What study guides for psych?

[dior1]

What study guides can you guys recommend for psych 3/4?

Are the neap smartstudy ones any good, and are they for the current course?
http://www.neap.com.au/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/45_79_51/products_id/425

[jess3254]

I would recommend obtaining the following study guides:
*Checkpoints - a book of practice exam questions. It assists in consolidating knowledge and is really good for revision and SAC preparation.

*PSYCHnotes - I think this summarises the course nicely, and the notes are well structured. I found it a useful revision tool throughout last year.

*VCE psychology podcrammer - MP3 study guide for your iPod. You can listen to a sample on the website to see whether you like the way it's presented. This format suited me in the end, as I was able to study whilst on a walk, or in the morning before school in the car, and it was a nice change from constantly staring at written notes.

From my understanding, NEAP is merely a book of practice examinations, and it doesn't contain notes. I'd advise against purchasing it - there are an extensive range of practice examinations here, and quite a few NEAP have been posted. Your school will also provide you with practice examinations. (NEAP is for the current course though - they've extended the study design accreditation period for psychology to December 2009. So you can still purchase resources which say, 'for the 2005-2008 study design')

Various companies have released study guides for VCE Psychology, however in my opinion, the ones I've listed are probably the best to purchase (although I'm sure some people would disagree with me - it depends on what style of resource suits you too.) I'd advise against buying too many study guides, as you'll probably end up not using all of them anyway (and some of them are really dodgy!) At the most, I'd recommend getting around 3 good quality resources - perhaps 2 to summarise the course to use in conjunction with your textbook and for revision, and 1 for practice questions/ examinations.

[AppleThief]

I second PSYCHnotes. I used it for Unit 3; it was a good book. For Unit 4, I had two textbooks (Nelson, and an old Grivas edition that was 95% pertinent to the current course), so I didn't feel a third resource was necessary.

[ursus]

I used the psychnotes one, it was perfect.

[Eriny]

PSYCHnotes are decent, they explore the course sufficiently (their practice questions - as with that of most companies - weren't the greatest though). The Grivas textbook is also an extremely useful source too. The internet is also actually a potentially good source as well (just make sure the site is credible). I also used a university textbook (I found that their definitions were more nicely put than some of the VCE textbooks). I definitely recommend using more than one resource so you don't miss out on anything that could pop up in the exam.

The good thing is though, beginner psych courses (including VCE psych) are similar wherever you go, the only difference are technical terms and how much depth the courses explore each topic. Therefore, there are a real wealth of resources available. That said, if you are using a resource that was not strictly created for VCE psych, you should make sure you follow the study design very carefully. Also, things in the course can get rather out of date (for instance, you probably won't get good information about fMRIs from a textbook written in the '80s) so it's best to stick to newer sources where possible.

[squance]

PSYCHnotes were awesome. It was a great summary.
I also used Leading Edge. And that was great as well.
I actually borrowed these two books from my teacher and I reckon the PSYCHnotes were the best

[sisqo1111]

Eriny's Notes rocked!

[dior1]

^ where can i find these?
also, sounds like PSYCHnotes are a good choice

[mypurpleundercracka]

^ where can i find these?
also, sounds like PSYCHnotes are a good choice

http://notes.vcenotes.com/?step=download&order=&subject=Psychology&units=&page=2

[dior1]

fantastic, thanks heaps

[Poppy M]

I find the "VCE study pack" from "Jacaranda" really useful, it's just a stick of well written flash cards that are particularly handy right before a sac just to flick through...
I also think PSYCH notes is good and nothing beats Check points for exam revision in any subject...

[kat148]

Creelman VCE Exam Questions
It contains past vce exam questions (from VCAA), arranged in topics, with solutions