Key to academic excellence

On academic excellence

Published at January 03, 2019 12:22 AM

‘Education is not preparation for life, education is a life itself’

 Dr. Khurshid Ahmad Tariq

The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth (John F. Kennedy). Schools, colleges and universities are the main centres of acquisition of knowledge, education, wisdom, skills, truth, facts and experiences for a meaningful life.

Schooling is a teaching environment to acquire while as colleges and universities are a learning environment to apply with focus on a student development.

The transition from schooling to higher education is, therefore, central to the capability of expressing the creativity and potential of students towards an academic excellence.

In this write-up, I shall be discussing the keys, tips, principles and methods that a student should possess or adopt to dream big and do smart to achieve excellence.

Discipline and ethics

Most important thing is to be polite, humble, and honest, to know yourself and express what you are. Ethics, good behaviour and interest is the smartest key to success. Develop a lovable attitude and be nice to everybody.

Learning with pleasure is pivotal and a student should be able to identify his/her preferred learning mode to match teacher’s style and mode of teaching.

According to John Dewy, “Education is not preparation for life, education is a life itself”.

Therefore, learning with discipline, sincerity, diligence, modesty and respect for teachers is the backbone of academic excellence.

Dream big and accept constructive criticism

Life without targets, ambitions, dreams and objectives is dull. Dreaming and striving hard with effective time management is the scale to success. Discourage comparison but encourage and develop competitive attitude.

Comparing with others brings unhappiness, pessimism and defeat in you. Instead get motivated and encouraged from the brilliant performers and accept positive criticism. Everyone is unique and you are one among those unique. You just need to do what you are capable for.

Love for books and passion for reading

According to Ann Brashares, “a love of reading is a great gift for a parent to pass on to his/her child”. Book reading should be the passion of a student. Invest time in literature reviews with targeted and focussed reading habits.

In this regard, role of parents, teachers and institutions is critical to inculcate such habits among students.

Participating in debates, seminars, discussions, sports and other activities will provide you the exciting opportunities to show your talent, creativity, nurture your interests and glorify your minds and thinking. Learning by heart and gaining education through observation, exploration and experimentation establishes a firm foundation of knowledge and success.

Sense of responsibility and maintaining a balance

Sharing responsibility at home and at the institution is equally of great value. Don’t be part of the problem but be the agent of solution. Possessing the sense of responsibility helps us in removing the ego from our self. Have a great desire and zeal for social services and be a leader in social activism.

Working for the cause, welfare and betterment of the society is the true purpose of gaining education. Prioritising is a nice way to tackle friends, entertainment, sports, play, etc.

Doing anything at the cost of studies is always detrimental. It is not possible to do everything one wants to do but maintaining a balance is a secret to success.

Building confidence and learning from failures

Be confident, exhibit self-mental control, be optimistic and believe in yourself. Always believe in the principle ‘that i can’. Take chances and risks in life and this will help you to develop faith, trust and confidence. Every failure opens doors to a new success and learning strategies from failures is a greater key to prosperity.

According to John Hersey, “Learning starts with failure, the first failure is the beginning of education”.

Every failure is instructive and opens new opportunities and challenges. Seeking advices and guidance is always important but take full responsibility of your own decisions which will surely help to carve out what is hidden in you.

Above all, the home atmosphere is central to all these keys. “There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent” (Mahatma Gandhi).

 A healthy and stress free learning atmosphere at home is a must for the brilliant performance.

Author teaches Zoology at the Islamia College, Srinagar

drkatariq@gmail.com