So what kind of game plan takes into account stress, hurry, fatigue and distractions? Let’s call it the GoodTermPaper bare necessities plan.
First, read your teacher’s instructions for the paper front to back, several times. Highlight, underline or otherwise indicate important points to follow. Even if you read nothing else, read those instructions! They are your best chance at getting an A, especially under time constraints. Even if your paper is sloppy, transitions poorly, meanders and bullshits its way through important points about which you have limited knowledge, you MAY still get a B or C IF your paper adheres to the teacher’s instructions. If the instructions say to discuss Napoleon’s military genius AND his economic and political blunders WHILE reflecting upon his legacy and contributions to the modern world, then:
You should open with a discussion of a battle and talk about the tremendous gains Napoleon made through that and other battles. Then you should move on to mistakes, and how it was such a shame that a great genius was so dumb about other important points. Throughout the paper, you should mention the Napoleonic law codes, which were a great boon to civilization. Even if you get some facts or interpretations wrong, your teacher will respect the fact that you respected HER plan for the paper. There is a very important reason why this is true:
The human brain has expectations. Your teacher has already seen the perfect paper for this particular assignment in her mind’s eye. She knows the essential story that it tells, and how it moves from one portion of that story to the next. The closer you can come to emulating this internal mental model of your professor’s, the higher your grade will be.
Of course, you could try to blow your teacher away with an outside the box concept- that might work and get you an A+, it might get a C. Some people admire creativity, while others consider it a nuisance and impediment to what they wish to accomplish. You should definitely try to formulate a judgment about your teacher’s character before going outside the box!
This article was written by the Editor in Chief at www.Goodtermpaper.com