Customer Reviews

What Smart Students Know: Maximum Grades. Optimum Learning. Minimum Time.

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Do you have any idea how much easier my life would have been? An incredible book, it points out the irony that of all the things we are taught and study in school the one thing we don't study is perhaps the most important of all: HOW TO STUDY!

I am an intelligent person, but I have never done well in school. An occasional A, a more common B, and often Cs or less. What a surprise to read this book and find that I actually have what the author terms the "attitude of a smart student." This attitude is comprised of a love of learning, a willingness to learn, and the knowledge that no one teaches you better than you teach yourself -- because we all learn in different ways, and only we know how we learn best.

There is a difference, however, between being a smart person and a smart student. Attitude alone is not enough to succeed in the school game if you do not know all the rules. "A smart student knows that school is a game, but it is an important game," writes the author. And one of the most obvious, and most denied, rules is that there is nothing more subjective and biased than grading. This author points out that grades can even be based on how a student dresses, where a student sits, and the teacher's personal opinion of a student. For example, if you have a good reputation as an "A student" but do the same on a project as someone with a bad reputation as an "F student," you will often be graded according to your earned reputation. "All students make mistakes," teachers will often reason, "This is an `A student' mistake and can be excused." For the student who has established an "F student" reputation, the same mistake will be seen in light of his grade history and he will be graded accordingly.

Important in establishing a reputation as a "good student," this author says, is making a good impression early in the course. Dress well, sit near the front of the class, work extra hard on the first few assignments. Teachers are people, people with egos, and they need to be appeased just like anyone else -- which is why arguing openly with teachers, even when you know they are wrong, is not advised unless you want your grade to suffer.

Another unwritten rule of school, a philosophy most teachers and institutions are based on but according to the author they would deny, is the idea that students are not even particularly interested in learning. What's more, textbooks are terribly written and are designed for sales: as many texts to as many schools as possible is the objective, not accessibility or user-friendliness, and often not even correct information (texts are plagued with inaccuracies). This results in watered-down, information-dense tomes that are virtually impenetrable and can kill the student's spirit. The author shows us how to get around this by taking a typically boring and hellish passage about igneous rocks and teaching us how to approach the paragraphs. Underlining and highlighting teaches you how to underline and highlight. What you need to do is actively involve yourself in what you are reading, keep the main themes in mind, and connect the major ideas. Ask yourself questions. Ask the book questions. And key to understanding and internalizing information is 'translating' what you have learned into your own personalized every day language. Put it in "your own words."

I love this book because I respect the author's candor.

This book closes with an open letter to students, parents, teachers, and administrators. In this letter the author admits why he really wrote this book: because he hates what schools do to students, the way it batters their egos and places them in something of a caste system of intelligence, and then will even graduate students who are illiterate simply because they want them out of their face. Schools are mind-control factories that chip away at the students' self-esteem and self-initiative by thrusting him in the "passive" position of sitting in class and being "spoon fed" (author's words) an education. But despite the current crisis in education, this author notes, many schools think they are doing just fine. Schools are businesses, he says, and the objective of a business is to stay in business. They do this year after year by refreshing the student body with new freshmens and graduating the older students. Then the rest of the nation has to pick up the pieces. But it's not entirely the fault of schools, Mr. Robinson says. Students need to take an active role in their own education (despite the fact that what schools teach is passivity), take responsibility for their learning, and enjoy the ride.

The irony, he says, is that smart students enjoy learning, spend less time studying, don't fixate on grades, and usually get the highest marks.

This book encourages the love of learning, not the paranoia of grades.

I am thankful to this book for saying what learning institutions will never admit to: that they don't care about me, so I have to. School is a game and if you want to succeed in it you will need someone to teach you how to play. This book does just that. Whether in grade school, high school, or college, this book will help.

I am going to be a first year in medical school in the fall and bought several books to help me get maximum benefit with minimum time spent studying. Because medical school consists of so much material in a short period of time, I needed to learn study techniques that were unlike my old ones-read, take notes, reread until the test. I have read this book and started implimenting the techniques. They really work. I agree that it would be better to start before a semester begins because the techniques are vastly different from how normal students prepare for exams and would be hard to impliment while taking classes. It is well worth it, though, especially if you are in or are planning to go to college or graduate school. It is a must have.

Robinson's book presents a totally new approach to studying that had never occured to me before, but which makes a lot of sense and really works. The only problem is, it's really time consuming to do this method, especially at first, which makes it hard to stick with it long enough for it to make a difference. I would recommend reading it right before you start a new school year or semester; it's easier to change if you do it right from the beginning.

