Teaching on the Spectrum

It is no secret that I am on the Spectrum.

Friends suspected it, members of my own family most likely suspected it, and even I knew I was different. I struggle with social relationships and miss a lot of social cues. Certain things will spark my interest and others I will completely ignore. 

I was diagnosed in 2018 by a psychologist at my Graduate School with high-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder.  In the previous DSM, it would have been classified as Asperger's, but due to the Nazi connotation it is now classified as ASD. Regardless, teaching with the diagnosis has opened my eyes.

For example, I am a minimalist when it comes to my room. If I do have to put up bulletin boards, I do have mini meltdowns because I can not cut the paper straight. Even if I use a yardstick and ruler to do the boards, I freak out.  I struggle to put border up in a straight fashion.  However, I am hoping that I get better as I continue to teach.  

I also suffer from low self-efficacy. Part of that is life experience (including trauma). Growing up, I never really fit in social groups. Always played by myself, and the lack of socializing had some bad results. I do not trust people easily and though I was really more open as a child, the trust issue has closed even more.

I also have lots of books in my room and allow students to read and use the desk bikes to ride.  In addition, I can work on small groups in one corner without disturbing the others.  My admin calls it Zen. If I am working on data or research, I'm in my Zen mode.  Data makes me happy, helping kids learn how to read makes me happy. Studying behavior that I don't understand also makes me happy.

Overthinking College Life

One of the easiest traps a college student could fall into is overthinking. Overthinking could be related to so many different things. For example, should I work on that paper for ENG 101, should I spend my time studying for my engineering exam or go with my buddies to the bar. What if I fail my Chemistry exam? Or in my case, what if I fail my dissertation defense? 

During my doctoral journey, I had a tendency to overthink.  However, the doctoral journey allowed me to get diagnosed with high-functioning ASD. Under DSM IV, it would have been classified as Asperger's, but due to the historical name of Asperger, it is now placed under the DSM V definition of ASD.  

I see a lot of students on all levels who tend to overthink. A lot of my juniors in my past two Civics and Economics classes struggled with online and in-person classes.  I saw the nervousness before tests and how they did not have the skills developed to study adequately for their classes, including my own. I know that from my doctoral research, that if the basic needs are not met, then learning can not begin. 

Same with college students, finding a way to break the habit of overthinking is no easy task. It took the doctoral journey for me to develop strategies to cope with overthinking. Such as reading, taking frequent breaks, and leaving the laptop in another room. My favorite strategy is getting in the truck and going for a long ride.  

If I were advising a college student, I would suggest the following 15-20 minutes of studying and then a 5-minute break. The reason being, is that recent research has shown that the attention spans of upcoming college freshman are shorter than in previous generations. It is no secret that technology has shortened the attention span of developing brains.  I can go for 45-75 minutes without a break, but that is because of hyper focusing on what needs to be done and my work ethic. My breaks after a 75 minute session are for a half hour.

Here are some activities that college students could do to break up their activities and not overthink.

1. Go for a Walk:  Easiest thing you can do is to go for a walk. Even if its around the dorm, house, neighborhood.  In Michigan, we only get about five months of good weather if that, every second of walking counted. You may be able to use the local track and at the local community college they have an indoor track. Again, go walking!!! 

2. Draw a Picture:  Drawing can free up creative juices. Granted, I can not draw to save my life but I love trying to do little square shapes or lines (even though I struggle with drawing a straight line). I'll have to upload a picture of some point of pictures or line doodles that I have tried to do during professional development to show you.

3. Play Video Games: Heads up for gamers. If you have a Play Station, X-Box, or any gaming system play video games for a half hour. Nothing draws you away from the stresses of college than a few minutes of Halo, Call of Duty, GTA, or even Skyrim. I am a Skyrim and Star Wars Battlefront person myself. I also play PlanetCoaster just for kicks. Play in moderation though and watch your time management.

4.  Join a Club on Campus: Larger campuses offer recreational and club activities. There may be a gaming club, comics club, or a rec league you can participate in. If you live out in the country like I do, see if the library or local communities have something of interest for you to do.

5. Volunteer in a School: This is a good one for my education majors. Two hours of volunteering in any school such as a test reader, tutor, or assistant can give you a perspective on education. It also can give you a bit of a break from your studies depending on your schedule. 

I have only given some suggestions on what to do and not overthink. You will eventually find out what works for you. However, if you want more suggestions, I would be glad to post them in a future entry.

On College Papers: Basic Survival

In college you will write. 

In college you will write a lot more than you ever did in your K-12 years. The writing that is expected at the collegiate level is different from what is expected in the K-12 setting. A lot of ENG 101 professors will point it out on the first paper and will call those papers "The Red Death" or "The Wake Up Call". I am sure there are other names for it, but woefully a lot of college students struggle with writing those first few papers.

