Do you find yourself to be a good student? Being a good student falls into so many types of categories. Of course good grades are beneficial, but what you get yourself involved with outside of school also counts. A good student is a hard worker, who has a passion for learning.  He or she sets goals, has a positive attitude, is able to deal with failure, and most importantly gets involved with extracurricular activities. Colleges love to see those additional aspects on transcript. A good student is motivated and is always open to trying new things.

Involvement

Are you involved in anything? Whether it’s a sport, a club, community service, it allows you to socialize with different individuals. Meeting new people is awesome and these occupations allow you to do so. These activities provide a learning experience that is outside of a typical classroom setting. Students are able to communicate and bounce their ideas off of each other to reach their desired goals. In addition, colleges love to see the additional tasks you get yourself involved in besides school.

Hard Working

As we all can agree to some degree, school can be a bit overwhelming especially now with partial remote and partial virtual learning. A hard-working student manages their time. They always complete the homework whenever is said to do so, find time to study for any upcoming exams, ask questions when they are a bit confused, or even consider speaking with their teacher about extra help. Being a hard-worker doesn’t necessarily mean you’re smart, but the person wants to develop their skills. With this mindset, students will be super successful in life because they just keep on going. “I think a good student needs to be good at taking criticism. No one’s perfect, so you always need to be ready to hear what you can improve on!” says Jessica Orzelowski.

Passion for Learning

Is there a subject that interests you more than others? Do you find yourself doing better in Science than in English? Your dream job could be a doctor so the science field is what you do best in. Although, does that mean to just give up on the other subjects? A student with a passion for learning will always do their best in all of their classes. If other classes require more time for studying, these good students will plan out their days including what needs to be done on each day. They will even find time to study on the weekends instead of going outside with their friends. Sophomore, Amna JawferJan, has some positive advice for her peers. “If you keep trying and don’t give up, you’ll achieve something that will be worth your effort or even better” ~ 

Setting Goals

Everyone has their own types of goals they would like to achieve. Setting goals help lead to a successful destination. It provides a long term vision and in order to get there, you need to be motivated. Setting a goal is motivating because it’s what you want to get better at so you do it. The end result might be exactly what you wanted if you correctly break down your goals or plan your route. The whole idea of setting goals helps to lead your focus in the right direction and helps you keep that momentum while striving to achieve it.

Positive Attitude

Having a positive attitude can help a student achieve those goals they’ve set for themselves. They have a positive approach to their decisions and overall just makes them a happier person. It can teach students how to focus more on improving rather than giving up. Garrett Wilder, another LHS sophomore, says “Being a responsible, diligent worker, an active voice in class, and showing respect to teachers and classmates are all key signs of a good student.” When someone incorporates a positive attitude into their work, they can become super successful. The student is determined to get done what is needed to get done and continue to aim for their accomplishments. 

Dealing With Failure

Do you beat yourself up if you do poorly on a test? That is a common thing students do when they receive a grade they’re not happy with. Although, failure can be such a huge life lesson and it’s important to go back and examine what went wrong. Was it a lack of persistence? A bad day? Failure teaches individuals to grow and build resilience. “Being a good student is about being respectful, and trying your hardest. It is not always about grades. It can also be about participating in class, showing up, doing your homework, and being kind and friendly to your teachers and classmates” says sophomore, Michele Tretola. These life setbacks can be thought of as a learning experience and what a better studying technique could be for the upcoming time. Learning how to cope with failure can be a road to success.