24 Mar Studying from home

You may be one of the many people who now find themselves at home with time to dedicate to completing study or undertaking a new online course to upskill. There can be challenges in combining your learning and living environment, but with planning and the right set up your learning can be very effective.

Space

Home is often a shared space. A first step is to let everyone know that you will be studying at home. Now, find your space! It doesn’t matter where this is, but try to ensure you feel comfortable there. This space will ideally have minimal distractions. Having a dedicated space specifically for studying will help you to focus on the task at hand.

Timetable

Now turn your attention to your timetable. Break up your day/week and see where you have time to study. Factor in your commitments to family, household and other tasks and see where you can allocate slots of 20-30 minutes to study. Try to pick times of the day when you are at your most productive. When your timetable is drawn up, share it with others, and remember, as this is new for everyone, you may have to remind family and friends from time to time. A useful tip for where there are children in the house is to operate a traffic light system.

• Red: Don’t interrupt me as I am in an online class or on a video call etc.
• Orange: Before you interrupt me ask yourself – “Can this wait?”
• Green: You can interrupt me if you need something.

You can place these on doors, walls, tables, wherever they will be seen.

Routine

Keep to your routine. Rise at your usual time, shower and have breakfast as this will set the tone for the day. Remind yourself of your timetable and before you begin study, ensure that you have all the equipment that you will need, pens, paper, passwords, cables, etc.

Set realistic goals for any study period. Know what it is you want to achieve in any given period. Remember to use a timer or your phone to manage your time.

Other things to think about

Remember the importance of a good diet generally. Have healthy snacks and beverages prepared before you start to study. This will help you to cut down on leaving your work space or interrupting your flow.

Also, try to minimise other potential distractions such as social media alerts, text messages etc. When you set time for study, do not let yourself get pulled into non-urgent tasks, or procrastination activities.

Your focus and ability to absorb, assimilate and process information is at its best when you are rested. Try to get into the habit of a good sleep routine.

Keep in touch with your classmates or your course facilitator. This will help you ensure that you have up-to-date reading lists or submission dates etc. It can also help you from feeling alone in your study.

Finally, don’t forget to check how you are getting on. Are you keeping up with your reading? Are you taking notes on your online lectures? Are you meeting deadlines? If yes, great, if not review where the issues are arising and make adjustments.