Entry-level lecture courses, such as \u201cIntroduction to Philosophy\u201d or \u201cGeneral Psychology,\u201d may sound simple. But don\u2019t be fooled. Such courses are deceptively tricky and many students struggle to pass them.
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Historically, about 15 percent of students who take 100-level lecture courses at large public universities, where they are most common, get Ds or Fs or drop out before the semester is over, Carol A. Twigg, president of the nonprofit National Center for Academic Transformation, told the New York Times<\/a>. \u201cWe lose so many students between the first and second years,\u201d she said, \u201cbecause they are not passing these courses.\u201d Largely, that\u2019s because such courses are often packed with hundreds of students and cover an overwhelming amount of material, making it difficult for students to interact with professors and stay on top of their studies. Moreover, many entry-level lecture courses are designed to include only a midterm and a final exam, so students can\u2019t rely on homework or participation to boost their grade, as is the norm in high schools. But, it\u2019s not impossible to do well in these courses. These four tips will help you ace your next lecture course. Setting up office hours with professors, arranging out-of-class study groups with peers or asking the teacher\u2019s assistant for tutoring can all feel like daunting tasks. But, if you want to succeed in entry-level lecture courses, such actions may be necessary. \u201cFirst-year students are frequently intimidated or uncertain about asking for help — in particular from their instructors,\u201d says Joshua Colwell<\/a>, a physics professor at the University of Central Florida. \u201cBut we all have office hours, and we\u2019re all here to answer those questions.\u201d \u201cSo, if you\u2019re a student and you’re not understanding the material \u2026 the first thing you need to do is ask for help,\u201d he adds. \u201cAnd that help can be asked for from your instructor, a teacher\u2019s assistant or other people in the class.\u201d Coming from high school, students are used to attending class five days a week and regularly checking in with their teachers, Colwell explains. High school classes, which typically include only 20-30 students, are designed to encourage student engagement. In college, however, students are left to make their own decisions, especially in big lecture courses. No one is checking to ensure that students are engaged in their education. So, students must become proactive learners, Colwell urges. In addition to seeking out help from professors and peers, students need to be disciplined about setting up time outside of class to review and work on the course material, he adds. Although some professors are shying away from this, the traditional format for large-enrollment lecture courses is to base students\u2019 grades entirely on a midterm and a final. Naturally, some innate test-takers thrive in this format. But for others who benefit from consistently completing homework and speaking up in class, this grading format does not favor them. Colwell says there\u2019s a common misconception about testing that many students share, and it would benefit them to approach testing in a different way. \u201cThey think the purpose of the class is to teach them how to pass a test,\u201d he says. \u201cIn fact, the purpose of the class is to teach them new understanding, new material. And the purpose of the test is an assessment to determine whether or not they understand it. That subtle distinction makes quite a big difference. So, it’s not about preparing to pass a test. It’s really about understanding the material.\u201d
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<\/p>\n\n\n\n1. Be a proactive learner<\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\n2. Take a different approach to testing<\/strong>
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