Study Skills in Higher Education for Foundation Year Students

This essay delves into the significance of study skills in higher education, particularly for foundation year students. It examines the importance of foundation years in preparing students for university life, including building knowledge and critical thinking abilities. The essay highlights the challenges faced by students, such as cultural shock, time management issues, mental health concerns, and financial burdens. It then explores how effective study skills, including time management, organization, stress management, and communication, can help students overcome these challenges and succeed in their academic endeavors. The essay emphasizes the role of guidance, self-assessment, and reflective practices in fostering a supportive learning environment and promoting student success. Ultimately, the essay provides a comprehensive overview of the challenges and solutions related to study skills in higher education, offering valuable insights for students navigating this crucial stage of their academic journey.

Study Skills for higher education

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
a. Importance of foundation year for student from wide participation........................................1
b. Key challenges face by foundation students............................................................................2
c. Describing how study skills in higher education help foundation year student to overcome
some challenges...........................................................................................................................3
d. Conclusion based some key points..........................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
In this competitive era, every individual wants to get deep knowledge related to their
courses so that they may achieve their defined goals for their better career. It is so because
developing good study skills and different learning strategies, they keep own motivation high
and also attain the goals in active manner. Further, in the same way, current report also help to
describe the importance of foundation year for the student for their wide participation. Study,
also describe the importance of foundation year and describe the challenges faced by the
students. Then report, also describe how study skills in higher education may help student to
overcome the challenges as well.
a. Importance of foundation year for student from wide participation
It is analysed by Frearson, (2019) that education system of UK helps the student to
enhance their own knowledge so that they may attain their future goals in better way. Therefore,
the foundation course also prepares the student of a university to build the knowledge and the
goal of these type of course is to make sure that the students are able to indulge more in other as
compared to their education system. Such that, study the foundational course provides good
understanding of the subjects such as Mathematics, physics and chemistry, therefore, it uplift the
critical thinking of the student's as well as challenge them to face them as well. In addition to
this, if the student is study on the foundation course then it will help them to bridge a gap
between mainstream schooling and University life. It is clearly reflected that the foundation
courses provide support that further encourages an individual to perform their best for their
career.
In addition to this, it is also analysed that it is essential for the student to study because it
helps to improve academic skills which is necessary in tertiary education. Therefore, having a
knowledge in specific area is quite beneficial for the upcoming career. Not only this, it also help
to provide better language proficiency in which the student will be able to improve their English
language (Baroutsis and et.al., 2019). Beside this, foundation year also plays an effective role for
the success of a student because it also increase the chances of admission to prestigious
university. In UK, if the student completed a foundation course then they are consider a fully
qualifies to start an undergraduate degree and they may also take an entrance in great universities
as well. Thus, it is clearly reflect that study in foundation year will help a student to grow his
abilities, thinking and develop future growth option as well.
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On the other side, it is also critically evaluated that most of the student are struggling
with culture shock because I different academic system. During this foundation course, student
also get a chance to experience local culture as well as customs so that they will easily adjust in
the academic environment (Ross and Baker, 2019). This promotes the students to increase their
adaptably skills which will definitely help them in their future. So, it is clearly reflected that the
foundation years offer credit towards the study and also allow students to enter in next stage so
that they will be leads their future towards a right direction. In addition to this, it is also
critically evaluated that the foundation year also fill the gap in knowledge between the high
school and the University such that education standards differ around the globe and from state to
state and country to country. That is why, most of the foundation year courses are generally
designed to level out the differences and also get all the students up to their standards. So, it is
clearly reflected that not only it helps to determine the gap but also, helps a student to adjust
their time as well. As a result, it is beneficial for the student to learn foundation courses. So that
they will easily grab better opportunities in their future working area.
At last, it is also examined that in order to overcome different challenges, it is quite
essential for them to have enough knowledge so that they may easily cope up with different
situation and take better decision as well.
b. Key challenges face by foundation students
The student have to face many issues after they complete their schooling, and join the colleges,
universities for higher education. Student have to choose a course according to their capabilities
and subjects. New comers in colleges have many issues. The student is come up from the school
life, its comfort zone, like its friend circle, its study part, etc.. It's uncomfortable for the student
to cooperate in the new environment of the college. During their academics, they just have to
study the subjects, participate in curricular activities, so they enjoy these things. When student
comes to their foundation courses, it is change for them suddenly and sometime they can't adjust.
Directly or indirectly students have to face the problems in their foundation year of higher
educations, students mental health is being suffered because of the pressure of the study, to
match the standard of other students, also it affects the student mind, if it faces the ragging in the
institution. The student should avoid all these things, and just focus on their study. Because
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this will increase depression in the student (Ahn and et.al., 2015). Student has to make strong
relations with other student, with their teachers, so that, they can share the things going on.
Teachers also have to pay attention towards the new students.
Students facing debt problem because of high tuition fees of the institutions, and this will
be added to their other expenses, like purchasing textbooks, rentals, transportation, foods, etc. It
becomes a big amount for them. So initially students starts to do part time jobs as well, or take
loans, which is problematic for them. So students have to manage the time also, which is another
