How to stay awake during lectures

[serena87]

Hey there!

I have a problem of staying awake during lectures!
I try my best to concentrate, but sometimes I find myself doozing off!
Any ideas on how I can stay awake during those 2 hours?
It's weird,as I have never encountered this problem before...I'm starting to think that it could be the lighting in the lecture theatre? Or maybe the fact that it is a huge lecture theatre with a lot of students ( I've never had mass lectures before)

What's your take on this?

[AnnDeBlurry]

I'll open my eyes wide to ensure I am REALLY awake ! Besides , you can also drink water to refresh yourself .

Lighting of lecture theatre really important , I can't deny it . I am always awake in tuition which has bright lighting (plus the wall must be painted white ) , eventhough the teachers are really boring .

[passer-by]

Try taking down the key points in lectures using the 'wrong' hand , ie. if you are right-handed, use your left hand and vice-versa. That's sure to keep you awake.

[AnnDeBlurry]

Try taking down the key points in lectures using the 'wrong' hand , ie. if you are right-handed, use your left hand and vice-versa. That's sure to keep you awake.

I doubt whether you can take note , lol !

Another method is talk with the person sitting besides you :p

[passer-by]

I doubt whether you can take note , lol !

Another method is talk with the person sitting besides you :p

Haha..., I've tried before, it works well beyond my expectation, bt, jz I know how to read them. Well, it mayb 'a bit' slow, bt it's better than getting nothing if you doze off.

[06008]

eat sweets..drink water..sketch something in ur paper (conteng2 la)...ASK QUESTIONS!!! that helped alot

[starlemon]

Put urself in a calm state ..chat with ur frens if u feel drowsy and sleepy..:P
drink a lot of water to revive urself..water does help a lot in making u stay alert.

[Davidlew]

Joke with your neighbours. You can also ask teachers questions. Besides, don't eat too much during break cuz it'll make u feel sleepy....

[Shoblast]

coffee. nuff said.

if your lecture material is boring you, what on earth are you doing with your life?

[youngyew]

Coffee, coffee, more coffee.

If that's not enough - get more sleep. :)

[JiaZheng]

My five sure-fire ways to stay awake during lectures:
1) Sit at the very front.
2) Ask questions.
3) Study ahead for the class.
4) Actively take notes, i.e. don't write exactly what your prof says; paraphrase and let your head do some thinking and write that thinking
5) Coffee

[vseehua]

I'll open my eyes wide to ensure I am REALLY awake ! Besides , you can also drink water to refresh yourself .

Lighting of lecture theatre really important , I can't deny it . I am always awake in tuition which has bright lighting (plus the wall must be painted white ) , eventhough the teachers are really boring .makes me even sleepier

Coffee, coffee, more coffee.

If that's not enough - get more sleep. :)coffee makes me sleepy for some reason or another...

My five sure-fire ways to stay awake during lectures:
1) Sit at the very front.
2) Ask questions.
3) Study ahead for the class.
4) Actively take notes, i.e. don't write exactly what your prof says; paraphrase and let your head do some thinking and write that thinking
5) Coffeei can sleep even through i sit at the very front of the class kekeke

[Gabrielle90]

focus is the best solution... try to focus on the teacher and the books... haha... talk with friends is what i always do... it works...

[capablanca]

Never manage to solve this problem. I can sleep even if I sit in the first row directly in front of the lecturer.

[megatfais]

Coffee, coffee, more coffee.

If that's not enough - get more sleep. :)

coffee?LOL.makes me even sleepier.i remember taking a cup of it during the night before one of my interviews.i was supposed to read up sumtin but becuz of that bloody coffee i felt soooo sleepy so i had to sleep.weird but true.

[nadia.g]

ill just sleep in the lecture if im tooooo sleepy.. bettr than staying awake n not understanding anything.. haha.

i think the best way is to sleep early.. tats why i sleep no later than 11 pm (unless im on the phone with someone haha)

[youngyew]

Haha, how much dosage and how many cups you had? For me, sometimes low dose of coffee indeed makes me sleepier too. However, I remember once that I was driving long distance here in Australia and I was quite tired and yawning quite often. I stopped at a McDonald and ordered an espresso shot - super thick and super small shot - and I was totally invigorated and drove for the next one or two hours without yawning even once.

So I have this hypothesis that coffee's effectiveness might actually depend on the dosage. :P With low dose, the milk / sugar that goes with the coffee might actually make you more tired as you expend energy digesting them. (Take this hypothesis with a pinch of salt, just a random guess)

[bluez_aspic]

Hmm, how does tea compare to coffee (with high caffeine levels and all)?

