Spring Semester: Initial Impressions
Hi everyone,
Today I wanted to share some of my first impressions and thoughts of the current spring semester. I have never done a post like this before, so let me know if you like it and what you think! Would you like to see more of these posts in the future? Comments are open so leave me your thoughts below ↓↓↓
Historically, the spring semester has been my slowest, most uneventful ones. However, this time around I’ve decided to load up my plate and take much more than I’m used to. By this I mean I will be taking 18 credits, 6 classes, and will be hoping to God that I succeed. I’m taking 18 credits to hopefully make my last semester one of relaxation and one where I can be fully present with Hawaii and enjoy more of where I am. In the meantime, let me tell you a little bit about my classes...
Taking 18 credits is no joke, and I have quite a few thoughts about my classes and what they'll end up being like. For me, I'm much more of a traditional, pen-to-paper note taker where I can sit down for an hour, listen to my teacher lecture, and be on my merry way. For some reason, and probably because of the time we live in, all of my teachers are part of this wave of educators who prefer to be "creative" and "hands on" with their teaching. And let me tell you, I hate that style of teaching. Group work, group projects, multiple presentations, and the "I'm not going to talk much because that's not my job" attitude makes learning so much more harder for me. With two weeks under my belt, I've already found that I enjoy class a lot less when I don't have to keep sharing my thoughts.
Don't get me wrong, I understand why teachers do this. But to have all of my classes be taught this way is exhausting. I believe that teachers have the right to implement their own kind of teaching style, however I do wish that more teachers remained traditional in the pen-and-paper sense.
Another tough concept to grasp is the lack of homework. Now, I don't mean to say that I end class every day with nothing to do, (quite the opposite, actually) but rather, all of my classes seem to be reading heavy and don't focus much on writing or testing. This makes me constantly feel like I'm forgetting to do something, and I also catch myself wondering, "Well if I don't understand the reading will I understand the class?" Turns out, if I don't understand the reading I likely won't understand the class.
With all of this being said, we can move on now to more uplifting news. You guys already knew this, but I am extremely excited to be one semester closer to graduation! In this new season, I am going to be consistently reminding myself that it is okay not to rush through things (note: take time) and that things don’t have to be perfect to be good.
My new mantra for this semester is, “Surround yourself with people who deserve your magic.” I love this phrase and think it is such an important message to keep at the forefront of my mind. I know letter boards kind of took off this past year, and I won't lie, I kind of love them! You can purchase one similar to mine here. I've been switching out quotes every so often and finding that, when I place it in an easy-to-see place, I tend to start my day feeling more confident.
I hope this has let you get a glimpse into my life these past few weeks. To end off, let me share some words of advice for this new semester: surround yourself with people who deserve your time and energy. Life (and the semester) is too short to be miserable with your company!
Don't get me wrong, I understand why teachers do this. But to have all of my classes be taught this way is exhausting. I believe that teachers have the right to implement their own kind of teaching style, however I do wish that more teachers remained traditional in the pen-and-paper sense.
Another tough concept to grasp is the lack of homework. Now, I don't mean to say that I end class every day with nothing to do, (quite the opposite, actually) but rather, all of my classes seem to be reading heavy and don't focus much on writing or testing. This makes me constantly feel like I'm forgetting to do something, and I also catch myself wondering, "Well if I don't understand the reading will I understand the class?" Turns out, if I don't understand the reading I likely won't understand the class.
With all of this being said, we can move on now to more uplifting news. You guys already knew this, but I am extremely excited to be one semester closer to graduation! In this new season, I am going to be consistently reminding myself that it is okay not to rush through things (note: take time) and that things don’t have to be perfect to be good.
My new mantra for this semester is, “Surround yourself with people who deserve your magic.” I love this phrase and think it is such an important message to keep at the forefront of my mind. I know letter boards kind of took off this past year, and I won't lie, I kind of love them! You can purchase one similar to mine here. I've been switching out quotes every so often and finding that, when I place it in an easy-to-see place, I tend to start my day feeling more confident.
I hope this has let you get a glimpse into my life these past few weeks. To end off, let me share some words of advice for this new semester: surround yourself with people who deserve your time and energy. Life (and the semester) is too short to be miserable with your company!
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