Showing posts with label University. Show all posts
Showing posts with label University. Show all posts

Monday, April 12, 2021

Differences between University and high school

 Many of you have grandchildren who are leaving school and may consider college or university. If they engage that path for their future, it is important to understand what they are going to face before they start. Here are some more of the 50+ points. When we talk about adapting to university, it affects every student differently. You will adapt and figure it out, but it will take some adjusting.

Points of difference

1. Look at the material before class and try to teach yourself something about the day’s topic. You will get more out of the effort you put into a course and the class time will be more efficient and effective. And review the material after class - what confused you, what you do not understand, then deal with it.

2. You will need to have above-average time management if you want to avoid cramming and jamming all the work into the last few weeks of term. 

3. Do not blame the instructors for the workload if you had ample time to do it when advised and you decided to procrastinate. Do not cram. Do not pull all-nighters.

4. You should reset your expectations when you enter university. Most programs assume a 50–60-hour workweek for an average student to get an average mark. This is not high school. In the beginning, take it slow. Test the waters to see how much school takes up in your week.

5. Slowly get more and more involved in extra-circulars and other activities once you get a better understanding of your school workload. Realize that your lifestyle from high school to University WILL change. You might have to do this every semester.

6. Develop what is called a growth mindset if you do not have one. You will need one especially with the experiences most of you have had growing up in today’s world.

7. Be mature and be accountable - understand what your responsibility is and be accountable for what happens if you shirk it. Do not blame others. Face it. Understand it. Accept it. Figure out how to avoid the mistake. Do not make the same mistake again.

8. Learn to fail, learn from failing - while you can memorize facts, methods, and recipes, you cannot learn and develop key skills without failure, pushing yourself, persevering, expanding your comfort zone. 

9. Embrace failure when you use it for learning and growing. You are not a failure just because you fail. Failure is feedback.

10. Realize that for most knowledge-based courses, you can learn on your own almost all the topics from the course material and what is online. The basic facts and recipes. You are smart enough. Learn to read with purpose and teach yourself. 

11. Do not blame the instructor in knowledge-based courses when you should be able to learn it yourself. After all, many knowledge classes have the instructor writing on the board what is in the text and then reading it aloud; what you should be able to do for yourself with respect to the facts and recipes. For the subtle interpretations and insights, you need to be in class!

12. Learn what skills you need to be a student and in your future career, like planning, organization, time management, self-advocacy, goal setting, note-taking, active reading strategies like SQAR. Develop these through deliberate practice. Only you can develop your skills. 

13. Initially you will be developing new muscles and it may be painful. Deliberate, consistent and repetitive practice of your skills will create improved results.


Sunday, April 11, 2021

Differences between university and high school 3

 Many of you have grandchildren who are leaving school and may consider college or university. If they engage that path for their future, it is important to understand what they are going to face before they start. Here are some more of the 50+ points. When we talk about adapting to university, it affects every student differently. You will adapt and figure it out, but it will take some adjusting.

Points of difference

1. Take control of, and be interested in, your own education.

2. Study what you are passionate about, or know-how, to create interest and passion to self-motivate even when you’re not interested or motivated.

3. Go to lectures, prepare before lectures, engage the instructor during the lecture.

4. Use your passion and interest to expand your knowledge and understanding - do not limit yourself to only learn what was officially taught or provided.

5. Learn in a deep and thorough way. Not just facts, but try to comprehend, know how to apply the concept or lesson, be able to use what you have learned when analyzing or thinking about something, be able to combine the ideas with others that you have and create something new!

6. Do not be afraid to fail, be able to learn from your mistakes, try not to avoid failure, embrace it, and pay attention to the instructor’s feedback and use the feedback to improve.

7. Address the lessons learned from your mistakes so that you don’t make the same mistakes multiple times.

8. Do not be afraid to ask for help!

9. There are many resources around you, take advantage of them.

10. At the post-secondary level, you should consider yourself a professional student and view the next five years as a job. 

11. Learning is work. 

12. You should attend class and focus on the class you are taking. Not everything is in the book and it is possible to benefit from the instructor’s expertise if you ask questions and probe the subtleties. 

13. Many instructors inadvertently signal what is important and what might be on the test if you pay attention. Pay attention if the instructor repeats something, uses keywords like important, critical, or useful. What they slow down on. The examples they use. The common errors they mention. If something said in one class is referenced in a later one.

14. You should take good notes. What happens in class comes fast, hard, and there is lots of it. Board work, slides, questions, answers, and the instructor speaking. You might think your memory is great or good enough. It isn’t.

15. You should go to office hours, speak to your instructors one-on-one, ask questions, show interest. You will never be in an environment again with so many subject experts - take advantage of this unique opportunity. Use this option only when you need it. Self-regulating and knowing when to ask for help is key to a healthy school-life balance