First, second and even third year passed without any noticeable weight gain, for most of us. We were just too busy to experience it and, especially for those of us in Toronto, we walked everywhere we had to go.

But as we finished up fourth year, we noticed a lot of us gained some weight – whether it was recently or over the four years is impossible to know – and for me personally, it’s feels like I’m wearing a fat suit some days.

I’ve never been thin, but I can feel the weight I’ve put on recently more than at any other time in my life. And it’s not hard to see why:

I just spent months on computers writing, editing, designing. While I was an editor at The Ryersonian and a reporter at the National Post, I ate at least one meal each day from a food court, cafeteria or the ready-made section in a grocery store. There was no minimum-wage part-time job keeping me on my toes. I worked really long days, squeezing in the fastest, most convenient food when there was time.

I don’t even want to think about how many calories, grams of fat, preservatives, etc. I’ve eaten since January.

A few of my peers, like me, finished up university not being able to fit into their clothes. The future is a depressing enough prospect when we’re not only thrown from cushy university life into the real world, but we have to worry about your career, relationships and all the money we spent at university (which we now have to pay back).

Add to that a veritable fat suit, but under our skin, and it’s hard to feel good about life despite all we’ve accomplished.

However, lucky for me, I have a job. I earned my first real, substantial pay cheque on Friday, so on Tuesday I’m going to join Curves. It’s the only gym within walking distance of my dad’s house and, honestly, I hate traditional gyms.

I’m not going to be calorie-counting or obsessively weighing myself, so I hope eating more responsibly and exercising a little every day will give me some more energy and, you know, a bit of weight loss would be a plus too.

A girl directly in front of me is toggling between two chat windows, a website of song lyrics, email, her Facebook profile, and, every now and then, her lecture notes. It’s hard to concentrate. I feel a pang of sympathy for the professor at the front of the hall. His multitasking students are certainly busy, but by bringing their online lives into the classroom, are they paying enough attention to him—or their educations?

Over at Maclean’s OnCampus, Karen Pinchin argues in, “Can I have your half-attention, please?” that although many post-secondary institutions now require their students to use laptops, using a computer during lecture can actually cause the student to score lower on tests.

And, of course, some professors just find them plain disrespectful.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out using a laptop during class takes brainpower away from learning.

But I would argue students just aren’t being challenged to use enough of their brainpower during a lecture to warrant giving their full attention to the instructor.

Post-secondary students have been listening to lecturers and scribbling down notes to memorize for centuries. Haven’t our brains, and our expectations of communication, evolved over that time? Especially over the past 20 years or so? Of course!

The old tribal storytelling method where important information is passed down to the youth from the elders no longer applies. Not in the information age.

We’re not the first generation to seek out distractions during a tediously boring lecture. Before laptops became as prevalent as they are today, students doodled, worked on other assignments, discretely read books, wrote letters (or grocery lists, novels or to-do lists) or just zoned out altogether.

That says a lot about the method of delivery of information. Too many instructors rely solely on the lecture method to teach students. Three hours listening to the same person drone on and on about a single topic is enough to drive away anyone’s attention span, no matter how disciplined a learner.

Some professors think their lectures become more entertaining if they throw the information together in a PowerPoint presentation rather than writing it on a black/whiteboard or putting it up on an overhead projector. Putting notes online ahead of time is even worse because students already know what to expect when they arrive — if they arrive.

Looking back over the past four years of my undergraduate career, I remember leaving lectures during the break halfway through numerous times simply because it was boring and I felt like I wasn’t learning anything. Sometimes I had something better to do, sometimes not.

Now, I’m not an educational flake. I love learning. I constantly consume information. I always want to know more.

But maybe that’s the problem. Either the information being provided to students by most instructors or the way it’s being delivered isn’t up to snuff with what we’re used to.

The most interesting and, I would aruge, informative lectures I’ve ever attended have included at least some of the following elements, all of which I think are must-haves in this day and age:

• Variety – A mix of the traditional podium-style lecturing along with other styles is the only way to ensure students pay attention in class. Otherwise, it turns into a real snooze-fest after about 15 minutes or so.

• Discussion – Even in large classes, giving students the opportunity to form and verbally express their thoughts on a topic is the easiest way to mix things up. Although students can become  annoyed by peers who voice opinions too regularly, a group discussion at the beginning or end of a class will get their mind working whether they raise their hand or not.

• Multimedia – Most post-secondary classrooms are totally wired these days and allow instructors to share video, audio, photos, slideshows and web pages with students. Too few profs take advantage of this incredible tool, however, and even fewer know how to use it properly. Moving smoothly from one method to another is essential in avoiding those deadly techno-phobic moments during which attention — and respect — is lost.

