[Reticence]

I was just wondering, how do you INFJ's approach school and learning in general?
What are your best subjects, and how do you learn them?

Just tell me what you think of the subject, how well you do, how you learn, etc. If you can't think of anything, refer to the questions below each subject to give you some ideas on where to start.

Why? I dunno, I'm just interested.

Math:
Are you good at it? Do you normally just follow formulas/instructions, or do you try your best to figure out how to get there in the first place? When you get a new problem, do you approach it strictly as an entirely new problem, thinking only back to the kinds of concepts you've learned, or do you think problems like it, or examples from the book each time? Do you prefer algebra, trigonometry, geometry, calculus, etc.

Sciences:
What type of sciences do you prefer? Why?

- Are you good at physics? Do you prefer labs and hands-on work, or conceptual problems? What branch of physics interests you the most: thermodynamics, electricity/magnetism, mechanics, quantum? Are you able to easily interpret data, or do you have to work with it?

- How good are you in biology classes? Do you easily remember the information? How do you remember the information: memorizing it or visualizing and trying your best to understand how the system works? When you're taught a new concept in biology, do you consider how it ties into with all the other biological functions, or what effect it has, or do you focus more on the concept at hand?

- How does chemistry go? Are you good with numbers in chemistry, or do you prefer the more conceptual side, or both? Do labs help you understand a concept better, or are you pretty much just as clear on it as you were before the lab?

- Do you like geoscience? Are you good at remembering exactly how things are, or do you really need to understand how everything interacts before you remember how things work properly?

History:
Are you good at it? Is it generally easy or straightforward for you to remember facts and details? How do you learn history better: reading or being told what happened? Do you generally remember the things you learn? Do you like it?

Composition:
Do you enjoy writing? Are you good at writing? Do you make few grammatical mistakes?

Literature
Do you enjoy reading? Are you good at remembering what happens in a book? Are you good at reading into what happens in a book? Do you compare the book you're reading to other books you've read, or is every book a sort of new experience, that you might eventually realize that its similar to another book? Are you good at recognizing archetypes and tropes, or are you better at reading into the symbolism and meaning? (or both?)

That's about it, thanks for indulging my curiosity

 

[Vahyavishdapaya]

Math:
Are you good at it? Do you normally just follow formulas/instructions, or do you try your best to figure out how to get there in the first place? When you get a new problem, do you approach it strictly as an entirely new problem, thinking only back to the kinds of concepts you've learned, or do you think problems like it, or examples from the book each time? Do you prefer algebra, trigonometry, geometry, calculus, etc.

Utterly hapless, except when it comes to basic, mental maths (where I'm frankly exceptionally good) - division, multiplication, subtraction, and addition. Once you throw formulae into the works, I'm all at sea.

Sciences:
What type of sciences do you prefer? Why?

- Are you good at physics? Do you prefer labs and hands-on work, or conceptual problems? What branch of physics interests you the most: thermodynamics, electricity/magnetism, mechanics, quantum? Are you able to easily interpret data, or do you have to work with it?

- How good are you in biology classes? Do you easily remember the information? How do you remember the information: memorizing it or visualizing and trying your best to understand how the system works? When you're taught a new concept in biology, do you consider how it ties into with all the other biological functions, or what effect it has, or do you focus more on the concept at hand?

- How does chemistry go? Are you good with numbers in chemistry, or do you prefer the more conceptual side, or both? Do labs help you understand a concept better, or are you pretty much just as clear on it as you were before the lab?

- Do you like geoscience? Are you good at remembering exactly how things are, or do you really need to understand how everything interacts before you remember how things work properly?

I was never one for science, although I have long held a keen interest in anthropology and racialist science - mostly because I'm very eager to discover my own primordial roots. I also once liked (and probably would again if I got into it) meteorology, because weather is an ever present factor in our lives and few people really know how and why it works the way it does.

Does psychology count as a science or a humanity?

History:
Are you good at it? Is it generally easy or straightforward for you to remember facts and details? How do you learn history better: reading or being told what happened? Do you generally remember the things you learn? Do you like it?

Oh yes. History <3. Here I learn by reading independently, frequently writing essays, and listening to what other people say.

Composition:

Do you enjoy writing? Are you good at writing? Do you make few grammatical mistakes?

You're after my own heart with questions like the last two. I love to write and I like to think I'm very good at it. I have a homespun technique so sometimes I (initially) write sentences that don't conform to grammatical rules or the requirements of certain style manuals, but then I always change them so they can make sense to all who have a strong command of the English language.

