You walk into class and sit down in your usual designated, un-assigned seat. You then flip open your laptop, pull up your Facebook, and spend the entire class scrolling through your feed.
Sound familiar?
If you are one those students that spend the entire class on a different planet, it’s important to pay attention to these helpful tips of what not to do in class!
1. Go on Facebook. These days, more and more students prefer a laptop or iPad to take notes rather than an old school, traditional notebook. If you are one of these people, that’s fine; but stay away from social networking sites! Chances are, it will do you more harm than good because at the end of the day, what you were supposed to learn in class will far more benefit you than what your Facebook friend had for breakfast.
2. Eat Lunch. Nobody likes that one person who brings Chipotle to class only to have the entire room smell like onions. It can wait until after.
3. Show up Late. And I mean really late. Couple of minutes tardy is fine (we’ve all been there) but if you show up 20 minutes late to class, you might as well have stayed home.
4. Text. If you can’t stay off your phone during class, it’s better to just stick it in your backpack the minute you arrive so you won’t be distracted. I know it’s super hard to resist the urge (especially if you’re like me and you have no other way to tell the time because you don’t wear a watch), but it really is best not to even have your phone out during class.
5. Homework for Other Classes. If you’re doing homework for a different class than you’re in, it’s better to just freeze the homework and pay attention. If not, you’ll be behind in both classes!
6. Stay Quiet. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you have to be chit-chatty with the person next to you all class; instead, you should speak up to the whole class and to the professor. Engage in the discussions. Professors love participation.
7. Sleep. I can’t think of anything worse than waking up in class only to find out that your friend tapped you on the shoulder because you have been snoring. It’s not pretty.
P.S. if you’re in class reading this, shame on you!