High school is no different from life. In fact, it is an intimate part of it. You are in it up to your notebook and pen. Just as there are needy people in the community we live in, so there are needy students at school. They are not bold enough to ask for help. You see them struggle. They may always be lacking even the most basic equipment. Their pen is often broken, they are forced to use one scruffy notebook for every subject. What do you do about it? Nothing? Do you comfort yourself with sad feelings of regret for someone who is really in need of a helping hand, rather than your lame guilt-ridden sympathy? Get off your butt. Get a few friends together and see if maybe you could come up with one or two ideas to give a supporting hand. Only needs one or two. It sure does not need a whole book filled with ideas to give someone the lift they need that turns failure into success.
It is those few caring, helping and supporting gestures that really make the difference, not the grandiose waffle of those who talk a lot about how it is a shame that some people are not so fortunate and who have the means to do massive good but content themselves with the ephemeral. Champions of the world and its ills, blown in the dust.
But you can do something. You can easily help with very little cost in either time or other resources. If you do it will strengthen you as a person, it will create a positive ripple around you. There are so many benefits that come with helping someone out. A good feeling accompanies your effort, knowing you can actually improve the life of a fellow student. If you support them with your knowledge by going over material they are unsure of, your capacity to learn will advance in leaps and bounds as your brain explores alternatives within the same content and stretches to boundaries it never knew. Sometimes even a friendly gesture is enough to get people through to the end of the day feeling more positive about their life. Positivity can snowball out from you. It does not have to change you in any way but if you let it, you will find that increased opportunity and strengthening knowledge are just two of some wonderful benefits.
It doen't have to be much; share a few tips, show them your study planner or time management planner. Could you spare a notebook, pen? Could you help them out after school in the library? Maybe you could give up a burger and buy a notebook you could take along and allow this person to use it. That would be awesome, giving up a small pleasure to help someone out. They will be grateful. The help will always be remembered in a world where too many are too focused on self.
Those who do give back a little in this way will tell you they get back tenfold what they selflessly give out. Give it a go and improve the life of someone who is within your sphere; enjoy the consequences.
Good luck with your studies and enjoy a successful future
Have a great day
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Don't try to jump too high
How well did you score on your last piece of assessed work? Did you like the score? Do you really want a better future, secured by exam results that more truly tell everyone what your ability actually is? OK, say you do, then how much better does your result have to get? How much better can it get? Sometimes we get too enthusiastic and try to jump up our marks too quickly and are disappointed when it does not happen. If you have been getting D's or E's or F's or whatever your school uses to show grades lower down the scale, then you are working from a relatively weak foundation. The first bit of the challenge is to get things going. Aim for a couple of small successes and do not be too hard on yourself about progress, for reasons I will show you below. Celebrate small improvement, even if just means you have turned the corner and you feel you are setting yourself up for success. You know you are worth it, you know you can give it a go, so just go with it and try.
Why should you not worry too much about improving your mark too quickly from not passing to passing with flying colors, especially if you have a history of low achievement in a subject? Just think of the following for a moment. To jump from an E to a D is a very big jump so don't be too disappointed if that does not happen on the first one or two attempts. Say you go from mid E around 12% to a low D around 30%. You need to get two and a half times your results to make this massive jump (a 150% improvement in your marks). And, you must do this from a fairly weak position. So you need to make up an awful lot of ground to do this. When you make it, you can be hugely proud.
So now it becomes easier.
From mid D around 36% to low C around 55%, the jump is only about one and a half times (a 50% increase in your marks). You will also be working from a much more sturdy platform of results. Even easier is the jump from mid C around 60% to low B around 72%. This is a mere one fifth bigger score (a 20% increase in your marks) from a position where you were already passing and so had a fair idea of the subject material. The higher grades are more about perfection of presentation of argument, structure and small changes. We will get to work on this too but not right now.
Now you can see why your early efforts may not result in the grades you wanted. However the improvement will be going on and gradually building up as you put in the effort, get organised, sort out the correct equipment and so on. They all add, little by little, until they become invincible; your grades start to creep up, your confidence starts to grow and you feel better about the whole high school experience. Once you get it all happening, slow though this may be, you will find that your own frame of mind plus your better background knowledge will help you climb even further but with lowered barriers as things start to fall into place. It may take time. Please do not give up before you give yourself a chance. You deserve the result. Be a bit patient.The first few strides take time. The momentum will build. You will feel great pride in your growth as you lock in a future with an enviable track to follow.
