College Life

Posts about college life, students, professors, and grades.

College Organization 101: Getting ready to succeed

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

My face-to-face college students have asked me to blog about getting and being organized in college. They asked me about balancing work and college and getting assignments done. For the next few blogs, I will break things down, step-by-step and show you how to be more organized. I used these same principles while working on two undergraduate degrees at the same time, home schooling, running a decorating business, and caring for my family. These are tested and true ideas. Let’s get to work!

You will need to purchase the following items: an academic calendar that is a month-at-a-glance, pens that contain different colors for each of the classes you are taking in a given semester (five classes=five different colors of ink), a highlighter, and an oven timer. [With the calendar, you can use a business month-at-a-glance calendar if you want, as long as the squares are at least two inches square. You are going to be writing your assignments in the squares, so a traditional calendar won’t be big enough.]

As soon as you know what books will be used for a given class, buy or order them. You must have the books by the time the class starts because you are going to get ahead of the class (and, hopefully, stay ahead)!

As soon as you have a copy of the syllabus, do the first week’s reading for each class. Do not try to get way ahead or your understanding of the material might fade (or it might simply be wrong). The idea here is that you are going to do the reading for the lecture before you come to class. That way, you will not be overwhelmed by not knowing anything that the professor is talking about. By reading ahead just a little, you will be vaguely familiar with the information before it is presented.

If you do not have access to the syllabus before the class begins,  read the Table of Contents, to see what the book covers and then read the introduction to the text. As you read, highlight information that seems important but do not highlight everything. If you are someone who is distracted by highlighting (I am one of those people), you might find it more helpful to underline in the book. Margins are usually pretty large, so you can actually make notes there, if you would also be distracted by underlining.

I see this blog is getting a bit long-winded, so I will put your next steps on the next blog, which I will go ahead and write today. If you have any questions or comments, please use my name in your reply, so that I will know that you are not a robot.

Best,

Dr. Sheri

The end of the semester loometh

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

If you are like my schools, the end of the semester is coming up very fast. How do you get through it? Some students drink a ton of caffeine, but this is not really the way to handle the stress of term’s end. One of my favorite students came into class the other day; she was so hyped up on caffeine that I had to practically scrape her off the ceiling. This is a bad idea.

Why? Because, when she took the final exam, her results were less than stellar (usually, she majors in stellar). She will still end the semester at the top of the class, she could have finished even topper…..if that is even a word.

So, my advice is to avoid the caffeine as much as possible, study hard, and finish strong! You are on the home stretch- you can do this!

BTW, I would LOVE to hear from you but please use my name in your comments, so that it will be obvious you are not spam. I will reply!

Best,

Dr. Sheri

An instructor’s pet peeves

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

Today, I want to share with you some of my own personal pet peeves when it comes to students’ writing.

First, they use huge margins and as much blank space as possible, so that your paper appears to be 20 pages when it is really only 5 pages. I mean, the instructor will never notice, right? He or she never really reads the whole thing anyway, right? Next, make the first few pages look full and then add margins that are five or six inches for the rest of the document and you will get a great grade, right?  Finally, compliment the instructor as you turn in the paper and he or she will be so flattered that you will get an A. Wrong, wrong, wrong, and wrong.

Huge spaces really tick your instructor off because is makes the professor think that:

A. You think the teacher is stupid

B. You are really lazy

C. You are just trying to get by

D. All of the above

The answer to previous comment is, you guessed it, D. What will this do to your grade? Well, if I have asked for a 20-page paper and you give me five pages, then you get a 25 out of 100, if the paper is otherwise perfect (it rarely is). If you do the math here, you just failed the assignment, major league.

What are you thoughts on this? Because of the huge amounts of spam I get, I only respond to comments that use my name or specifically point out things I have said in a given post. I would love to hear from you!

Best,

Dr. Sheri

You weren’t given this assignment for my health

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

Let’s say that you are in a writing class that has four major assignments. You have completed assignments one-three fairly well, though you are fond of “blazing your own path” and ignoring most of the directions.

Here you are at the end of the semester, with one assignment left. Since you are in college, please do not think that you can copy and paste assignments one-three into a single document and be done. Even if assignments build on one another, in a college class, you are expected to have some new information in the final document.

Yes, someone really did ask me about this today…….please, please, please, follow the directions that you are given and please realize that the final assignment (which probably carries the most weight of the entire term) is probably NOT a copy and paste assignment.

Have you run into situations like this as a student? BTW, please use my name or refer to something in the blog posting when responding to my posts- I am getting a lot of spam recently and am just deleting replies that do not remark specifically about the posting they are commenting on.

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Ineffective complaining

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

Today’s blog covers the topic of how to complain. Right now, I have two online students (both female) who have different approaches to class. One of them, who has a very high GPA, asks respectfully when she has a question about an assignment. The other one, not so much.