[Davidlew]

Don't drink coffee. It's detrimental to health. Besides, don't sleep too much as it will make you feel more sleepy..

[caramel_nut]

Ehm... I don't really care now... I used to give myself a high dosage of caffeine whenever I pulled an all-nighter and needed to attend lectures in the morning but now even though I still sit in the front rows and try my best to stay awake, I sometimes gloriously doze off right in front of the professor. Well, a lot of other students do that as well, so I'm not the only one. XD

[vseehua]

Ehm... I don't really care now... I used to give myself a high dosage of caffeine whenever I pulled an all-nighter and needed to attend lectures in the morning but now even though I still sit in the front rows and try my best to stay awake, I sometimes gloriously doze off right in front of the professor. Well, a lot of other students do that as well, so I'm not the only one. XDi do that all the time...

Haha, how much dosage and how many cups you had? For me, sometimes low dose of coffee indeed makes me sleepier too. However, I remember once that I was driving long distance here in Australia and I was quite tired and yawning quite often. I stopped at a McDonald and ordered an espresso shot - super thick and super small shot - and I was totally invigorated and drove for the next one or two hours without yawning even once.

So I have this hypothesis that coffee's effectiveness might actually depend on the dosage. :P With low dose, the milk / sugar that goes with the coffee might actually make you more tired as you expend energy digesting them. (Take this hypothesis with a pinch of salt, just a random guess)
I can't take in huge dosage of coffee at one time, makes my digestion system uncomfortable

[Davidlew]

Ehm... I don't really care now... I used to give myself a high dosage of caffeine whenever I pulled an all-nighter and needed to attend lectures in the morning but now even though I still sit in the front rows and try my best to stay awake, I sometimes gloriously doze off right in front of the professor. Well, a lot of other students do that as well, so I'm not the only one. XD


Then, no cure for you... You just excuse yourself to sleep in class or go to toilet to wash your face to refresh yourself.

[youngyew]

Oh by the way, in case anyone goes try three table spoon of coffee after reading my post:

DON'T TRY IT AT HOME.

One of my housemates had that much of coffee before his exam because his girlfriend accidentally "spiked" him. She thought it was Milo when she made it I think. He ended up getting serious pulpitation, irregular heartbeat, and almost collapsed in the exam hall, and required some injection in the clinic.

What I meant by high dosage is like one tablespoon.

[jayden]

Oh by the way, in case anyone goes try three table spoon of coffee after reading my post:

DON'T TRY IT AT HOME.

One of my housemates had that much of coffee before his exam because his girlfriend accidentally "spiked" him. She thought it was Milo when she made it I think. He ended up getting serious pulpitation, irregular heartbeat, and almost collapsed in the exam hall, and required some injection in the clinic.

What I meant by high dosage is like one tablespoon.

Wow, I didn't realize that there would be negative side effects from too much coffee. But coffee doesn't seem to do the job for me. I used to take a glass of Nescafe ice when there's a boring subject coming up but I end up half asleep anyway.

[vseehua]

Wow, I didn't realize that there would be negative side effects from too much coffee. But coffee doesn't seem to do the job for me. I used to take a glass of Nescafe ice when there's a boring subject coming up but I end up half asleep anyway.caffeine is a stimulant. Like any other stimulant, there is bound to be side effects to it...

Thread moved to the education section (it's not a debate anyway)

[Caprio]

To some people, drinking a cup of coffee might help.

Generally, to stay awake in lectures, one should sleep early.

Then, try to practice active learning instead of passive learning.

Next, try to link the stuff to the real world application and the previous stuff you have learned before.

These are my ways of staying awake during lectures.

[jayden]

caffeine is a stimulant. Like any other stimulant, there is bound to be side effects to it...

Thread moved to the education section (it's not a debate anyway)


I see. And seehua, I don't think this thread is very 'educational' either.

My teacher said that Milo has caffeine too. And I used to eat Milo from the tin last time before I made a cup of it :nod

[AnnDeBlurry]

Sometimes I also try coffee to make me awake but not during school day.....Normally , I'll do that if I have homework but I am too tired and sleepy

[vseehua]

I see. And seehua, I don't think this thread is very 'educational' either.

My teacher said that Milo has caffeine too. And I used to eat Milo from the tin last time before I made a cup of it :nod
Well, it's about how to stay awake during classes ;)

I did that as well... The keyword here is concentration. I am willing to bet that coffee contains a lots higher concentration of caffeine than Milo :P

This also applies to the fact that Cola can clean your toilet bowl but can't damage your body even if it contains Phosphoric Acid (according to that stupid forwarded chain mail)

[Caprio]

I see. And seehua, I don't think this thread is very 'educational' either.

