Do you sell your books?

  • Author: Michael |University Scholar
  • Filed under: Polls
  • Date: Apr 30,2008

I saw several students standing in line today to sell back their books, and I wondered how many students sell their books. I actually keep all of my books. How about you?

Do you sell your text books at the end of the semester?

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Metacognitive Letters - Evaluating Yourself

Yesterday I wrote a post about evaluating your professor., but today I would like to focus on how to evaluate yourself. When finals are over you should not run off and begin partying, there are few things that you should sit down and do. Evaluating your performance during the semester is one thing you need to do.

Metacognitive Letters

What does metacognitive mean? Here is a section taken from the wikipedia page.

Metacognition is classified into three components:

  • Metacognitive Knowledge (also called metacognitive awareness) refers to what individuals know about themselves and others as cognitive processors.
  • Metacognitive regulation is the regulation of cognition and learning experiences through a set of activities that help people control their learning.
  • Metacognitive experiences are those experiences that have something to do with the current, on-going cognitive endeavor.

What do you do with this metacognitive stuff? You write a letter or a journal entry evaluating your performance. In one of my classes I had to write a metacognitive letter for every final paper, research, and presentation. At first I felt as if the task was just another time waster, but after writing a few metacognitive letters I discovered they are valuable.

Thinking About Your Progress

By sitting down and writing an evaluation of yourself you really get a good picture of your progress. You are able to ask yourself questions such as:

  • Did I put my full effort into the assignment?
  • What did I learn from the project?
  • How could I have improved my final project
  • Did I properly manage my time?
  • Did I enjoy the assignment?

When you ask and answer these questions you get a chance to learn about yourself, and how you can improve the following semester. I suggest you write a metacognitive letter for every large project or paper. I also suggest writing one for each class.

Ask Your Professor

Through out the semester you should have attempt to communicate with your professors, and you should feel comfortable asking the professor about your progress in the class. Visit your professor. Ask him how he thought you did in the class. Ask how he believes you could improve. Even if you believe you are the top student in the class you should still ask the professor where you could improve. Doing so will allow you to go beyond the normal student and really fine tune your skills.

Before you go out and party try to sit down and write a few metacognitive letters. Writing one does not take much time. I also suggest that you reread the letters before you begin the next semester, that way your strengths and flaws are fresh in your mind and you can use them to excel.


Get Your Professor Fired!

One thing students do not take advantage of is the class/professor evaluation forms. And this is very unfortunate. In a class the other day I heard a student say “If I think I’m getting an A in the class, I just go down the line and mark strongly agree for everything.”

I have a question. Does getting an A in a class indicate that you learned something in the class? Some professors curve the grade so drastically that your final grade does not accurately express your understanding of the course.

The way I see it is you, as a student, are the customer and your courses are part of the service you receive. You have every right to complain. Even if you do not take another class with the professor you are still helping future students.

So you probably don’t want to go and get your professor fired, but give the professor a really good critique. When answering questions about the difficulty of the class, do not complain because it was difficult, ask if you really benefited from the tests. Did tests accurately test your knowledge, even if your knowledge was very limited? What about the assignments? Did they help you learn the material? If the assignments did not help, don’t mark down that the assignments were awful unless you actually attempted to take full advantage of the given assignments.

Attempt to give your professor the best critique possible. You may think that a professor will never change, but this isn’t true of all professors. Believe it or not some professors are actually teaching because they want to help. As you should be open to critique by your professors, so should your professors be open to critique by you.

By giving excellent critiques of your professors you will slow change the environment of your university. The class evaluation forms may seem unimportant, but if everyone in the university takes advantage of them a simple form can be a changing force at your college.


The Power of a Walk

How often do you go for a walk? Has it been a while? For the past several months I have discovered that going for a walk is very powerful.

Once Every Day

I go for a walk at least once a day, but my walk is not something I plan in my schedule. I go for a walk when I need it.

When Do I need a Walk

I have found that a walk is beneficial to me when I am lacking concentration. When I have been working on my studies for a few hours I will begin to lose concentration. Instead of turning on the TV, checking my Facebook, or finding a group of friends, I go for a walk. When I go back to my desk after my walk, I have regained all of my focus.