I always thought I was a strong writer, but was placed in ENG 090 my freshman year. I am glad I was even though the monetary cost hit me in that first semester. As I went through college, my writing grew stronger and I gained more confidence. The same with the masters courses and the doctoral courses, but writing the dissertation that was a different level of academic writing that I struggled with. 

I will offer some tips from someone who has written on all three levels. I am not meaning to denounce or demean. I will also say that some of these tips are from my experiences and what I have observed just from college students in general.

1. Read the Rubric

A lot of professors will post the paper rubrics in their syllabus, a class website, or hand it out to you. It is not something you look at and put it out of your mind. Your professors are looking for specific things in your writing. Stay on topic with your paper. Poor grammar and writing mistakes will hurt you (trust me this is even true on the doctoral levels)!  

2. Read the Syllabus

All professors give a due date for their papers. This is so they or their TA's can read the papers, provide feedback, and return them to you.  If you turn in a late paper, points will be deducted based upon the directives given in the syllabus. If the professor allows it, ask for an extension. The sooner you ask for an extension and provide adequate reasoning, you are more likely to receive it. However, some professors may not grant extensions at all, due dates are final.  Do not wait till the last minute to ask for the extension.

3. Utilize the Writing Center

Most colleges have an onsite writing or learning center. Submit your paper ahead of time or go to ask from help from a tutor. The people who work in the writing centers are more likely retired professors, tutors, English Majors, or people with experience that can offer editing and advice to completing your papers.

4. Manage your Time

If you are taking a full load of classes, plan out your time to write your paper. Deadlines are quick to approach and if you have an exam or test coming up, you want to plan accordingly. Again, writing papers in college is a different level from high school. You can write a paper in two hours, but the quality will not be there (especially if you are not that strong!). Also, do not pull the all-nighters especially if you drive to campus and have an 8am class. Your physical, mental, and social health will thank you.

As someone on the ASD Spectrum (undiagnosed at the time), I would always write a paper then I would completely delete the paper. Then rewrite the paper and then delete again. Something in my brain told me my papers were not that good enough even with the citations put in. I ran up on the clock even after three or four rewrites. Having self-confidence and managing your time wisely is key to paper success.

5. Use MLA/APA and Formatting Guides

Depending on your university you will be using APA/MLA or Chicago-Style. It depends on the university and the department. My community college and graduate schools used APA and though I was somewhat proficient in APA, that changed when I went to UNC Pembroke and they were using MLA in my pedagogy and history courses. Currently, APA which is what I am more familiar with, is on the Seventh Edition.  I am not sure what MLA is on or Chicago Style, but become proficient in one of those formats. 

A great tool for free is the Purdue Online Writing Lab this service has a lot of tools for formatting papers. Also, the pocket guides to MLA/APA and used copies of the current edition manuals are great tools to have at your disposal.

6. Do not Plagiarize

I will not stress this enough. Plagiarism is rampant in K-12 schools and having taught 11th graders, I know this all too well. It is easy in our digital age to copy, paste, and submit. If you submit a paper without citing an author, copying and pasting a work it is Plagiarism. There are severe academic consequences for academic dishonesty. This includes expulsion from the school and black listed by the university to other universities around the school.  In addition, most professors have plagiarism checking software in place. Some universities have a limit on what percentage a paper can be plagiarized. GCU has it set at 14 percent for graduate students. Do not copy word for word! Use citations and use the writing center to check your paper. This will save you a major headache.

-More to Come!

The Military Option: Military First, Life Later

I will put a disclaimer on this post this post is not political. It is meant to serve as another option to college, trade life, or life in general. Take it or leave it.

The military is another option to college. Once you serve a certain number of years part or most of your college education is paid for through the GI Bill. In addition, the military can train recruits for the trades, aviation, and medical fields. The best part? Training and most of the fees are paid for. A lot of my juniors shy away from the military option because the first thing that pops into peoples minds is "I will see war." 

While its true at any given time, a conflict could happen the chances are low that a person depending on where they serve will see active combat. Even if you are deployed, depending on your role you may be able to attend classes via online. My graduate school Grand Canyon University offers virtual courses and one of the students in my doctoral residencies was active duty and deployed in Afghanistan. While doctoral residencies are meant to be in person, he was able to participate by ZOOMing into class and as far as I know he passed.

The military offers courses on base. Having lived around the military bases in North Carolina, I know that the community colleges, local universities, and even others set up courses for our military personnel to attend. I know a few who took advantage of this route and the good thing for spouses, they could attend these classes at reduced rates. 

Getting back to the military option, I highly suggest that if you can not afford to go to college or civilian life think about getting a job while in the military.  I have friends who were Marines and now serve as commercial airline pilots. The same for friends who were in the army who now are truck drivers or engineers with one of the nuclear plants in the country.

