Hey, summer’s here! I’ll get a summer job, hang out with the gang back home, party with friends, put school behind me and forget everything I learned …. And that’s the problem. It’s called “summer learning loss.” Students of all ages tend to lose some of the knowledge they gained during class the year before. To keep your brain in learning mode so you don’t get out of practice, do some summer reading of books in your field (history books, modern literature, science books, psychology journals), attend a lecture or get a summer internship. Continue reading
Congratulations to Addie Ratcliff from the University of Indianapolis, as the winner of MindTap’s “Show us a Slice of Your Life” video contest. Our friends at MindTap challenged you to make a video showing what makes you a unique learner while peeling an orange in a creative way, and the response was incredible. Out of more than 300 video entries, six videos were chosen as finalists, and online voting took place in early May to choose the final winners. Over 5,000 votes were cast and Addie’s video was voted as the favorite. Addie, creator of the “Peel of the Day” project showed us how she creates inspirational messages out of orange peels and leaves them around campus for people to see. It seems everyone was inspired by her unique learning style, “to truly learn, means not giving up when the learning gets difficult”. She will receive a $2500 scholarship to reward her efforts. 
Eight weeks of doing nothing but working on your tan and seeing how many hours you can pack into one night’s sleep. That may sound like a pretty darn good summer vacation plan now, but the smartest college students know that to stay sharp over the break we have to keep the ‘ole noodle active! Read on to discover five ideas we can use to have a great summer vacation, without wrecking our back-to-school experience come fall. 
Aack, it’s that time of year! The summer sun is calling, but before we break for freedom, there are those needling final exams to get through. The final exam torture routine includes all-night study sessions and copious amounts of Red Bull. We scour study tips and test taking tips in the hopes of gaining a few extra points on our tests. Often we know what we’re supposed to do — practice effective study habits; get a good night’s sleep. But there are plenty of things we should not do. Here are some fool-proof ways to bomb your finals (that you should probably avoid!): 
Ah summer time … a time to kick back, enjoy the beach, sleep in and take a class? While the thinking has long been that the months of June and July are when college students decompress and step away from the classroom, summer school courses can be a way to get ahead. Overachiever looking to graduate early? Changed your major and don’t want to fall behind? Just so darn smart your brain can’t take a break? Whatever the reason, find out if summer school is right for you. 
