Help Needed - Home Study

Dear Georgiad,

I'm currently working on my last unit of this stage, which I've done by distance learning / home study, so might be able to help with some of your issues…

Motivation
This can be one of the more difficult aspects of home study but don’t worry - it gets easier!

Whats your purpose of doing this level? Do you enjoy it? Is it part of a bigger objective? Having a clear understanding of why you’re doing it should help to actually do it. Make a list of all the benefits and remind yourself of them when you can’t get going.

Set yourself achievable goals, and break them down - e.g. the unit by October, chapter x for next week, task x by Monday night and so on. You’ll find satisfaction in meeting these goals, or perhaps even doing better, that gives you a push to carry on. If not, try rewarding yourself for meeting those goals.

Also, you've probably heard it 100 times, but try to find your best time for studying and re-arrange your other committments round it if you can. If you're trying to study when you've got other things to do you'll end up thinking about everything else and not working productively.

Working with someone you don’t get on with
This is very common unfortunately, and you’ll probably have to work with many people you don’t see eye-to-eye with throughout your life. Try to put aside personal feelings, or find something good about him/her and focus on that. Alternatively, is there an underlying problem - do they have a lot on and resent being asked to help you? If so, speak to your manager next time they’re available and explain the circumstances; they may be able to assign someone else.

Also, ask yourself if you do actually need to speak to them. Can you find out the information from somewhere else? Can you speak to someone at BPP? Have you looked at other text books or on this forum? I’ve used both Osborne and Kaplan books for this level - both of which were miles better than the study material provided by my previous distance learning provider.

Understanding the work
All your issues are interrelated so the above suggestions should help this part also. Re-read any parts of the text you don’t understand, or try using different text books as suggested earlier. Also, always give 100% effort when you’re attempting the tasks. Only then should you look at the answer. If you still don’t understand the concept note the question down but don’t dwell on it - move on to the next task. At the end of the chapter go back to the parts you’ve noted down - do they make sense now? Sometimes one part helps you to understand another. If some bits still don't make sense, you should then approach your manager or other member of staff. If you actively show that you’re giving your best effort, they’re more likely to want to help you.

Last but not least, home study is not for everyone. If you’re really struggling perhaps block release or night classes would be better suited to you - either way, you should probably speak to your manager. Give them a copy of your post and this reply if you’re worried about how to approach them. They might disagree with everything I’ve suggested but at least it‘ll give you the opportunity to discuss matters properly. If they’ve had other students through the company they’ll probably have had this situation before and will be able to advise you much better than I can!

Good luck!

Well at least I'm not alone!! I done foundation, intermediate and half of techncian at College, unfortunately my college weren't offering auditing so I am completing that, my project & DFS via home study. I am going to try and book out so many hours each week and stick to it, chapter by chapter. At least we are all here to support each other.

:001_tt2::001_smile::001_tt2:

Home Study

Hi there
was interested in your post regarding Home Study

I was wondering with this choice how do you take the exams ? Do you have to register with a local college or is there a central exam centre where the exams are sit

cheers

Ffoxy