So you can see the biggest jumps are in the lower grades but they are also the easiest to organise for successful stepping up. You can ramp everything up as you get settled into each step in progress. So try to get going with that. Follow ideas you see here and watch your grades grow.
Try for gradual improvement, not massive. Your grades will be able to stabilise and maintain at each level as you grow at a slow and steady pace.
Good luck with your studies
Have a great day
Why should you not worry too much about improving your mark too quickly from not passing to passing with flying colors, especially if you have a history of low achievement in a subject? Just think of the following for a moment. To jump from an E to a D is a very big jump so don't be too disappointed if that does not happen on the first one or two attempts. Say you go from mid E around 12% to a low D around 30%. You need to get two and a half times your results to make this massive jump (a 150% improvement in your marks). And, you must do this from a fairly weak position. So you need to make up an awful lot of ground to do this. When you make it, you can be hugely proud.
So now it becomes easier.
From mid D around 36% to low C around 55%, the jump is only about one and a half times (a 50% increase in your marks). You will also be working from a much more sturdy platform of results. Even easier is the jump from mid C around 60% to low B around 72%. This is a mere one fifth bigger score (a 20% increase in your marks) from a position where you were already passing and so had a fair idea of the subject material. The higher grades are more about perfection of presentation of argument, structure and small changes. We will get to work on this too but not right now.
Now you can see why your early efforts may not result in the grades you wanted. However the improvement will be going on and gradually building up as you put in the effort, get organised, sort out the correct equipment and so on. They all add, little by little, until they become invincible; your grades start to creep up, your confidence starts to grow and you feel better about the whole high school experience. Once you get it all happening, slow though this may be, you will find that your own frame of mind plus your better background knowledge will help you climb even further but with lowered barriers as things start to fall into place. It may take time. Please do not give up before you give yourself a chance. You deserve the result. Be a bit patient.The first few strides take time. The momentum will build. You will feel great pride in your growth as you lock in a future with an enviable track to follow.
So you can see the biggest jumps are in the lower grades but they are also the easiest to organise for successful stepping up. You can ramp everything up as you get settled into each step in progress. So try to get going with that. Follow ideas you see here and watch your grades grow.
Try for gradual improvement, not massive. Your grades will be able to stabilise and maintain at each level as you grow at a slow and steady pace.
Good luck with your studies
Have a great day
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Homework. How much should I do?
How much homework is enough when you are in high school? This is a tough question and, seriously, it is up to you, not up to a teacher, to judge. How can you tell when enough is enough? Do all your grades have to be A+ to tell you have done enough? Do you have to have a nerdy image? Do you have to sit home all weekend studying while your friends are out enjoying themselves? These are not good ways to judge how much value you are getting out of homework. More, more, more is a poor strategy and a dreadful way to use your time. It is definitely not a wise use of time. Remember that in high school your biggest asset and biggest adversary can be time. We want to use it in the most efficient and balanced way. Balanced is important.
OK, what then should you do to judge the amount of homework necessary for success at high school? How do you know when it's enough before exams and will let you reach better grades and further Success at School?
Do the right amount. What? Yes, the right amount. You may do a bit too much, but only a bit.
Try to judge your own need for homework. You must do what the teacher sets or, if you regularly find the work too targeted at students less able, negotiate with your teacher to leave out some of the easier tasks and replace them with harder ones. Remember that you may do the easy (easy to you) ones much quicker than others in your class. Do not do 10, find them easy and set out to do another 10 at the same level. There is little benefit in this. It is time wasted. You should stop or make better use of the time. You actually get to choose. So this is one area where we have actually made time where we can use it more flexibly. Take less time and use it for other pursuits or use it to work on more difficult subjects or use it to reach higher grades in this subject. That is a pretty cool set of choices. Let your teachers know you are trying to improve your grades, that you are developing a plan to do this. Try teacher by teacher as you feel more confident with your strategy. Get them involved in your plan. They may even join in and begin to set two levels of homework to help out. In high school, teachers tend to be more approachable as you get older so take advantage of it and go see them.
