College and High school
A student wrote to me: “I did well in high school and got good grade. I always get things done on time with good results. However when I go to college, I did not do well and cannot seem to study hard. I do not know why. Please help."
Answer: In high school everything is well structured. Teachers watch students' performance and attendance. If you do not turn in your homeworks on time, teachers will you ask you why. If you do not have a good reason, you will receive a disciplined action. However in college, no one is watching to make sure that you come to class, or do homework. No one pay attention to whether you work on your assignments, review readings, or study for exams. You are an adult and must be responsible for yourself. College professors are often busy and they treat students as adults so if you do not perform well, you will receive a bad grade. If you do not improve, you will be expelled.
Many students are not prepared for college. Some are not matured enough to be responsible for themselves. Many are not familiar with the new environment and often confused between high school and college. It is important for students to know that college does not provide a “structural discipline” environment to help you learn. You will have to do it yourself by applying “self-discipline” to your learning. You must schedule your time for studying; monitor how much you study as well as your work on class assignments.
The most basic self-discipline is going to class every day. It seems simple but many students do not do that because most professors do not take attendance. Imagine that a student play videogame all night and feel tired so he skips a few classes on the next day. In high school teachers will notice that and probably give warning but in college professors do not warn anyone, it is NOT their job. What will happen when students do not attend class? What will happen when students missed a lot of class? Of course, they will not do well.
Some students believe that they can read books or borrow their friends' notes to make up. Most professors do not teach from books. Books are for reference only. Classes are where students discuss and learn new information, new ideas, and new knowledge. When students go to class every day, they get all the information, all the ideas. They understand professors’ teaching and expectations because they cannot learn it from anyone else. If you go to class every day, you do not need to rely on your friend's incomplete notes. You get to hear it directly from the professors and if you do not understand, you can ask questions. So the first self-discipline that you need in college is going to class every day.
Being in class is the first step; the second step is to pay attention. You must listen to what the professor says and take notes. Some students go to class and sleep; some go to class but busy sending text messages to girlfriends or boyfriends; some read emails, other read online newspapers or study for another class; some quietly chat with friends. Some chat online or send funny notes to nearby friends. You need to know that you are in college, not high school anymore. If you want to study then study. If you want to play then get out of the class and play but do not expect to do well in school. You go to college to learn so paying attention means you are serious about learning.
To learn requires effort so my advice is for every hour in class, you will need two hours to study by yourself in a quiet place so you can concentrate then one more hour to study with friends or with a study team. Students often complain about this rule. One student told me: “I have five classes every day, it means fifteen hours of study according to your rule. It is insane. Where do I find time to go out with friends? Life is not just to study.” I explained: “You do not go to school to go out with friends. You go to school to get educated. Your parents do not pay for you to go out with friends. They expect to invest in your education so you have a better future. You can go out with friends all day and all night but do not expect to do well in school. You have four years in school to develop certain knowledge and skills; you will have all of your life to use it. You spend four years in school to go out with friend; you also have all of your life regretting it.”
Basically, you go to college to learn and what you develop there will stay with you for the rest of your life. Since college is not structured like high school, you must discipline yourself by go to class, pay attention and put your efforts in learning. You may not see any difference now but after graduate you will see big difference between a college graduate and a college drop-out. There is a big difference between a skilled professional and an unskilled and unemployed person. It is your life so try to make the best out of it and not waste it on something else.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