Why is there power in a walk?

There are a few reasons why a walk has great power. The most noticable is that walking is an exercise. Walking allows you to get your blood pumping without exhausting you. The sun, breeze, and fresh air will also give you energy. I have also found that even if it is almost freezing outside a short 10 minute walk is still enjoyable.

The second reason walking can regain your concentration is because it opens your mind to the things that you have been subconsciously thinking while you were studying. The reason you probably lose concentration is because you are thinking about something other than your current task. Going for a walk will allow you discover what you are thinking about, allow you enough time to think about it, and then you can set it aside and continue your studies.

Walk not Exercise

Your walk should not be considered as your exercise for the day. Your walk should be set aside for one time in the day when you have the least amount of concentration.

Most college campuses are beautiful, especially now in the spring season. Enjoy your time when you walk. Try to keep your thoughts positive.


Guilds, Jedi Master and Apprentice

Hundreds of years ago the apprentice blacksmith rigorously worked, attempting to please his master that one day he may become a master himself. We had thought the days of master and apprentice were long gone, or only in a galaxy far far away. But Kalamazoo College is introducing guilds with the hopes that the guilds will revolutionize liberal studies. Below is a summary of the guilds taken from the Kalamazoo Guilds website:

The Kalamazoo College Guilds will bring together the college community, especially alumni and current students, around interdisciplinary issues that affect today’s world. These voluntary membership organizations will integrate experiences and classroom learning and provide professional development and networking opportunities in order to bridge students’ liberal arts education with the world they will encounter upon graduation. Guilds will connect students to mentors and professional opportunities, foster leadership among students, and allow participants to realize their potential to positively impact the world through their work.

“This is a brilliant idea that no other school has done,” Joan Hawxhurst, guild coordinator, said. “They looked and looked to find other models. The closest they could find was a Princeton Class of 1955 alumni in public service.”(mlive.com)

There will be four guilds at Kalamazoo: Business, Health, Justice and Peace, and Sustainability.

I find the idea of guilds very intriguing (maybe because I am a fan of fantasy novels and games). I believe the essential part of this program is getting the community involved. The more the community is involved the more support that goes to education. The idea of guilds is probably at the beginning stage, but if more and more universities begin the program we could see guilds evolve to become something very of great significance.

What do you think about guilds?


The Invisible Benefits of Your Major

Why did you choose your major? If you are like me, you chose your major(s) because you enjoy the topic. But there may be better reasons to study a specific major than just the fact that it is your chosen career field.

Choose a Major You Don’t Know

Perhaps math is your forte, and therefore you are majoring in mathematics. Great! But have you ever considered majoring in something you weren’t good at, perhaps English or music. It may sound like a strange thing to do, but if you are capable of teaching yourself mathematics why spend thousands of dollars to have someone teach you. I know a guy majoring in music composition just because he feels that his musical skills are not as good as his other skills. As of right now he has no intention of having a career in music. He is actually thinking of Law School.

The Conceptual Benefits of a Major

Many majors work the mind in many different ways. For example, I am history and economics major. Both majors require perspective that takes into account the whole picture. A history and economics major may be able to predict cause and effect better than an arts major. But an arts major may build an imagination that a economics major could never have.

Each major works the brain in a different way. I briefly mentioned a few majors and their possible hidden benefits. What is your major? How has it changed the way you think? How have you grown from your major? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.


Why Go to College?

  • Author: Michael |University Scholar
  • Filed under: College Advice
  • Date: Apr 15,2008

Have you ever asked yourself why you are going to college? Are you going to college because your parents say that you should? Are you going to college because society says you should? Or are you going because you actually want to learn?

If you are going to college just because society or your parents say you should, you may want to reevaluate your decision. The truth is you don’t have to go to college. This idea is one of the first things I realized when I began college. I don’t have to be here. Getting an A on a test does not matter.

To make the most out of college every homework assignment needs to be for you, every test needs to be for you, and every activity needs to be for you. Allowing society to make your college decisions will not be a great source of motivation. The best motivation comes from within.

What to do in college?