This applies to any subject. You know the level the class is working at because you are in the middle of it. Read on from where your teacher left off. If it is a subject you enjoy, google information to see what you can do to expand your knowledge. Add an edge to set work to enhance your learning. Again, be honest. Do not do it to make yourself look good. It will come undone at some point, maybe disastrously. Do you really have a strong enough foundation to move on up? Do you have the time?
How do you know if you can do more? On your next assigned homework task (some problems for math, a short paragraph for English, a sketch for art, and so on), work unaided by notes, texts, Google, Facebook, friends etc. ... In other words, no reference material. Do the task with just pen/pencil and what you remember. Can you do it? Can you do it well? If you can then for that topic or skill you are ready to move on and add more to your knowledge. Do it. Learn how to judge when you have done enough homework.
Good luck with your studies.
Have a great day
OK, what then should you do to judge the amount of homework necessary for success at high school? How do you know when it's enough before exams and will let you reach better grades and further Success at School?
Do the right amount. What? Yes, the right amount. You may do a bit too much, but only a bit.
Try to judge your own need for homework. You must do what the teacher sets or, if you regularly find the work too targeted at students less able, negotiate with your teacher to leave out some of the easier tasks and replace them with harder ones. Remember that you may do the easy (easy to you) ones much quicker than others in your class. Do not do 10, find them easy and set out to do another 10 at the same level. There is little benefit in this. It is time wasted. You should stop or make better use of the time. You actually get to choose. So this is one area where we have actually made time where we can use it more flexibly. Take less time and use it for other pursuits or use it to work on more difficult subjects or use it to reach higher grades in this subject. That is a pretty cool set of choices. Let your teachers know you are trying to improve your grades, that you are developing a plan to do this. Try teacher by teacher as you feel more confident with your strategy. Get them involved in your plan. They may even join in and begin to set two levels of homework to help out. In high school, teachers tend to be more approachable as you get older so take advantage of it and go see them.
This applies to any subject. You know the level the class is working at because you are in the middle of it. Read on from where your teacher left off. If it is a subject you enjoy, google information to see what you can do to expand your knowledge. Add an edge to set work to enhance your learning. Again, be honest. Do not do it to make yourself look good. It will come undone at some point, maybe disastrously. Do you really have a strong enough foundation to move on up? Do you have the time?
How do you know if you can do more? On your next assigned homework task (some problems for math, a short paragraph for English, a sketch for art, and so on), work unaided by notes, texts, Google, Facebook, friends etc. ... In other words, no reference material. Do the task with just pen/pencil and what you remember. Can you do it? Can you do it well? If you can then for that topic or skill you are ready to move on and add more to your knowledge. Do it. Learn how to judge when you have done enough homework.
Good luck with your studies.
Have a great day
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Measuring your success. School report suck? Really?
Can you run 100m in under 10 seconds, swim 100m in less than 50 seconds, jump higher than 2.4 meters? Me neither. Most of the world cannot even achieve one of these, certainly not all three. So why at school do we insist on similar comparisons? We are not all world record holders, we are not all 'A' students in every subject we study. Should we be? Can we be? No. How we reflect on our success at school should be an internal measurement. Measured against our own potential, how well are we doing? If we are really honest with ourselves, how well does our school report really reflect how well we have done? Does it represent me working at or near my potential? This is what you think about to discover your real measure of success.
Some subjects just click, some never do. Some students are devastated if their usual A+ appears as an 'A', others celebrate with all the bells and whistles when they earn a barely passing grade. So reading a 'C' in History next to your name can be an event worth celebrating and making public or one that requires significant disaster control. Being honest with yourself is one of the keys to your Success at School. Don't kid yourself that you have worked hard or studied adequately when, in fact, you have clearly missed your targets. Study needs a structure to support it. It is not something you just pile on right before exams and hope for the best. Some sort of plan becomes more and more necessary the further you are through your education. Establish good habits early in life, the earlier the better.
Be kind to yourself, as well as a little strict. More importantly be determined, backed up by your vision to be a Success at School as part of a better future. Do not excuse your poor work habits by blaming anyone else or your environment, do not accept marks below your potential either; pointing at teachers, the school, facilities, resources and so on. Take your success seriously and tackle it with energy. We do live in tough times and sometimes we have to suffer less than ideal conditions; conditions which influence and, in some way, direct our learning. If you listen, dozens of people, texts and videos will bore (inspire?) you with stories of hardship overcome. Heard a few of those? Hmmm.
