I’ve noticed that a lot of the conversation after (and outside of) class focuses on the particularities of a professor’s instruction style- complaints, critiques, compliments, so on and so forth. At the beginning of the program, I will admit that I didn’t prevent myself from joining in on these conversations, though as the time has gone on, I realize more and more that the energy I spend discussing (and even judging )could be better used: by acclimating myself, by learning to be flexible.
I have found that one class in particular, the class in which I struggled in most the first week, is easiest to work in if I do the readings ahead of time, and use lectures as more as a supplement to reading instead of the other way around. For this particular course, I have checked out textbooks from the science library to help me better understand the material. I have found that indeed, reading and developing a study strategy particular to this course is so much more effective than wallowing in frustration at my lack of understanding. In another class, which I at first found hard to keep attention focused, I have found that printing out the notes and reading them beforehand has done wonders for both my attention span and for my depth of understanding.
Education – coursework and professors – are here for us – the younger generation, to help us grow, to draw from us our natural curiosities, to refine our strengths and buoy us despite our weaknesses. In high school, my attitude was an entitled one – that I deserved perfect teachers, engaging courses, and challenging material – always, and that it was the job of teachers and coursework to conform to my standards. Looking back, this was a lofty ideal – considering I had wonderful teachers in high school – but a selfish one. Professors and teachers are human too, and just like students deserve adjustments in teaching style if something isn’t working, teachers deserve adjustments in learning style if students are being hardheaded. If an undergraduate lecture-based education is different – not better nor worse, just different – than my own set of expectations for learning, I will make sure that I milk it for all it’s worth, and synthesize its vision with my own.