My Teacher Is Disorganized!

I can remember one specific semester when I had a professor who confused me more often than not. Her lectures didn’t seem to match her handouts, and her tests didn’t seem to match either her lectures or the materials she offered. It happens.

Teachers are only human, and that means they come in all personality types. Sometimes, it can be frustrating if your teacher comes across as disorganized. If you haven’t experienced a disorganized teacher yet (or one who is less organized than you), you probably will in the future.

What can you do if your teacher presents information in a confusing or disorganized manner? I’m afraid you’ll have to make your own sense out of the chaos by doing a little mix and match work.

• First of all, assign a page number for every single item your create or receive in your class.
• After each class, review your class notes to determine a theme or message.
• Next, put a few code words or labels in the margins to indicate the message or theme of that day. Do the same each time you receive a handout.
• When you know a test is coming, go through your notes and handouts and form an index. Make a study sheet filled with labels (code words) and indicate the number of every single page that corresponds with each label.

The ironic thing about having a disorganized teacher is that it can force you to go through your notes and handouts much more thoroughly. In the end, you can end up learning a lot more this way!