College Students: Listen up.

How To make an A in Class

Making an A can be a challenge for anyone who is not the teacher’s pet and naturally would not want to be considered a teachers pet. You do not want your teacher to assume you’re stupid, but you do not want others to assume that you’re a dork. There is a way, however, one can succeed in the classroom environment without putting one’s dignity on the line. The following instruction outline will show how to be a not only a good student, but also how to make an A in the class.

To Begin with, there are a number of steps that one would need to follow in order to be successful in any class at any given situation. The steps are as follows.

Sit in the front of the class. From the first day of class, look for the available seat that will bring you the closest to the professor or instructor. The teacher will as a result direct his attention more to you and you will not lose focus on what he is saying. Warning, sitting in the back of the class will result in you dosing off or not paying attention. Students who sit in the back are often not noticed; therefore as a result you may even be counted absent from class.

Focus. Like Peter Elbow’s essay for desperation writing, “You must first admit your condition: Because of some mood or event or whatever, your mind is incapable of anything that can be called thought.”(Elbow 448). A lot of times one may get a teacher that is incurably boring or obnoxious. If you focus on the material and not the person who’s giving it, you will actually learn more in that situation. Warning, failure to not focus may result in you failing the class.

Ask questions. Teachers, especially the long winded charismatic ones, love it when you ask them questions. By asking questions, you give incentive for them to expound on their endless knowledge of a given subject and thus reducing their time in class to assign homework. This is an effective method many students take, but it is especially important if you are not familiar with the subject or have missed a day of class. Warning, not asking questions will make the teacher assume you know it all and he will make the test even harder.

Take notes. Taking notes is important in classes were there are long lectures involved. Usually the instructor will highlight key answers to an exam or test during these lectures and you want to make sure you jot them down on a piece of paper so as to have a study guide. Warning, not taking notes will make you fall asleep during lectures and then people will think you’re a loser.

Tear up your textbook. Does not mean ripping the book in half, you can do that after the semester is over. Rather, it requires reading through it and absorbing it like a dry sponge. Like Mortimer Adler’s essay, you do not want to be a passive collector of schoolbooks, rather a good student that succeeds in the class (Adler 428). Having your textbook in mint condition will not enable you to pass a class, especially if the teacher is a football coach that teaches history. You’ll learn nothing in that class besides making fire and reinventing the wheel all over again. So read, read, and read. Warning, failure not to do this will result in a nice looking textbook, but a horrible GPA.

Take an interest in the given material. The only way you’ll learn anything in school is if you strive to apply the knowledge you acquire. Make note cards, do reports, current events and presentations on the subject. Read ahead in your textbook even if it isn’t the assigned chapter. Do any extra credit the teacher assigns you to do. It may seem pointless to do all this extra work, but believe me, not only will you get an A in class but you’ll also have an edge over your peers later in life. Warning: not taking an active interest in class will result in poor study habits, carelessness, and even dropping out of high school.

These are the necessary procedures to get an A on your next report card. A legislator from the Texas House of Representatives once blamed teen pregnancies, High school dropouts, and other ills students put themselves through on cheerleader’s warm up routines. You can tell HE never got an A in class, that among other things. “There are no factors that influence your success, he only factor is you” (Guzman p.3). You do not have to be a rocket scientist or a teacher’s pet to get an A in class. Take it from me, I make A’s and I am still a normal human being.