The semester has become very real for students. Managing a more active post-Covid social life with a full academic (and athletic) schedule has led many students to feel overwhelmed. While it can be frustrating to stand in front of a group of students who seem tired and who may have put your class down their list of priorities, think about how life feels for them.
At the start of class this week, instead of feeling frustrated (which was often my reaction as a new teacher), I told the class that we’d take two minutes to silently check in with how we were doing, and recommit to getting the most from the semester.
It was a simple act, but I felt the class was instantly re-energized. More importantly, I hope it was a helpful reminder to students that they have agency and that they must actively pursue what matters to them.
This type of activity may not make sense for every class on campus. My course is on social and emotional learning, so my students are already reading about how these types of practices can help k-12 students. But we can all think about ways we might turn our reactive frustration about student performance into teachable moments that improve our classrooms and help our students get the most from their educations.
Finally, for some inspiration, you may enjoy David Schoem’s wonderful reflection “Honoring the Humanity of Our Students.” It is an excellent reminder that what we do matters a great deal and that there are many small and large things we can do to support our students so that they get the most from college while growing into the type of adults our world so desperately needs.