Literature
Do you enjoy reading? Are you good at remembering what happens in a book? Are you good at reading into what happens in a book? Do you compare the book you're reading to other books you've read, or is every book a sort of new experience, that you might eventually realize that its similar to another book? Are you good at recognizing archetypes and tropes, or are you better at reading into the symbolism and meaning? (or both?)

I'm an avid reader; though unfortunately vis-à-vis reading between the lines, extracting hidden meanings, cracking allegorical and symbolic codes, in all honesty, can't be one of my strengths, because it's been years since I read fiction. Non-fiction typically avoids using literary devices of that sort, and esoteric knowledge has traditionally been spread via fictional tales, so it's not a world where you can sharpen up your skills of deduction. I should get back into fiction, I'm thinking about reading the Arthurian romances soon.

 

[Retrospective]

Math: I am good at math and I enjoy math very much. I really like calculus, algebra &c. I try to look at the problem as if I have never seen such a thing before; in other words: I look at every problem with fresh eyes and I use my intuition to figure out how to solve it. This process actually takes a few seconds and I quickly know what to do and how to do it. I see math as puzzles and riddles with endless outcomes and possibilities. I think math is exciting as hell and I have no idea why.

Science: I am not taking any science classes. I loathed physics and chemistry when I was younger. I hated the boring facts and formulas I guess (I know, I know, sounds contradicting after what I just wrote about how I think about maths, but science is different imo).

History: I LOVE history! I always have this image in my head where times is floating and how the world is spinning around changing nature and animals and people. I prefer reading about history and my memory is very good, so I remember all the facts. I always see history as an endless story of what happened and what is yet to happen.

Composition: I am Dutch. My Dutch teacher once told me to write a novel; she thinks I am a good author. I really like writing essays about novels (I enjoy reading very much). My teacher often uses my work as an example for other students. I do not appreciate that much (it makes me awkward), but I feel honored at the same time as well. I write both fiction and non-fiction: mostly in Dutch but sometimes I write poems in English; I don't really think my English is good enough for actually writing larger works, though (such as short stories or novellas). I use MANY adjectives when I write. My sentences are generally long and have a certain 'flow' to them, as if it is poetry. I use metaphors and symbols. My Dutch vocabulary is large.

Literature: I see reading as an experience; a bit like dreaming whilst being awake. Right now I am working on a huge project, which is called a profile paper (it is some kind of thesis, but then for high school) and I chose to analyse Wuthering Heights and I enjoy this SO MUCH. Every book is unique and deserves to be seen as such.

 

[Aizar]

Math: I'm pretty good at it. I see it as a logic puzzle with a lot of rules, like sudoku or a tangrams puzzle. This makes it enjoyable for me.

Science: I'm enjoying science in college now that's it's actually up to my intellectual level (it was awful in grade school). I like learning how things work, so most sciences with a tiny bit of application I found fascinating. (Physics can be a bit of a drag because of this, but chemistry and biology are fun). I also prefer the hard sciences...stuff like psychology, sociology or ecology are prone to just plain wacko theories that irritate the rationalist in me, even though in theory, they'd be right up my alley in terms of interests.

History: More interesting when it became about people and culture rather than dates and names. It also got easier once I learned the general outline of history, and could start relating events together based on when/where they occurred. Big picture intuitive, you know.

Composition: Good at it, but hate it. Essays are dry and boring to write, and I rarely hold the "popular" opinion, meaning that I have to make my argument REALLY GOOD or I get torn apart.

Literature: I like to read, but I hate literature. Most classics are meh to me, about subjects I don't care about or have already examined thoroughly. And again, my thoughts on the book almost never match what the teacher wants us to get out of it, so I end up either having to work twice as hard to explain my position or just parrot what everyone else says. I want to read to read, not to pick apart every little word choice and try to psychoanalyze the author.

Overall, I like learning, but I hate school. In this age of information, school is less a tome of knowledge and more of an editorial. Good schools teach critical thinking, bad schools evangelize. And REALLY good schools teach skills you can use in "real life", but most seem to keep pushing that back further and further until you've realized 4 years have gone past and you haven't really learned anything you couldn't pull off a website instead...you know, for free, and not thousands of dollars later.

./end rant. Can you tell I'm graduating soon? :tongue:

 

[Vivid Melody]

 

Math:
Are you good at it? I used to think I was really bad at it but that's because I wasn't learning it in a way that I am receptive to. I was able to grasp it well when I had a book that made sense and I could reflect on.
Do you normally just follow formulas/instructions, or do you try your best to figure out how to get there in the first place? A bit of both? I do better when I follow instructions. My intuition doesn't always lead me to the correct place in areas of Math. I am not that smart.
When you get a new problem, do you approach it strictly as an entirely new problem, thinking only back to the kinds of concepts you've learned, or do you think problems like it, or examples from the book each time?
Looking at examples from a book help me a lot.


