You know that feeling when you’re staring hard at your book and your head feels like an impenetrable wall that nothing can pass through. Are you wondering why you find more satisfaction in doing other very unrelated tasks than picking up your school books? I believe many students can understand and relate well with that feeling.
Why Is That?
Many Students at all levels, globally, experience difficulty in focusing and retaining new information and this is due to a number of factors.
Distractions: We are in the digital age which presents us with numerous forms of distractions. Many students are more focused on social media and the different entertainments it has to offer than their education. This is because they find more gratification from doom scrolling on Tik-tok or playing PS4 than reading their books. The main reason for this is because social media provides you with instant dopamine that cannot really be found or replicated from your textbooks. This is why you can spend hours watching a movie series but the moment you pick up your book, your eyes begin to close. Other distractions can be in form of parties, hangouts or dates usually enforced by peer pressure especially in higher institutions. This does not mean that students cannot socialize or use social media. The problem lies in the imbalance between these activities and study time. Studying requires you to task your brain whereas distractions do not require much brain power.
Complexity of Materials or Subject Matter: Some subject matter or study material may be too complex for students to understand. This can be due to lack of foundational knowledge or overwhelming information. This is further reinforced by Teachers’ mode of teaching and their relationship with their students. Studies have shown that when students have bad relationships with their teachers, they tend to also do badly in those subjects or courses. Although, with enough time and patience, and the right attitude to learning, no material is too difficult to understand.
Bad Attitude to Learning: We live in the internet age which has given rise to the glorification of fame and materialism. More youths are starting to believe that school is unnecessary for success. This has built a disconnection between students and their studies. A disconnection with one’s course of study can also occur when there is no passion for it or you were simply forced to study that particular course.
Some students procrastinate and put off their studies until exams are too close for comfort. Students also have no established mode of studying or use poor study techniques like cramming which does not guarantee effective retention. This all reverts back to not having the right attitude to school or studying.
Mental and Psychological Factors: Psychological and mental factors are not given much attention especially in the Nigerian education system but these factors greatly influence students’ study habits more than we know. Some students deal with mental issues like Depression, Anxiety , ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) among many others. This makes it harder for them to concentrate or focus on school work compared to their peers. They struggle to concentrate and retain information and may lag behind in their grades.
Other factors that can affect students mentally include personal issues like financial problems, family or relationship stress, health issues or anxiety about grades or school work load. This can lead to mental fatigue and draw a student’s focus from their studies.
Oluwadimimu Mercy Titilope
University of Lagos
