The anxiety or fear a student may feel also may be related to feelings of incompetency in the subject matter of their course (that is why they are taking the course, to become more knowledgeable) yet as they feel compelled to participate they worry about saying something foolish or incorrect. If an instructor expresses appreciation for the attempt to participate and corrects in a kind and tactful manner when necessary, I think the class as a whole learns quickly that one won't be embarrased by an incorrect attempt and a free flow of ideas and thoughts starts to occur. Learning to control anxiety is a necessary life skill and facing it in a classroom is just one more place a student has a chance to develop and practice the skills to learn to control it.
Dear Michael,
We live in a world innudated by fear. We are told to be afraid of terrorists, neighbors, and any stranger from an early age. I do not believe that you or I can alleviate anxiety in our students in a meaningful long-term way. At best, we may be able to allay their fears for a short period of time. As instructors, we must really instill in our students that they are masters of their own fate. However, I am not optimistic in this regard.
Donald L. Buresh
Hi Ione,
What it boils down to is that we are all just kids at heart.
Gary
One of my clinical instructors uses stickers too! At first I thought it was a little silly but when I saw the students were having a healthy competition I saw the benefits. this was her way to get the students motivated to volunteer to do extra things instead of her having to constantly pick someone ( which also increases the chance of the students saying she had favorites!) they put the stickers on the back of their badges. I think this concept is also used in NCAA FB, as you see the colleges and university players with stickers on their helmets, funny how the simplist ideas often work the best.
Hi Ione,
Right you are. My father at age 70 took some career courses at the local community college. He called me one day very excited because his instructor had given him a smiley face sticker and commented that he was a very good student on his project. He talked about this for weeks.
No matter the age everyone likes to be validated in terms of knowing they are doing a good job.
Gary
I have a part time job as an online instructor, and I get this all th eitme, many of my students have been out of school for years. I try and make them comfortable and provide guidance as best as I can. I am constantly praising them when they excel in the assignment. Even though they are adults, I think they still appreciate being told they did a good job. After all, this is part of my job, to keep them happy and moving forward with their education.
I use a highly effective NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) technique for anxiety - I explain that anxiety is a future based fear and I ask them if they would like to release it (they say yes)- then I walk the student through their timeline (where they reference past memories and future events which forms a line) and I have them visualize and "go" into their future 15 minutes past the successful completion of the event and ask them if they still have that old negative emotion or if they find that it has gone - (which it usually is gone then) and I find this VERY effective as you can see a physiological shift in their posture and they usually exhale and let out a sigh of relief and then smile - it works great for test taking anxiety and final project anxiety too. I also play some music - like Ottmar Liebert or Mannheim Steamroller - and have even had some classes participate in hiolani breathing exercises and guided meditation prior to a test or final project - slows the heart rate and makes the student more in control and relaxed.
Hi Louis,
Instructor support is very important for student retention. Knowing you are available and that you are willing to help gives them confidence that they can be successful.
Gary
I like to let students know that I am available for tutoring or any other questions they may have after class. They can contact me by phone or email. This I find lets them relax knowing I am available to help.
In general education, include a lot of topic discussion and group tasks. We give a lot of feedback on these and open questions are highly encouraged.