You do not have to leap tall buildings or commit to the training regime of a world record-holding athlete. You do have to set up a scheme that both suits you and works for you. One that gradually improves your current grades, one that gradually makes your future a better place to be. Hold those thoughts as your results turn upwards, as comments improve, as study and exams become more doable, as homework is done well within time as your Success at School becomes more certain.
Good luck with your high school studies. Have a great day
Some subjects just click, some never do. Some students are devastated if their usual A+ appears as an 'A', others celebrate with all the bells and whistles when they earn a barely passing grade. So reading a 'C' in History next to your name can be an event worth celebrating and making public or one that requires significant disaster control. Being honest with yourself is one of the keys to your Success at School. Don't kid yourself that you have worked hard or studied adequately when, in fact, you have clearly missed your targets. Study needs a structure to support it. It is not something you just pile on right before exams and hope for the best. Some sort of plan becomes more and more necessary the further you are through your education. Establish good habits early in life, the earlier the better.
Be kind to yourself, as well as a little strict. More importantly be determined, backed up by your vision to be a Success at School as part of a better future. Do not excuse your poor work habits by blaming anyone else or your environment, do not accept marks below your potential either; pointing at teachers, the school, facilities, resources and so on. Take your success seriously and tackle it with energy. We do live in tough times and sometimes we have to suffer less than ideal conditions; conditions which influence and, in some way, direct our learning. If you listen, dozens of people, texts and videos will bore (inspire?) you with stories of hardship overcome. Heard a few of those? Hmmm.
You do not have to leap tall buildings or commit to the training regime of a world record-holding athlete. You do have to set up a scheme that both suits you and works for you. One that gradually improves your current grades, one that gradually makes your future a better place to be. Hold those thoughts as your results turn upwards, as comments improve, as study and exams become more doable, as homework is done well within time as your Success at School becomes more certain.
Good luck with your high school studies. Have a great day
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Sit near the front for more Success at School
Why sit near the front? Why will I do better and improve my grades if I sit near the front? In some classroom situations this may be hard to do. Some students may harass those who sit near the front. They may be teased as nerdy or trying to be the teacher's pet. It can be a fine and risky balance. Is it worth the risk? Sit as close to the front as possible; even if you move one row forward or one seat closer to the centre of the classroom. If your class is already underway, maybe you have to wait until the start of the next semester to claim your seat. The move will be worth it.
Why move? Next time you go into your classroom, if you do not sit at the back or far away from the teacher's desk, imagine yourself in one of those seats. Note some of the barriers to a smooth learning curve. The things to look out for? Anything that would distract a clear focus on the learning situation. Picture you from the back and the impact of mini events like:
If you become a friendly face, even by the default that being involved gives, you are more likely to get favours determined by the de facto relationship due to seating. This may take the face of sympathy for awarding those marginal marks, more generous extension to due dates, even the chance of the reference that teachers are reluctant to give.
That aside, the main advantage is the academic advantage you gain. You may hear more tips than those further back in the buzz zone of the class where there is often more distracting activity going on. Teacher infill comment may help you with your notes, you do not miss the spoken information, especially that inferred by work going up on the board with short anecdotes revealed as the content is delivered. You steer clear of the distractions while maintaining your valued connections with all class members. A teacher who is roaming to see if students need some help or guidance, will stop first with those closest. This is good because you do not have to stand out from the crowd by signalling that you need help. All good. All advantageous. All promote Success at School.
Good luck with your studies.
Have a great day
Why move? Next time you go into your classroom, if you do not sit at the back or far away from the teacher's desk, imagine yourself in one of those seats. Note some of the barriers to a smooth learning curve. The things to look out for? Anything that would distract a clear focus on the learning situation. Picture you from the back and the impact of mini events like:
- The person on your right throws some paper over their shoulder
- Diagonally to the left is a conversation going on as soon as the teacher turns away
- Right in front of you is someone signalling another across the room
- Further to the front is someone drawing on their desk
- I'm sure you can add loads more
If you become a friendly face, even by the default that being involved gives, you are more likely to get favours determined by the de facto relationship due to seating. This may take the face of sympathy for awarding those marginal marks, more generous extension to due dates, even the chance of the reference that teachers are reluctant to give.
