As Thanksgiving break and winter break roll around, it’s probably the “cramming season” again for some of us. Just like consuming too much food is a risk factor for indigestion, cramming all your study materials overnight will do us harm both physically and mentally.

My 9th grade honors biology teacher had a quote in her room, “The teacher does not give a grade, the student earns it”. We also learn that the best way to memorize something it by learning it over time. However, instead, we get lazy and rush to do it, especially at night, which doesn't contribute to memorization. And every time this happens, we often tell ourselves that next time I will start a week before, however, the cycle continues. And it’s very likely that reality will rough us in future situations where the knowledge of those crammed information is needed. One way or another, this habit of cramming til the last minute will hurt. Overnight Cramming may seem unavoidable and not surprisingly sometimes we can still do great and get good grades in the exam. I consider this “luck” but I try to persuade myself not to think so. After overnight cramming, I might be able to pass my test, but chances are that I would miss the silly mistakes due to the fact that I studied the night before. I used to blame myself for missing those silly points. Success is not luck, it is wiser to improve the learning process rather than blaming yourself for not getting the “luck” you wanted. Let’s start a fresh start by studying in a benign way. No more of “I learned it, I passed it, and I forgot it”.