Only you can make it happen. Review on Being Successful in School / College Academics

I was a so-called ?good? student (with good grades of course) for 18 years and now I have been teaching for last 4 years. Many students came and still come to me to get some tips about being a good student (= good results). The first thing I tell them is that there is a huge difference being a good student and a student with good grades. To me the definition of a good student is simply that he/she enjoys studying everyday not does it our of pressure from the parents or society.

Therefore when someone comes to me for any tips the only thing I say to them is that try to find our why studies can become enjoyable to them. Most of them get shocked and think I am crazy or I am blessed with ?good brain? so I do not have any problem. I do not know if my ?brain? is better from average people or not but I surely know and can see that I have different attitude than others as far as education is concerned. I am the only son and eldest child of a normal middle class family. Naturally I always had the pressure in me to do have good grades just to have a good career with decent income. Like millions of middle class people education was my only way out.

I will ask all of you (who are reading this review) to focus on how you can make studying enjoyable to yourself. I know many of you will think that I am too much romantic, idealistic or naïve in my attitude and after all on education our whole life (career, social status marriage) depends. I can give you a simple example in this regard. Most of the readers of this web site are of Indian origin and to them Bollywood and cricket are an integral part of life. Those who are fan of Sachin Tendulkar or Kajol know a lot of things about them. My question to you is very plain and simple: Did you memorize anything about Tendulker or did you have to take the help of any class teacher or private tutor to remember these facts about Tendulker or Kajol? Yet you can tell me so much about them. I have seen the same thing among my students too. They find it very difficult to remember what I taught only a week ago but they never forget the plot of Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. What we have to do in our exams!! We have to simply prove the teacher within 2 or 3 hours that we have studied the books and we remember most of the things. So, the main thing is not forgetting what we read and produce them. Some courses need good analytical skills and you can never have this skill unless your practice it in your daily life. And of course it is more important to have a good career than an academic record. Now since I am no longer a student nobody bothers about my academic results. And I feel more justified each day for my effort to enjoy my studies. I know you cant overnight enjoy your math or history course like the way you enjoy Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. But just try to think one thing- for watching a movie or a sports math we often go at great lengths. Why do we not try to give the same effort for our studies?

In conclusion, I again like stress that the magic key to be successful in academic courses is totally in your hand. Only you can make this happen if you believe in yourself and if you can unlock the magic door of enjoying your studies.