Be prepared
One of my university lecturers – the Professor, no less – was famed by an occasion when virtually an entire one-hour tutorial was held in silence. A tutorial is very different to a lecture. A wit once wrote that ‘a lecture is the process by which information is passed from the notes of the lecturer to the notes of the student, bypassing the brain of both.’ But tutorials have a more interactive format. They are designed for discussion, clarification, and applying the knowledge gained in lectures. You cannot expect to turn up and be passive or disengaged. You must be tuned in. Now, this Professor had asked his students to prepare for the tutorial by doing some reading. This reading was essential as it would prepare fertile ground for the advancement of their studies; their understanding of the topic would deepen though their shared exploration of the reading and, because of this, they would take ownership and think for themselves – developin...