Do you prefer algebra, trigonometry, geometry, calculus, etc.
Algebra all the way. I love Algebra.


Sciences:
What type of sciences do you prefer? Why?
Neuroscience, Food Science, Psychology. Why? I find them interesting.


- Are you good at physics? Do you prefer labs and hands-on work, or conceptual problems? What branch of physics interests you the most: thermodynamics, electricity/magnetism, mechanics, quantum? Are you able to easily interpret data, or do you have to work with it?
I don't have experience in these areas.


- How good are you in biology classes? Do you easily remember the information? How do you remember the information: memorizing it or visualizing and trying your best to understand how the system works? When you're taught a new concept in biology, do you consider how it ties into with all the other biological functions, or what effect it has, or do you focus more on the concept at hand?
It's been a while so hard for me to remember. I think I always focused on just jamming the information in my head long enough for me to test well on it. I realize how stupid that is.


- How does chemistry go? Are you good with numbers in chemistry, or do you prefer the more conceptual side, or both? Do labs help you understand a concept better, or are you pretty much just as clear on it as you were before the lab?
I always found labs kind of fun/interesting but in one particular class, I always did way worse than how I thought I would grade. So whatever I guess.




History:
Are you good at it? Is it generally easy or straightforward for you to remember facts and details? How do you learn history better: reading or being told what happened? Do you generally remember the things you learn? Do you like it?
I never felt that confident in it. I feel like a lot of this stuff depends on the teacher you had too. I learn best if the teacher makes it interesting. I like being told what happened. My husband is really into history and sometimes he tells me stories and he causes me to be interested in it. I also enjoy watching historical documentaries though depending on the source, I might also hate it. Otherwise it was just me jamming info into my brain once again.


Composition:
Do you enjoy writing? Are you good at writing? Do you make few grammatical mistakes?
I love writing. It depends what I'm writing. I have always felt I struggled with grammar though. I like writing poetry. When I was in elementary school, I loved writing in my journal. My third grade teacher always commented on my writing ability I guess and how I used adverbs all the time. But I really just enjoyed it and it was an outlet for me. I'd even write in there on vacations - mostly to update my teacher because I liked her so much.


Literature


Do you enjoy reading? Yes


Are you good at remembering what happens in a book?

Yeah, if I find it interesting. My memory isn't that great though so if I haven't read it in a while, I will forget details.


Are you good at reading into what happens in a book?
Sometimes. Other times what I'm thinking is way off and I feel like my own prediction was more interesting!


Do you compare the book you're reading to other books you've read, or is every book a sort of new experience, that you might eventually realize that its similar to another book?
Each book is a new experience unless the author is the same. Yes, I might eventually realize it's similar to another book but it's not really something I do. I feel like I do that more with movies and TV shows. But that's probably because I've watched more of those than read books though I do enjoy books.


Are you good at recognizing archetypes and tropes, or are you better at reading into the symbolism and meaning? (or both?)
My English classes helped me be good at this. My honors English teacher said I was perceptive but I read my old stuff and can't help but think it's mediocre.

 

[umop 3pisdn]

I don't care for math. I can be competent in it, but that's crippled by a general lack of interest in quantitative reasoning.

Science in comparison I like a lot more. At one point I was considering getting a bachelors in Biology. So of the expected three, Biology was my favorite, and Physics my second favorite. I grew to appreciate Chemistry as well on the college level, while I hated it in high school. I probably just had a decent prof for once. For all I know the same thing would apply to math, but I haven't given myself the opportunity to test that.

History is a huge subject, and I enjoy parts of it, but on the whole I've always felt it called for a certain kind of social consciousness that I lack. I find that I have a blind spot between the 'personal' and the 'trans-personal' or more broadly philosophical, an interest in history and politics often occupies this medial level, and I personally haven't developed many inroads there. But I enjoy pockets of it, for example Ancient Chinese history is really neat imo.

Composition is my sort of subject, it's always something I've enjoyed and felt competent in.

Literature, too. At one point I wanted to get a degree in English, but I inevitably changed my mind.

My favorite subjects are generally more in the vein of Philosophy and Religious Studies. Epistemology, Ethics, Buddhist and Neo-Platonic philosophy, etc, interest me a lot.

