I think it's time we stop, children, what's that sound? Everybody look what's going down. That's right; it will soon be here, that most dreaded time of the semester - finals.
Even now, professors are piling it on us and we have no choice but to do the best we can to plow ahead. This would be the proper time for many of us to take a look at how we're studying, and if it doesn't seem to be working, may I suggest doing something different. It's a no-brainer.
Let me ask you something: Do you find yourself treading your feet in the waters of academia and getting nowhere? Don't worry, you're not alone. After all, there's not one of us who hasn't failed to reach the goal that seemed to be within reach, but for whatever reason, wasn't. Our hands were outstretched; the goal brushed against our fingertips, but to our dismay, our hands came back empty. Why?
Albert Einstein said, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
An example of this would be when we study, and we do it every single time in a room where there's music playing on our stereo. After all, it's soothing. It relaxes us. Now, if we were to take that stereo out of our room, maybe we'd be able to concentrate not on the music, but on the words written down on the page.
If we think that something is going to change if we do nothing, we are insane. If we place our hand in a cookie jar, we're not going to pull out a donut, that is unless somebody put it in there beforehand. Likewise, we cannot expect an "A" on a test unless we do something different prior to taking the test.
There are many resources a student has free to them right here on campus, and many of us, for one reason or other, neglect to do so.
"Resources at the university abound," said Academic Adviser Karen Spangler. "...like the Learning Center, Career Center, Counseling Center for learning relaxation techniques that can help one prepare for an exam, attending any and all supplemental study sessions, meeting regularly with professors to discuss one's understanding of course content, etcetera."
Before it's too late, let's ask ourselves some fairly hard questions. Are we spending too much time watching television? To be honest, this has been my biggest vice since coming to Ball State. Or are we procrastinating so we can spend more time with our friends? Let's face it, there's a notion to think there will always be more time to do what we need to do later, but that's just not so.
The moment we entered college was the moment our parents let go, and suddenly the responsibility for our future was in our hands. That's a scary thought, for now we have to be responsible for waking up on time. We have to be responsible for getting our homework done. And we are the ones responsible for figuring out what's wrong with our study habits and we are the ones who have to do something about it. There are any number of reasons why we're not doing better, but don't give up, for there's always something we can do about them if we give it that old college try.
Write to Joshua at jsfaris@bsu.edu
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