Pluses of a Daf Yomi shiur.

Why should anyone go to a Daf Yomi shiur? The Web provides on-demand shiurim of various kinds, convenience and electronic delivery. There is ArtScroll and now Koren to learn on your own. Why stress one self to come to a bricks and mortar building, the same time every day, whether you feel up to it at that time or not?

I asked this question of several of the participants in my Daf Yomi shiur. Several of them have attended other daf shiurim and others are fully capable of learning on their own with various aides. This is what they said are the advantages of a in-person shiur:

1.The magid shiuradjusts his level of presentation and style to the participants, which cannot be done in an on-line shiur. This is something that I experienced myself. When certain participantsare away, the focus and style of the shiur shift to accommodate the participants who remain.

 2.There is an opportunity to ask questions.

3.Peer-pressure and relationships within the class, which quickly strengthen with a daily attendance, especially in a small group, keep one attending and working more seriously.

4. The right maggid shiur, if he be erlich in middos, brilliant and a role model, has an influence beyond purely intellectual. He becomes someone who, by his personal example, raises the standard of the participants aspirations.

5. The group membership dose something similar. The example of others, who night after night, or day after day, give of their time and effort to learn, moves a person to appreciate and value his own involvement and motivates him to "shteig" far beyond what an on-line class can do.

Comments

[Neil Harris]

Great post.
I started this cycle and even though I have made it to 25 out of 32 shiurim so far, there is a bonding that takes place and a feeling of community.

I review and catch up with mp3s, but it's not the same.

[Isaacson]

To offer a different perspective I went through the last daf yomi cycle without participating in any sort of shiur/chaburah, doing the learning either myself or, for the more difficult daf'm with an online shiur. Some of the benefits I found were

1)Incredibly flexible - with young children committing to a set time every day for 7 1/2 years isn't practical. Knowing that I could start and stop a shiur at any time made completing the cycle a reality (for me).

2)Pick your pace and depth - Going to a shiur limits you to a specific maggid shiur, doing it online means that you can tailor your experience. Need something repeated, just rewind. Curious about a topic discussed, do a quick google search to learn more.

3)No time limit - as an added benefit to #s 1 & 2, the shiur ends when you want it to. You can continue to explore or review as much as you'd like without concern for when everyone else has to leave

4)Embracing an online community - there are lots of forums and chats to discuss daf yomi topics. an online chevra can, in many ways, be as meaningful and impactful as in-person

5)Improving your skills - often listening to a great maggid shiur means, to be blunt, you are being spoonfed the daf. Doing it on your own, means you are the one who is accountable for really getting it or not. If you make the commitment to do it, why not grow and improve your learning skills along the way?

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