My dad served in Vietnam and while he did not finish college, he did learn clerical and business skills while serving in the Navy. Those skills transferred over to civilian life and he went into the trades as a HVAC salesman and technician. He made more in that field than my mom ever did as a teacher with a Master's degree. 

The military also allows the opportunity to grow in the legal field. There are so many options and some stay in the military until they are able to recover. In fact, there is nothing wrong with the military as an alternative to college, trades, or civilian life.

Just another route to think about.

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Pre-Requisite Courses/Placement Testing for College

Originally, I was going to post about academic advising and scheduling for classes. However, I realized that I was running before I could walk. A lot of ways that colleges make money is to have pre-requisite testing for incoming students. It usually costs nothing to take the tests, but if you think you did poorly you will have to pay some cost to retake them.

Placement tests are used to place you in the appropriate level classes for your beginning semester. Some people land immediately in 100 level courses (year one), and others in perquisite course (070, 080) courses. These courses are pre-requisites and are required before you even begin your 100 level courses. Sad to say, you will not be able to use your financial aid or scholarship money for these courses.

From my personal experience, I did not do well on my placement tests and had to take the pre-requisite Math and English courses. Math 080 and English 090.  I was able to start my English 101 after passing English 090 and then Math a semester later. For a long time, during those classes I thought I was a failure because I was not in 100 level courses. Years later, reflecting on that experience I realized those pre-requisite courses helped me developed the discipline that I would later use in my college career.  I also realized that my brain as a 18-year old was not ready to deal with the demands that college life would place on me. 

If you test out of placement testing and go straight to 100-level courses more power to you. If you are stuck in pre-requisite courses do not give up!!! Those classes are not  just a money grab (sometimes they are), but they are primarily to help you in your journey.  My 18-year old self at the time would not believe that I would reach doctoral level, with hopes of going on further in my education two decades later. I had great papers, a strong work ethic (maintained a 3.7 in High School), but high school did not prepare me for college. 

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I will say that as as potential future professor and academic advisor, I am planning to share that story. Not only that, 070, 080, 090 courses are there to build your confidence and they can train your to become a better college student. Just because you are in a pre-requisite course does not mean you should give up!

The WHERE of College, part one

Just like the WHY of college there is a WHERE of college.

The where of college depends on a variety of factors including time, location, monetary cost, and major. Are you looking for a big campus, a small campus? Looking for a HBCU or a Christian college? Online, offline, or hybrid courses? There are more factors which I may include in a future post. However, lets just start with looking at college for a major or a potential major.

Depending on your interest your major plays a role in deciding where you will go for college. If you are looking to get into HVAC, you may end up going to a trades college or community college program. If you want to be a doctor, obviously a four-year school for pre-med, then onto medical school.  Now can you go the route of a community college and then transfer to a trades school or four-year university? Absolutely. In fact, I started at a community college and transferred to a four year university. Community colleges have some great transfer programs where students can get started and then move on with their majors.

Monetary costs also play a role in where students choose to go for college. Students may start at a community college because it is cheaper to get your pre-requisites for your major out of the way and much cheaper. Again, you may be in a situation where you are working full-time and can only afford one or two classes at a time. I know plenty of people that went that route and while it took a long time to finish, they finished.

Monetary costs can also affect the where to attend. Obviously, any college brochure or website will have somewhere on their site comparing in-state tuition versus out of state tuition. Even with a four-year scholarship, there will be some costs. Online universities are the same way and classes may be shorter, you have more material to cover in a shorter amount of time.

A little known hidden college fact is most students do not consider the return of their investment when it comes to the costs of college. That is, will my degree pay for itself in the long run or the short run? Will I get any money back? Those are some of the things to consider.

Another WHERE to consider is big campus or little campus if you go the four year route.  For example, lets say you enroll in a big state university. Typical 100 and 200 level courses may have up to 200 to 400 students in them alone. When I went to NC State, my Geology 101 class had over 200 students alone. I could not hear my brain think and was overwhelmed with all the noise and simulation that a big campus brings.

I transferred to UNC Pembroke a semester later because the big classes and universities were too overwhelming for me. I went from classes of 400 to 30 at most in general education courses. My Social Studies Education courses only had 10 people in them, and it made all the difference in the world. 

The WHERE can also be applied to online courses. Online courses are done on your own time and have strict deadlines for posts and assignments. A lot of military personnel will take online courses while deployed or doctoral students will pursue online degrees. It takes discipline but with me working as a teacher, online was the way to go for my two masters and doctorate. 

Just like the WHY of college, the WHERE of college is different for everyone. Your WHERE is based upon your needs and how your needs could be met when pursuing an education.  

End Part 1