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I love College.
- Thread starter Garawr
- Start date
LilBit
The bit(ch) is back!
I honestly don't know how I'd get my research done in this day and age without JSTOR and MUSE. I work in somewhat obscure fields, and I've needed articles that are only available in print form in about a dozen libraries worldwide.
ILL is also very useful, but they're not always efficient, and the texts they send aren't always the texts I want.
And I can't count how many times I've hammered it into my students' brains that online encyclopedias are NOT academic resources, but I still get the occasional citation from Wikipedia or Britannica Online.
The internet has made research a thousand times more efficient, but it's also made undergrads incredibly lazy. I actually got several complaints on my evaluations this semester because I *gasp* required students to GO TO THE LIBRARY to watch films that I had placed on reserve. Apparently I'm only allowed to assign films that are available via Google Video.
Garawr
oh my god CUSTOMIZATION
Time to go to the library? Yeah right. Good one Lilbit!
LilBit
The bit(ch) is back!
They didn't have any reading to do those weeks! And an hour-and-a-half-long movie takes a lot less time than a 200-page novel written in French.
Garawr
oh my god CUSTOMIZATION
They have other classes! And a good portion of them likely have jobs as well! Fuck I know I can barely find time to actually get to the library, with the hours they keep. I'm seriously in class the entire time the library is open 4/5 days a week.
LilBit
The bit(ch) is back!
The Media Resources Center is open 12 hours a day most days of the week, including Sundays. I'm way busier than my students, and I can find time to get there. And again, an hour and a half is NOT that much prep time for an entire week's worth of class discussion, especially compared to the average week.
Garawr
oh my god CUSTOMIZATION
"Prep time" is not something a student wants to hear before going to class. Hehehehe.
LilBit
The bit(ch) is back!
Yeah, that's another complaint I got. Apparently the bookstore doesn't appreciate it when I ask them to order laxatives and enemas...
Lasosa
Porn Star
I remember times like that. I once had a 25-page essay, a feature-length story treatment, and the rough cut of my documentary all due on the same day. In addition to that, I had to drive from Spokane to Seattle and back the two weekends leading up to the due date.
Best of luck to you.
Best of luck to you.
English lit is not really an obscure field, though I have a tendency to pick topics for which it's hard to find information - homosexuality in Maori literature would be one. I wouldn't know what to do without JSTOR and MUSE. ILL is excellent, but only if the book is available in the Netherlands. Ordering it from another country is possible, but takes 6 weeks, which is unacceptably long.
I see my fellow students (Master students) reference Wikipedia quite often. I want to slap them. Wikipedia is good for tangentially related information. For example, I'm writing my dissertation on AIDS plays and I had to get some info on anti-retroviral drugs. Nothing that would come back in my dissertation, but just so I knew how they worked and some of the more common varieties. That is when Wikipedia comes in. A little background info, worded for dummies.
^ My Bachelor (of Applied Sciences, if that means anything) degree took me almost six years. It's a four-year course. I had to repeat my teaching practice three times before I passed it.
There's no need to feel dumb. But do ask yourself a question: where am I going wrong here?
Do you spend enough time studying? Do you study right? Do you like the course? Do you have the mental capabilities for this education? With the last question, remember that I'm not suggesting you don't, I'm just asking if it's within your reach. Reach for the top, but be reasonable about where your top is.
Have you talked it over with a guidance counselor or whoever the appropriate person is?
There's no need to feel dumb. But do ask yourself a question: where am I going wrong here?
Do you spend enough time studying? Do you study right? Do you like the course? Do you have the mental capabilities for this education? With the last question, remember that I'm not suggesting you don't, I'm just asking if it's within your reach. Reach for the top, but be reasonable about where your top is.
Have you talked it over with a guidance counselor or whoever the appropriate person is?
Well, considering your marks in secondary school, I'd say intelligence is not a problem. The way universities approach subjects is indeed a matter of taste - I myself am someone who likes to figure things out instead of getting my knowledge from books alone. However, that's not something you can change. What you can change is your behaviour or approach to the material. Procrastination (and a related lack of concentration) is your problem, you say - you're definitely not the only one! That's what you need to tackle. Whether it's a symptom of a deeper psychological problem is not something an arm-chair analysis over the internet can provide. You will need to go back to your counsellor for that and discuss it with her. At the very least she will have dealt with chronic procrastinators before and will be able to help you with that. 
