Author: Vicki Schulz

Reduce Fears and Anxieties

If you want your students to be more courageous, remember that as a professor, your role is to teach, guide, model and inspire, not to show students how tough “the real world is.” Learning new content and balancing education with life is already hard enough, no need to instill fear on top of this. As an added bonus, as you minimize fears and anxieties, and students push through, they build confidence.

To minimize fears and anxieties in your students, there are several things you can do, here are some tips:

Set course expectations up front.

Link students to helpful resources.

Give them tips on what to do if they encounter technology problems.

Provide your contact information and answer emails/calls in less than 24 hours.

Give a little leeway in the event a student had a major life event occur during a specific week.

Humanize yourself. You can do this by sharing a little about who you are personally, doing videos in the courseroom, using humor, building rapport.

Don’t give negative feedback in the open forum. Use personal email or gradebook feedback.

Give feedback on assignments and discussion questions. This helps the student to know what they have done well with and where they can improve. No feedback leaves students in the dark as to what they can improve on and how.

Encourage Students to Focus on What They Can Control

In a classroom setting, you are the authority. Students may feel intimidated at times or feel that they have limited power. Perhaps they don’t like the content, don’t understand it, or are having personal troubles while also trying to manage their education. As a professor, if you want to increase your student’s courage, help students to focus on what is in their control. This will help students persevere in the face of adversity or trials because they will realize they are not completely powerless.

Here are some tips you can share with students to help empower them to take control over their education:

Give students tips on avoiding procrastination

Share resources on balancing life and work

Give students tools on how to achieve better time management

Help students become intentional about their leaning. You can provide them with assessments that can help them better understand how they learn. (Check out the Learning Connections Inventory (LCI) through Let Me learn).

Share school/university resources.

Educate students on the importance of, and how to, build support systems and strong networks.

Teach students how to create SMART goals.

Encourage students to take an honest look at the people and activities in their lives. Then have them personally assess what/who might be best to cut versus keep in order to achieve those SMART goals.

Teach Communication Skills

It takes courage to do something when you are scared or to press on in the event of pain and sadness. It is important to let students know that they are valuable and can use their voice to make a difference. By teaching students how to speak up, you empower them to make a difference in their lives and the lives of others- and that often takes a lot of courage. In today’s society, the next generation in line must be heard. They are facing extreme levels of violence and rage, but the power of speech can change that and create a positive movement. As a professor, you can also educate your students on how to speak up on less socially involved issues, but still critical aspects of a student’s life; for example, how to speak up for an advancement or say no to outside tasks that don’t fit their goals.

Here are some ways you can help students improve their communication:

Educate students on the importance of various communication styles (formal, informal, verbal, non verbal).

Provide tips on how to use social media- alongside pros and cons.

Provide guidance on how to listen and the value of patience.

Educate students on how certain words can be perceived as having self-doubt. (For example, watching how often a student leads with “I think” or “I feel” in negotiating or business).

Model being respectful and discuss the importance of having an open mind.

Provide feedback on how to be clear and concise, yet substantially answer a question.

Share resources, such as books, articles and videos on how to communicate with confidence.

1. History

Poland’s history of academic started from somewhere around in middle of the 14th century, when King Casimir the Great established Cracow Academy, which is today known as the Jagiellonian University which was world’s first state ministry for education. And after almost two centuries later Jesuit College for Vilnius got transferred into the Vilnius Academy. So by the end of 17th century, the Poland and Lithuania Kingdoms had 3 major universities providing academic education to the national student’s as well international ones.

2. Value for Money

Polish university tuition fees are considerably lower than other study destinations, Fees are rarely more than 2800 EURO per annum, bigger saving in comparing with other European countries.Warsaw is a cheaper place to live than many Eastern European cities, including Prague, Bratislava and Tallinn according to Mercer’s Cost of Living Ranking. And for personal expenses students may opt for part time job during term and full time job during term breaks, which is permitted by the universities like WSGE universities.

3. Student Life

Polish people take higher education seriously and sincerely, so students in Poland often have full time tables and have to work harder. Over there in Poland, universities offer more than one subject, so that student will get specialization in one area but simultaneously will be gaining general education, too.Outside of the university, there is a student’s social life in Poland with night life and the things to do in its student’s cities. Students are provided with the accommodation facility by the university but they can opt for their private apartments, too.

