JOIN USLearning doesn't have to stop after exams
Akshay almost shouted back at his mother: “I don’t want to see another book ever in my life. Please don’t ask me to read again.” His mother had been out shopping and had picked up a book - 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Stephen Covey. Browsing through the pages, she had felt that Akshay would be able to connect to many things written in the book, and had brought it home to present it to him.
But Akshay had just finished his annual exams, and to him, any book was just a reminder of his studies. He would rather just sleep through the day, watch television, chat with friends, eat, and sleep. He felt that he deserved the break after all the studies that he had put in over the past few months. His mother gave up, and thought to herself that she should not push him in any way now that he has relief from academics. But funnily enough, three days later Akshay was overheard telling his best friend, “I’m feeling so bored, yaar!” Whatever happened to all his excitement about having time to himself, not doing anything, and just lazing around?
Most children, whether they admit it or not, have curious minds, and cannot just laze around or watch TV all the time. Many of them get bored with the repeated banter of their close friends. Some of them start exploring what they can do with all the time on their hands – but few find anything that is useful and also exciting.
Now that the annual vacation has arrived, you need to take charge of your free time and do something that will not only be enjoyable and fulfilling, but will also leave you with a sense of accomplishment away from academics. How you can do so depends entirely on you since each individual is unique, and your likes and dislikes differ from everyone else’s.
The first step would be to identify what you are doing only to please your friends or just because you think there is nothing else to do.
Surveys have shown that up to 70 per cent of the TV viewing that many of us do is boring to our own selves. If you do not believe it, walk into your neighbour’s house today evening. If they are watching TV, tell him that you do not wish to disturb them, and it is quite likely that they may reply with, “No, no, come. Anyway there is nothing interesting on TV right now.” If that is a fact, why was he sitting glued to the idiot box in the first place? Similarly, you may notice at the end of a three hour banter and ‘hanging out’ with a particular group of friends, that your time was wasted and that you did not connect much to what they were discussing.
Hence, do make a list of what really appeals to you and what you would enjoy. If that includes certain activities that enhance your knowledge, make you more confident, or appease your curiosity, so much the better. Don’t question where and how you will do those activities – just make the list. Then prioritise. If your list is exhaustive enough, you can start exploring opportunities available. To help you get on to this process, let me list down some fascinating possibilities:
Visit a Planetarium or museum; take up a small science related project. You will have the joy of sharpening your skills without the pressure of academics.
Improve your communication and presentation skills, join Toastmasters International (www.toastmasters.org) or any other public speaking course. In future, even if you score high marks, your admissions and success will depend on how well you can talk.
Take up fulfilling voluntary work with like-minded people. There are many NGOs like Youth for Seva (www.youthforseva.org) who will welcome you. It widens your horizons, gets you new friends, and helps you get a deeper insight into life.
Are you adventurous? Get into camps conducted by Yavanika Youth Centre (located on Nrupathunga Road in Bengaluru, or any of their branches), leadership bootcamps (www.inexel.org)
Better still, just go backpacking to new places, preferably amidst nature. There are youth hostels and cheap accommodation available almost everywhere if you are not choosy. Rough it out, eat with villagers, camp in the jungle, and see how your life expands beyond the four walls of your home and city life.
Robotics, aeromodelling and similar technology related activities are available at www.youngbrainindia.com and in places like Institute of Electronics Engineering.
In today’s era of surfing the net for any information you want, there is still some pleasure in picking up a book, curling with it in bed and reading late into the night. Books may be expensive, so identify some lending library close by and borrow books from them. You can even exchange with your friends. Read as much variety as possible.
Do you have strong opinions about what is happening in the world or in the locality? Start writing a blog, join a discussion group, and start e-publishing your ideas. Not only do you get an outlet to your strong beliefs, you also get varied opinions and responses.
Want to acquire an additional qualification sitting at home, without paying any fee and at your own pace? Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) offer mind-boggling variety of learning, offered by experts from some of the top universities of the world, and it’s all free of cost. You will get all the variety from Coursera, Udacity, EdX, Futurelearn, Open2Study, Iversity, Udemy.
There are short-term courses in photography, visual art, RJ-ing, art therapy, dance, performing arts, being conducted at various places in all big cities. Explore and you may find one suitable to your liking.
And then of course there is sports. why not take up some serious learning in a game that you like, get yourself trained properly, and enjoy mastering it, even if you are not going to compete in competitions.
Studying continuously may have bored you at times. But the best way to learn is to teach someone else. Find a student one class below you, or better still find a poor student who has no one to teach him. When you see your ‘student’ learning and accomplishing, you will find great joy.
Your mind and body both need stimulation. Lazing around, sleeping late, getting glued to the TV may be good for a short break, but remember that you will find much more excitement and satisfaction in the type of activities I have mentioned. And believe me, that is only a very short representative list. Look around and you will find many more, and select something that you enjoy and wish to learn, or are already good at.
If you read the biography of any person who found success and fulfillment on his own merit, you will notice that he or she never wasted time, always had a curious mind, and was looking for variety. You too can be a future achiever if you follow these principles. Keep in mind that those who take responsibility for themselves and their time, those who can differentiate between what is good or bad for them, and those who understand that learning and fun can go hand-in-hand, are the ones who are most successful in life.