>This is one professor doing his best to help, and I appreciate that. But there is better information out there.
It's also worth remembering that not all students have study skills, and so having an article that lists both reasonably useful advice (even if it isn't perfect) AND (even more importantly) gets the student thinking / reflecting about how to improve their performance can be valuable.
I'm gonna guess (since you're here on Hacker News) that you've got a paying job in the tech sector, which in turn requires a whole lot of self-management skills (like managing your time). There exist perfectly good people who are, say, 18 and terribly naive about what they'll need to do in order to get ahead. Maybe their high school wasn't terribly demanding, maybe they just didn't push themselves that hard. Sometimes they arrive at college, realize that they actually want to do better, and having something like this can sometimes help a light go on.
But yeah - if you're holding down a tech job then this probably all seems super-basic.
I've had a full time job in the tech sector for 4 years now.
I'm also studying part time. And I don't even know how I've made it this far. Studying has always been difficult for me. I have no problem understanding complex ideas or theories. I just suck at remembering them, and keeping a schedule to study so that I can do well in exams.
I'm the same way. Give me a problem, I'll find a solution or a workaround. Ask me to study for a project or a cert, I'm screwed. I'll forget what I have read and I'll have to start over again. It's quite irritating, changing the study venue doesn't really help me. So.....
Actually, I'm a former community college professor who has built a web site dedicated to helping people learn how to study, manage time, etc. It addresses exactly those people you are referring to.
I've been on all sides of the academic issue- good student, struggling student, and teacher.
It's also worth remembering that not all students have study skills, and so having an article that lists both reasonably useful advice (even if it isn't perfect) AND (even more importantly) gets the student thinking / reflecting about how to improve their performance can be valuable.
I'm gonna guess (since you're here on Hacker News) that you've got a paying job in the tech sector, which in turn requires a whole lot of self-management skills (like managing your time). There exist perfectly good people who are, say, 18 and terribly naive about what they'll need to do in order to get ahead. Maybe their high school wasn't terribly demanding, maybe they just didn't push themselves that hard. Sometimes they arrive at college, realize that they actually want to do better, and having something like this can sometimes help a light go on.
But yeah - if you're holding down a tech job then this probably all seems super-basic.