You probably think you will never be a top student. This is not necessarily so, however. Anyone can become a better student if he or she wants to. Here's how:

    Plan your time carefully. When planning your work, you should make a list of things that you have to do. After making this list, you should make a schedule of your time. First set your time for eating, sleeping, dressing, etc. Then decide a good, regular time for studying . A weekly schedule may not solve all your problems, but it will force you to realize what is happening to your time.

    Find a good place to study. Look around the house for a good study area. Keep this space, which may be a desk or simply a corner of your room, free of everything but study materials. No games, radios, or television. When you sit down to study, concentrate on the subject.

    Make good use of your time in class. Listening carefully in class means less work later. Taking notes will help you remember what the teacher says.

    Study regularly. When you get home from school, go over your notes, review the important points that your teacher is going to discuss the next day and read that material. If you do these things regularly, the material will become more meaningful, and you'll remember it longer.

    Develop a good attitude towards tests. The purpose of a test is to show what you have learned about a subject. They help you remember your new knowledge. The world won't end if you don't pass a test, so don't be over worried.

    . You will probably discover many others after you have tried these.

    Anna Douglas was 72 years old when she started writing her newspaper column. She had been a school teacher before she retired (退休), but she needed to keep 1. She was even willing to work without pay. She then offered her 2 with a business that helped other businesses find jobs for old people. Every day she 3 other old folks like her. By talking with them, she 4 two things. Old people had abilities that were not 5. But old people also had some 6. She found a new purpose for herself then.

    Through the years, she 7 to write stories about people for national magazines. There was now a new 8: Old people like herself. She began to write a newspaper column called "Sixty Plus", which was about 9 old. She wrote about the problems of old people, especially their problems with being 10.

    Anna Douglas used her 11 ability to see the truth behind a problem. She understood 12 problems began. For example, one of her 13 said that his grandchildren 14 the houses as soon as he came to visit. Mrs Douglas 15 some ways for him to understand his grandchildren.

    "It's important to know 16 about your grandchildren's world," said Mrs Douglas. "That means questioning and listening, and 17 is not what old people do best. Say good things to them and about them," she continued. "Never try to 18 your grandchildren or other young people. Never 19 your opinion. Don't tell them what they should do. 20, they have been taught they should have respect for old people. The old should respect them as well."

    Professor Martin's report says that children who attend a number of schools, because their parents have to move around the country, probably make slow progress in their studies. There are also signs, says Professor Martin, that an unusually large number of such children are mentally affected.

    The professor says, "It's true, my personal feeling is that children should stay in one school. Our feelings are based on research and not on any personal feeling that I or many assistants may have on the subject."

    Captain Thomas James, an army lecturer for the past 20 years and himself a father of two, said, "I've never heard such rubbish. Taking me for example, no harm is done to the education of my children who change school regularly—if they keep to the same system, as in our Army school. In my experience—and I've known quite a few of them—Army children are as well-adjusted (适应) as any others, if not better. What the professor doesn't appear to appreciate is the fact that in such situations children will adapt (适应) much better than grown-ups."

    When this was put to Professor Martin, he said that at no time has his team suggested that all such children were backward or mentally affected in some way, but simply that in their experience there was a clear tendency (倾向).

    "Our findings show that while the very bright child can deal with regular changes without harming his or her general progress in studies, the majority (大多数) of children suffer from constantly (不断地) having to enter a new learning situation."