I just realized that sitting in a lecture, copying down notes and looking them over later isn’t the best way for me to learn. When I was a kid, I was always reading something, which is most likely the best way I learn: sitting down with a book and my thoughts. As we all know, some professors cannot teach for their life and the students are forced to learn concepts on their own, which is where I thrive. With resources such as MOOCs and books, is it worth me going to lectures anymore?
Depends on if your teacher lectures things outside the book. I don’t attend my econ lectures because it’s solely on the book but my bio teacher tests on lectures. Do not copy down what is up on the powerpoint, copy what he says.
Always go to lectures, in order to keep up with the syllabus, glean useful hints about upcoming exams, and to know what’s going on.
However, you can study while taking notes on what’s being said, ie., read textbook too.
Some professors take attendance, have “clickers” (and if you’re absent you lose points toward your final grade), or pop quizzes - all of which would negatively impact your grade.
The #1 cause of college problems is due to not going to lectures. Regardless of how pointless they seem to you, they aren’t.
Note that you’re supposed to read the textbook BEFORE you go to lectures.
But I can look the syllabus to see what is being taught on a certain day and make sure I am keeping up with the material, don’t need lectures for that. And none of my professors take attendance, and they let us know when quizzes pop up. I just don’t see why I have to go to lecture if I can keep up with the material via looking at the course teaching schedule and learning on my own.
Because thousands upon thousands tried it, and failed.
You only realize it when it’s too late. Don’t do it to yourself.
Try going to the lectures without taking notes. I can’t pay attention and take notes at the same time, but it can be helpful to attend lectures just to listen. I’ve had classes I didn’t attend very much and I still did well in them; it depends on who you are. I’ve succeeded in places where other people might fail (e.g., not taking notes), and other people have succeeded in places where I would fail (e.g., keeping track of their assignments without a planner).
An important part of college is making decisions about your education on your own; if you think that not attending lectures will suit you best in the long run, then don’t go. You are responsible for the choices you make and any potential consequences.
I encourage you to make the decision to attend or not attend class on a class-by-class basis. You can’t make blanket assumptions about anything, and it’s up to you to decide in every situation what’s the most valuable use of your time.
There were some classes in college that I never went to, except for the first day of class, the midterm, and the final. There were some classes that I never went to in person but did listen to podcasts of the lecture (which my school did for some classes) and/or read the lecture slides online (which some professors posted). There were some classes I went to every lecture but never did the reading, and other classes where I went to all the lectures and did all the reading. And there were some classes I went to all the time, not because I needed to but because the professor was awesome. Every class is different, and as an adult, you have every right to decide if you want to go or not. You don’t need validation from anyone on the internet for your decision.
I do encourage you to at least go in the beginning to get a feel for whether or not the class is useful to you, rather than just assuming that all lectures are useless. Professors may make announcements in class or emphasize certain topics in class. One of the big benefits of attending lectures is to get an idea of what the professor thinks is important and what they think is less important, which can be very valuable when your studying for tests (which your professor is going to write, not your textbooks). I’ve had classes where tests were entirely based on lectures, and the reading was a waste of time, if you attended and understood the lectures. Sometimes, the textbook includes a lot of material that isn’t important for the class (which you may not be able to tell if the professor just lists topics or chapters), and sometimes, the textbook does not include information that is covered in lecture. Many professors don’t simply regurgitate the textbook (if they did, what would be the point of having a professor?) so there can be lots of benefits to going to class.
That being said, you’re responsible for your own education. If you don’t see value in going to class, then don’t.
I was the same way when I was in college. And I didn’t have the discipline to read it all later. So, I struggled. I would have done better if I skipped trying to take notes and just listened.
Newer technology helps.
Try video taping your classes. Then you can watch them later and pause them and slow them down so you can learn the material and take notes if you need too. I love the technologically advanced professors that do this for you. It is rare now, but I see it becoming the norm in the future.