Cramming is an
art, and the most important
lesson learned by any
university student. Essentially, one puts off a great many
tasks assigned during a course such as
reading and
reviewing notes, thinking that surely one will have time to deal with them later. Soon enough, later arrives and it is a day or two before the
final exam that’s worth 75% of your course grade.
Only
fools cram in
libraries.
Libraries lack the basic facilities needed for cramming. The first necessity for cramming is some sort of
stimulant: I prefer
Earl Grey Tea. As well as stimulating the mind, the tea provides a
rhythm. You read a chapter, drink a cup, and take a break to refill. Between pots you can take a longer break, during which you make more tea. Another key
rhythm that’s established accomplishes the dual task of going to the bathroom and refilling the
kettle with which water is boiled for tea. Maintaining this elaborate, but easy,
dance keeps one mind adequately focused on the work at hand, while
exorcising the demons of
distraction and
tiredness.
Many people will tell you that
distraction must be entirely avoided while cramming. These people are either of a different mental
constitution than I, or have missed a vital part of cramming: perfect distraction. One must be just distracted enough that one doesn’t get bored and go find something else to do. For example, the right kind of
music, at the right volume, can hold back the desire to
go noding on e2 while you prepare for your exam. What sort of
music ought to be used varies by personal preference and by the nature of what is being studied.
Another way in which crammers attain
perfect distraction is by eating. Eating small amounts of something that takes a small effort to eat, like
sunflower seeds, both adds to
perfect distraction and delays the necessity of actually leaving the room to consume a
meal.
Meals are a certain way of losing valuable cramming time.
One final word of advice: do not become
overconfident in your cramming abilities. For example, you may think that you have a sufficient skill at cramming that you can take a break from the
tea-and-read cycle to write an
e2 post on cramming. While I haven’t the wit to act on this knowledge, hopefully you shall.
Cramming is not a
last-ditch effort or something done exclusively by
slackers.
The Communist Manifesto was written in an
overnight cram session as were numerous
Bills of Parliament including the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Acquiring the ability to
focus and achieve things
under pressure is valuable indeed.