My teacher said that Milo has caffeine too. And I used to eat Milo from the tin last time before I made a cup of it :nod


Hmm... I never realize Milo contains caffeine.

It is not stated in the label too.

[megatfais]

omg...now m sooooo addicted to milo.before this was nescafe.i guess i got bored of it so now i LOVE MILO!!

[Gabrielle90]

Wow, I didn't realize that there would be negative side effects from too much coffee. But coffee doesn't seem to do the job for me. I used to take a glass of Nescafe ice when there's a boring subject coming up but I end up half asleep anyway.

me too... coffee doesnt work for me... i think cold plain water is better...

[caramel_nut]

Then, no cure for you... You just excuse yourself to sleep in class or go to toilet to wash your face to refresh yourself.No need, no need. In pre-u, yes, the professor will ask you to go to the restroom to wash your face but once you go to university, the professor understands perfectly why we fall asleep during the lecture and won't mind, well ok, at least my professors don't mind. XD

[WinnieH]

i know how. ask your friend to pinch you if she sees you're sleepy. or ask her to jab your waist or something.

me and my friend made this plan when we're attending our boring classes in school. and she would jab me all of a sudden when she saw i'm sleepy... and i'll be so damn alert after that. no more sleepy.

[vseehua]

i would rather sleep for 5 mins and understand the rest of the lectures rather than forcing myself to stay awake and understand none...

[JiaZheng]

i can sleep even through i sit at the very front of the class kekeke

Oh you need to do all five methods for it to work.

[WilsonCWJ]

i would rather sleep for 5 mins and understand the rest of the lectures rather than forcing myself to stay awake and understand none...

Agreed but when u r asleep...by d time u wake up 50 minutes mite have passed instead!!

[vseehua]

Agreed but when u r asleep...by d time u wake up 50 minutes mite have passed instead!!
not for me. I sleep constantly for 5 mins...

[Glassylicious]

Try eating sweets. Sweets give you a quick boost of energy. Specifically, I recommend mints. But remember that overdoing it [such as having too many mints within a period of time] will reduce the overall effectiveness of it, just like every other method.

And yes, like another user suggested, getting a friend to poke you [especially if you're ticklish] is a good idea, providing you don't suddenly scream out in class. XD

To be honest though, most of these methods [except for maybe the poking one] will probably only work for the first 15 minutes or so. The best way is still to nap for a while, though that obviously isn't something that can be done anytime, anywhere. XD

[ais_kacang]

Make sure to get enough rest before attend any classes....:)

[Gabrielle90]

Make sure to get enough rest before attend any classes....:)

yea... this is the best way... take breakfast as it provides us energy of the day...

[WilsonCWJ]

But sometimes eating can make u sleepy... coz a type of neurotransmitter is released that gives a sense of relaxation... correct me if im wrong.

[youngyew]

While you are eating, your body expends more energy digesting food. But then different food with different composition will have different effect.

[Gabrielle90]

dont eat heavy food like rice in the morning... eat something light...

[passer-by]

But sometimes eating can make u sleepy... coz a type of neurotransmitter is released that gives a sense of relaxation... correct me if im wrong.

I don't know about that. But, I figure out that too much food will burden our stomach, and hence, it requires more oxygen to 'work' hard in order to digest the food. Consequently, more blood is supplied to it. This results in relatively less blood supply (and thus oxygen supply) to our brain which leads to a drowsy feeling. Anyone can verify my guess ?

[abuzar]

put lemon jice in ur eyes..lol....have enough rest before the lecture...make sure u are not hungry and also not too full...and concentrate lah

[Al-Bert]

Drink a bottle of Brand's Chicken Essence before the lecture, you would stay alert and concentrate well all the time...

(I wonder why? Chicken essence has stimulant?)

[qdfb]

Drink a cup of tea...hehe

[WilsonCWJ]

Drinking doesnt work well for me... Haiz... usually i get sleepy in afternoon...

[Davidlew]

No need, no need. In pre-u, yes, the professor will ask you to go to the restroom to wash your face but once you go to university, the professor understands perfectly why we fall asleep during the lecture and won't mind, well ok, at least my professors don't mind. XD


Ohh...What an understanding teacher! He understands our plight. Or maybe he know it's his fault--cuz he delivers a boring lecture until everyone falls asleep....

[youngyew]

Haha all university lecturers get used to sleepy students I suppose. :D