issue for the foundation year student, they can't handle it properly, because of the pressure of
scoring good at academics, grade points are very important for them, Doing part time job parallel
unbalance their schedule.
The student away from home, feels lonely, if they falls sick , they have to have manage by
themselves, as in schools they are just away little distance from home. Student cares themselves
poorly, they risk their health, it also increases stress and raises emotional breakdowns in them. If
student build good relations with their room -mates, classmates, then it helps in their crucial
time, they get support (Brim, Ryff and Kessler, 2019). But normally if students spends more and
more time together it creates problems, and they don't study properly.
Today's generation is very fast and gets diversion easily, when they start their career, so in
prior of their colleges, they enjoy the freedom and sometimes it leads to the wrong path, Student
enjoys like they party hard, which also includes consumption of the alcohol, drugs, and many
more things, which leads to risk of their lives. Student must be aware of the things, they choose
to do. In their foundation year, student must be excited, but they should choose the right path.
They should party, but in limit.
The foundation year is learning period for the students, they must face the challenges and
overcome from it and focus on their career.
c. Describing how study skills in higher education help foundation year student to overcome
some challenges
In foundation year students have to face various challenges which can affect their concentration
and learning abilities. However students can learn and utilise their study skills to overcome these
challenges. Time management and scheduling is one of the most common problem faced by
foundation year students. However students can try to use their skills to manage time. For
example making notes in lecture and accessing its soft or hard copy during lectures, planning,
preparation of academic writing styles will help students to utilise their time productively.
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Foundation year students are often worried and stressed regarding their performance and
changing educational environment. The excessive stress makes affect their mental health as well
as focus. Thus in such situations students must make their studies organised and task oriented.
Through this approach foundation year students will focus on completing their assignment and
tasks instead of having intrusive thoughts. During the learning process students must also focus
upon dealing stress and boredom (Entwistle and Ramsden, 2015). For instance use of cognitive
and behavioural therapies, strategy and technique to control the negative thoughts. In foundation
year students faces variety of challenges because they find it hard to accept the changes. The
issue can be easily resolved by providing appropriate guidance to students so that they can learn
and accept the changing environment.
The appropriate guidance and encouragement from teachers, family members and other
students can make it easy for the learners to make themselves comfortable in the foundation year.
It will over the learning challenges and difficulties which arises mainly due to lack of
communication skills and cooperation. The foundation year learners can use self evaluation and
assessments so that they can keep themselves motivated and engaged in various activities of
foundation year. Reflective practices in learning are inevitable part of the study skills. The same
skills must also be incorporated in foundation year. Students also experience fear and hesitation
that they cannot perform specific tasks or activities.
In such situation reflective practices from the experience and feedback comments from
the teachers is very helpful. Thus students must also try to accept the feedbacks with positive
enthusiasm and try to improve their practices. The biggest barrier which is identified by the
foundation year students during learning process is that they are afraid of interacting with
teachers. Their curiosity is often suppressed by fear. Thus it is very important that teachers as
well as students must work in collaboration so that effective communication and problem solving
skills can help them to develop effective learning environment (Shah, 2017). The study skills are
beneficial in terms of improving the analytical and communication skills so that they can address
the challenges. The practice of assessment based learning and open communication with the
teachers as well as other classroom members makes study highly efficient. The same practice
must be taken into account by foundation year students as well. It will eliminate the time
management, problem solving, lack of motivation and understanding related challenges of
foundation year.
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d. Conclusion based some key points
By summing up above, it has been concluded that the learning definitely increase the
skills of the student and that is why, study on the foundation skill will increase the adaptability
skills too. Such that it is concluded that study in foundation, the student may easily grab better
opportunities for their future and also increases their learning as well. But on the same time, they
also faces different issues that affect their career like, they faces issue related to language
because they meet with variety of students and they all belongs to different region and culture,.
So it is not easy for them to learn different languages and at that time they faces issues. To
overcome such, the foundation courses prepare the student to face different challenges so that
they will be easily be make themselves comfortable and overcome different issues.
On the other side, it is also concluded that some of the student faces issue related to cope
up with different environment and thus, they feel uncomfortable as well. Therefore, in order to
overcome such issues, foundation teachers provide them variety of induction training session so
that they feel comfortable and learn different things as well which is beneficial for their career.
Thus, it is clear that study in UK provide opportunities to their students so that they may attain
their defined aim and objectives in better way and also enhance their current knowledge as well.
So, study clearly reflect the importance and challenges face by students during foundation year.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Ahn, J. M. and et.al., 2015. Randomized trial of stents versus bypass surgery for left main
coronary artery disease: 5-year outcomes of the PRECOMBAT study. Journal of the
American College of Cardiology.65(20). pp.2198-2206.
Baroutsis, A. and et.al., 2019. Computational thinking as a foundation for coding: Developing
student engagement and learning. Australian Primary Mathematics Classroom. 24(2).
pp.10-15.
Brim, O. G., Ryff, C. D. and Kessler, R. C. eds., 2019. How healthy are we?: A national study of
well-being at midlife. University of Chicago Press.
Entwistle, N. and Ramsden, P., 2015. Understanding student learning (routledge revivals).
Routledge
Frearson, S., 2019. Education and Training: Perceived educational impact, challenges and
opportunities of hospice placements for foundation year doctors: a qualitative study. Future
healthcare journal.6(1). pp.56-60.
Ross, J. and Baker, S. R., 2019. Perceptions of foundation dentists on minor oral surgery
teaching in dental foundation training. European Journal of Dental Education.
Shah, I. A., 2017. Teaching-learning challenges of higher education in the gulf cooperation
council countries. Afro Asian Journal of Social Sciences, VIII, 1, pp.1-18.
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