How To Enact Damage Control After A Classroom Catnap
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Most publications and blogs that cater to students will eventually run an article on how to stay awake during class. They offer (sometimes) valuable advice on getting enough sleep, avoiding all-nighters, using caffeine intelligently, cutting down on sugar, etc. I wonÂ’t go into details here, because I may decide to write an article of my own
In this article, I will focus less on preventing classroom catnaps, and instead talk about what to do after you wake up. Because letÂ’s face it: some of us canÂ’t do anything about our sleep schedule without cutting into study time, CCAs, or aspects of our social life that are important to us. We know that we are sleep-deprived, but sometimes we canÂ’t do anything about it. We even fall asleep in classes that we love most, sometimes during the lull between two exciting parts of the lecture. If you are like me, and you know that sleeping better and changing your diet isnÂ’t enough, then itÂ’s important that you master the ability to recover from an episode of classroom catnap.
First, a few words on my experience. IÂ’m in my fifth year of Secondary School, and since the beginning of "god-knows-which" year I have been notorious for sleeping in classes. HereÂ’s the kicker: my teachers still like me, and are willing to help. Well, most of them anyway. And it has nothing to do with the kind of grades that I get.
I have a lot of wonderful friends who are excellent students, and every now and then one of them will call me up to ask what they should do, because they either: A) fell asleep in lecture B) overslept and disrupted the class by showing up thirty minutes late C) slept through an exam. In all three cases, their first instinct as to what they should do is usually wrong.
After literally years of experience sleeping in virtually every class, I have developed my very own standard operating procedure (SOP) for coping with the fallout from a classroom catnap. But before I go on, I want to make it very clear what this strategy will and will not do for you.
This strategy will not help you sleep less in class. It wonÂ’t help you learn the material you missed, or get stellar grades on tests. It wonÂ’t turn you into some slick talker who can convince your teacher to give you an A and the shirt on his or her back.
This strategy will help you limit the damage sustained to your reputation from your nap. Very often in secondary school, especially as you get to the upper-sec, maintaining a good image in the eyes of your teacher is an important part of taking a class. In extreme cases, you may care more about whether the teacher likes you and thinks you are bright than you do about whether he gives you an A or a B. But even if it’s “just some class with some old teacher”, you will feel far less comfortable going to office hours and asking for advice if you feel that you have antagonized your teacher (and he or she will be less likely to go the extra mile when providing help and giving much-needed breaks and extensions).
So, without further ado, I present my SOP (patent pending).
1. Open your eyes. Taking long naps is pushing it. The last thing you want to do is start snoring — there’s no forgiveness for snoring in class! Even if you don’t normally snore, when you are on two hours of sleep for the better part of a week, the odds are against you. I learned this the hard way last year.
2. Make eye contact with the teacher immediately, and offer some kind of facial expression. Whether itÂ’s a smile or a wince, all you want to do is indicate that you are embarrassed.
3. Sit up in your seat, with your back straight. For bonus points, lean forward as if you are intensely interested in whatÂ’s on the blackboard.
4. Give yourself a few moments to get your bearings. Then, ask the first semi-intelligent question that comes to your mind. Don’t waste everyone’s time, but don’t worry about being wrong either. Your purpose here is to show your teacher that you care. If you are stuck here, questions of the form “Teacher, I just want to make sure I have everything right: you said x,y,z just a little while ago” are always an option, especially if you are in a lecture that requires taking a lot of notes.
5. Whatever you do, donÂ’t try to act smart by making a pedantic observation or correcting the teacher. This will earn you the disdain of both your teacher and your classmates. Just donÂ’t do it. On the other hand, if by some miracle you do have a bright idea that actually contributes to the discussion and/or lecture, do share it. ItÂ’s always impressive when someone can wake up and immediately join in on the discussion.
6. If you didn’t get to ask a question, then answer one. If your teacher asks for hands, volunteer yourself. Unless you are exceptionally bright, or the class is remedial, you will probably be wrong. Perhaps you’ll be horribly wrong. But that’s okay — you’ve just shown the teacher that you want to participate, despite your sleeping problem.
7. This should go without saying, but try to get the missing notes from a friend or neighbor.
8. Careful: this won’t work with every teacher. If you don’t plan on keeping in touch with this teacher after the class ends, you may want to skip this step. I always do it for all my teachers. After class, go up to your teacher and wait for the students who are busy sucking up to conclude their business. Then, apologize to your teacher for sleeping in class. 90% of the time, your teacher will respond by saying “I know, I saw.” When this happens, you will be very glad that you chose to speak with him or her. You have two options now. You can either explain how you enjoy the material but simply can’t help falling asleep, or you can offer fervent promises that it won’t happen again. Be honest, and try to choose the explanation that you think will be consistent with your behavior in the weeks to come
And there you have it. It sounds pretty straightforward — even naive. Perhaps many of you think it won’t work — but it does, as long as you are realistic about what it’s going to get you.
So what do you all think? Anyone have a great story to share about falling asleep in class (IÂ’ve can think of a couple good ones myself..)? As always, feel free to post a reply or email me at (uh oh here comes to spam): [email protected]! -
Wow. I was looking at your profile and eventually found this. Not trying to be offensive, but your English is really great for a Sec 5 student. (I have to look up Answer.com for the meaning of "pedantic".) A great article, yea. Thumbs up for you, and I hope to see you in TP next year. And try to get more sleep if possible - it's an essential ingredient for creativity juice in the mind.
