How to Be a Good Student

Being a good student is the main goal of all students, but how to be a good student is still a big question for most of today students. Some students may have been able to manage themselves to be good students. They may spend a lot of their time in the library to study, reading various kinds of books and also have bee3n able to build good personality in themselves. However, some others are still confused to find out the path of being good student. Although they have endeavored hard to study, they still feel difficult to be good student. It is why how to be good student still becomes a big question to answer.

Jeremy Harmer wrote in his book ‘how to teach English’ that a good student should have what is named as motivation which then can create some characteristics. First of all, a student who wants to be a good student should have high motivation, interest in studying, because it basically can make the student comfortable in learning. It is a fact that a student gathered with motivation always enjoy learning. Besides, it also can support the student to study more and more. In other words, being student accompanied by motivation will always make student greedy in studying. Then, from the high motivation, the student will naturally own some characteristics: a willingness to listen, experiment, ask question, think about how to learn, and accept correction.

1. A willingness to listen.

Listening is one way to get information (it can be news, science, or else but mainly it is knowledge). Chronologically, one listens to any sound messages through ears. Then, from the ears, the messages are sent to the brain by what is named as neuron. After then, the brain processes messages t be knowledge. However, the brain can’t process all of the messages to be knowledge. There are some messages lose, unprocessed. It is why one can’t suddenly know all information by once hearing only. He/she needs more repetition to make clear all information that comes into his/her brain. And willingness is indeed something that can push up one’s desire on something. Therefore, willingness to listen will make one be a good student because the more one listens to information, the wider hi/her knowledge.

2. A willingness to experiment.

Sumbawi Ranu Pandoyo wrote in his book ‘Ilmu Alamiah Dasar’ that knowledge was begun from what is called as skepticism, having close meaning with doubtness. Therefore, to make it clear, ones need to experiment, trying to do something to prove any doubtness. Sometime, one who interests at grammar will have skepticism on it. From the skepticism, one will prepare a list of some questions about it. From the questions, one will try to dig up to get the correct answers. Finally, the correct answers will be the result of the experiment and further more those are named as knowledge. However, experimenting is just an effort which is done on the line of trial and error so that, on the way it is done, it has either possibility, getting correct or false answer. These two possibilities in fact have same chance to appear, but the existence of experimenting must bring possibility of any knowledge. It is why willingness to experiment will make a student be a good student since the more one experiments at any things, the bigger the possibility of getting more knowledge.

3. A willingness to ask question.

Question is what problems owned by one in mind and he/she has never known the answer before, which also can be the result of skepticism as being explained in no.2. one may not be interested to ask grammar because he/she doesn’t know and indeed doesn’t want to know about it. There is no grammar problem in his/her mind so that he/she will never know about it. It is quiet differ when one likes grammar and on the way he/she studies it, he/she has a number of questions to answer. Every time he/she has questions to be given to his/her teacher, as part of result of his/her studying. And after getting explanation from his/her teacher, he/she suddenly get the answer of the questions (then become one’s knowledge). It is why one say that willingness to ask question can make a student to be a good student because the more the questions, the more the knowledge the student will have.

4. A willingness to think about how to learn.

Learning is not just reading. Learning is a process to get some information through some tasteful activities, such as listening to something, watching what happens around, or else. There are so plenty ways to learn something, not just reading. And all of them need thinking to match up what problems are being had with what way, method, and facilities are in order with them. Learning is not as simple as one thinks. It, in fact, needs attention to be easy and comfortable. And the success of one in absorbing information when learning something is influenced by how success he/she in matching the problems with the facility and method he/she uses. Therefore, willingness to think how to learn is also one thing which can escort a student to be a good student since the more understand the student to learn something, the more easy he/she in absorbing the knowledge in it.

5. A willingness to accept correction.

Correction comes when one makes any mistake. When a teacher orders one of his students to come forward to explain something he/she has read, for example, and on the way his student explains what he/she knows, the teacher finds some wrong understanding in it. Then, the teacher corrects him/her by giving him/her the correct one. It is actually normal for one makes any mistakes since human lives gathered with limitation at every thing, also in ability absorbing information. There is no one perfect but God so that one should beware that he/she will never be like God. And willingness to accept correction in fact has goodness. When one makes mistake and other ones like teachers, friends, parents, brothers, or else can give correction for the mistake since every one has his/her own thinking. Therefore, it is why one said that willingness to accept correction will make a student to be a good student since the more the student gets correction; the higher his/her knowledge