 

[chanting]

Math:
I'm horrible at maths. It's been an issue that stuck with me from kinders till now *sigh*

Looking back though, I think it was mainly due to bad teachers and bad textbooks. I prefer to follow formulas, instructions, and examples. DON'T GIVE ME WORD PROBLEMS/PROBLEM-SOLVING, my head can't turn around it fast enough to understand what formula I should use. So do you approach it strictly as an entirely new problem, thinking only back to the kinds of concepts you've learned, or do you think problems like it, or examples from the book each time? Answer to this would be the latter. Give me a straightforward problem to solve like "Solve 4y = 12" and I'll breeze through it.

I loved algebra. Absolutely abhorred geometry so trignometry was the same for me except harder. Calculus I.... Yeah, that one went over the head for me... Do not get it at all, and I guess I just gave up at that point (had that subject in grade 12, and the thought that I'll be OVER AND DONE with maths forever [kind of] didn't help, haha).

Sciences:
I love psychology and biology, I guess it's because I'm very interested in us as humans and how we think and work, so hence doing well in it.

Physics: No, horrible at physics (probably because I had this in grade 12 and the similar thought I had for Calculus transferred to here even though the maths is easier).

I guess I was never interested in knowing more about it. We also had a terrible textbook that dumbed down the whole thing, so I was "eh".

Biology: Love it. Mainly for all the concepts and how the whole system/process works in what ever we are studying (cells, protein, DNA, etc). It's been a while back, but I remember I used visualising more than simply memorising as that made remembering the concepts fun and easier. I think whenever a new concept is taught, I'm more focused on the concept rather than how it ties in with other biological functions.

Chemistry: Chemistry was OK, I didn't do so well but I thought it wasn't that horrible either. There were numbers involved (like physics) but I was alright with it for some reason (probably the teacher). I don't think we ever got to the conceputal side, as I remember memorising the periodic table and formulas more than concepts. We didn't have that many labs as well, so... =/

- Do you like geoscience? Are you good at remembering exactly how things are, or do you really need to understand how everything interacts before you remember how things work properly? We didn't have geoscience back in my high school unfortunately =/

History:
I had an awesome teacher for World History, which helped keep the subject interesting, he helped you remember names and dates through a bit of reading+being told what happened (sometimes acting it out too, lol). I'd say his teaching certainly helped in remembering better, but I have a good memory as well, so I wouldn't mind simply reading about what happened.

Composition:
I really enjoy writing. Throughout primary and secondary, I've had some teachers who told us to keep a journal (just for one quarter/term), which eventually made me keep a diary of my own and an outlet for me to just go on a writing spree, no correcting or filtering. The feedback I usually have for my writing is always positive, my style was good, my writing was clear and simple to understand, etc. I still have trouble with grammar, but they aren't major ones that completely hinder me getting my meaning across.

Literature
Love reading. I usually remember what happens in a book, and if I really like it, I can give a detailed summary of the plot. I'm usually good at relating different books together, or how character A from book X seems similar to character B from a different book, all that sorta thing. Although I consider each book as a different experience and universe, probably because I read genres that are vastly different in style (I read romance, fantasy and mystery/detective, so there you go). When I do read books under the same genre though, I still read them as separate universes - the eventual realisation that book A and book B from the fantasy genre are similar comes much later.

I pick up archetypes and symbolisms quite easily when I read, so I guess in that sense it's a bit of both.

 

[Shea]

I was just wondering, how do you INFJ's approach school and learning in general?
What are your best subjects, and how do you learn them?
Best subjects: Sciences (esp. Biology, but also fairly good with basic chemistry and physics, not so much oceanography though because it bores me), Math (though probably not as good since I'm fairly out of practice), Intermediate level Spanish (affinity to language/understands word roots which is why biology comes so easily also)
Worst subjects (though working to make peace with them: English/Composition/Literatrue (anxiety about writing, slow reader) and History (hard to remember copious amount of facts/numbers/dates if they don't logically connect in my mind, teachers bounce around a lot)
Just tell me what you think of the subject, how well you do, how you learn, etc. If you can't think of anything, refer to the questions below each subject to give you some ideas on where to start.

Why? I dunno, I'm just interested.

Math:
Are you good at it? Do you normally just follow formulas/instructions, or do you try your best to figure out how to get there in the first place? When you get a new problem, do you approach it strictly as an entirely new problem, thinking only back to the kinds of concepts you've learned, or do you think problems like it, or examples from the book each time? Do you prefer algebra, trigonometry, geometry, calculus, etc.
Fairly good at math as long as I apply it on a fairly regular basis, calculus and algebra were easiest, did not enjoy proofs in geometry because very memorization intensive rather than drawing intuitive connections to me. Also not a big fan of abstract math or word problems (really depends on the word problem though). Statistics was the worst math for me because I had to get used the terminology and felt different from any other math I have taken. Got proficient understanding for my major though.