It's definitely an advanced way of studying--what I mean by that is, this method is for people who already have the basics down. If you know how to take notes, keep your locker organized, and keep up with your reading, and just want to be more efficient, this book is for you. If you first need to work on being generally more responsible about school, start with another book. :-)

Like the other reviewers, I was and am super-impressed with the learning techniques Robinson advocates. A few of the reviewers, however, object that to use all of the techniques requires too much time or effort.

These reviewers miss Robinson's primary point: that traditional "learning" methods are boring, time-consuming, AND ineffective. Think of the methods as a football quarter-back's "playbook:" you don't have to run EVERY play in the book in EVERY game. Robinson himself says that the methods do not apply in every course, and that some methods apply more in some types of courses than others. Robinson does NOT tell students to employ ALL the methods ALL the time.

Another point I'd like to make is that any new set of learning techniques takes time. Heck, typing took me forever to master; but now that I've invested the time it saves me WAY more than the time I spent learning it.

Finally, Robinson's point is that HOWEVER MUCH time you have to devote to your studies, whether it's an hour a day per college course or an hour per week for a high school course -- whatever -- your time is best employed using these methods. If you're short of time, or the test isn't so important, Robinson says to cut back on the methods to fit your time budget and the importance of the test.

The more time you have, and the more important the test, the more you should use Robinson's methods. The less time you have, simply cut back. No biggie.

Either that, or go back to wasting all your time with the old "learning" methods of rereading your notes ad infinitum until test time.

Good luck!

I have been teaching college for 15 years and have always struggled to understand why students do so poorly on assignments. This book opened my eyes - the techniques mirror what I did in school (I thought everyone studied like I did...wrong!). I now use this book in a study skills class I teach. About 95% of my students LOVE this book (and I'm not exaggerating). I think almost all of them have learned something new. In fact many reported that they now feel better about themselves and their grades. Some suggestions are time consuming (and even I would hesitate to do them), but most are little things that students can do to change their habits. He also accurately portrays college professors, textbooks, and the educational system.

Of all the books I have read about the effective study process, this is the BEST!

It is written in a clear, well-organized fashion, & the author does a marvellous job of doing what he sets out to do.

I reckon the principal theme of this wonderful book is anchored on two premises:

- school is a game;
- winning this game is only a question of strategy;

The author, co-founder of the Princeton Review & developer of a revolutionary method for tackling the SAT since the early 80's, introduces an innovative & strategic approach to studying, which accentuates the core value of this book. It lies in the twelve powerful 'Cyberlearning Questions' which have been skillfully crafted by the author. These well-constructed questions will help you to think through and navigate the information overload in your text materials. The author gives a lot of specific study/reading examples to guide the reader.

Most students treat reading/studying as a regurgitating process. In essence, reading/studying is a thinking - and reflective - process. Questions help you think and reflect better - and faster. Not only that, they help you retain and recall the learnt information faster.

Think about it, a 'question mark' when inverted looks exactly like a 'fishing hook'. It 'hooks' into your memory banks. The 'Cyberlearning Questions' have been specifically designed for this purpose.

For any student who wants to master his life in school and in college (or even in the university), and if you can just learn and then master these twelve questions, your life will be a breeze. Guaranteed!

In fact, I would strongly recommend all teachers to read this book if they really want to help their students to excel in school. The twelve questions will greatly enhance their repertoire of teaching tools.

As a matter of fact, I have incorporated (with some adaptations) all the twelve questions in my own training programs with teachers and school kids across all levels. For working professionals who want to read faster, these twelve questions can be easily adapted to cater to their reading needs. I have proven them in my own workshops with entrepreneurs, professionals and managers.

In other words, this great book is also suitable for all working professionals, especially those taking evening MBA programs.

Nevertheless, I would still recommend young readers to read this book jointly with Sean Covey's Seven Habits for Highly Effective Teens. This is my reason: The first three habits, namely, Be Proactive, Having the End in Mind, and First Things First, as outlined in the book, must come first for any student who wants to achieve personal success in school life.

To put into perspective, once you exercise personal initiative, take consistent and prioritised action - and with a specific purpose in your mind, the strategy of using the twelve questions will easily fall into place.

As a matter of fact, the author argues that successful students are not necessarily any more brilliant than the less successful ones, but have simply mastered powerful habits.

In the case of matured students, please read Stephen Covey (the author's father)'s book.

Though WHAT SMART STUDENTS KNOW is intended as an aid for people attending school, I would also highly recommend it for those who, like me, are not currently enrolled but are interested in what is sometimes referred to as "un-schooling," i.e., clearing one's mind of the backward concepts upon which schooling is founded. Author Adam Robinson argues that one of the most backward concepts taught in school is that if you do not enjoy attending, fail to get good grades, and do not learn in the way lesson plans are structured, then there is something wrong with you. "More likely," he corrects, "there is something wrong with school." He does not mince words. The epilogue includes an open letter to teachers, parents, students, school administrators, and politicians, that reveals Robinson's real reason for writing this book: he hates what school does to students.

