I have absolutely no idea where this came from… somewhere in England, I think… I may have used it in my teaching there, or I may have just carried it around with me, who knows?.....
Sad students are full of promises and good intentions. Their favourite expression is, “I’ll do it tomorrow.” Each day is to be a new beginning but always seems to have the same ending. For the sad student, “tomorrow” never comes!
Like the fly wandering into the spider’s web, the sad student falls into a pattern of time wasting and self-deception.
First of all, there is the “getting started” phase. Having decided that tonight’s the night to revise that topic that was postponed from a couple of nights ago, the student gets himself ready to work. This means making sure that everything is in exactly the right place before he starts. A good idea in principle, but after five to ten minutes finding things and tidying his desk, he decides to sharpen all his pencils…
Just as he is about to sit down and begin, he remembers that he was going to telephone his girlfriend and knows that if he doesn’t ring her he won’t be able to concentrate during his revision. The “quick call” takes 20 minutes, not the couple he intended (well, “it’s good to talk” as the adverts tell us!).
The student returns to his desk, opens his file of notes and is just about to start. A glance at his watch to check the time makes him remember that “Glee” is on in ten minutes! As it is obviously not worth starting yet, he goes downstairs again, switches on the television and relaxes for a few minutes “channel surfing” then watching the weather forecast until it’s the time that all Gleeks have been waiting all Summer for!
The programme ends and it featured a song that he loves and hadn’t heard in a while. He feels the need to hear it once more – this time whilst following along with the lyrics. Forty minutes and one playlist later, he is met with silence and the student is suddenly feeling guilty. This makes him realize that he is a little hungry and needs a snack of some sort…
His snack attack lasts twenty minutes – ten minutes to prepare, ten to eat while reading the sports page of the newspaper (again) to avoid having to think about what he promised himself he should be studying tonight.
At ten o’clock he trudges back up to his bedroom to begin at last. After a few minutes reading his notes he starts to feel the effects of his snack and becomes a little drowsy. This causes him to move to a more comfortable spot where he can put his feet up – his bed…
A noise jolts him awake at quarter to twelve. He finds the sad debris of his good intentions – his creased and crumpled notes.
A wave of guilt rises up inside.
At this point, the sad student can make a choice. He can stay up all night or DEFINITELY get the revision done TOMORROW. Yes, he’ll feel like studying tomorrow!
(Author Unknown)
You could use this in the classroom, for sure!
To think about…
Sad students are full of promises and good intentions. Their favourite expression is, “I’ll do it tomorrow.” Each day is to be a new beginning but always seems to have the same ending. For the sad student, “tomorrow” never comes!
Like the fly wandering into the spider’s web, the sad student falls into a pattern of time wasting and self-deception.
First of all, there is the “getting started” phase. Having decided that tonight’s the night to revise that topic that was postponed from a couple of nights ago, the student gets himself ready to work. This means making sure that everything is in exactly the right place before he starts. A good idea in principle, but after five to ten minutes finding things and tidying his desk, he decides to sharpen all his pencils…
Just as he is about to sit down and begin, he remembers that he was going to telephone his girlfriend and knows that if he doesn’t ring her he won’t be able to concentrate during his revision. The “quick call” takes 20 minutes, not the couple he intended (well, “it’s good to talk” as the adverts tell us!).
The student returns to his desk, opens his file of notes and is just about to start. A glance at his watch to check the time makes him remember that “Glee” is on in ten minutes! As it is obviously not worth starting yet, he goes downstairs again, switches on the television and relaxes for a few minutes “channel surfing” then watching the weather forecast until it’s the time that all Gleeks have been waiting all Summer for!
The programme ends and it featured a song that he loves and hadn’t heard in a while. He feels the need to hear it once more – this time whilst following along with the lyrics. Forty minutes and one playlist later, he is met with silence and the student is suddenly feeling guilty. This makes him realize that he is a little hungry and needs a snack of some sort…
His snack attack lasts twenty minutes – ten minutes to prepare, ten to eat while reading the sports page of the newspaper (again) to avoid having to think about what he promised himself he should be studying tonight.
At ten o’clock he trudges back up to his bedroom to begin at last. After a few minutes reading his notes he starts to feel the effects of his snack and becomes a little drowsy. This causes him to move to a more comfortable spot where he can put his feet up – his bed…
A noise jolts him awake at quarter to twelve. He finds the sad debris of his good intentions – his creased and crumpled notes.
A wave of guilt rises up inside.
At this point, the sad student can make a choice. He can stay up all night or DEFINITELY get the revision done TOMORROW. Yes, he’ll feel like studying tomorrow!
(Author Unknown)
You could use this in the classroom, for sure!
To think about…
- What do you suppose will happen tomorrow?
- Does this sound at all familiar?
- Suppose this student was your friend.
- What is some advice you would give your friend in this situation?
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