‘I’m lost. It’s like the texts are written in a foreign language. All I can do right now is panic.’ What do you do?
You probably know instinctively what works for you as a learner and you will know if you hit a brick wall with a text – that ‘however often I read it it just won’t sink in’ feeling. Talk to your tutor – sometimes they can change the way you see things with just one quick explanation. If not at least they’ll know that you (and by logical extension other students) are struggling and they’ll be better able to gear seminars and lectures accordingly.
Be strategic: I don’t mean that you should bankrupt yourself buying colour co-ordinated binders and highlighter pens or spend hours on complex timetables to plan every moment of your waking life. Both can be helpful in moderation but there is no magic formula here.
Simple approaches that work: break large tasks down into more manageable chunks and resist the urge to simply read indiscriminately – reading the wrong thing or something you don’t understand will exhaust you but won’t achieve anything.
See my post ‘I’m lost and the set texts make it worse‘ for more advice; more to come, including a post on student stress, in the next couple of weeks.
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