It is very unfortunate that most school systems (that includes a greater percentage of public schools) focus on parroting text and reproducing the same in exams. To a teacher, checking becomes easy as all conform to ditto copying. Seldom do such teachers care about real learning in class.

While the fact remains that many of us may not have our say or control on the situation, there are certain things that you as students and your parents may do to minimise the harms of the prevailing state of affair. Here are a few suggestions:

Read beforehand

If you want to have some idea of the next day’s topic, you must endeavour to run through the text beforehand. This may help in knowing whether the topic relates to the previous topic, which in most cases it does.

Secondly, you may underline difficult portions to pay more attention to it in the upcoming lesson. Perhaps you may also be able to formulate relevant questions to ask the teacher the next day.

Understand the content

While many of you might claim to have understood a particular topic, the possibility is that you may have partial or no understanding of it at all. Reproducing a crammed text may trigger short-term memory and may help if the question is a simple recall question. But when it comes to reasoning questions, like ‘why’ and ‘how’, you might feel all lost.

One remedy to this is that you try to reproduce learnt topic using your own expression. A knowledge becomes your own if, through a deliberate thinking process, you are able to express it in your own words.

However, one detrimental factor is that your teacher might severely object, based on examination boards’ requirements or your faulty expression. As far as boards are concerned, they train examiners and head examiners to acknowledge self-expression

Improve your writing

Improving writing is a cumbersome task. While everything you read bears imprints on your brain and indirectly contributes to improving your writing, deliberate practice in learning grammar and subject-specific structures should be carried out. Science subjects largely depend on the use of present tense, imperatives and passive voice structure; whereas, history uses past tense.

In addition to reading course books, pleasure-reading not only soothes your soul, it also helps in improving overall writing skills. Since writing is a process, conscious and consistent practice is essential.

Prepare notes

One formal way of practicing writing is preparing notes from what you understood of a specific topic. Those with little time available may paste sticky notes or annotate the text, by writing the crux of the passage in the margin. These notes not only serve as ready revision material near the exams. Such practice develops the habit of writing.

Avoid tuition culture

Many students might find it hard to spare time preparing notes or indulging in pleasure reading on the pretext that they have to attend coaching classes in the afternoon or evening. The dilemma of such academies is that since students come from various schools with different topics being taught at any particular point in time, these tuition centres have their own scheme of studies.

Resultantly, a student feels crushed and a feeling of doldrums prevails, not knowing what to focus on. If students follow a systematic approach to studies, this may not only save their tuition fee, they may still have their social life intact.

Study for life

You must understand that in the long run, studying for life gets the ultimate triumph. Rote learning may get you good grades but it may kill the creativity and reasoning inside you and upon sitting in a competitive exam or entry tests, such students, despite their brilliant grades, meet unexpected failure.

Take things in your hands

My friend’s daughter studies in a non-Cambridge system and this very thing was shared by the administration at the time of admission. While reinforcing her homework, the father suggested that she add few realist details in “My best friend” essay and some interesting details of the cities she has visited in her essay on “My country”.

Her father met the school administration and requested them to acknowledge the additions made so that her study bears real life situation. The request was happily accepted. Likewise, you or your parents may ask your teacher to allow and grade your self-expression.

Cramming has its uses

Cramming does have its role in the learning process. If you recall, you probably rote-learned tables, chemical formulas, historical dates, etc. However, there is a little contribution such cramming offers towards knowledge and that too at the recall level.

When it comes to conceptual learning, you ought to be able to apply the learnt concept in a new or different situation. You should be able to analyse by synthesising and, above all, create something new out of the acquired knowledge.

There is a growing awareness about reformation and uniformity of our education system. Assimilation of knowledge is what is going to offer a solid foundation and a long, smooth way for you to thrive in education. Even if no change occurs, at the external level, you are the sailor of your own boat.

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 26th, 2019