BIRCHAM INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

• Intelligence.

Intelligence is the faculty that allows us to assimilate new concepts and find relationships between different ideas, to adapt to new situations by resorting to our cognitive skills, such as reading, calculating, memorizing, imagining, and so on. Establishing associations, relating ideas and assimilating concepts is much more important than pure memory work. If we first develop these cognitive skills, piecing together memories by associating ideas becomes easier.

• Understanding any text.

The majority of the texts are organized according to several structural patterns. In order to understand and remember what we read, first we need to recognize the organization of the information in the text. The best way to achieve this is to identify the structural pattern of the text we will be working with. This will be also of a great help in the development and presentation of any academic work required. When we are reading with the purpose in mind to comprehend, assimilate, and remember concepts, we need to organize them in a structured way, or otherwise we will probably end up with a cluster of disorganized ideas.

• Most common structures of text organization:

1- Problem / Solution structure:
Problem: To make both ends meet.
Effects: Expenses are higher than my income.
Cause: Unemployment.
Solution: Find a job, steal, enlist in the army...

2.- Opinion:
Opinion: The next president should be a woman.
Reasons: Women are better managers, they are less inclined to begin a war, and are more sympathetic to other people.
Conclusion: Vote for the female candidate.

3.- Thesis:
Thesis: Alcoholism is caused by...
Research/experimental data: Recent laboratory experiments...
Conclusion: ... to prevent alcoholism in adults.

4.- Description:
Purpose: To inform.
Presentation: Summary of the main points.

5.- Instructions:
Setting the purpose: To have a hard-boiled egg...
First step: Place an egg in a container filled with cold water.
Second step: Put the container on the stove.
Third step: Bring it to a boil.
Reaching the objective: In ten minutes you will have a hard-boiled egg