How to Mentally Shift From Teacher-Guided to Self-Guided Learning
As someone who was homeschooled from Grade 8 till Grade 10, these are the small things that actually matter in the long run when you want to get ahead.
Because you can't always rely on teachers to help you through everything. Especially in college. So, hope this helps :)
Question the “I can’t do it alone” thought and replace it with “I can figure it out.”
The first thing is to change your mindset. If you have the perspective that you can only succeed or learn something if there is a teacher, then you've already relied on them.
So, instead of saying "I don't think I can do this alone", say "I can figure it out with some more time"
Tip: Whenever you feel that self-doubt taking over you, just remember the times when you've actually studied without a teacher. Especially during exam times, that counts as "doing it alone" too!
Accept learning is self-driven
Learning is not conditional. You can learn about various things entirely on your own if you put your mind to it.
The main thing you have to understand is that learning is always self-driven. Self-education is the best education, and the easiest way to do that is to sit down and actually start studying.
Teachers are guides, not handholding tools
I am not against teachers, in fact, I know how important a teacher is when it comes to learning. And that is why, you need to know the difference between someone you can go and ask questions to and someone you think you completely depend on.
1. Ask questions when you genuinely have a doubt. If you haven't found the answer even after 25-30 mins, only then does the teacher come in.
2. If you do have to ask, group all your questions together for the topic and then go to the teacher.
[The reason why I give the 25-30 mins timeframe is because when you're learning, then you'll obviously have questions. And if you immediately go to teachers and ask them to clarify, you will get the answer, but it is possible that you forget it a lot quicker too. Because when you spend that much of time to find answers, then you'll definitely remember it longer.]
Embrace mistakes as learning opportunities and repeat each task
When you learn something new, you'll obviously do a lot of mistakes. That is a given.
And those mistakes are the ones that will stick with you. This is really common in subjects that require working and constant practicing. Like Maths, Physics, Accountancy, Statistics etc.
And for skills, you still need to keep doing repetitions of every single task until you finally understand the process.
Tip: Keep a small notebook where you'll write the mistakes you did for every single mistake that you keep repeating for a particular topic.
Surround yourself with the right people [environment matters]
If you are around people who don't focus on their studies and developing skills, who are lazy, and who ignore their work. It is highly possible that you will get influenced.
This is because environment matters. This does not mean you just stop being friends, it means that you make a few new friends that you can study with. Over time, you realize how productive you've really become.
Tip: People who drain your energy and distract you need to go out of your life.
Ask yourself “why” and “how” questions constantly.
The easiest way to learn is by asking two main questions:
If you are studying a topic, start asking yourself these two questions for everything. Change the format of the questions too. "Why do we do X and Y and not Z?", "How do we know that?", "Why do we need to do this again?" etc.
Set challenges slightly above your current level
You will not be able to learn new things if you just stay in the same comfort zone.
And that is why, you have 3 levels in your learning journey:
Level 1 => Your comfort zone. Things you already know
Level 2 => Things that are out of your comfort zone but are managable
Level 3 => Things that are hard and cannot be managed yet without passing Level 2
Divide different tasks into different layers. And do the process in order so you can easily understand the process and adapt it.
Experiment with different learning formats (videos, podcasts, books)
When you want to study something or learn a new skill. YouTube, AI, and Books are your best friends.
When you learn using different styles, information sticks to your brain faster. So, experiment!
Tip: Use NotebookLM for this! It is the best tool that helps you combine every style
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