Mugging.

Hi all, it's been a long while (a month?).

Well, today, my topic will be on well, as mentioned above, mugging! Firstly, what is mugging? First, from dictionary.com -- an assault or threat of violence upon a person, esp. with intent to rob. Well, not what I was looking for. How about another online dictionary, like yourdictionary.com? To study hard and hurriedly, as in preparation for an examination. Yep. To study hard due to well, procrastination. So, mugging means to do last minute studying.

Now for my understanding of the word "mugging", based on experience, of course. Mugging refers to memorizing of tested material (of a test/examination) so as to pass or do well in it. It's my definition, you may disagree, but I believe that the material is memorized, and while it may be understood at that moment, it will eventually be forgotten once the examination is over. And thus I am strongly against it.

In my opinion, the knowledge one learns should already be in one's memory and he should understand it completely (how it works, why, etc.) and not memorized for a period of time. What is the purpose of examinations? To test your knowledge. If you just memorize what is tested and then forget it after, then is it considered "your knowledge"? I doubt so. As such, I believe that one should not "mug", but instead revise. My definition of revise? To go through all your past works and test yourself; if you do not understand it, do some research, ask questions, etc. After all, one might forget what he mugged and... you know.

Personally, I believe more in ability than in luck, which is why I feel guilty whenever I put in a random answer so as to have a chance of getting it correct. Sometimes, that one mark might be the difference between a grade, or even between passing and failing. So, in this competitive world, sometimes, we must do things we do not think so highly of, in order to do better, and that is probably the main reason why people mug in the first place. Of course, I would say that I do not mug, but while it may be the truth, it isn't reliable coming from me, so never mind.


Well. to mug or not to mug - that is the question. To me, the answer is no, I would rather revise and understand what I was taught, but you are still free to make a choice. You decide.