The Grind

From: http://www1.indstate.edu/cirt1/facdev/tips/classparticipation/thegrind.html

As the semester moves into the “grind period”, where the responsibilities and deadlines that push teachers and students mount up, effective teachers know that long-term productivity requires steady effort. It is essential to avoid becoming overwhelmed or exhausted. This tip focuses on strategies you might recommend to your students to help maintain an energy level that can sustain their efforts during the grind part of the semester. They parallel techniques that many of us use in getting ourselves through the busy part of our schedule.

Change the Pace
One way to help ourselves and our students during a busy time is to make a shift in the nature or pace of our assignments.

Catch-up Time. Give students some class time to work on their assignments.
In a similar way, consider giving yourself some time just to get caught up. Put new ideas and projects on hold while clearing up the stack of work you currently face.

Surprise. Introduce students to some surprising aspect of your discipline. Make the purpose of the lesson be to capture their imagination and interest rather than convey new information. See if taking some time yourself to read an intriguing book or article that you have been putting off doesn't help renew your interest.

Fun Time. Have students play a game or watch a movie related to the topic of study. Ask students to role play. Provide a set of problems that requires lateral or creative thinking and encourage small group discussion.

Experiment. If you have been considering a different format for your class, this is a good time to try it out. Choose one class period and let students know what your goal is.

Pause and Think
As we respond to day-to-day events, we can lose track of our guiding principles. Take some time to remind your students and yourself what the larger picture looks like.

Prioritize. Ask students to list their top 3 priorities (for the course, their major, etc.). Have them briefly outline their plans for accomplishing them. Ask how their work in the course fits into these plans.

Reflect. Take time out to reflect. Ask students to think about the deeper lessons of your subject. How are students changing as a result of what they have learned so far?

Quality Time. Have students reflect on the quality of their work to date. Have them list 1 or 2 ways they could improve.

Dreams. Give students some time to share their dreams. Ask them to discuss the difficulties they experience in college. Have them share ideas about how to overcome these obstacles.

Relaxation. Share with students some techniques for relaxation. One minute of silence at the beginning of a work session is often a quick way to reinvigorate all participants.

Encouragement
Find ways to encourage yourself and your students over the next few weeks. Tapping another source of energy can help students through the grind.

Praise. Honest recognition for specific achievements is a great morale booster. Create a moment to congratulate the class, a work team, or individuals for good efforts.

Humor. This is a good time of the semester to bring some humor into the class. Ask some of the talent in your class to contribute. Remind them to avoid derogatory jokes.

Fun. Work can't be fun all the time, but allowing for occasional moments of levity can help re-energize work. Add some humorous overheads, use off-beat examples, or invent up-beat group work activities.

Final Comments
Maintaining an effective pace through the most grinding part of the semester is key to dealing with the potentially overwhelming pile of expectations we face. Effective teachers use a variety of strategies to cope with such demanding periods in their own lives. Equally important, they share these ideas with their students. They make students aware that the concerns they have are common and allow them to practice methods that can help them cope. The tips listed above are only some of the ways that students can re-connect, relax, and re-affirm their ultimate goals. Teaching them how to find the energy to keep working efficiently is an important lesson in learning to be a young scholar.
This Teaching Tip was first published by Indiana State University’s, Center for Teaching and Learning on November 2, 1998.