When you encounter a part of your study that you do not understand, it is helpful to ask yourself three key questions. To truly achieve understanding (which is essential for application), the third question is particularly important:

How quickly and clearly will your question be understood, and where are you most likely to receive a clear and meaningful answer?
Is the information you obtain accurate?
How easily can you integrate this information with the rest of the course material?

	How do you obtain a clear answer?	Will the information be accurate?	Can you easily integrate the answer with your existing course material?
Fellow student	You will need to formulate your question clearly, but the likelihood of being understood is higher since your fellow student shares your experience with the course material.	Probably. Verification is required.	There is a (somewhat) lower likelihood that a fellow student will spontaneously link the information to the rest of the course.
Lecturer / teaching assistant	You will need to formulate your question clearly: Where did you get stuck, and what aspects do you already understand?	Yes	Your interlocutor will (likely) point out connections between your question and other parts of the course, and may also highlight links to exam content.
Tutor / study advisor	You will need to formulate your question clearly: Where did you get stuck, and what do you already understand?	Yes Verification may be required.	Your interlocutor will point out connections between your question and other parts of the course, and may also make explicit links to exam content.
Wikipedia / YouTube	You can formulate your question using keywords, but the answer you receive may not fully address your needs.	Possibly. Verification is required.	You must independently connect the answer to the rest of the course material. If follow-up questions arise, you will need to search again, as interaction with videos and websites is not possible.
AI tools / search engines	You must provide sufficient context and specific information to ensure that your question can be answered effectively.	Possibly. Verification is required.	You must independently connect the answer to the rest of the course material, unless you can provide a comprehensive, self-written summary as part of the context of your chat interaction.

Based on the information above, you can conclude that a lecturer or teaching assistant almost always provides the most reliable support. However, they are not available around the clock. Since generative AI tools are typically the most readily accessible and can provide rapid responses when used responsibly, we offer a number of practical tips on the following page.