How to study physics? (Question for students and instructors)

Hello, I've been pondering this question for many years now and I've finally believe I've discovered the answer. The answer is to adopt a set of study strategies that force you to deeply ponder physics as much as possible. I'll explain. When many students first start out studying physics, they think just by passively listening to lectures and reading textbooks they'll pass the class. Unfortunately, they're wrong and end up failing the course.

A better idea would be the following. Let's assume the worst-case scenario. Let's assume that a student has low-level math and academic skills and their physics teacher is bad. Unfortunately, their odds of success are low, unless they do the following. Before lecture, they read the textbook with a set of guided reading questions to keep them attentive and try to work out as many of the book's example problems as possible. After lecture, they go to a classmate or a tutor and ask any questions they have on the lecture or textbook. Then, they try the homework problems and ask questions. Through this process, they either get the help they need or decide their math skills are too low and drop the course to take a lower-level math class.

Note: different things work for different people. Maybe the textbook has nothing to do with the lectures so they ditch the textbook completely and instead use internet website that more completely align with lectures. Or maybe the lectures have nothing to do with the test so they skip lectures and use the textbook and/or internet. The point is to think deeply about principles. A person's study strategies and study plans can be judged by how well they make students think deeply about things.

Again for some physics teachers, some don't make you think as deeply and you can pass their class by just understanding their problems and homework. However, others make you think so deeply about things that they expect you to jump from 1D-kinematics to 2D-projectile motion with no preparation whatsoever. Perhaps it's best to avoid teachers who make you think TOO deeply and who don't make you think deeply enough.

As far as measuring someone's physics understanding, there are degrees to this. People who just memorize problems and solutions have a low level of understanding. People who can do problems with the numbers changed and can do math with no physical intuition and without recognizing the assumptions we're making when solving said problems have an intermediate understanding. People who can do problems with understanding the math and physical reality have an advanced understanding.

What are your thoughts? Do you disagree?

My thoughts are that it takes two to tango. A good teacher cannot teach a student who doesn't care about learning. Conversely, a student who cares about learning will learn despite having a bad teacher. The remedies that you propose cannot be imposed from the outside and will work only if the student is motivated to find ways for improvement. I addressed the motivation issue here.

kuruman said:

My thoughts are that it takes two to tango. A good teacher cannot teach a student who doesn't care about learning. Conversely, a student who cares about learning will learn despite having a bad teacher. The remedies that you propose cannot be imposed from the outside and will work only if the student is motivated to find ways for improvement. I addressed the motivation issue here.

Hmm... A student who's never had a good teacher though,or is the product of a terrible system may not learn despite his/her best efforts. But, I agree with you to a certain extent. Too many students blame the teachers/the system when they themselves need to be responsibility. But, I'm certain there's a sizeable minority of students who take responsibility but have never been taught how to learn due to a broken system. We should keep in mind this minority too. But besides my bad teacher rant, do you agree with everything else?

It is hard to argue with some of your points. If you have a bad (or even a good) teacher, you will benefit from studying the material, asking (knowing) classmates, or preferably tutors, about points you don't understand, and doing as many homework problems as possible. As far as ditching the lectures if they do not help in the tests, you never know if the lectures are useful, until you take the first tests. After a few tests, it can be too late. In addition, many good teachers of mine used to put questions they addressed in class on the tests. Lectures, generally told us what they regarded as important.

There was also a general rule of thumb, "Never skip the lecture right before the test". I had a teacher once who told us the last years test was very similar, and he put it on reserve in the reading room. The class average on the test was an 82. I did not attend the lecture, and my score was a 28. (I did not skip four more classes as an undergrad ( in the remaining 3 years) after this. And two of these skipped, were after I was in a car that was totalled) . He told me if he made the other tests as easy, he could flunk me right there, after the first test. I had to work like a dog to bring my average up to a C. It is a good thing he made the other tests much harder.