5 STEPS TO BECOME AN A STUDENT

   

   When people hear the phrase "A+ students", what automatically comes to their minds are "Oh, you mean a bookworm" or "Nerds". Well that's not completely accurate. It is true that people who are A students sometimes are bookworms or are very intelligent people, but being an A student doesn't necessarily mean being those. You can hate studying and still be an A student. Just because you don't love what you do, doesn't mean you can't be good at it. Imagine yourself going to work. Just because you're good at that cashier job doesn't mean you love doing it. Still, there are people who actually love what they do. That's how it is when it comes to studying. So with this, I'm going to give you 5 easy steps to take to be an A student.

1. Change your mindset

First, change the way you think. There's something called 'be-do-have'. This simply means that you have to be something, to be able to do what that thing does, so that you can have the rewards of that thing. Take me as an instance. I remember when I was a B student. I would play around during exams and openly admire and compliment the A students I saw reading. You see, I didn't have an A student mentality then. It's not like I didn't want to be like them, it was that I had a mentality that I could not be like them. It wasn't until I changed that mentality that I started seeing better results. If you want to lose weight for instance, then you have to have a more healthy mentality. Healthy people drink a lot of water, try to exercise more often, ensure they eat healthily, etc. That's how it should be in having the mentality of an A student. You need to start thinking - " how do A students think?", " Why do A students do what they do?". By asking such questions and making a resolve to begin to think like an A student, you become an A student. When you become an A student in your mind, it becomes less difficult to do what A students. Soon enough, your mentality will change from the old one to the new one, if you can resist the urge to delve back into your old ways. Remember, it all starts in the mind.  

2. Cover your scheme

   A lot of students are on an average grade because they fail to cover up their scheme. I'm not just talking about what the teacher teaches in class. The teacher, after all, may try but cannot give you everything. I'm talking about the things you didn't understand in class but didn't ask questions on. I mean the assignments that you trifled with. The textbooks you ignored. Those little things are what make up your scheme. If you don't get a concept in class, you don't have to ask the teacher there in class if you feel shy. You can always take note of your misunderstanding and later make research on it or ask the teacher after the class. Pay more attention to assignments given because they're a part of the scheme. Sometimes, teachers could give you an assignments so you can understand what a particular concept is all about, and then in class, they might not really talk about that concept with the hopes that you must have understood it from the assignment. Besides, doing your assignments properly could make you have an additional knowledge on a concept, which could help you in many ways.

3. Change your perception on studying

           People sometimes have the mindset that studying is just for exams. That's not the best mentality of someone who is an A student. When studying, try focusing on the message your teacher was trying to pass across or what the author of the book you're reading wants you to know. You're being taught all these things so that you could apply them in real life situations. Of course, you don't use everything but imagine not knowing what you know now. Okay, lawyers don't really need math right? But imagine that they just focus only on what the lawyer really needs and then the lawyer doesn't know how to solve basic math calculations like multiplication or a bit more complex calculations, that'll be a bit of a problem won't it?

You have to read to know. Once you change the mindset that reading isn't just for exams, you'll find it a bit more interesting to read.

4. Start studying way before exams

     Some people read very close to exams which can cause a work overload for their brain. To be an A student, you need to start reading as soon as the session begins. You don't have to read everyday. You could decide to read every weekends. Make a schedule or timetable for reading that will be suitable for you. It should be based on how free you are and when you tend assimilate the most. For instance, you could be a night reader, or a day reader. Some people assimilate more when they wake up to read in the middle of the night.   Whatever you decide on, try breaking down your reading and spreading it across the session so you won't rush everything at once as it increases the chances of you forgetting and can cause you to crash. 

The weeks or days near the exams are meant to be for your first, second or even third revision of  each of your courses. depending on how bulky the course is. 

5. Charge your brain

   Being an A student doesn't mean you're going to "kill" yourself because of reading. Look at your mobile electronic devices. They have  batteries that run down and need to be recharged after working for a period. That's the same with your brain. You need to recharge. Not just by sleeping. Eat healthy, take short breaks while reading for a long time, watch a bit of comedy, eat a snack during reading breaks, drink sufficient water while reading. A lot of people think that A students are no fun. Well, that depends on the individual. To achieve maximum results while studying, ensure that you continually charge and recharge  your brain. Don't take a book and try to force yourself for hours without recharging your brain. Eventually, your brain would give up trying to assimilate. That's why covering up before exams is very vital as your brain will have fewer new things to learn and is just revising what you've already learned.

Summary

  Being an A student doesn't take much more than simple determination and consistency on your path. In my next blog "THE MENTALITY OF AN A STUDENT", I'm going to buttress more on the first point- change your mindset.