{"id":27081,"date":"2019-10-01T10:07:43","date_gmt":"2019-10-01T14:07:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27081"},"modified":"2019-10-01T16:08:08","modified_gmt":"2019-10-01T20:08:08","slug":"practice-practice-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/practice-practice-practice\/","title":{"rendered":"Practice, Practice, Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p style=\"font-size:12px;\">Dr. Kristine Duffy (Reading questions are below or <a href=\"http:\/\/myedme.com\/login?post=27102\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"click here to open them in a new tab (opens in a new tab)\">click here to open them in a new tab<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:12px;\">Published at: <a href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/\">https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Life in college will be like no other time in your life\u2014I can\nguarantee you that! This is your time to explore who you are, who you want to\nbecome, and how you wish to play a part in this world. Don\u2019t squander this\nunique time in your life. I hope to share some thoughts that might help you\navoid regrets when reflecting on your college years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I want to be clear\u2014there are many paths through college and we know\nthat no one path is right for all. You may be starting at a community college,\ntaking courses part-time, starting college again after an unsuccessful start,\nor returning to education after many years away, but no matter who you are or\nwhat path you\u2019ve chosen, make the most of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I took the fairly traditional path. I graduated from high school\nand went directly to college (which was three hours away from home). Because I\nwasn\u2019t really sure what else I should do, I chose to be a business major by\ndefault. My parents thought it was a good route to take and would lead me to\na&nbsp;<em>good job<\/em>&nbsp;(mainly to ensure I made some money and didn\u2019t live\nwith them forever).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are three things I learned quickly in college:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I had lived a very nice life, but in a very homogeneous\nenvironment.<\/li><li>There were people\ndifferent from me.<\/li><li>Although I was a decent\nstudent, I had a ways to go to be a good student!<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Learning to appreciate what you have is just as important as\nearning As on exams and papers. I share this because part of college is\npreparing for life, not just a job. Ask yourself some questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>What\u2019s important to me\nand why?<\/li><li>What do you know about other people\u2019s lives, beliefs, and\npassions?<\/li><li>Are you confident in your abilities to study, listen and learn,\ntake notes, and be a learner?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What\u2019s Important to Me and Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Is it only to make money to buy things? If so, do you truly\nbelieve that money makes everything better? Don\u2019t be fooled by that. Yes, money\ncertainly makes life more comfortable, but it absolutely doesn\u2019t buy happiness.\nI had friends in college that came from a significant amount of money and they\nwould have traded it all to have a family they can depend upon and love in\ntheir homes. Consider this very carefully as you dream of the life ahead of\nyou.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What Do You Know about Other People\u2019s\nLives, Beliefs, and Passions?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You are not the center of the world. You should be confident and\nproud of who you are, but be humble and be open to others\u2019 experiences and\nworldviews. Take classes that stretch you, maybe even make you uncomfortable.\nIn the end these types of classes will test your assumptions, beliefs, and make\nyou a more well-rounded and interesting person. The roommate or classmate that\nis different from you can teach you about yourself. Be open to this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Are You Confident in Your Abilities to\nStudy, Listen and Learn, Take Notes, and Be a Learner?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Remember, if college were easy, everyone would do it! You have\nfull control and responsibility for your learning. Yes, your professors have\nthe responsibility of teaching well and helping you learn. But they cannot and\nshould not do the work for you. Part of college is learning to learn: learning\nto study, listen better, take notes, and most importantly asking for help when\nyou need it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In my own research I have learned that students are confronted\nwith a paradoxical situation. On the one hand, students in high school are\nwarned that college will be hard\u2014the professors won\u2019t care if you do the work\nor not, and you need to do it on your own. However in reality, college professors\nand support professionals do care and will tell you to come and see them if you\nneed help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So what is a student to do? You may feel bad in class if you\njust aren\u2019t getting it and are embarrassed to ask for help. Stop that thought\nin its tracks! Colleges offer many opportunities for help and in almost all\ncases, for free! Professors offer office hours specifically to address\nstudents\u2019 questions and tutoring is available to help you do better, not to\npunish you for not getting it. Remember you are paying a substantial amount of\nmoney for your tuition; find out what resources you have and take advantage of\nthem. Be a mature learner, take advantage of everything your college offers,\nand hold your head high for doing so. There is no shame in asking for help. I\nalways compare it to a job. When you start out on any job there is usually some\ntype of training to teach you how to do that job. College is no different. We\nare teaching you how to be a student\u2014you\u2019ve been practicing since Kindergarten,\nand doesn\u2019t end when you get to college.