very interested to see the body of research you mention which does so if you wouldn’t mind sharing.

It seems harsh to criticise Kate for publishing within her area of work given that within academia this is common practice.

You rightly state that ‘evidence based [solely?] on testimonials is flawed’. It is worth noting that in the original WonkHE article the authors make strident claims based only on a single piece of testimonial evidence.

Though it’s necessary and useful to continually interrogate the impact and effectiveness of academic practice in various areas, I feel that Richards and Pilcher’s article is seriously flawed. As noted above, they – use a straw man argument to represent much Learning Development practice – make a facile underlying claim (doing ‘Study Skills’ badly is bad) – draw on a single piece of testimonial evidence to make sweeping claims – display no knowledge of the theory of Learning Development – use flawed examples to illustrate their point (improved content knowledge = improved communication of it)

A career in politics awaits?

Study Skills are a shibboleth; the term is at least twenty years out of date and fails to adequately conceptualise the work of practitioners in the field. Very few of us would recognise the bolt-on, generic support (see Wingate) described in this blog as constitutive of recent learning development practice.

It is, however, often indicative of how our practice is conceptualised by senior management within our institutions. It’s easy to promote a centralised, one size-fits-all approach and claim that this blanket approach will resolve some of the long-standing issues described above.

But, as Helen Webster succinctly notes above, the issue really is with ‘how this provision is constructed and positioned at that institutional level’.

Many of the issues described in this blog could be resolved by senior management integrating these practitioners within specific schools or departments to help tailor their approaches more closely to specific subjects.

Another option is to integrate these teams within institutional centres for Teaching and Development to encourage further research in this field. It would also help these practitioners to work more closely with lecturers to embed these learning development approaches across the curriculum.

Some institutions are doing wonderful work by adopting these two approaches; others are miles behind the curve.

“In our view, each of these tenets are baseless from a pedagogical perspective.” I refer you to your own library page on critical thinking. Including a list of books on the right column from various professionals addressing the tenets, likely from a pedagogical perspective. https://libguides.napier.ac.uk/criticalthinking/reflect

“At the same time, these “skills” do not transfer, not only because they differ across subject areas but also because they are likely not even “skills” at all and would be better described as abilities or knowledge.” Define skills? “the ability to do something well; expertise.” Would you describe your ABILITY to write this article and your KNOWLEDGE to write it make you particularly SKILLFUL at writing? Abilities and knowledge contribute to skill.

“If a student performs well, if they present well, or they do a report well, it’s not because they have good study skills, rather, it is because they know their subject. If one of us were to give a presentation on the reasons why Nazi Germany’s Operation Blau offensive in the Soviet Union in 1942 failed, we could do so because we know the subject.” This section is ironic. The article itself shows no expertise or research in the discipline at all ( I would hope it is in the paper) and it would be improved if you had applied basic generic ‘study skills’ theory, likely the exact content that you are arguing is useless to learn.

The authors of this article show little understanding of teaching and learning theories and seem to espouse an ’empty vessel to be filled’ method of educating. What do they mean by ‘if they know their subject…’? If a student writes a paper because they ‘know the subject’, where do they learn skills of rhetoric, debate, different styles of discourse etc. etc. Ah, yes – some schools teach this; some students develop this at school. Sadly, many were not taught this at school, or perhaps were not ready for such cognitive processing development when they were in school. Students’ requests for help in understanding how to ‘engage with the literature’ ‘synthesis and respond to sources’ are anecdotal but clearly demonstrate a need for certain learning processes to be made explicit and addressed by people who understand this learning development. Whether this is done by academics who understand the many facets of teaching, or skilled pedagogic staff, I am not arguing for centralised Study Skills provision per se, but please, do your homework before making wild claims.

While I agree with part of this – namely the issue of consistency and definitions across the academic skills field – the majority of this paper suggests the writers could do with a session in critical thinking…!

I don’t think taking a single comment from The Student Room (which talks about a whole module, not academic skills support in general) is very good journalism. On top of this, statements like the following are simply untrue:

“If a student performs well, if they present well, or they do a report well, it’s not because they have good study skills, rather, it’s because they know their subject.”

So referencing, writing style, finding reliable resources – all of these things don’t factor into a student’s mark?

As I say, there are kernels of true issues here, but let’s not make sweeping statements about often valuable support.

A slightly thought provoking article, yet not convincing, and not evidencing critique in the way it’s written. As someone who has taught dedicated ‘stand-alone’ study skills modules and modules where study skills are embedded, my view is that study skills usually need embedding, within disciplinary contexts, yet there is a clear role for more generic study and learning skills (such as grammar, spelling, using apostrophes correctly, using spellcheck function and so on). My preference is to use the term ‘learning skills’, rather than study skills.