Student A (so-called because that is what her GPA is) sometimes finds the instructions for our assignments a little confusing. When this is the case, she respectfully explains in our Ask the Professor area about the issue, explaining her understanding of the instructions and asking if she has comprehended things correctly. Sometimes I have to guide her to a better understanding, and sometimes I have to clarify instructions that were written by the person who designed the class. She goes merrily on her way afterwards and always writes a superb document.

Student C (there is no Student B, in case you are wondering) fights me tooth and nail. She doesn’t like anything about the class and thinks I am a total incompetent. Sadly, as I explained just today, the course was designed, not by me, but by the chair of my department and we are still tweaking the course because it is brand new.

Can you guess which student brightens my day with her very presence?

Have you ever run into a situation where instructions were muddy and you needed to ask the instructor for help? How did you go about it and what were the results?

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Help! I have to give a speech!

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

In some of your classes, you may find that a speech is a requirement to pass the course. Take a moment and take a deep breath. Do not drop the course- I will walk you through how to do this.

The first consideration is: what does the speech have to be about? With my communication classes, the requirements vary but most every one requires an informative speech. You may say, “But what will I talk about? I don’t know how to inform anyone about anything! I’m a kid!” (Okay, so maybe you left that last sentence out, but you may have thought it!)

Find out if the professor has any restrictions on what you share. For example, in my classes no one is allowed to talk about exotic pets (a fellow brought in a very angry boa constrictor one time!), the legalization of drugs (I have heard at least 40 speeches on that- how boring), or abortion (sorry, I am tired of looking at bloody clothes hangers).

After you find out this information, brainstorm with yourself and see if you can generate any ideas on your own. Failing this, go to google and type in the words “topics for informative speeches.” The last time I looked, there were numerous postings and the first one offered 333 possible topics. Pick one or two that you like and ask for permission to speak on one or the other.

Start your research. Where you look for information will depend on any restrictions from your instructor (visitors to a tattoo parlor are not reliable sources unless you are discussing the customer experience of getting a tattoo). The professor may allow Wikipedia articles or not.

After you get your sources together, treat this assignment like an essay (see my blog on writing an essay) as far as coming up with your three main points. Add a strong conclusion that summarizes what you have said. Now you need to make your introduction interesting and attention-getting. The most attention-grabbing intro I ever heard was from a young woman who began stripping and calling us all “losers.” She was giving a speech on dressing for success and, by the time she was done, she had changed her clothes in front of the class. She had begun wearing a lumpy sweatshirt and sweatpants and finished her talk dressed in a business suit with pearls and heels. It was very interesting! She concluded her speech by encouraging us to remember that clothes really do make the man (or woman).

Finally, practice, practice, practice. No, you cannot just “get up there and wing it.” I have given 2 hour speeches that I practiced five times in the 24 hours before I gave them. When driving from my home to my graduate school (a four-hour drive), I practiced the defense of my dissertation OUT LOUD the entire way. You do the math. That’s the thing- you must practice these presentations out loud and with your visual aids.  If you try to “wing it,” I will know it, and you will fail the speech.

You really can do this! I have seen students whose faces shook and knees knocked the entire time they were speaking while giving their first speeches. By the end of the semester, they were speaking confidently because they were prepared and had practiced. Some of them even decided to minor in communication because they loved public speaking so much. If they did it, you can too!

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Writing the College Essay, Oh, My!

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

A writer’s-blocked student asked me to post a blog on how to write a college essay in today’s blog, so here are some steps that you should find helpful.

First, read the assignment. What does the assignment require you to write about? If there is anything you don’t understand, ask your instructor for clarification IMMEDIATELY! Do not wait until the last minute because your ability to comprehend the assignment will diminish the closer you get to the due date. Panic sets in and it obscures even the simplest of instructions.

Next, gather research about the topic at hand. Make sure that it is legitimate, quality research, not something that you googled. Note that, while many instructors allow you to use Wikipedia these days, my students know that it is just a STARTING point in their research, not the end zone.

After reading and taking notes on the words of the experts, figure out what three main points your paper will have. Now it is time to approach your Word document. Please notice that we did not start with the Word document, because the research MUST come first! Type in your headings for name, course number, and due date, plus the any other information your instructor wants.

Leave a space in your document for the first paragraph, but do not attempt to write the introduction yet. Type in any research you want to be sure to include in the document, placing it in the document as part of the three main points that you will be making in the essay. Here’s an example of what I mean:

The essay is on the importance of exercise, so your three main points might be:

Exercise keeps you young longer.

Exercise helps you maintain a good body weight.

Exercise keeps your heart healthy.

Put your research that talks about youthfulness as a sub-point under point one, research that discusses body weight under sub-point two, and research that mentions heart health under sub-point three. Put your in-text citations in the document as you write it, so that you won’t forget to do so and end up being thrown out of college for plagiarism.

Please note that you no longer have a blank screen staring at you in the face; you are on a roll now. Keep writing.