The guys from HackCollege wrote a post discussing universities as a Petri Dish. Going to college should be more than just satisfying the requirements that have been set by society. College should be an experiment, and there will never be a time in your life that you have a better opportunity to experiment than when you are in college.

The reason why experimenting in college is advantageous is because you have a large pile of resources that you will never again have.

Student Organizations

Do you have a plan for a business you can start? Or just a local organization? Well take advantage of the resources for student organizations. By starting a student organization you can get funding from the school to host events. And if you are the one that started the organization you are the lucky one to be titled as president, if you so desire.

Volunteering

Once you get a job at a company, you will begin needing to work your way up a ladder to become someone of important. But at a university, becoming an important person in the community is very easy. All you need to do is volunteer. Most tasks at a university are offered on a volunteer basis. By becoming an active volunteer, you increase your chance of starting higher up on the corporate ladders. It is much easier to climb in college than it is in the working arena.

Your Professors

The best resource, the one never used, is your professors. Students do not realize that the professors are paid to have office hours. Go to their office. You may not believe it but most professors enjoy your company. Your professors know a lot, they did go to graduate school, but there are things that you know that they don’t. Like how well the class enjoys the lecture, or using technology in the classroom. You will enjoy the lectures more if you are active, in and out of class.

Are you going or are you going?

Once you realize that you are going to college for yourself, you will begin to take advantage of the once in a lifetime resources that are available to you at college. Going to college just becuase society tells you to go will not get you far. Personal ambition is what drives those that succeed.


Deadlines Will Destroy You

  • Author: Michael |University Scholar
  • Filed under: Study Tips
  • Date: Apr 12,2008

It is almost the end of the spring semester and all those deadlines are about to make you dead. It’s time for all of those papers to be due on the same day. Let’s focus on just papers and projects.

Like a good student you have divided your projects and papers into smaller more manageable sections, right? Many of us do not really do this. This should be our ideal method of dealing with papers and projects, but I want to focus on another method that will prevent you from writing the paper the night before.

Let’s create a scenario. You have a history paper due, a speech due, and a computer project due all on the same day, April 28. If you attempt to finish these all for the same day, you will burn out. What you need to do, is change the dates. Write down in your planner that your history paper is due April 21, your speech is due April 23, and your computer project is due April 25.

Note: I don’t suggest setting the false due date after the real due date. Although it is very tempting.

Even though the due dates are now closer, the projects now seem doable. I suggest if you know that the projects and papers will be due on the same day, or near to the same day, you should set these realistically false dates as soon as possible.

If you are a procrastinator these false dates will allow you to stay up all night before due date #1, and all night before due date #2, and all night before due date #3. Great! You will be exhausted after that week, but it is better than doing all three projects on the night before.

It can be better! Combine the false dates with a smaller arbitrary due dates and you will have a flawless method of dealing with multiple large papers and projects.

Changing the due dates will allow you to stager the smaller portions of the project. That way you don’t have to work on all three projects every Monday, but one part of a project every other day.

Now you have finished your projects the three days in advanced. You can spend your whole weekend doing whatever you feel like doing. The day before you really have to turn the projects in make sure you go over everything. It will take two hours at the most. Practice your speech one last time, read through your paper a few times, and check your project for minor flaws.

This method will simplify your end of the semester and reduce your stress level.


Helpful Organizational Tools

  • Author: Michael |University Scholar
  • Filed under: Study Tips
  • Date: Apr 11,2008

Working on a group project can be a challenging task. You will rarely find time to get together and work; therefore, you begin to send emails back and forth, creating a mess. Luckily there are two resources on the internet that you can use to remain organized.

Free Forums

Freeforums.org is a website that will allow you to host a forum site for free. Forums are an excellent way to keep everything on one page. Instead of hundreds of emails from working on the project, you can have one forum thread that has all of your discussions. Freeforums.org allows you to easily post pictures, youtube videos, etc. The forums are free, so you will have to ignore the advertisement.

PBWiki

I will let this YouTube video explain why a Wiki is a great resource.

If working on a small presentation for a class, or if you are a student organization, these two resources can be of great help when it comes to organizing your thoughts.


