Back to the Grindstone

I've gone back to school, and I got about 10 books for Xmas, so I've been woefully neglecting my blog.  I'm sorry, no-one-who's-reading.  But I have still been writing, and I've actually come up with 2 or 3 ideas for stories that I think have some potential.  At least I haven't abandoned them yet, so that's definitely a step in the right direction.

My first semester back at school was uneventful.  I've decided to get my Bachelor's degree because my Associates wasn't getting me any jobs.  I'm at the community college taking some prerequisites: Statistics, Accounting and Sociology.  All 101's.  All online.   All boring.  Classes are over for now, but Summer starts in two weeks with Biology and Economics.  Then I'll transfer to the University in the Fall.

I don't think I've ever had good study habits.  There have always been subjects that I thought were interesting, so I'd read the textbook, listen to the lectures, and just remember everything.  No notes, no studying for tests, it was easy.  Some classes were so easy they were boring and I didn't bother turning in assignments.

But on the other hand, the classes that I weren't interested in were torturous.  I would read the books and listen to the teachers and not retain any of it.  I'd space out and glaze over, and the entire lesson would be lost.  Was it boring because they were challenging to me, and I didn't want to put in any effort to learn? On the rare occasions when I have been able to focus and put in the time to take notes, and like, re-read them before the tests, and even work on the review questions at the end of the chapter, I've gotten good grades, so I don't think it's due to incompetence.

I do have little patience with my own sluggishness and get frustrated almost immediately when I don't instantly comprehend what my brain is ingesting.  I guess it doesn't really matter whether or not the incomprehension is due to un-interest or un-telligence, but since my quick brain is pretty much the only thing I'm proud of about myself, I'd prefer to think it's the former.

Old habits are hard to break, and I've been struggling with the same problems.  This term, Sociology is so easy that I've blown off some assignments, and my grade is almost un-salvageable.  I think accounting is tedious and redundant, so chapters have to be read and re-read, and I don't allow myself enough time to finish the assignments before they're due.  Incomplete assignments make for low scores.  Math class is, surprisingly, the class I've done the best at this semester.  Math was always my worst subject, and Statistics isn't easy, but at least most of it is done on the fancy calculator.

Do you have or know someone who has excellent study habits?  What's the process, and how did it develop? Parents having good study habits?  School lessons?  It'd be interesting to know how people consistently getting A's do it.

Later, Skaters!

Edited 12/9/12- there was a misplaced contraction