4. How to apply?

Applicants to study in Poland need to ensure they meet the entry requirements for each course (like management, IT, Engineering, Pharmacy, Nursing, Graphics, Multimedia, etc.) they’d like to apply to… The easiest way to apply for a polish Universities for higher education is to consult any affirm foreign educational consultant in the country. Leading foreign educational consultant is professionally equipped to guide a student through the correct procedure also they ensure the student starts his study in Poland well on time. Vatslya is one of the pioneers of Study in Poland in India & is the Indian official recruiting partner with many leading Polish Universities. The complete application process on an average takes not more than 45 working days.

5. After Graduation

In Poland the post study progression route is very student friendly, as a student if you wish to stay there even after completion of your graduation you are allowed to get your ‘Stay Card’ gets extended. And if anyone is interested in Science and Technology there is good news for you guys, because companies like Microsoft, Intel, GlaxoSmithKline and Google are setting up their bases in Poland.

1. Parent to School Board/Government

We are particularly fortunate because we have multiple school boards that solely serve the homeschooling population in our province of Alberta. This is a tremendous help as we are assigned to a case worker who travels to our house twice a year to consult with us about our goals, curriculum, activities, expenses, etc.

It helps to know that even though we have chosen homeschooling, we are not completely alone. The case worker is also available throughout the year free of charge for questions or advice when difficult situations arise. They also offer great ideas about what is working for other families in similar circumstances.

Another added bonus of this is that our children’s education is documented with a public school board that is recognized by the government of Alberta. This makes the transition to high school and college much easier than if we just went it alone. Part of this is our school board does yearly provincial standard testing, which is kept on file, to help make sure our children are either on par or ahead of children in the public school system.

2. Children To Parent

Children that are homeschooled can quickly fall into the trap of thinking nobody is watching whether or not they are completing their lessons and work. We all know that children will test boundaries when the opportunities arise. They may be banking on the fact that their parents are busy working or doing chores around the house and trust them to do the work on their own.

So precautions must be taken to ensure that the accountability is strong in this area. Children should be given deadlines or goals for each area of study daily. As an example, many curriculum are divided into lessons, so as parents, we may tell our children that they are expected to finish lesson 101 in each subject today.

Some curriculum may encourage more than one lesson per day. Whatever you decide is fine as long as your expectations are expressed and you provide all the materials and help needed to successfully complete the work.

Although children may seem like they don’t like accountability and vehemently oppose it, in reality, most children are somewhat comforted to know that their parents care enough about them to have rules or guidelines.

We would also suggest that accountability not be solely based on the quantity of work being done but rather on quality also. It is completely reasonable to not only expect a lesson to be completed, but also to expect a certain level of proficiency as well. Just filling in blanks with wrong answers doesn’t accomplish anything.

This accountability also requires that there be consequences when work is not done properly. Unless their are attenuating circumstances, like inability to understand or sickness,children need to know that there is a cost to not being accountable. We find removal of electronic privileges work quite well in this regard.

3. Parent to Children

Even though parent to children is number three,that doesn’t mean it is the least important. In fact, we believe it is actually the most important of the three. With the first two, you will get minimal results, but when parents are also accountable to their children, homeschooling all comes together.

Eventually, our kids will reach the age to move out and attend college or start life on their own. What kind of education and how well we have provided it to them will be instrumental to them achieving their goals in life.

Homeschooling is not a cop-out or an easy answer to a busy or transient lifestyle. In fact, if done right, homeschooling can be much more labor intensive for the parent than if their child went to public school. As parents, we now replace the teachers and supporting staff to some degree, depending on the curriculum chosen. It is us who must correct, verify, explain, and encourage our children.

The easiest way to accomplish this is by correcting your children’s work on a daily basis. By doing this, you can catch potential issues before they grow into bigger problems. This is a major bonus of homeschooling!

Have an UNSCHOOL DAY – If you are a traditional homeschooler, and not an unschooler, you may wish to have an UNSCHOOl day to break from the norm. Tell your kids that you they can pick anything they want to work on and learn about today. See where the day takes you. (Don’t worry, one day won’t kill the schedule!) If you are an unschooler, maybe plan the day for the kids with worksheets and reading lists and see what happens.

Take an unplanned fieldtrip – Feeling like no one wants school today? Take an unplanned fieldtrip to a park, museum, library, even the shopping mall. Decide to walk around, talk about whatever you want to talk about, stop and relax (and don’t think of the schedule). Have a lunch out. Walk outside. Go to the dog park and name the types of dogs. Look at nature and talk about trees. Just get out of the house and away from the schedule for the day and see how much more focused everyone is the next day.