• Interactivity – Whether the instructor asks survey questions or simply asks students to write down the answer to a question on a sheet of paper to hand in at the end of class for participation marks, allowing students to contribute something outside of a discussion setting should prevent them from zoning out too often.

• Web 2.0 – This under-used tool is probably the most valuable. By giving students the opportunity to participate and think about class material outside of a classroom setting, they’ll be more interested in class lectures and discussions. Online blogs, forums, social networking and communities are easy to create and maintain. Students can contribute at any time and move the online material and ongoing discussions into the classroom setting.

• Time out – Providing students with a short break mid-way through a longer class is essential. Not only will you notice a renewed focus when they return, their bladders and stiff bodies will thank you.

What do you think is essential to providing an interesting, informative lecture?

But I’ve also come to appreciate the people in my life at various points in time who have given me the extra push I needed to get through a rough patch.

It’s taken me a while to recognize who they are and exactly what they’ve done for me, but now, when one of those people appears, I know instantly. Now, the experience is much more rewarding because I feel I can appreciate what they’re offering me.

My parents raised me to believe that a person’s success was determined by how self-sufficient they were.

This was probably because, at times, they weren’t very self-sufficient and they had to take jobs, borrow money and accept second-hand items (including cars) from well-off family just to get by. They worked hard and did their best, but it wasn’t until much later in their lives that they were able to achieve some measure of self-sufficiency.

But I’ve been accepting help from well-meaning friends, family members and strangers for almost five years now, since my mom died. Whether it was simply their company and inspirational words, or their expertise in a certain area, or even gifts or money.

It has been tough to realize people actually care about me enough to offer me these things without expecting anything in return, except my company and, for those who have contributed to my education, my continued hard work.

It’s also been difficult to realize I may actually be the type of person who deserves these tokens of appreciation and support. My drive, hard work and persistence has probably helped these people decide I deserve whatever they’re offering, but I’ve always been too modest to think or say that.

Recently I noticed that I’m now able to accept these things as they come. Instead of feeling guilty and holding myself back by being reluctant to accept them, or by not accepting them at all, I know I’ve proven my worth and the person really believes in me.

I survived the loss of my mom with the support of family and friends.

I stayed in the journalism program at Ryerson thanks to the faith my first-year reporting instructor had (and continues to have via email) in me.

I focused on school and extra-cirricular activites at a critical time in my career thanks to the financial and moral support of my dad.

I’m going to the National Post for my internship instead of a small community paper because my third-year copy editing instructor took the extra time to tell me she thinks I’m a strong enough journalist to pull it off — almost a year after I was last in her class.

And today my aunt took me shopping for some professional-looking clothing so I can feel confident and comfortable when I finally start my internship in March.

I didn’t ask for any of this, but I needed it and it’s truly helped me to become who I am and get where I am in my life.

I’m not a success yet, but I think I’ll get there one day if I accept help from enough kind-hearted individuals. I hope I can offer the same help to others along the way, but perhaps a person’s success is measured by how much they help others realize their dreams.

As a university student and an NDP supporter, this makes me very upset.

I don’t attend York, but I can sympathize with the more than 50,000 students who have been out of class for nearly three months. I’m sure there are hundreds, if not thousands, of students who, like me, rely on a fixed income from student loans or lines of credit to fund their education.

And once the money runs out, that’s it.

Even if they get their tuition back for these lost semesters (and they probably won’t), the true cost of attending university is the cost of living and, more importantly, the cost of not working.

I understand the fight for higher wages by teaching assistants and contract professors, but I don’t necessarily support it. Not for three months when tens of thousands of students (and many of their parents) are struggling to pay for school so they can try to get a decent job in the future.

If Ryerson had gone on strike this year instead of York, I would have been completely screwed. I wouldn’t be graduating this April with a Bachelor of Journalism and I probably wouldn’t be graduating in the next few years either, simply because I would not be able to afford to return to school for quite a while.

The provincial NDP made a huge mistake by not supporting this back-to-work legislation.

Not only did they alienate hundreds of thousands of young voters, many of whom want a viable political alternative to the Liberals and Conservatives, but they also gave critics of the party reason to continue to think of the NDP as a one-dimensional labour party.

If the provincial and federal NDP truly want a shot at leading a government in the near future, they’ll have to take a less extreme position on issues such as these.

Supporting unionized labour is a good thing — to a point. Once millions of dollars are lost, tens of thousands of students are forced out of the classroom and lose up to an entire year of education, and there is no hope of the two sides negotiating a contract, it’s time for back-to-work legislation.

I never thought I’d say this, but this is one time the Liberals and Conservatives have it all right and the NDP have it all wrong.