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, here are some words of advice based on some of my\nregrets when I reflect on my college experience:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I didn\u2019t study abroad during my four years of college.<\/li><li>I didn\u2019t do any type of\ninternship.<\/li><li>I didn\u2019t get involved\nwith many clubs or organizations.<\/li><li>I didn\u2019t get involved\nwith any type of research opportunities until graduate school.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Study Abroad<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether it is a short-term experience (some are as short as\nthree weeks) or a semester to a year\u2014do it! This goes back to my point about\nunderstanding people different than you. The United States is a great nation,\nbut we are not the only nation and our world is filled with amazing stories to\nshare. One of my favorite quotes by Neale Walsch is: \u201cLife begins at the end of\nyour comfort zone\u201d (2010). You will not miss much being gone from your college\nfor a short period of time, and you will return from your adventure a changed\nperson. How do I know this if I didn\u2019t study abroad myself? I know many who\nhave and the end result is the same for all\u2014no regrets, life changing moments,\nand better appreciation for the world we live in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Internships<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Going to college in the 80s was different than today. The job\nmarket was relatively strong and the push for an internship or co-op was not as\nstrong. But if I had gotten some hands on experience and discovered my likes,\ndislikes, strengths, and weaknesses, I would have had more direction for my\ncareer when I graduated. In addition, there is nothing more frustrating for a\ncollege graduate than to go on job interviews only to be told that you can\u2019t be\nhired because you have no&nbsp;<em>real<\/em>&nbsp;experience. So talk to your\nprofessors, academic advisors, counselors, and mentors about getting some\ninternship experience while in school or during the summer. There are many companies\nthat welcome interns, and you may find the direction you are seeking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Clubs and Organizations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For years, employers have been surveyed by colleges to ask them\nwhat type of skills they are seeking in college graduates. Although having\ndiscipline specific skills are important (in other words, the courses you take\nin your major), employers are very consistent in seeking out employees with\nwhat they call \u201csoft skills,\u201d such as writing well, public speaking, getting\nalong with others, and having leadership abilities. You\u2019ll develop these skills\nin your courses, but you can really hone and apply them by joining a club or\norganization on campus, where you will have opportunities to work with others,\nlead efforts, and have something to show for it\u2014a campaign you ran, funds you\nraised, or an event you organized. Colleges offer many types of clubs to\nattract students in areas of interest. For example, if you are a business\nmajor, you could join the business club. More than likely the activities the\nclub offers will allow you to meet business leaders, go on field trips to learn\nmore about the business world, and meet people who have similar interests as\nyourself. I was a college athlete so my time was limited, and while I support\nathletics in college as an opportunity to continue your passion and to grow and\nlearn, try to make time to join a special interest group. Take a leadership\nrole in a group, and later, when you go on that job interview, talk about your\nleadership experience. The employer will be impressed and it may determine\nwhether or not you get the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Research<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, develop your research skills. You may think that\nresearch is most important in the sciences and medicine. But research occurs in\nall fields of study, and much of what you do in college is research in some\nform. If you are a music major you may need to research how other musicians\ndeveloped their talent, the history of genres, or new ways music is applied in\nour world. Problem solving through effective research and knowing how to test your\nideas and hypotheses will make you a very valuable employee and citizen of your\ncommunity. If your professor offers a chance to work on a special research\nproject\u2014sign up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Question everything, and don\u2019t take the answers at face value.