Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Shannon, It sounds like you know exactly what you need to do to get back on track. Yes, sleep and sharing are two great coping mechanisms that work well. Sleep is not always possible when we have taken on a significant amount of responsibility. Sharing can happen at work or home depending on who we trust and tends to be a little easier to accomplish. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Causes of Stress

Melinda, That sounds stressful indeed! I think you proactive approach makes sense and probably puts you in a good position. Yes, I imagine the students who have the old copy of the book are quite frustrated when this happens. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Streamlining the Grading Process

Robert, Excellent to hear. Yes, having students grade their papers can be great. I recommend assigning each student a unique code number to use to identify themselves instead of their name. This approach helps you maintain confidentiality while benefiting from peer grading. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Coping with Stress

Rona, Yes I would have to agree! Stress lists are great at helping you see the total landscape of your tasks. Having this kind of transparency and higher level view can really help you hone in on your priorities. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Coping with Stress

Robert, Many people read to escape. With modern technology like mobile devices, you can take multiple books with you on the go. Online articles are a great outlet too! Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Coping with Stress

Ruben, Yes, putting pen to paper definitely helps you have a clear inventory of your stress. Sometimes it helps you prioritize when you see multiple tasks right next to one another as well. Lists are particularly effective when we have too many tasks to keep in our heads. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Task Prioritization

Michael, It sounds like you know yourself well and have a good plan for optimizing your performance. That's great to hear. Note that it's ok to put things off on occasion. The challenge is when it happens all the time. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Causes of Stress

Thomas, That sounds frustrating. It's important not to let the few who don't want to learn detract from the experience of students who truly want an education. Sometimes we can manage through these challenges by creating detailed standards on our course syllabi at the start of each semester and holding our students accountable to them. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Streamlining the Grading Process

Daniel, That's a wonderful approach to keep grading efficient. Thank you for sharing. Yes, often our exams span multiple pages. Flipping through each page to find the answer can be time consuming. Having students write answers on a single sheet cuts down on the sorting through everything and gets you to the evaluation piece much faster. Dr. Melissa Read

Dr. Melissa Read

Discussion Comment

Coping with Stress

Joseph, Wow, giving up coffee is usually pretty hard for people. That must have taken tremendous will power. I imagine you cut the coffee out gradually, one meal at a time, as opposed to all at once. Sometimes the most effective strategy for modifying behavior is to do things gradually. Other times, it's better to go cold turkey. Dr. Melissa Read