Modeling
I have found that many students don't really understand how demanding a professional position can be. Far too often, they use their friends as a reference group to determine proper behavior. That may be ok, but generally a student is better off if he/she uses people that make up their profession as a reference group, or in their absence, their professors. Recognizing this places a significant responsibility on our shoulders to help students be successful.
Right, I find students, particularly younger students, use one type of behavior (typically an informal kind of behavior and informal language) to navigate various kinds of environments, whether they are professional or otherwise. I try not to judge them for their behavior in the classroom and just let them know that in certain areas that employers expect them to speak or act a certain way. I teach communication, so it is relatively easy to talk about different ways of communicating in different settings and actually have the students act these out to gain a sense of how it feels to put on a different voice.
Jim,
What are some ways you 'teach" professionalism?
Jeffrey Schillinger
