Start the New Semester Off Right with These Tips from University of Phoenix Dean

Tips to Start the New Semester Off Right

As the new semester begins, students and parents are always looking for the best tips to speed up academic success and improve grades!

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HowtoLearn.com thanks Dr. Pam Roggeman, Academic dean, University of Phoenix College of Education for the inspiring tips she sent over.

It is easy to start the second semester of school with May in mind.

However, “summer dreaming” can be counterproductive to success.

As parents, we need to approach January the same way we approach August.

Below are some tips to help end the year with pride:

Maintain (or create anew) a schedule for success. Winter days are short, so we need to maximize our time – we can do this through consistency. Consistency regarding bedtime, homework time, sports and play time allows us to teach our kids that accomplishments are more likely to happen if we follow a plan. This applies to high school kids as well, but we may just be “consultants” to their plans.
Monitor progress. We measure what matters. By involving our kids in keeping track of their academic progress (which is much easier with online access to grades 24/7), we teach our kids to catch and attend to problems when they are small.
Allow your children to (age- appropriately) solve their own problems. Whether you are having your children send an email to their teachers, or reach out to other classmates to answer questions or go in for tutoring – teach your kids to be their own advocates and problem solvers.
Encourage your children to take pride in their work. If this is not your child’s habit, help them to develop it. Notice what they’ve done “right” and help them to see a connection between that success and their actions. Make a big deal about their success. Help them to set high standards and expect to be successful.
Stay engaged. As parents, especially of older children, we tend to back off when the homework exceeds our own knowledge or when our kids assure us they have everything under control but this is exactly the time when we need to continue to talk about school work.