YEAR 12 STUDY SKILLS

Senior School can feel like a pressure cooker—balancing the demands of school assessed coursework (SACs), exams, extracurricular activities, and personal life, all while planning next steps for what life might look life after Year 12. The workload intensifies, deadlines loom, and if you don’t have the right systems in place, the stress can be too much. 

Understanding these challenges, the BSC ‘Learning and Teaching’ Team saw a brilliant opportunity to engage Darren from Success Integrated to run a seminar to explore essential skills to navigate the year ahead and beyond, ensuring they not only perform well but also maintain their well-being.

This wasn’t your typical study skills session! The atmosphere was electric as DJ Dani set the tone with lively music, creating an energised space for learning. Darren, with over 20 years of experience, captivated the students with insights on Mindset, Study Techniques, Motivation, and Resilience. Together, they explored the neuroscience behind learning and memory, offering practical advice paired with humour and interactive elements.

Key Takeaways Included:

• Growth vs. Fixed Mindsets: Understanding the power of belief in shaping success.
• Identifying Distractions: Recognising and addressing barriers to effective studying.
• Systems and Routines: Building structured habits that promote productivity.
• Effective Study Plans: Incorporating Environment, Timing, Incentives, Study Breaks, Leisure, and Extracurriculars for a balanced approach.
• Sleep and Nutrition: How bedtime routines and fuelling the body properly contribute to success.
• Chunking and Mnemonics: Strategies for better retention of information.
• Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve, Consolidation and Spaced Repitition: Harnessing the power of time to improve long-term memory.

We caught up with the following students who shared their insights from the session - 

Talia Arzhintar mentioned ‘It was really well organised, the DJ was extremely enthusiastic which made it more enjoyable for the year 12’s... Since the seminar I’ve ensured prioritising sleep in my study routine and being productive with my time.’ Sam Gray echoed this sentiment mentioning ‘There was no chance anyone was going to fall asleep with with the electic atmosphere and that both getting 7-9 hours sleep and using the suggested planner have been game changers’. 

Guy Brent mentioned ‘It was an interesting and unqiue way to teach studies skills. Since the session I have implemented habits to do with practice which is focusing on weekly practice SACs’. Oscar Vulikh thought ‘It was going to be one of the boring sessions that I couldn’ t be bothered going to, but it was actually really good and engaging with both DJ Dani and content that Darren explored, he was a good speaker. Something I took away from the seminar was the science behind neuroplasticity and how it explains how we learn’. Nick Graham’s biggest take away was ‘surrounding habit formation. I found it really interesting how it can take 18-254 days to build a habit. That it’s okay if you miss a day but then have to add two additional days and if you miss two then you have to start again’. Jackson Sze ‘found the way that success is interpreted is interesting, I guess it made me ponder to myself how I define success. You know, if I don’t do well on a SAC, I don’t fail school, it's just all on the overall road to success’.

From the Year 12’s and ‘Learning and Teaching Team’, we would like to send a huge thank you to Darren and DJ Dani for delivering Part A of this engaging seminar. We’re excited for Part B in August, where we’ll focus on Exam Preparation and Strategies!

We encourage our Year 12 students to take these skills onboard and embrace the year ahead with confidence and resilience. We look forward to seeing all our students thrive throughout this pivotal year!