Robinson is "angry at how school produces submissive students with battered egos." This is exactly what happened to me. I never liked school ("hate" would be a better word for how I felt). I thought this meant that I was stupid (this self-appraisal was aided by the fact that my first grade teacher claimed I had learning disabilities; Robinson sheds light on this outrageous phenomenon, explaining that teachers often use this label as punishment for rebellious, independently-minded students). I eventually developed a phobia of reading and felt guilty about the fact that I enjoy learning on my own, in my own time (going public on Amazon.com with what I have learned has been a great source of personal growth for me). Thanks to WHAT SMART STUDENTS KNOW, I realize that I was never stupid and there was never anything shameful about the fact that I learn better on my own. In fact, Robinson says that we are all our own best teachers, that no one teaches us better than we teach ourselves. Ironically, Robinson has taught me that I in fact possess the attitude necessary for success in school, an attitude built upon the conviction that learning is not important only when it is being graded. Learning happens all the time, in all aspects of life, not just in schools.

I really can't praise this book enough. Adam Robinson has helped liberate my soul. I know that sounds a bit verbose, but I believe this is only because we underestimate the extent to which our school experience shapes our self-conception. As John Taylor Gatto, an associate of Robinson and whose praise appears on this book's jacket (Gatto was voted "Teacher of the Year" several years running in New York City and state), has explained, schools are largely prison-like institutions where we are often abused. We carry this abuse, the damage done to our self-esteem, with us throughout our lives (it wasn't until reading Gatto that I realized how ridiculous it is that economic success is often closely linked to performance in school; for elaboration on this, I recommend Gatto's THE UNDERGROUND HISTORY OF AMERICAN EDUCATION). John Taylor Gatto says that in reality it only takes about 100 hours to learn how to read, write, and do basic math. The trick, he says, is to wait until the student is interested in learning the particular subject, and then move quickly. Why, if the basics can be learned rather easily, does basic schooling take 12 years? Because, according to Gatto, the real goal of compulsory education is to teach students to conform, to become pegs in the corporate system of the nation - they feel they need 12 years to achieve this objective. The aim of totalitarian education, Gatto claims, is not to teach conviction, but destroy the capacity to form any. I had thought there was something wrong with me for resisting this lesson. WHAT SMART STUDENTS KNOW has taught me that I had it right from the start: there is nothing wrong with me; there is something wrong with school!

Andrew Parodi

All through high school and college nobody ever teaches you how to learn. Some students may have older siblings or parents who have excelled in school and can let them in on the secrets, but I, unfortunately, wasn't one of them. I couldn't figure out why I had to study so much and didn't do well on tests when others seemed to be doing much better than I was. I rarely aced a test. Then this book was recommended to me by another student and it has totally changed the way think about my classes and mostly how to take notes and actually learn and do well on tests. It also increases your self-esteem because you don't feel like beating yourself up or dropping a class when you do poorly on a test. This is the best money you will spend in school.

I'm a profoundly deaf student mainstreaming at a California State University. Was frustrated in the last three semesters...no matter how hard I studied, my grades were not as good as in high school and I KNOW I can do better. Didn't expect this book to help me...I mean...I TRIED all ways I could think of to improve my grade (grumble).

Turned out to help me so well that I am already having too much free time in the past three months. Even if I have to go the extra mile as a deaf student. It's true that old habits are hard to break, I still have some tiresome old studying habits. But, it's slowly changing... Mind me, habits can't be changed overnight.

No matter who you are, one getting straight A's or struggling for C's, I STRONGLY suggest you to sniff out a copy of this book.

I'm like halfway through this book, and I have to say, it's a lot to take in. I especially don't get the part where he says that any student trying to memorize everything in his book is missing the point, but I find that I have to persistenly remind myself on the major questions or else I completely forget them and confuse myself on the subsequent questions. Overall, the change in attitude depends on the reader's own patience and how open minded they are. Change is also scary so it's a lot more comfortable and safe to read through this and then go back to the old study habits of mindlessly going over notes. Robinson's goal is to help students surpass the superficial study methods that are extremely tedious and completely unmotivating up to the point where we can go back to a time when learning was suppose to be just that: learning. Students are so concerned with grades these days that they've lost complete meaning of what it means to learn; they're only motivating factor is the fear of failure but this is not enough to truly emerge themselves into anything. Robinson is also extremely patient and goes over everything in such detail so that the reader will have complete understanding of it, and says that for every 5 pages it takes for him to explain everything, it will only take 5 seconds of us to do it in our head once we've mastered it. His repetitions are purposely there so that it can be engraved into our minds and that it can come up to the point where we subconsciously use his methods in the most effective way.