That aside, the main advantage is the academic advantage you gain. You may hear more tips than those further back in the buzz zone of the class where there is often more distracting activity going on. Teacher infill comment may help you with your notes, you do not miss the spoken information, especially that inferred by work going up on the board with short anecdotes revealed as the content is delivered. You steer clear of the distractions while maintaining your valued connections with all class members. A teacher who is roaming to see if students need some help or guidance, will stop first with those closest. This is good because you do not have to stand out from the crowd by signalling that you need help. All good. All advantageous. All promote Success at School.
Good luck with your studies.
Have a great day
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Someone is stealing your future
While you sit in class and daydream or chat to the student near you; as you wander through the mall looking at potential partners, new electronics; as you watch a movie for the zillionth time, saying the words as the actors do; think. Someone is stealing your future. It may be the good looking shop assistant you fancied, or the most valued player in the game you watch, or the surfer at the beach. You will never know. Not just one, but many people will be stealing your future in your idle time. The future you have laid out as a result of planning and commitment to do well is being eroded by people your age all over the country; probably the world these days.
OMG
Who are these people and what can you do about it? These people are students just like you. They listen to the same music, wear the same clothes and sit on the same beach. You cannot pick them out. In the future, you will be able to find them easily. Go to the top of a company; find leading entrepreneurs; look for champions of just causes; watch the news and hear inspirational politicians and researchers announcing cures for endemic diseases. You will find their names attached to fabulous artworks, literature and architecture. Didn't you want your name in there somewhere? Can't happen. Can't happen unless you act now to stop it.
While you goof off, there are students everywhere reading, listening, analysing, drawing, organising notes. They have their gameplan and are sticking to it. You are losing the race if you do not do the same. While we are young, even when older but less so, we are in a series of queues. Queues for jobs, training, University or College entrance, fast food. For most young people your position in each queue is determined by your Success at School. You are not competing with just the others you see in your classes at school. Every student across the State/Country in similar classrooms, gazing out from similar windows, is competing for the same things.
This is where you now have the advantage. For every one person you get ahead of in your classes, there may be thousands you get ahead of in the life queues; those really important queues you plan to be near the front of after you leave school and enter your future as a successful applicant to all you set your mind to. So listen to what is going on. Apply yourself at every opportunity. Relax and enjoy your youth, but beware of the challenge. Everyone you pass in the results of your classes is equivalent to hundreds, even thousands, of places in those important post-school queues.
Good luck with your studies
Have a great day
OMG
Who are these people and what can you do about it? These people are students just like you. They listen to the same music, wear the same clothes and sit on the same beach. You cannot pick them out. In the future, you will be able to find them easily. Go to the top of a company; find leading entrepreneurs; look for champions of just causes; watch the news and hear inspirational politicians and researchers announcing cures for endemic diseases. You will find their names attached to fabulous artworks, literature and architecture. Didn't you want your name in there somewhere? Can't happen. Can't happen unless you act now to stop it.
While you goof off, there are students everywhere reading, listening, analysing, drawing, organising notes. They have their gameplan and are sticking to it. You are losing the race if you do not do the same. While we are young, even when older but less so, we are in a series of queues. Queues for jobs, training, University or College entrance, fast food. For most young people your position in each queue is determined by your Success at School. You are not competing with just the others you see in your classes at school. Every student across the State/Country in similar classrooms, gazing out from similar windows, is competing for the same things.
This is where you now have the advantage. For every one person you get ahead of in your classes, there may be thousands you get ahead of in the life queues; those really important queues you plan to be near the front of after you leave school and enter your future as a successful applicant to all you set your mind to. So listen to what is going on. Apply yourself at every opportunity. Relax and enjoy your youth, but beware of the challenge. Everyone you pass in the results of your classes is equivalent to hundreds, even thousands, of places in those important post-school queues.
Good luck with your studies
Have a great day
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Prepare yourself for Success at School
So, it's the holiday and school, awful school, tests, and the loudmouths at the back of the class are far from your thoughts. You should take a break. Rightfully so, after a term of hard, often boring and irrelevant work. You deserve it. Enjoy it. Renew your energy, find some new experiences, work part time if you wish. But don't get too far away from your resolve to get as much out of school as you can. You have to go there so why not take away as much as possible.
