StarFlyer From Germany, joined Sep 2002, 987 posts, RR: 1 Posted (9 years 1 day 23 hours ago) and read 1073 times:
Dear all,
when I am attending lectures at university I get so extremly sleepy from about 10 minutes into the lecture, till the end of it. A lot of times I do actually fall asleep (of course not making it too obvious)!
Low oxygen levels, artificial light, and a boring voice just do it for me. I can never fall asleep that fast at home in my own bed! Not even coffee can keep me awake...
Anyone have some real good hints for staying awake during lectures? It's not that my lectures are boring, when I do stay awake I find them really interesting.
Or does any other student experience the same? Most of my fellows seem to be doing OK, so it might just be me and my busy private life with lots of sleep deprivation?
Demoose From United Kingdom, joined Mar 2001, 1952 posts, RR: 26 Reply 1, posted (9 years 1 day 22 hours ago) and read 1053 times:
I think every student finds it hard to stay awake in most lectures, I know i do. Only thing that seems to work for me is if you perv at all the fit people! Of course, its not much good if your doing a subject like mechanical engineering or advanced physics, where the talent is "limited".
An other idea is to just give in and find an empty row of seats near the back of the lecture theatre and take a snooze like alot of people on my course do during those nasty "9 o'clockers".
Redngold From United States of America, joined Mar 2000, 6907 posts, RR: 51 Reply 2, posted (9 years 1 day 22 hours ago) and read 1045 times:
Sharpen your pencil before you go to class. Then put it under your chin. When you start to snooze, OUCH!
I had an 8 o'clock class most of the years I was in college... My Ecology class was so sleep-inducing that I simply stopped attending. I don't recommend that, but I managed to pull a C- by studying out of the book.
DesertJets From United States of America, joined Feb 2000, 7673 posts, RR: 19 Reply 3, posted (9 years 1 day 22 hours ago) and read 1041 times:
I never had a problem staying awake during lectures. I just tended to loose focus and drift off into my own world, doodling away on my note pad, or if there was a window in the room staring out the window. This is generally not a problem in large lectures. But once you have less than 40 students in a class it can become pretty obvious.
Frankly, for the most part, lectures suck. You do nothing but sit in one place and attempt to take notes. Not a very good way to learn, unless you learn best by listening.
Stop drop and roll will not save you in hell. --- seen on a church marque in rural Virginia
MD11Engineer From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 13329 posts, RR: 64 Reply 4, posted (9 years 1 day 21 hours ago) and read 1035 times:
I hated the lecctures right after lunch break. Full stomach, bad air, a droning voice and I would go sawing timber. It depended very much on the professor as well. We had a few who really prepared themselves for the lectures and managed to bring even the dryest topics over in an interesting way. Then there were those who wrote a script maybe 20 years ago and just kept on reading from it. The problem for me was, esp. in the mathematical subjects, that once I lost the connection, I found it almost impossible to catch up again.
Yul2010 From Canada, joined Jun 2003, 320 posts, RR: 23 Reply 6, posted (9 years 1 day 21 hours ago) and read 1028 times:
Here's what I think you should do (and don't call me a nerd! ).
First, try to prepare yourself ahead of time, and read up on the subject before going to class. It lets you interact with the class, because you know what the prof will be talking about. In other words, it enables you to ask questions, and make relevant comments, (i.e., sucking up to the prof, and collecting valuable participation marks).
Second, sit in front of the class, like that, you'll double think about sleeping.
Third, bring a small snack. Eating keeps me awake. Like jus, muffin, cookies...
Lastly, it works for me, I register for morning classes. It's a bitch to wake up at 6am everyday, but I'm more awake at that time rather than after lunch...
Moolies From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 7, posted (9 years 1 day 20 hours ago) and read 1014 times:
I have had 7 hours of sleep since sunday morning. So things are going rather pear shaped. Tonight I will get about another 3 and then I will start halusonations. So wednesday will be interesting and ok wednesday is a party I have to attend and these go on untill like 1-3am. So thursday morning see me.
StarFlyer From Germany, joined Sep 2002, 987 posts, RR: 1 Reply 8, posted (9 years 1 day 20 hours ago) and read 1000 times:
Hey all,
thanks for your replies. Good to know I am not the only one struggling against sleep in lectures...
Yul2010, thanks for your thoughtful reply. I do most of these things you suggest (sit up front etc) but I just get so tired of listening that my... eyes... just... c l o s e... Maybe I should just stop going to lectures and just read those "great" books the profs are suggesting!
NWA Man From United States of America, joined Jun 1999, 1828 posts, RR: 13 Reply 9, posted (9 years 1 day 17 hours ago) and read 974 times:
Best thing to do is drink cold water, and more importantly, chew some gum... while you're not even thinking about chewing gum, the subconscious activity will keep you awake - or at least it did for me.
A330Fan1 From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 856 posts, RR: 12 Reply 10, posted (9 years 1 day 15 hours ago) and read 964 times:
I know the feeling
but I never give in to the sleep, I know that i'll regret it later when i'm studying for the test lol, or doing hw
so just either be prepared for it, by sleeping beforehand or by skimming the material. that way, if you do happen to fall asleep, u don't miss a lot. or u can do what Redngold suggested and keep a pencil at your chin...
MD11Engineer From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 13329 posts, RR: 64 Reply 11, posted (9 years 1 day 15 hours ago) and read 958 times:
Yul2010,
A typical lecture in a German university is a one man show. The professor stands at his blackboard and talks and the students are supposed to take notes and listen, not to give any comments or ask questions (in some subjects you´ll have up to 500 students sitting and listening in the lecture hall, esp. in law or human medicine). The students are supposed to ask their questions and to give comments in the tutorial class, where there are less students around.
NormalSpeed From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 13, posted (9 years 1 day 15 hours ago) and read 951 times:
You could always try going to bed at a reasonable hour. It's a lot easier to stay awake if you are well rested. If you do that you'll start kicking your classmates' academic butts.
Captoveur From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 14, posted (9 years 20 hours ago) and read 920 times:
I found sleeping was a good cure for that, I typically crawl into bed around 10 or 11 and get up around 6 or 7. This made staying awake a lot easier. Before citing the need to stay up late studying, I found that at about midnight or so I hit the point of diminishing returns as far as studying goes, meaning I am ahead to go to bed and get a decent amount of sleep before the exam.
Recently, I got in a class, purely by accident that actually had an attractive instructor, makes paying attention in lecture much easier, that is not going to happen too often though.
If the material or the instructor truly is boring caffine, sleep, crack, someone beating you over the head is not going to keep you awake and focused.
Aaron747 From Japan, joined Aug 2003, 7619 posts, RR: 28 Reply 15, posted (9 years 18 hours ago) and read 914 times:
I always had an easy cure:
Sit behind and diagonal to your favorite hottie in the class and feast your eyes on her barely visible thong or, if you're in a row above, her chest...you will stay awake the whole time no problem.
If you need someone to blame / throw a rock in the air / you'll hit someone guilty
FSPilot747 From United States of America, joined Oct 1999, 3599 posts, RR: 14 Reply 17, posted (9 years 15 hours ago) and read 902 times:
Even the lectures I really like going to make me tired. Sometimes I get so tired in them that it hurts! It's not even real tired, though, it's fake, because the second the class is over and I step outside I'm not tired anymore.
When I go through my lecture notes sometimes I can tell where I really started to get tired because my writing will trail off a little and would get really jumbled, then it'd straighten out really sharply (that's where I caught myself dozing off).
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Maybe I should just stop going to lectures and just read those "great" books the profs are suggesting!
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