I could have written that exact post!
How's this for similarity? :hi:
Though, I've only recently figured out (you know, after two decades in school) that the problem seems to be with the structure rather than myself. I was raised in a very educational-focused, authoritarian background, and believed for
years that there was something wrong with my style of thinking. I needed to be more disciplined, and less of your average space-cadet. But then, I couldn't understand why I'd absorb information so quickly on my own terms. Give me an objective, a deadline, and I'll be an expert on the subject before you know it.
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Moreover, here are some of my issues with school (not to say this structure can't be effective for other students):
- How an incomplete understanding of theory and its development can get rewarded. "Plug and chug" the right numbers is all that matters on exams.
- Fast knowledge is preferred over slow knowledge. Big picture questions are often shot down as irrelevant topics to the course material. (Why are we learning this if has nothing to do with what may happen later?)
- Teachers are occasionally ineffective when adapting to different modes of processing information. I had several tell me, "Just memorize the problems, and practice [blindly, I presume
] until you get good at it," or "Why don't you spend two hours studying for each hour spent in class?"
No, no, no. I understand the importance of working hard, but I really need to find a good strategy.
- Lectures can simply be incomprehensible, disorganized, too detailed, or linear. It's better to make your own study guide from differing resources, and compare that to the course syllabus. Sometimes I like jumping from topic to topic within a theme.
- Some professors seemed to be having a heart-attack (i.e - a loss at words) when I asked them about real-life applications of the ideas we learned.
- And so on.
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At the bottom-line, I mostly deal with being in a disadvantageous position, instead of quitting when the circumstances become unyielding. If one method doesn't work for me, I just seek out another one. As long as I show the professor that my knowledge is up to the appropriate level, most don't mind how I get there.