This may be the least persuasive article I’ve ever read on WonkHE. In the past, I’ve taught both within a discipline (History) and in what would probably be called a study skills unit, and the authors don’t seem to understand what the latter do. The entire article sets up a strawman and knocks it down. Barely any research evidence is given, either here or in the fuller article available via the link. The only piece of evidence here – the quote from the Student Room – is from a wider comment which is actually about a specific study skills module on an Access to HE course – delivered, it seems, at an FE College, and hardly applicable to skills support within universities.

Maybe it’s different elsewhere – though prior comments suggest not – but in my institution study skills practitioners mostly teach in a way that is embedded in discipline-specific modules and tailored to that discipline. E-resources are likewise tailored to disciplines. In other words, study skills units do exactly what the authors suggest they should do in their fuller article.

There may be generic workshops on top. These are, I think, less effective (for the reasons the article describes), but a lot of skills – how to structure an essay; what constitutes an argument; how to find the key information from a text; techniques to compare texts – are reasonably generic. Yes, ideally students should receive adequate instruction on these issues from academics, but in practice they don’t, or it doesn’t sink in. Generic workshops are better than nothing. It would be very difficult to deliver a generic workshop to both Physics and History students (in practice, you’d do separate workshops for Sciences); but you could do an effective workshop for a general Humanities / Social Sciences audience.

Many institutions also offer 1-1 support via study skills units. At my institution, this is mostly used by students who are in some way struggling – e.g. international students who are adjusting to English academic culture. With a bit of training and experience, you really don’t need a fundamental knowledge of each discipline to help students. What you need is an understanding of where students might go wrong. I know – from evaluation, and because students have effusively thanked my colleagues – that the unit I worked in saved many students from failing or dropping out. The effectiveness of this sort of support is well established in research literature.

Certainly students need to have knowledge of their subject to perform well, but they need much more than that. In History, I’d expect to see students constructing sound arguments, in well-structured essays, based on critical analysis and comparison of different texts – in another words, using study skills. An essay without these things, based purely on knowledge of the 1942 German invasion of the Soviet Union, say, would get a poor mark.

Thank you to all who have commented. We are very pleased to see the debate the piece has generated. We want to respond with the following: 1. We feel the piece has been considered as constituting an attack on the individuals in Study Skills units and who deliver Study Skills. This was not the intention and certainly is not what we think. We would like to quote from the paper the article is linked to – suggesting that what needs to be done is the following: “This would involve, we suggest, employing greater numbers of subject specialists to help deliver additional support, and recalibrating the support given by existing staff to more subject-specific areas.” In other words, we feel those who give the current support should be moved from the centre to give subject and assignment focused support in the departments. Furthermore, as we outline in the paper, if this was the case support would be more specialist and as such would mean those delivering it needed to be both valued (in permanence contractually) and remunerated (in higher salaries) more appropriately. 2. One comment noted Wingate (2006) famously ‘did away’ with Study Skills – we noted in our paper that Wingate (2006) said Study Skills should be embedded – thereby actually keeping them. 3. One comment related to there being ‘Essays’ – we have found lecturers see ‘Essay’ (and other vehicles) to differ widely according to individual and area. Consequently, to produce materials saying that an ‘Essay’ has particular characteristics misleads students. We find support needs to be in the subject working with subject-specialists in the context of the specific coursework. 4. We are interested to see comments accusing is of creating a ‘straw man’ – we see this in relation to other critiques (of corpus linguistics) we have made in the past. We are also interested to see what we read and interpret to be comments that say the piece is nonsense, but what it advocates is right and should happen. We are curious about these comments and are thinking about them. 5. In relation to the point above is our confusion at suggestions that we would benefit from study skills given the style we used in writing this piece. We felt we wrote according to the context of the ‘home’ of the article. We guess this actually highlights our argument that writing (and other forms of communication) need to be considered in the context of subject. 6. We consider much work outlined in the comments of great help – for example Kate Coulson’s one to one learning development sessions outlined in her paper – where we feel these help, and where we feel anything helps, is when support is tailored to the specific context of the subject and assignment the student is faced with – and we surmise this is what happened in these one to one learning development sessions, and why they are so useful. We may be wrong in surmising this, but it is certainly what we do in one to one sessions we give. 7. We are interested to be described as ‘outsiders’. In fact we are simply relics of a former approach where support was delivered in the schools and departments. Nick (originally employed as a Lecturer for in-session support) still retains his former role in parts of what he does, and Kendall is the last of three (Lecturer in the faculty) Academic Advisors. The two who left were not replaced – the in-session support has become more centralised. We detailed our journey (and give details of papers explaining key points) in a blog we were invited to do after presenting on the paper at the ScotHELD Winter 2021 conference – a link to the blog is here: https://aldinhe.ac.uk/study-skills/take5-58-from-text-to-teapot-to-tinkerbell-supporting-students-in-their-subjects/ We are very happy to talk more about these things if possible – just let us know if interested.

You’ve written it so nicely, and you’ve come up with some great ideas. This is a fantastic post!

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