Live on 2 Hours of Sleep a Night: Sleep Method

Could you imagine only getting 2 hours of sleep every night? It is impossible right? We have always been told that we need 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Many times we do not get that much, and we feel exhausted the next day. However, there are some people that can sleep only 2-4 hours a night a function the next day.

Do you know someone that only gets 2 hours a sleep a night? I do. I was sitting in a meeting the other day. As usual we were off topic discussing sleep. A colleague of mine said she only gets 2 hours of sleep a night! I was shocked when I heard her say that. I responded, “There is money there!” Think of the possibilities! You could get a lot accomplished.

After the meeting all I could think about was how can I get away with only 2 hours of sleep.

For the past month I have been attempting to discover my optimal sleep method. Not everyone will require the same amount of sleep, but everyone can use the same method to determine their required amount of sleep.

Note: To determine your necessary amount of sleep you will have to be dedicated. I have been working on my sleep method for a month now, and I still do not know my optimal sleep duration. You will need to be dedicated. The method consists of trail and error, and one trail may need to take one to two weeks to see if it works.

Step 1: Write it down.

You should grab a new notebook or start a new word document and write down every way you attempt to sleep. Not only will you need to record how much you sleep, but how you sleep, when you begin to feel tired, your eating habits and fitness level. If you feel tired one day, write it down. But do not assume that you are tired because you didn’t get enough sleep the night before. Eating less, doing more, and stress can change your fatigue level.

Step 2: Ask yourself some preliminary questions

  • Are you a morning person? or a night owl?
  • Do you exercise? (moderate exercising can reduce the amount of sleep you need. Although if you just started exercising, it will take a few weeks for you to see the effects.)
  • Can you make quick and easy adjustments? Get a better pillow? Is it time for a new mattress?
  • How many hours do you usually sleep?
  • Do you feel fatigued during the day?
  • Are you consistent? Do you go to bed and wake up at the same time everyday?

Step 3: When do you need to wake up?

10 minutes before class! Right? No! My first class starts at 9:30 am. Waking up at 7:30 gives me plenty of time to take a shower, eat breakfast, make my bed, and confirm my days schedule. You should give yourself plenty of time to wake up before your first class. Lectures are important. You can learn a lot. Being sluggish during the lecture will only require you to restudy what you could have solidified during the lecture.

When discovering your optimal sleep time, the time you wake up needs to be consistent. If you decide to wake up at 7:30 am, you need to wake up at 7:30 every day. No exceptions! It is important because you will be able to accurately identify what time at night you begin to get tired. Changing your wake up time will only make it difficult.

Step 4: Start with 7-8 hours of Sleep

Most people do not even have a regular sleep schedule. You need one. Like I said consistency is the key. Most will probably discover that 7-8 hours is the best sleep duration, so it is a good place to start. Before you begin adjusting your sleep time I would sleep for eight hours every night for two weeks.

Step 5: Adjusting the time

After you have a consistent sleep schedule you can begin to adjust your sleep duration. I recommend adjusting your sleep schedule 15-30 minutes and you should try the new duration for a full week or more. When you change the duration it is somewhat of a shock to your body. You may feel extra tired the day after adjusting the time.

Step 6: Trail and Error

Start with 8 hours and attempt to sleep less and less. In the end, you may end up needing 8 hours of sleep, or you may actually need more than 8 hours. It is very important that you write down how you feel with the different time intervals. Properly doing this method will require several months, and you probably will not remember how you truly felt the first two weeks.

You Will Fail!

Unfortunately we are human and college students. There will be nights that you do not follow your sleep schedule, but the key to success is to forget about it, and the following night go to bed when you are supposed to.

If you Sleep More are You Missing Out?

I decided to do some quick research on the topic and I found a study(1) comparing elderly long sleepers and short sleepers. They discovered that there did was not a correlation between amount of sleep and success. It is more important to find your optimal sleep time than it is to only sleep two hours a day.

(1) Long Sleepers Sleep More and Short Sleepers Sleep Less: A Comparison of Older Adults Who Sleep Well
Behavioral Sleep Medicine; 2004, Vol. 2 Issue 1, p2-23, 22p, 4 charts
Database Used: Academic Search Premier


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