Hi all! Thanks again for all your guidance to the first year students so far! Now that our semester is progressing, this is our place to communicate and check in with each other and the first year seminar courses.
So, here is my question to you-- how do you feel the first year students are adjusting to the college experience? What areas do you think they might need more help, or structure with ( things like time management, study groups, etc)?
Also, have you been able to speak with a few of your mentees outside of class?
In my time in FYCS, I have noticed that the new students need a bit of a push in the "professionalism" direction. Their body language and behavior in class and their email correspondences alone are definite areas that need major improvement. Something I do not think they are comprehending is that these professors that teach these seminars may be professors that they need to ask to write letters of recommendation for them down the road. If they are texting in class, not participating, and falling asleep then the odds of them being in good favor are poor and that can affect them negatively in the future. In terms of emails, they do not seem to know how to use spell check and their grammar sometimes makes me wonder how they were able to write their college essays. If they realized the type of message they are sending by sending messages so poorly constructed then maybe they would take a little more care to crafting them. Just little things like proper greetings and full sentences would be a HUGE improvement. An "email 101" section would be great. It might also inspire them to actually use their Rosemont emails as well. Adjusting to the more professional and "serious" setting that academia is seems to be a big issue for many of the freshmen. Being Twitter and Instagram famous seems to be more important than building a profile and networking for their future careers.
ReplyDelete**As a senior applying to law school, these are just things I have picked up on because they are super relevant to my life currently.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with Madison. The first year students are quite rough to put it nicely. I don't think they understand that the habits they create now will follow them throughout their college careers and beyond. An "email 101" section would be a great addition to the course. I haven't personally seen my students email habits. But as I've seen many of the email habits of my peers. It seems that email decorum is on the decline! That said, my FYCS students have gotten into the swing of things, and they appear to be much more comfortable with college life.
ReplyDeleteAgain I have to agree with Madison and Matt that overall i think the class of 2018 is a good group but I have noticed the lack or professionalism and respect some pay in class. Some students seem really engaged in class but there are others who are constantly doing other things such as other assignments, eating, sleeping or some sort of combination of the three. As I'm sure most first year students at any college or university do it seems that they are having some trouble adjusting to the manner and professionalism expected in a college class room. I think the seriousness just hasn't kicked in yet. Aside from that, they all seem to have great personalities and are outgoing. Just after the first day of class one of my mentees can up to me in the cafe and said and remembered my name. I see a lot the students in my class around campus getting involved which is always a good sign.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone about the adjustment to college and new reposibilities. An email section may help but when I think back, I was in their shoes once. I didn't know the proper way to word an email or even feel the need to pay attention and focus on class all the time. I grew up and learned my lesson. They are in the adjustment period and need to mature just a little more to understand that what they do now can affect the rest of their lives. A lot of them seemed to not know what to expect in college and this is their learning curve. This is a very outgoing and strong group of freshman who can have a big impact on the face of Rosemont in a good way.
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