Put a thesis statement at the beginning of the paragraph on each individual point. Analyze what your research says. Place transitions between the points. Write a conclusion that does NOT introduce any new information but which DOES summarize what you have said in the paper.

Read over your paper closely and fix any typos or poorly worded sentences.  Read it OUT LOUD and you will probably catch more mistakes. When you are totally satisfied with the paper, go back and write the introduction because now you know where the paper “went” as far as its discussion. Do not copy and paste your conclusion into the introduction- instructors find that to be lazy. And boring.

Set your paper aside for 24 hours and then read through it again before you submit it (see why you can’t wait until the day before it’s due to write it? You have to let it marinate for 24 hours). Fix anything that needs fixing and you are ready to print it off and turn it in.  Congratulations, your paper is done!

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Thou Shalt Not Yell At Thy Professor, Part Two

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

I heard from a student recently who demanded to know why she got the grade she did on an assignment. The anger in her email was obvious and she was really very belligerent. I answered her quickly and with as much kindness as possible. [She claimed to have sent me an email three days previously, but probably saved the email as a draft, rather than sending it- this happens from time to time. Still, she considered it my fault that the email had not gone through.]

I went over her document a line at a time. That took a lot of time, time which I would have preferred with someone who was much nicer to me. Did she deserve the grade she had received? Yep. The document was junk, and it was the least amount of work she could have done and still met the length requirements.

What is a better way to communicate? By asking the professor nicely how you could improve your document- the key here is the word “nicely!”  Do not attempt to embarrass the professor by posting your angry comments on the class-wide Ask the Professor area (she did that, as well). Take responsibility for your own work. Do not indicate that the instructor is a total incompetent if he or she gives you anything less than an A.

It’s your call how you make it through college. Let’s make it pleasant for all involved! How do you communicate with your instructors? Do you have any tips for others who are going through school?

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Gals who definitely have it all together

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

Today’s blog is about two gals who are in one of my classes. These ladies have truly got their college act together. Let me tell you what they do:

They figured out a few semesters that they were majoring in the same thing and would be taking the same classes, so they made the commitment to take the same classes at the same time and become study buddies. This has worked out very well, since they share a common work ethic. They study hard and hold one another accountable.

They show up for class early every day, so that they can organize their study plans, solidify their assignments, and quiz each other for upcoming tests.  The tests may be a couple of weeks away, but they prepare for them early. No late night cramming the night before the exam for them! They have also mapped out their future coursework and talked to the advisers about their next-step plans.

They challenge each other to get the top grade; in my class, their GPAs are .8 different. Needless to say, they are at the very top of the class.  They are already discussing the courses they will take for their master’s degrees, even though they are sophomores right now. They have gotten guidance about what classes they should take at our college and which are best reserved for the future.

They know where they are going, what it takes to get there, and the time frame they need to complete their goals. When success arrives, it will not be a surprise. They have planned and prepared for it all along.

How about you? What preparation have you begun for what lies ahead?

Best,

Dr. Sheri

Success isn’t going to hit you over the head by surprise

Posted on by Sheri Dean Parmelee

Hello everyone:

It’s always a surprise to me when students think that success is going to hit them over the head as they just stand there. Nope, folks, success in college is no accident. You have to work at it.

How can you achieve your goals? By taking college seriously from the very first minute, you can increase the odds that you will do well. What does taking college seriously look like?

For starters, you get the book that is required and you read it, take notes on what you read, and study it. Attend the lectures and ask questions. Be engaged in what you are learning.

So, how do you read the book? Look at the Table of Contents and see what you will be reading about. Use a highlighter to bold certain parts of the text, but do not bold everything! I had a student once who highlighted the entire page…..so what good was that?

Keep in mind that you might be a person who is distracted by underlining and highlighters, so keep this in mind if you plan on reading the book more than once. Also keep this in mind when you go to purchase used textbooks. I used to sit on the floor next to the college bookstore’s used books and flip through them until I found a book with minimal underlining. Sometimes folks only underline or highlight the first few chapters, so you might find that the rest of the book is “clean” which is important to those folks who get distracted easily. Perhaps your instructor will emphasize different ideas from the ones that someone highlighted, so do not depend entirely on a former student’s notes in the book to help you this term.

You might find it more helpful to put notes in the margins, rather than underlining. Try underlining, highlighting, and margin notes until you find what works best for you personally.

After the lecture, try to take time that day and go over your notes, supplementing them from the textbook. Did your professor emphasize certain points more than others? It is important to him or her, so it automatically is important to you! Review throughout the semester, so that you don’t get stuck the night before an exam and have to cram. That’s no fun and it rarely works very well.

Are there any study habits you find helpful? Do you have any questions or topics you would like me to cover on the blog? I am as near as your computer and I am here to help you have success in college! It won’t hit you over the head by surprise, but is the result of hard work and dedication. You can do it!

Best,

Dr. Sheri