The Power of Emotional Intelligence
My years of experience in teaching adults has led me to a strong conviction that a high level of Emotional Intelligence is the most important driver of student success. Time and again I have seen people who struggle with a given course's subject matter, but who are determined and positive about overcoming eventually succede and are better clinicians for the struggle.
Hence, I have always held that giving a student an emotional "shot in the arm" with lots of encouragement and cheerleading make every bit as much difference in success as innate ability
Agreed, half of success is getting to class. The other half is a supportive team when they get there!
Kathy,
Teaching problem solving skills is really important. When the skills are learned and practiced within exercises applied to the subject matter, students are getting the full value.
Jeffrey Schillinger
I agree that it is important to support and encourage struggling students who have a strong conviction. However, I think that it is also important to empower all students with a set of analytic tools that help them to determine and solve problems. This will give them a standardize approach to problem solving and positive reinforcement when they succeed on their own.
A positive approach to learning and testing is essential to student success. In my own experience i know that I am a poor test taker despite the hours of studying. As a result I will over study and miss that one question. On the other hand when I am confident about the material I may not study as much and will get 100% on test day. So from my own personal experience a little EQ goes a long way when it comes to student success.
I totally agree with you Laurel. The power of positive thinking always shows in the results a student archives. As educators, positive reinforcements will also help students recognized skills where there were blind areas.
student come in many different emotional states. this can either hinder their educational drive or push it. either way my job as an instructor is to support them , not judge them, and believe in their ability undoubtedly.