Yes, I like to think of it as though getting the best you can for yourself actually steals opportunity and future career and lifestyle options from slackers and misfits around you, and places them squarely in your lap like a gift-wrapped present. Those nuisances who steal your time, who disrupt your learning. They keep your teacher engaged in preventive measures rather that the pursuit of academic excellence. Every day they steal something from you that is irreplaceable. Time. Every minute lost is lost forever. Get your revenge, and make it good. They may be tough, they may be connected. But. Stay cool and their future will be in your hands or their influence will be so small in your sphere of influence that they will appear non-existent. How? Well, it's what we are all about. Success at School.
Plan. Plan. Plan. Do not forget to follow up 'Plan' with 'execute the plan'. Whenever you get a bit of time to yourself, find time in your head, firstly to relax your soul and secondly to think of yourself and how you fit into the future. 'Fit into the future' seems a bit odd? Not so, here the challenge is to design the world around your vision. That way you get locked into your vision better that you would if your single statement was 'I want to be a ...' Add description about location, lifestyle, learning required, expected house, the people you will call friends and subordinates at work, how long each stage will take. Dream and add targets. Dreams without targets remain dreams only, so not much use. Decide on the crown jewel. ??? What? The crown jewel is one of the ultimate visions for your future that you design. It will change as you reach set goals. Changing crown jewels. How wonderful. Not even the Queen of England can do that. Where does that place you? Feels good hey?
Sometimes this exercise seems a little too large. Sometimes a bit embarassing. You sort of ask 'Should this future really be mine?' Of course it should. Make it what you want. If it's too hard right now, not to worry, we will get round to it more slowly in future episodes. What I want you to find out is that you really can control what happens. Forget that at the moment things may seem bleak. Things may seem far away and impossible. Honestly, you can change the future and make it bright and fulfilling.
Start the plan. Know how to recognise success when it arrives.
Have a great day
Yes, I like to think of it as though getting the best you can for yourself actually steals opportunity and future career and lifestyle options from slackers and misfits around you, and places them squarely in your lap like a gift-wrapped present. Those nuisances who steal your time, who disrupt your learning. They keep your teacher engaged in preventive measures rather that the pursuit of academic excellence. Every day they steal something from you that is irreplaceable. Time. Every minute lost is lost forever. Get your revenge, and make it good. They may be tough, they may be connected. But. Stay cool and their future will be in your hands or their influence will be so small in your sphere of influence that they will appear non-existent. How? Well, it's what we are all about. Success at School.
Plan. Plan. Plan. Do not forget to follow up 'Plan' with 'execute the plan'. Whenever you get a bit of time to yourself, find time in your head, firstly to relax your soul and secondly to think of yourself and how you fit into the future. 'Fit into the future' seems a bit odd? Not so, here the challenge is to design the world around your vision. That way you get locked into your vision better that you would if your single statement was 'I want to be a ...' Add description about location, lifestyle, learning required, expected house, the people you will call friends and subordinates at work, how long each stage will take. Dream and add targets. Dreams without targets remain dreams only, so not much use. Decide on the crown jewel. ??? What? The crown jewel is one of the ultimate visions for your future that you design. It will change as you reach set goals. Changing crown jewels. How wonderful. Not even the Queen of England can do that. Where does that place you? Feels good hey?
Sometimes this exercise seems a little too large. Sometimes a bit embarassing. You sort of ask 'Should this future really be mine?' Of course it should. Make it what you want. If it's too hard right now, not to worry, we will get round to it more slowly in future episodes. What I want you to find out is that you really can control what happens. Forget that at the moment things may seem bleak. Things may seem far away and impossible. Honestly, you can change the future and make it bright and fulfilling.
Start the plan. Know how to recognise success when it arrives.
Have a great day
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Don't let a question stop Success at School
Here's the scene. Your teacher is going over new work or may be reviewing past lessons, when you come across a point you do not understand. 'Understand' means you could explain it to a friend clearly enough that they could understand it too. What do you do? Put up your hand to indicate you need a better or fuller explanation? Not a cool thing to do? I wonder if that bit of information is the difference between getting a higher grade and staying where you are; worse still, going down. Do you find that you often have time left in exams; time where you could add a few valuable lines to your paper? Was that the piece of information you could have asked about?