\nQuestion how people come to their conclusions, develop your own set of research\nquestions, and be willing to dig to find the answers. This is not only\nimportant as a student but as an employee as well. Strive to be an engaged\ncitizen in our world and don\u2019t believe what everyone tells you. An adult needs\nto make informed decisions to buy products, pay taxes, and vote for government\nleaders. Don\u2019t be complacent and put your life in the hands of others without\nfully researching the pros and cons\u2014draw your own conclusions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In conclusion, come to the classroom with an open mind and a\nwillingness to exercise your right to take full advantage of all a college\noffers. Done correctly, college will be challenging and frustrating, and will\ntest every part of you. Life will be the same way so use this time to practice,\npractice, practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Reference<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Walsch, N. D. (2010).&nbsp;<em>Neale Donald Walsch\u2019s little book of life: A user\u2019s manual.<\/em>&nbsp;Charlottesville, VA: Hampton Roads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Original material from: <a href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/\">https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Questions available here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27103\">What is the main idea of this reading?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27104\">Dr. Duffy wrote, quofLearning to appreciate what you have is just as important as earning As on exams and papers.&#8221; <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27104\">What does she mean by &#8220;appreciate&#8221;?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27093\">The&nbsp;author&nbsp;wrote&nbsp;&#8220;Problem&nbsp;solving&nbsp;through&nbsp;effective&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;knowing&nbsp;how&nbsp;to&nbsp;test&nbsp;your&nbsp;ideas&nbsp;and&nbsp;hypotheses&nbsp;will&nbsp;make&nbsp;you&nbsp;a&nbsp;very&nbsp;valuable&nbsp;employee&nbsp;and&nbsp;citizen&nbsp;of&nbsp;your&nbsp;community.&#8221;.&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27093\">What&nbsp;does&nbsp;&#8220;hypotheses&#8221;&nbsp;mean&nbsp;in&nbsp;this&nbsp;context?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27094\">The&nbsp;author&nbsp;wrote&nbsp;&#8220;You&nbsp;will&nbsp;not&nbsp;miss&nbsp;much&nbsp;being&nbsp;gone&nbsp;from&nbsp;your&nbsp;college&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;short&nbsp;period&nbsp;of&nbsp;time,&nbsp;and&nbsp;you&nbsp;will&nbsp;return&nbsp;from&nbsp;your&nbsp;adventure&nbsp;a&nbsp;changed&nbsp;person.&#8221;.&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27094\">What&nbsp;does&nbsp;&#8220;period&#8221;&nbsp;mean&nbsp;in&nbsp;this&nbsp;context?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27095\">The author wrote &#8220;Remember you are paying a substantial amount of money for your tuition; find out what resources you have and take advantage of them.&#8221;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27095\">What&nbsp;does&nbsp;&#8220;resources&#8221;&nbsp;mean&nbsp;in&nbsp;this&nbsp;context?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27096\">What does Dr. Kristine Duffy say is the purpose of college?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27097\">What is one thing that Dr. Duffy&#8217;s classmates would have traded for all the money they had?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27098\">What does she mean when she writes that professors &#8220;cannot and should not do the work for you&#8221;?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27099\">What does she mean by &#8220;Stop that thought in its tracks!&#8221;?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.myedme.com\/login\/?p=27100\">Why are internships important according to Dr. Duffy?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-foundations-of-academic-success-words-of-wisdom\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"GmqMmeIz4h\"><a href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/\">Practice, Practice, Practice<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&#8220;Practice, Practice, Practice&#8221; &#8212; Foundations of Academic Success: Words of Wisdom\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" src=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/embed\/#?secret=GmqMmeIz4h\" data-secret=\"GmqMmeIz4h\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dr. Kristine Duffy (Reading questions are below or click here to open them in a new tab.) Published at: https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/foundations-of-academic-success\/chapter\/practice-practice-practice\/ Life in college will be like no other time in your life\u2014I can guarantee you that! This is your time to explore who you are, who you want to become, and how you wish to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27081"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27081\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27114,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27081\/revisions\/27114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myedme.com\/login\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}