Let the kids teach – Tell the kids that today, they do not have to do school, but you need to learn. Have them teach you for the day. It’s silly but everyone will have fun and both you and the kids will be surprised how much you learn.

Have Game Day – Spend the entire day playing board games, cards games, and physical games. Have everyone play even if it’s a game for little ones or big ones. Help the little ones by working in pairs. Have big sister suffer through Candyland. Everyone will have fun playing games, taking turns picking what is next, and just spending time together.

Take Dad lunch – Need to take a break from the grind and get out of the house? Take dad lunch at work. Meet him in his lunchroom, at a park, or, if that’s not feasible, find a restaurant nearby and take him there. Enjoy talking to dad over lunch for a change. Maybe show the kids around his office. The kids will like to see dad and even dad will enjoy the break!

Don’t be afraid to have movie day – If you really need a total break. Head over to the library or local movie store and rent some movies. Make some popcorn and cuddle up for some movies. They can be a mix of educational and fun. Let each person in the family pick a movie. Movie day can be fun and educational.

First step towards home tutoring

The first step that must be taken towards home tutoring is to determine whether or not your child requires home tutoring. This is a very important step because not everyone requires special attention. Thus it is always up to the parent or guardian to take a wise call as far as house tutoring is concerned. If you feel that it is not required, it would be very wise of you to just let go of the idea and move on with the normal classes.

Benefits of home tutoring

Home tutoring involves the dispatch of a qualified and highly experienced tutor to a client without having to drive or travel to anywhere. This is not required for all children or students but the ones that have very unique needs and requirement of attention as far as learning and teaching is concerned. Also such a tutor can be able to address all the special needs as well as work that is required to ensure that a pupil is getting all the required help and attention. A tutor can give special attention to all these special and important needs and in a process work to ensure that this pupil is getting the required help. As a student, you can also set your own objectives and goals as this improves your oral capacity in order to recite in the classes, develop your grasping and developing skills and your capacity to learn more.

Thus always take house tutoring very seriously because it can turn out to be the best thing for your child. Your child can turn out to be the most outstanding student in the class if house tutoring works out for the best. There is obviously no room for error here. It is one of the important things to remember.

Challenge – There are students are motivated by a challenge. They see college as a big challenge, one that requires them to fight for success. Students who have the personality, operating style and self-confidence to face and overcome challenges will do well in this environment because they won’t allow themselves to fail.

Fear – For some students, fear is a good motivator. These students do well in college because they don’t want to lose their scholarships, don’t want graduate without a job, don’t want to fail out and still have large loan repayments and don’t want to anger or embarrass their families.

Joy of Learning – Some students truly love the college environment. They enjoy learning and devour information on subjects that turn them on. They strive to become knowledge experts, thought leaders and information repositories. The need for information motivates them.

A Clear Purpose – When students head off to college with a clear and single-minded purpose, they are usually motivated to do well. They see college as a means to an end, one that is important to them. On the other hand, students who enter college with no clear purpose in mind are less likely to perform well. They don’t place a high value on a college education because they don’t see how a college education will help them get where they want to go. It serves no purpose for them.

Approval – Many students seek and are motivated by praise, encouragement and recognition for good work. When students are good at something and achieve exceptional results, their status in that environment goes up. When people compliment them, point them out as examples and look up to them, they shine.

Life Goals – Students frequently see their college education as a launching pad to their futures. A good education can lead to a good job, money, security and all of the trappings of success. They are motivated to do well because college will help them build a better future.

Aid Others – Some students are motivated by the need to help others. To reach their goal, they must perform well in college. A college education will to enable them fulfill their dream of serving others. They know that nurses, teachers, caregivers, counselors and other helpers can only get started with a good education.

Rent – Textbook prices are ridiculous. Rentals may be the biggest way to lower textbook costs. It also ties up the least cash up front compared to buying and reselling. Rental prices tend to be 20-25{eef5adb52779ba15a4c7c44bde78430dadefb131c0ba0444f0833a4e5ceb4e1c} of the cost to purchase. Make sure you review the T&C’s, especially the return date and any grace periods.

International Editions – In many cases textbook publishers offer lower cost editions in other countries. They may have a paper cover or black & white photos but the content is the same. You will be amazed at how low the prices are for International Editions of the same textbook.

