This question will essentially be more of a how-to plea or general help request.
I'm currently studying math and I'm at the point where I've transitioned into upper-division classes, most if not all of which are proof based.
To be blunt, I currently feel discouraged at the prospect of being able to succeed in "upper-level" classes. Last quarter I was able to get decent grades in my classes, but nothing like the success I enjoyed in lower-level math. My discouragement stems from the fact that in the past if I studied I did well. Now I feel as if I'm studying and not doing well at all.
Obviously this is a reflection of either my study methods or frequency with which I review the required material, but either way, I'm starting to become disillusioned with the good ol' saying that if you "practice, practice, practice" then you'll get better.
My question to whoever cares to comment, and believe me I greatly and truly appreciate all advice, is how did you transition into proof based classes and succeed in them? Obviously the material is different for each course, but in general how did you approach absorbing the material? While everyone is different, what are review methods that you found helped you to best understand the material and also retain your understanding?
I don't know if others have this same issue but I find that for proof based classes, since problems tend to all be different, I don't quite retain a sense of how to tackle problems even after completing an assignment whereas for classes such as calculus in which e.g. I had to learn integration, after so many integrals I had a general sense of how to solve them. Any advice on how to remedy this deficiency?
I apologize if this question is inappropriate in any way, but I'd love some perspective from those that have gone through a similar process.