Pffft... those dates are all ages away, Garawr! What are you worrying about? Pull a couple all-nighters and you're golden.
At least, that's the strategy that got me through college. The only time I wrote a paper earlier than the night before it was due, I got very poor grades (I had too much time to second-guess myself, and not enough inspiration in my topic). And I've never in my life studied for an exam beyond reviewing my notes on my way to class.
I think a lot of people sabotage themselves with overstudy because they don't trust themselves to have retained anything they learned... if you think you don't know something, you're going to not know it; but if you assume the information was sinking in all along (and it probably was, memory is like that), all you have to do is take your time, relax, and let your memory recall take its course.
That is, of course, assuming that you were listening. If you weren't paying attention, you're boned and no amount of last-minute cramming is going to unbone you.
And, of course, research papers take rather a bit more preparation than theme papers or exams... you have to actually do research, you can't fake it with big words or pull the prof's pet theories from your notes and expound on them. But I always loved doing the research, my college had a huge library (over a million volumes) that was open all the damned time (during midterms and finals they stayed open all night and the weekends), and I puttered around in there all of my free time (when I wasn't eating, of course). And I puttered around in the library at the other college where I worked, and the local public library too...I even did research in bookstores (but then, I was an English Lit major, so the books I wanted were there). There are books everywhere!
So, to sum up: relax, trust your memory, and do your research as part of your daily routine rather than just for special occasions. Then everything will fall into place.
At least, that's the strategy that got me through college. The only time I wrote a paper earlier than the night before it was due, I got very poor grades (I had too much time to second-guess myself, and not enough inspiration in my topic). And I've never in my life studied for an exam beyond reviewing my notes on my way to class.
I think a lot of people sabotage themselves with overstudy because they don't trust themselves to have retained anything they learned... if you think you don't know something, you're going to not know it; but if you assume the information was sinking in all along (and it probably was, memory is like that), all you have to do is take your time, relax, and let your memory recall take its course.
That is, of course, assuming that you were listening. If you weren't paying attention, you're boned and no amount of last-minute cramming is going to unbone you.
And, of course, research papers take rather a bit more preparation than theme papers or exams... you have to actually do research, you can't fake it with big words or pull the prof's pet theories from your notes and expound on them. But I always loved doing the research, my college had a huge library (over a million volumes) that was open all the damned time (during midterms and finals they stayed open all night and the weekends), and I puttered around in there all of my free time (when I wasn't eating, of course). And I puttered around in the library at the other college where I worked, and the local public library too...I even did research in bookstores (but then, I was an English Lit major, so the books I wanted were there). There are books everywhere!
So, to sum up: relax, trust your memory, and do your research as part of your daily routine rather than just for special occasions. Then everything will fall into place.
Now that you mention it: my highest mark for a course essay yet was a 9 out of 10, and I wrote that sucker in three days. Okay, research took a while, but the actual writing had to be done in 72 hours.
Oh, and you said 'you're boned'. *giggle*
Starting right after secondary school has its advantages and disadvantages. Indeed, you can keep the study-momentum you've built up over the years, but a break can also do you a world of good. I personally did not take a break, though maybe I should have. Instead, I took 6 months off to go to Australia and New Zealand after getting my Bachelor degree. Perhaps if I had done that after high school, I would not have failed the teaching practice. But in the end, that's not something you can change. You now have to deal with the current situation.
If you think there's more behind your problems (as you do) than simple time-management, say it. She will probably still give you the standard tips, but she should be more aware of deeper issues. Also, I don't know how things are in Australia, but my college had their own (small) staff of psychologists, so there were no costs and I didn't have to wait at all. Does your uni have something like that?
LilBit
The bit(ch) is back!
BG, when I started grad school, I was convinced that I had ADD. I spoke to Counseling and Wellness Services, and it turns out that I had depression and anxiety. Now that I'm being treated for them, my concentration is improved, and I'm a lot more productive. Next time you talk to your doctor, you might want to bring up the possibility of a mood disorder rather than a learning disability.
Garawr
oh my god CUSTOMIZATION
I finished that term paper. It only turned out to be 13 pages. >_>; One more due next Wednesday now!