Sciences:
What type of sciences do you prefer? Why?

- Are you good at physics? Do you prefer labs and hands-on work, or conceptual problems? What branch of physics interests you the most: thermodynamics, electricity/magnetism, mechanics, quantum? Are you able to easily interpret data, or do you have to work with it? Only basic level of physics because it's the easiest to visualize. I have sort of a love/hate relationship with it because the concepts are interesting, as long as I understand them. Solving a physics problem (correctly) makes me feel like an intellectual genius. I guess I just understand the relationships between certain factors even if I don't have the equation memorized. Luckily never had to memorize the equations for the courses I took.

- How good are you in biology classes? Do you easily remember the information? How do you remember the information: memorizing it or visualizing and trying your best to understand how the system works? When you're taught a new concept in biology, do you consider how it ties into with all the other biological functions, or what effect it has, or do you focus more on the concept at hand?. Love biology! Biology=life (quite literally), It just intuitively makes sense to me, and even though there are a lot of terms to remember, I can usually pick them out using my understanding of word roots. Also, visually (with exception of microscopic organisms) it's fairly easy to picture. I have no problem remembering facts or applying concepts to biological systems usually. Also, lab report writing is fairly straightforward and consistent. Also, I think phylogeny and relating all living things and seeing how they connect was something I did long before I knew the terminology. Total bio fan girl!

- How does chemistry go? Are you good with numbers in chemistry, or do you prefer the more conceptual side, or both? Do labs help you understand a concept better, or are you pretty much just as clear on it as you were before the lab?Chemistry is not my favorite science because it's on a very small level (molecular/atomic), but I can get by using my intuition. Predicting reactions is easy if you can remember the mechanisms. Does not come as naturally to me though. The math is easy, the concepts not always.
- Do you like geoscience? Are you good at remembering exactly how things are, or do you really need to understand how everything interacts before you remember how things work properly? I used to collect rocks, but that is the extent of my interest in geosciences, just not lively enough for me.

History:
Are you good at it? Is it generally easy or straightforward for you to remember facts and details? How do you learn history better: reading or being told what happened? Do you generally remember the things you learn? Do you like it? It was the bane of my existence for a while. Not that history isn't interesting, but the way it has been taught to me most of the time has turned me off of it for a while. I think the big picture implications are more important than the exact details (though some details help piece things together if committed to memory. I think I also just felt so removed from historical figures because they always seem to be over-idealized and white-washed in retelling. I do enjoy watching shows like Drunk History and Hetalia (anthropomorphic nations) because they add more personal aspect to accounts. I also would like to know more about my family history. After all, it's just a more exclusive phylogenetic tree, and I have a lot of pride in my family background.

Composition:
Do you enjoy writing? Are you good at writing? Do you make few grammatical mistakes? Depends on the writing style. I am usually good with grammar/spelling, and I have a decent vocabulary, but it takes more effort for me to get into the proper mindset to right. It just requires more energy for me, and sometimes it's frustrating. I used to be anxious about writing (still am sometimes) because I don't always trust my creativity, or just writing/citing in different formats. Can be fun, but not always for me.

Literature
Do you enjoy reading? Are you good at remembering what happens in a book? Are you good at reading into what happens in a book? Do you compare the book you're reading to other books you've read, or is every book a sort of new experience, that you might eventually realize that its similar to another book? Are you good at recognizing archetypes and tropes, or are you better at reading into the symbolism and meaning? (or both?)I enjoy reading on occasion, but it is not the only thing I do. I feel like I rarely have time for leisurely reading, but I am more motivated if someone else recommends a good book to me. Most of my taste is fairly mainstream though I must admit just because I can't just pick out a good book on my own. Also, I'm a slow reader, not cripplingly slow, but slow enough that I really need to set a lot of time aside and it can get stressful if I have too many reading intensive classes. Since I don't have to read much to understand biology and don't write too much, it makes my life easier. This is why I could never major in social sciences (though of course psychology is fascinating), lang./comp., or history. I would just drown in books and fall behind.

Reply in quote.

 

[Shea]

One other thing with literature. When I do get around to reading it, I can usually pick up on the symbolism fairly well, but I am not always good at articulating what I have drawn from a certain work to other people. It really depends on how the particular work resonates with me and if I just happen to have a hot streak on picking up on the author's nuances. No two authors write alike after all.