The veterinary profession is the only profession where we can legally end the life of our patients. Not only do we have to learn to cope with the suffering of our patients, but the "failure, in a sense" of our treatment plans to make the patient well (not all diseases can be indentified and treated; many have complex underlying issues), but we also have to assist our clients when they make the decision to say goodbye. We discuss euthanasia and its rationale, we go thru the grieving process (Kubler-Ross) with the students, we have a role playing scenario where we do a mock euthanasia and review the protocol and we discuss the various emotional difficulties that they may have and why its not as straight forward as the procedure would suggest. We don;t plan on performing any euthanasia at the school, but i have done many in my career, as have all the credentialed staff members who teach. Compassion fatigue is a real issue for us. I am fortunate that the GEN ED Dean and her professors are very receptive to addressing certain issues when they teach to help my students understand (English-correct wording and punctuation for medical records, math for correct drug calculation, and pychology for understanding the emotional issues). We work at it every day and guide our students to build the support they will need for themselves to be successful in their profession.
Cordelia,
Most studies show that people are usually not successful masking their feelings. What is your strategy?
Jeffrey Schillinger
Rose Ann,
Thanks for this post. There are not many career college professionals that have to deal with death regularly. How do you prepare your students for this?
Jeffrey Schillinger
In my eyes this is dependent on the individual. Many individuals can maks their anger and it won't show on the outside, while others, cannot maks that anger and it will project on the outside. I believe that this is an area that many individuals must work on, masking when they are upset. I am one of those individuals, although I am getting better at it.
Not everything goes exactly as it should every day but we need to keep things in proper perspective. As a veterinarian a bad day for me is when something dies-so as long as it is alive there are things i can do to influence the outcome of that patient. Am I always successful, no I am not, but i know that if I make the effort I very well may WIN!
Being positive can be a struggle at times but it is well worth the effort.
This is a nice nugget for thought. I have to agree; find out what makes them happy on an individual level and you have really done your job. We are not all the same, so we should treat others in the manner that best compliments their individual needs.
It is also important to make sure the students are treating one another with respect. I always try to address this early on and let them know that rolling eyes, or disrespecting someone when they speak can affect that person's education.
If I address this early, I seem to get a lot less of it in the classroom.
Claudia,
You are correct! We need to be seen as "similar others" to our students so that they realize they can reach their goals too.
Jeffrey Schillinger
Joseph,
What are some things a teacher can do the project happiness?
Jeffrey Schillinger
Kristin,
I once had a boss that told me the "golden rule" that we should treat others like we want to be treated was selfish. He told me we should practice the "platinum rule," that we should treat others the way they want and need to be treated. What do you think?
Jeffrey Schillinger
It is important for instructors to be positive in our role because we represent the organization. Students are watching us closely and often follow our lead. We can do this be encouraging the students and sharing our college experiences. By just sharing our experiences lets the students know they can complete college if they continue to stay focused on the goal of graduation.
I look at myself as a positive person and try to always help individuals see the glass as half full. If you are positive the energy will just flow and will help you get through work and finding how important your job is and you can find value in what you do then. And always treat others as you would want to be treated. Following this rule really helps and also helps to stay positive instead of negative.
for sure be happy projects a good out put from students.
finding the positive things and leading others to do the same seems to make the job easier
Michael,
I think this is true no matter what career or job you are employed. I try to explain it to the students in this way; when you smile at someone it is very hard for that person to be negative towards you. Sometimes people are so focused on their work at hand they do not look at the big picture. I have worked in the dental community for the past 30 years and what most patient's remember is how they were treated and if you were smiling and nice to them. This makes the dental work easier to take. I try to relay this message to the student's by helping them with their soft skills not just their technical skills! Remember a smile is free!!!!
I try to follow that model ... leaving your attitude outside the classroom. If we don't appear to have a positive attitude about the people we teach, or work with, or ever the subject matter, students won't see the need to listen and/or learn from us.
Proof that this "leave your attitude at the door" policy is working ... on a term in which my world outside the classroom was less than stellar, I had a few students make a comment in their student evaluation of me along the lines of "he always was in a good mood."
I agree. If I come into the classroom with a negative attitude, the students pick up on it and that sets the tone of the class for the rest of the day.If the teacher is positive and always up beat, the class sees that also and they normally respond in the same manner
i agree it is impossible to have a positive impact on students if you are projecting negativity.
I think that it is very important to leave our personal issues at the door and walk into the classroom with a smile and positive attitude because if you don't then your bad mood will project on to the students and more than likely cause them to have a bad attitude about that class that day or maybe even the whole term. Also I think that if we do that we set an example for our students to do the same, especially when they enter the workforce. We don't want the students bringing their baggage in the room with them and their employer certainly won't want them bringing their issues through the door, so if we can show them that we can leave the issues at the door then they will be encouraged to do the same.
So true. Everyone has a bad day or stretch of days now and again, but a good instructor will not allow that to cloud their vision or ability to be positive with thir students.
