Sheldon from “The Big Bang Theory” is probably one of my
all-time favorite TV characters; and until I watched the show, I had never
heard the expression “Give it the old college try!” Thanks to Google, I was able to look up what
it actually means, which is “Give it your best shot and achieve something.”
How applicable!
Midterm grades are submitted, students are howling, parents
are hounding, and everyone is feeling a bit on edge. Meanwhile, I figured it’s
time to post another blog. (This time I’ll make it shorter and add pictures so
people spend more than 30 seconds on the page.)
Now that the honeymoon stage of college life is over, it’s
time to pay the band. Yes, professors are actually grading your butt; and no,
they are not afraid to drop you on it. From here you have two options:
1)
Withdraw.
2)
Give it the old college try!
Although withdrawing may seem to be the easier solution,
keep in mind that GCSU’s policy permits only five withdrawals; and if you’re withdrawing
from a science lecture and a lab, you’re using two of those. Not completing a
class could also mess up any financial aid you are receiving. So unless your case is hopeless and your only
option for passing the class is to figure out a way to time travel, you’re
better off going with option #2.
Giving it the old college try will require you to pull out
all the stops. For sure you’ve realized
that this is not 13th grade and that you will need to study more
than 30 minutes the night before the exam to make an A. This will entail self-discipline on your
part; therefore, at some point you will need to choose studying over going out
in search of hot babes or watching a marathon on “America’s Most Haunted.” Try
the “lecture the wall” technique I mentioned in an earlier blog. Form a study group and create mnemonic devices
and study questions to review together. Actually
talk to your professor. Reflect on how
this class might be important to your future successes, and make it relevant to
your life. Find a place to study,
distraction-free. And don’t forget the Learning
Center in A&S and supplemental instructors. These are no longer remedial
options; these are critical tools that you’ll need for success in college.
Instructors do not want to see their students
sink, and yet none of them hand out free A’s either. Play hard, but work hard too, and achieve
something while you’re at it. If you
were incapable of the workload our professors hand out, our admissions office
wouldn’t have let you through the door. You
are here to make something out of yourself, so do it. Give it the old college try; we’re all rooting
for you.
