Why Students Procrastinate and How to Avoid It
Procrastination is one of the most common issues faced by high school and university students, leading to stress, poor performance, and last-minute panic. Understanding why students procrastinate and learning strategies to overcome it can transform academic performance and reduce anxiety.
Common Reasons for Procrastination
Perfectionism: Many students delay starting tasks because they feel the need to do everything perfectly from the get-go. They fear failure or not meeting their own high standards.Solution: Shift focus to progress over perfection. Start small and remember that drafting and revising are part of the process. Break assignments into manageable tasks with deadlines for each phase (research, drafting, editing).
Lack of Motivation or Interest: Students often procrastinate when they don’t find a subject engaging or relevant to their future goals.Solution: Connect the material to real-life applications or long-term goals. Reward yourself for completing each task, and work in short, focused bursts to maintain energy.
Fear of Failure: Procrastination can be a defense mechanism to avoid the disappointment of a potential failure. Students might worry that they won't perform well, so they delay starting to avoid facing their fears.Solution: Reframe mistakes as learning opportunities. Embrace a growth mindset by remembering that each challenge helps to improve, regardless of the immediate outcome.
Poor Time Management: Many students struggle to prioritize tasks or break them down into manageable steps. This leads to overwhelming workloads and a tendency to put things off.Solution: Introduce time management tools such as planners or apps that help with scheduling tasks. Prioritize by deadlines, subject difficulty, and importance.
Distractions and Digital Temptations: Social media, video games, and other online distractions make it easy for students to push off studying or assignments.Solution: Create a distraction-free environment by setting designated study times, using apps that block certain websites during study periods, and practicing digital minimalism during work hours.
Here are five study apps designed to block distractions and you stay focused:
Forest: This app encourages focus by planting a virtual tree that grows as you stay focused. If you exit the app to check your phone or use a distracting app, the tree dies. Over time, you can grow a whole forest of focus, and the app even partners with real-life tree-planting organizations.
Freedom: Freedom allows users to block distracting websites, apps, or even the entire internet. It works across multiple devices (computers and phones), and students can schedule focus sessions in advance or start one instantly to stay on task.
Cold Turkey: Cold Turkey is a powerful app that blocks websites, apps, or even the entire computer, depending on the settings. It's known for being hard to bypass, so it's especially useful for students who tend to override simpler blockers.
Focus@Will: This app combines focus-boosting music with timed study sessions. It claims to improve concentration by using scientifically optimized music that helps the brain stay engaged in tasks longer without distractions.
StayFocusd: StayFocusd is a Google Chrome extension that helps students limit time spent on distracting websites. Once the daily time limit is reached, the websites are blocked for the rest of the day, encouraging students to use their time wisely.
These apps can be very useful for students who struggle with focus and tend to get distracted by their phones or other devices. Do you have thoughts on the subject that you would like to share?
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