Last Year’s Edition – If you absolutely cannot afford this year’s edition of a textbook consider buying the prior edition of the book. Many times the changes are minor and you will get the content for rock bottom prices. Search by title and not the ISBN to find other editions of your textbook.

Shop Around – You don’t know a good price unless you shop around. Don’t assume the major players always have the cheapest price. Supply and demand cause prices to shift quickly so today’s cheapest source may not be the cheapest source tomorrow. There are online tools that help you compare prices making you a smarter shopper and maximizes your savings potential.

Receive a checkup with your doctor well in advance to verify that your good health and find some necessary shots or inoculations; this is quite important. Require their contact information on you, in the event, you will need any non-emergency health information during your journey.

Communicate with your host family in advance, if you’ve got one, by email or letter. This is a fantastic way to construct your enthusiasm for the adventure, learn significant things about each other in progress and become a little more familiar-so you won’t feel as though you’re going in with complete strangers once you arrive.

Brush up on these language skills! Whether you are near-fluent or a newcomer, it will not hurt to devote an hour per night listening to language tapes, watching foreign language movies from the country you’re going to be seeing and studying literature from that language-even if it is merely magazines.

Research a little on the background, lifestyle and culture of the nation you are visiting, so you’re going to need at least a fundamental comprehension. This is not only going to be a series of respect to people you are likely to meet but may also assist in preventing any embarrassing remarks or activities that might be accidentally offensive.

Brace yourself to be ready for anything. Everybody has a vision in your mind of how they foresee the encounter happening, but it seldom (if ever) turns out to suit your own prediction.

Try to open your mind in progress to various foods, styles, philosophies in your life. Implementing new things will be the entire point of this kind of adventure, so try to anticipate all these modifications with enthusiasm rather than trepidation.

Get ready yourself for homesickness by carrying along a few mementos of family and friends, like photographs to keep on your bed stand. The nostalgic bug is likely to strike at any stage; more frequently for some than others.

While the aristocracy and some of the wealthy may look upon a college/university education as a globally-oriented, social finishing experience for the young adults in their families, the existing and developing bourgeois (middle class) should recognize college as the next step toward their personal success in the market. Broad, non-focused development of diverse cultural experiences, knowledge and related soft skills is of limited market value and cannot be justified in a ROI consideration. The implication is not that we should forego teaching liberal arts. However, much of higher education has drifted so far from marketable to the corporate world that it is almost criminal to suggest to a student that s/he should major in such subjects, much less pay for the “opportunity”.

The higher education industry claims that as a result of their education and training you will be paid by industry. But, as schools focus more on expanding their liberal arts, fine arts, entertainment (including sports) departments and to a lesser degree upon that which supports and drives markets, the more graduates finish college with lesser marketable knowledge and skills. Most colleges are not accountable for producing job-specific, job-accessing graduates from each student enrolled. Some have even reduced career to the equivalents of in-house, electronic job boards. Further compromising the process, industry, as the primary beneficiary of well-educated pools of candidates, are not paying for your training as it did at the onset of the American Industrial Revolution.

If colleges and universities wish to promote very broad course catalogs and higher education experiences, maybe they should be convincing all of industry that they are providing the training/education their prospective employees need. Maybe they should even be exacting payment from corporate America for education/training services rendered, cooperative placement, and to improve the industry-education system relationship relevancy.

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• Check if the present school provides a flexi-board facility in which you can let him board at school for a few weekends so that he can eventually get used to the idea. The stay can be used for extra classes, sports training prior to an important match or some co-curricular activities.

• Never miss out on the open days for new parents. These are usually held during the last two weeks of the last term, prior to new admissions. It is usually a great opportunity for your child to mix up with inmates and staff. It would be much easier for him to adjust when he’s already aware of what to expect at his new home. Moreover, you can also get to know other parents who would be going through the same phase of preparations and mutual sharing of experiences and suggestions always tend to happen when all are on the same ship.

• Find out if anyone from your circle or your child’s school would be joining the same school in the same term or is already a student there. Call them home more often and encourage your child to make friends with them. Even if they are not of the same batch or house, it is nice to look forward to a familiar face to bump into, and usually when you already have friends as a fresher, it is considered to be cool. So, this is sure to give your child a head start.

• Give your child his share of freedom while he’s still at home, and let it not come as an unpleasant shock as he enters the boarding environment. Start allowing him to board a bus alone to the local city square, let him make up his own bed and start giving him petty household chores. Besides this, allow him a few night outs at his friend’s place; this will bring out the fun aspect of boarding to him.