Sometimes it takes courage to put up your hand in a class of students who are too cool to put up their hand. Academic courage is not trained or taught. School systems push us in one end and out the other, over a decade later. Do we learn enough on the way? Some care, others do not. Take heart, you are not alone. There are other ways around this problem.
Be a leader. Someone has to take control. Try to talk to some friends who may be willing, on a signal, to put up their hands, giving strength to others to do the same. Even approach the teacher to see if they will join in your scheme. Most teachers would love to have more students asking questions. Two things happen. Firstly, it makes them feel good and secondly, it's always good to have an ally in the staffroom. That can be useful to you. This 'ally' will feel more inclined to spend a bit of time extra with you to help out.
Take careful notes and hope that between you and your friends you can eventually sort it out. Maybe someone has an older brother or sister who is good at the subject. You can see plan two has a few time constraints that will eat into the time you have slotted into your schedule as 'spare', 'play', 'shopping' and so on.
Even more risky is you could just wait and hope that before next week's test the teacher revisits the topic and you actually understand it. Youtube, Google, Answers and other online sources are other time consuming ways that may give you the answer. The library? Where's that? How about you make an appointment with the teacher to meet with them for help during a break? Lots of ways to get sorted that do not take up too much valuable time.
Read Sun Tzu's Art of War. It's full of strategy that all manner of professions take from the battlefield for which it was written to their own interactions with associates and competition. That may help.
Mostly, get the itch fixed. A small point can make all the difference. At this point, not learning, not finding out is not an option. No one's worry but yours. Get stuck in and do something. Email me if it's a real emergency but do something. Your Success at School is the most important thing to get out of school, right alongside some wonderful lifelong friends.
Get that point clarified as early as you can. These small points are the ones that form really effective stops to further learning in a topic even though, in themselves, they may only need a minor explanation. They create roadblocks to assimilating new knowledge and confuse thought patterns as your brain tries to work its way around what it sees as corrupt information.
Make a plan and carry it through. Tomorrow you'll feel good about it.
Get the most from school. Have a great day.
Sometimes it takes courage to put up your hand in a class of students who are too cool to put up their hand. Academic courage is not trained or taught. School systems push us in one end and out the other, over a decade later. Do we learn enough on the way? Some care, others do not. Take heart, you are not alone. There are other ways around this problem.
Be a leader. Someone has to take control. Try to talk to some friends who may be willing, on a signal, to put up their hands, giving strength to others to do the same. Even approach the teacher to see if they will join in your scheme. Most teachers would love to have more students asking questions. Two things happen. Firstly, it makes them feel good and secondly, it's always good to have an ally in the staffroom. That can be useful to you. This 'ally' will feel more inclined to spend a bit of time extra with you to help out.
Take careful notes and hope that between you and your friends you can eventually sort it out. Maybe someone has an older brother or sister who is good at the subject. You can see plan two has a few time constraints that will eat into the time you have slotted into your schedule as 'spare', 'play', 'shopping' and so on.
Even more risky is you could just wait and hope that before next week's test the teacher revisits the topic and you actually understand it. Youtube, Google, Answers and other online sources are other time consuming ways that may give you the answer. The library? Where's that? How about you make an appointment with the teacher to meet with them for help during a break? Lots of ways to get sorted that do not take up too much valuable time.
Read Sun Tzu's Art of War. It's full of strategy that all manner of professions take from the battlefield for which it was written to their own interactions with associates and competition. That may help.
Mostly, get the itch fixed. A small point can make all the difference. At this point, not learning, not finding out is not an option. No one's worry but yours. Get stuck in and do something. Email me if it's a real emergency but do something. Your Success at School is the most important thing to get out of school, right alongside some wonderful lifelong friends.
Get that point clarified as early as you can. These small points are the ones that form really effective stops to further learning in a topic even though, in themselves, they may only need a minor explanation. They create roadblocks to assimilating new knowledge and confuse thought patterns as your brain tries to work its way around what it sees as corrupt information.
Make a plan and carry it through. Tomorrow you'll feel good about it.
Get the most from school. Have a great day.
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