Student to Student: Practical Suggestions from UO Students
Is it possible to learn from the past? From the experience of others? Even from their mistakes? From algebra to zoology, your entire education is a gigantic bet on the hope that the answers to such questions will be yes! yes! yes!
In order to pass on the benefits of shared knowledge, we asked students at the University of Oregon what they have learned from reading since coming to college. In the responses gathered here you can share the hard-won insights about the undergraduate reading experience.
How Should You Be Using Your Time?
First, practically speaking, how should you be using your time in college? If you have been assigned reading, do not procrastinate to the last day. Even the time and place where you choose to read will matter. The bottom line is not to leave everything until the deadline. “Don’t start your reading at 1:00 a.m. the night before it’s due and expect to understand,” advises Tammy Grossman. “You can’t read in the lounge with ten of your friends talking to you.”
Since college is a great place to exercise freedom of choice, some students have found that freedom challenging: “I used to have this horrible habit of reading on my bed. About five minutes into the chapter, I would stop thinking about the reading and would start falling asleep. So I would try to change my position the whole time. Finally I realized that reading on my comfy bed and pillows wasn’t going to be very effective because by the time I should have been done reading I was in la-la land,” says Elke Schlosser, a Journalism student.
“One time I put off the reading in one class. When I looked at it the night before the exam, it looked like it was written in another language. I stayed up the whole night reading it and when I got to the end, I realized none of it had sunk in” laments Colleen Brown, freshman.
How Will You Survive the Dry and Deadly?
That’s all well and good, you may be thinking, but some kinds of reading are just too boring to get through. So, how will you survive the dry and deadly? Matt Page, a freshman in Business, responds, “I just don’t give up, even if the reading is incredibly boring.”
Angela Ajootian, a junior double-majoring in Environmental Studies and Literature, understands tough reading: “When reading tedious books, take your time. Engage in discussions with peers. Take notes in the margins…submit to the author’s point rather than resisting because the work is too obscure or dry. Give the writer a chance! Interpret every sentence in your own words, if you have to, and always allow yourself plenty of time.” Read all the way through the text without interruption, then go back and reread, advises Wendy Fujinaka, an Architecture student.
Students are quick to point out the advantages of practicing critical reading strategies. David Smid, a freshman majoring in Business Administration, enjoys the sense of accomplishment he gets from reading: “Once I pulled myself away from the computer and the television, reading turned out to be pretty easy and fun. After reading, you feel like you have accomplished something. Can you say the same after watching television?”
One of the payoffs is that you will be better at practicing the art of reading, which in turn will make your work easier and your performance better. Emily Graddick, a junior in Psychology, agrees: “It’s like a light bulb going on in your head. All of a sudden you think, ‘Oh yeah, I see what the author is trying to say.’” And, Matt Ashmore, a freshman majoring in English, advises, “get all those bestsellers and science fictions out of the way – you’re going to be reading the classics for a while. When you’re reading a book and you have no idea what the author is talking about, and you then go to a lecture and suddenly understand better than you ever imagined, you feel like a genius.”
What Strategies Make Better Readers?
Here are more specific tips from University of Oregon students for making your reading time more enjoyable and effective:
“Simply sit and get comfortable with a huge pot of coffee brewing.” – Nathan Emge, sophomore, Human Physiology
“I like to listen to classical music. It clears my mind and helps me concentrate on my studies.” – Stephanie Mathis, freshman, Business Administration
“One of my strategies is to start the assigned reading as soon as possible. That way you can do a little bit at a time in order to thoroughly understand it.” – Teresa Butler, freshman
“Reading about other cultures is really important because many people do not have the opportunity to visit them.” – Robyn Delporte, freshman
“Talk to someone in the class about what you read so that it stays. Try to make an example or relate the reading to something so it is easier to remember.” – Robert Bates, freshman
“Remember that any time you read a book that is difficult, you are exercising your brain.” – Daniel Harms, freshman
“At times you will discover a reading that really strikes home, that reflects your philosophy or ideals. This is a powerful experience, very rewarding. It may help to write a journal entry about it to keep on hand, even if that is not a required assignment.” – Maureen Driese, junior, English
“Books that are read in college often have life lessons within the lines. I have been able to find quotes from books that have inspired me and allowed me to better live my life.”
– Anton Grube, sophomore, Environmental Studies
