Why go to lecture if I understand it better by myself?

Jorge Castillo

Although many college students consider attending lectures as a waste of time and that they understand the material better by themselves, studies state the opposite. Even so, studies reflect that those students that do show up to most lectures end up with a higher GPA than those who do the opposite. By realizing that attending lectures is one of the key components in grasping the material and furthermore getting a higher GPA, students can better organize themselves and attend as much lectures as possible.

The reasons why some college students skip their lectures may vary but in most cases it's because they consider these lectures a waste of time, are sick, couldn't wake up in time, are lazy, or decide that studying on their own would benefit them better. Being sick is a reasonable and obvious reason to miss a lecture, but if this is the case, then obtaining class notes is essential.

Many times students consider their lectures to be useless and so decide that it's better for them to skip the lecture and study on their own. This is a big mistake! Textbooks will never explain you the material as well as a professor would. Also, in the lectures you have the opportunity to ask questions, hear the questions of others and learn additional information the professor discusses which is not in the textbook. While in lecture you are absorbing all the material the professor is discussing and so this cuts a lot of the time you would spend studying if you hadn't attended the lecture.

Lectures are the structure for many college courses and they are there for a reason. Studying on your own takes up more time and will never compare to the knowledge a professor can teach you. We must realize that we don't know it all and laziness in attending lectures will reflect on your GPA at the end of the term. You will never learn all the material by yourself, that's the job of the professor: helping you understand the material. If you don't attend the lectures, who are you going to address your doubts to, the book? I don't think so.