I’ve mentioned before how I dislike reading academic books, I just find them stressful and brain draining. And this is weird considering how much I personally love to read. I read novels, motivational and self-help books. I simply devour their content and understand every word penned down on their pages, but when it comes to academic books, my eyes just seem to glaze over the words. I read them yes, but they never really register.
Relax though… my case is not hopeless. I found out over time that I only feel this way on theoretical courses. These are courses that require mainly reading and reading volumes of texts. For me though, as an engineers, I require more action than just reading. So, I prefer calculations, drawings and practical.
You see, with calculations, all you need is a formula and you can work with it to get what you want. In calculation courses, there’s no amount of reading that’ll stick if you do not practice the calculations by testing yourself. The more problems you solve, the better you become at solving them. And believe me when I tell you this, it’s easier to memorize a bunch of formulas than it is to memorize a bunch of definitions.
This is why right from my secondary school days, subjects like Biology and Chemistry were never my strongest suits. I preferred Physics, Maths and Technical Drawing because even though others didn’t like them, they were pretty straight forward. If you have this and this, then you’ll definitely get that and that. I used to pity Art students back then because all their subjects had to do with reading voluminous notes that never seemed to finish.
And now, I’ve not really changed much. I still find calculation courses easier to read than others. Sadly, every course that does not involve calculation is a borrowed course from some other department, so I still have to pass them. So then, how do I cope?
Many times, I just read to pass the exam. You know there’s a difference between reading to pass an exam and reading just so you know something. The former is something you do and once the exam is over, you promptly forget it. It’s way easier than reading too understand, I guess that’s why it’s always worked for me.
I did it for courses like Citizenship Education… especially Citizenship! In my first and second year, that course showed me premium shege! Stories and stories about people long dead, the constitution, the government… somehow, we had to know everything about the past, be up to date on the trends of the present, and use both to predict the future. The examinations were set around this premise. Like come on man, I’m just in ND 1!!!
Thankfully though, I passed the course. Thank God for a good marking scheme, because if exams were all that was needed to pass courses, then I’d probably have failed it. I’m the kind of person that never takes my assignments and tests lightly, I also don’t joke with attendance, especially when the lecturer is someone that doesn’t joke with it either.
So, with tests, assignments and attendance successfully bagged, I’ll need just a little mark to push me across the pass mark. That’s how reading to pass exams has been helping me.
Another exam is around the corner, and the reading frenzy is settling in once more. There are calculation courses which I would have no problems with, and there are courses that’ll mainly require reading and reading and reading until my eyes bleed. But then, I’ve been there and I’ve done all that! It’s been working for me, so I know that it’ll work this time around as well.
I’m sure it’s all gonna end well!