Lots of people think that travel and study are mutually exclusive. But nowadays, in our globalized world, we travel way too often to skip studying. We have business trips, travel to work and back, go on vacations, and continue to work full-time while studying. Discarding our learning at that time is completely counterproductive. Moreover, traveling, as the major change, sharpens our perceptions and enhances our ability to learn. It is a natural mechanism that allowed our ancestors to adjust to the new surroundings. Studying while traveling isn’t hard, there are only a few tips you need to know to make this process a pleasure!
Choose a program that allows you to travel
Flexibility is a crucial thing when it comes to combining travel and study. Ask your school or courses if they allow flexible schedules and can postpone some tests if you are traveling. Usually, each major school has a site with records of all the lessons, online tests, materials, etc. It is useful for the people who are leaving for abroad, but it may be equally useful for those who are traveling temporarily.
Of course, there are cases when you just can’t use the Internet to get new knowledge. But sometimes you may ask for the lectures and textbooks left from the previous year. It won’t be as effective as a live Skype or Zoom lesson, but it will help you to stay on the same page with the rest of the group. You may collect all the questions and send them to your teacher in a single email. Emails are a slower way of communication, but they can be sent from anywhere where even the slowest Internet connection exists.
Check your study milestones
Almost every course has That One Test that you need to pass no matter what. Other tests aren’t mandatory or can be passed later, but there are key dates where the lessons shall be attended. It may be the end of the module, the final exam, the crucial lecture, or anything else. It’s always better to ask your teacher about such dates in advance and plan your travel, keeping them in mind. You’ll need the day (or at least the evening) before the test to be spent in a quiet and calm place to remember everything you need. On the test day, you’ll need a good Internet connection. Think about a computer club, a cafe with Wi-Fi, or just a high ground without any trees around if you are away from civilization. Of course, if you are resting in a comfortable hotel, you’ll get everything you need at once, but if you are hiking – think about it before.
Alternatively, you may just ask about such milestones long before you plan your travel and choose the time without any key dates. Then you may just warn your teacher and depart, studying in a relaxed manner and not looking for particular dates and lessons.
Prepare everything you need for study
The required pack depends on the place you are traveling to. In a hotel, you might need only a laptop and a Wi-Fi connection to download anything you need from your Google Drive. If you are going to a place where you’ll have electricity but not the Internet, you may need to download everything and store it on your hard drive. For example, you need to read https://lawaspect.com/educational-law-essays/ for your next class, but won’t have the Internet, just download the web page and enjoy it offline anytime. If you are going to the wilderness – prepare the printed (and lightweight) version of your materials and, possibly, protect it from the elements.
Additional things you may need are: a charger, extra battery, headphones, notebook, pens and pencils, spare paper for drafts, and anything you are used to, like highlighter or sticky notes.
Plan your time every day
We understand that you may not know your exact daily schedule, but some rough plans will come in handy. How much time a day are you going to study? Will you do it in the evening or in the morning? Do you have some routines that have to be finished until you can study? Does your schedule still look like an enjoyable experience, or are you just going to study anywhere not having any rest?
If you are studying during short travels like a plane or bus travels, you should think about your schedule too. You don’t want to study for several hours in a row in an unfamiliar, crampy, moving space, believe us. So, think about something you can do to have a short rest. An episode of a favorite series, a few pages of the book, or just a short nap – anything that makes you happy works just fine.
Make both your travels and your study process enjoyable. It is totally possible while you are planning in advance, have enough rest, and prepare everything you need before your journey. Have a great experience and good marks at the same time!
Photo by Mesut Kaya on Unsplash
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