Updated: August 2017
By the time students enter college, they’ve invested more than 20,000 hours in academic learning. One might expect them to be adept learners, poised for success. However, instead of relishing their scholastic journey, many find themselves enduring it. The outcomes are stark—students pausing, quitting, or floundering through college.
This article delves beyond common misconceptions of student apathy or unpreparedness, exposing the true factors behind the performance gap. By focusing on the often-overlooked population of good students, we uncover pathways to not only help them thrive but revolutionize academic achievement as a whole.
Drawing insights from my upcoming book, How to Successfully Transition Students into College: From Traps to Triumph, this post profiles the good student population and provides critical insights on ways to help them thrive.
Picture this scenario: You’re a seasoned professional who has consistently excelled in your role according to your own standards and those of your supervisors. Your track record boasts outstanding performance reviews, and your colleagues hold your work in high esteem.
Now, you’ve transitioned to a new job where your responsibilities remain similar, albeit more demanding. You recognize the increased weight of these duties and pour in extra time and effort, working with heightened dedication. The moment arrives for your first project evaluation. Brimming with confidence, you’re convinced that your invested time and diligent effort will shine through. However, your supervisor deems your work quality as inadequate. To make matters worse, your effort is questioned for the first time in your career.
Stunned by this turn of events, you engage in a conversation with your supervisor to glean insights into what went awry and seek guidance on her expectations for the next project. You absorb her suggestions earnestly and redouble your efforts. Yet, despite your endeavors, your work continues to be judged as subpar. This pattern persists until you eventually disconnect emotionally from your job.
Inevitably, you redirect your energy toward pursuits that yield more significant returns, such as spending time with family or indulging in a hobby. With time, you unwittingly slip into the mold of an average employee—the very image your supervisor once labeled you as.
A similar sense of bewilderment is shared by new college students who aced exams and achieved top grades in high school who now find themselves struggling to reach the level of accomplishment they were confident they’d attain.
Over the past couple of decades, the issue of academic underperformance among college students has garnered considerable attention. Media outlets have extensively covered this phenomenon, and the matter is now a subject of exploration in both learning assistance and general higher education literature. This marks a shift from the typical focus on the “at-risk” population—students with pre-college academic backgrounds suggesting a potential need for extra support in college. The underperforming demographic comprises good students whose academic records indicate that they are prepared for college-level work.
In my high school…we just learned how not to be outworked by anyone.
– Good Student
Who are the “good” students?
Good students are those diligent, earnest, hardworking college attendees whose grades fall short of their capabilities and efforts. They’re learners who generally don’t fare poorly enough to trigger institutional academic alarms; their strong academic backgrounds and unwavering work ethics typically shield them from failing courses. Regrettably, what sets these students apart in high school doesn’t suffice to elevate them beyond mediocrity and up to their personal standards.
Students who tasted academic success prior to college enter higher learning institutions with an elevated academic self-image. They’re convinced of their prowess as students and anticipate grades that mirror their exertion and align with their self-perception. Just as the aforementioned employee struggled to build on her previous success in her new job, good students find it challenging to transition from their pre-college learning environment to the college milieu.
These capable learners invest themselves fully in preparing for exams, only to find their efforts deemed insufficient. Their commitment is questioned, leading them to disengage from academics over time, instead investing their efforts in alternative domains. At best, good students who lack adequate academic support will scrape through college but never realize their full potential. At worst—increasingly common—they become casualties of retention.
Why should we care?
They constitute around 80% of the student population.
The good student population forms the largest student cohort by far. Nevertheless, they often remain unrecognized by most colleges and universities, frequently lumped together with the much smaller, more easily identifiable “at-risk” group. In class, these students exhibit the studious habits of their more successful counterparts, whom we’ll refer to as “exceptional learners.” However, their test scores often resemble those of academically challenged students who skip classes or show up unprepared, appearing indifferent to their academic performance. Due to these factors, high-achieving students are frequently misclassified, incorrectly diagnosed or simply overlooked.
A recent article from The Washington Post titled “A Telling Experiment Reveals a Big Problem Among College Students: They Don’t Know How to Study” presents statistics indicating that 66% of students don’t leave college due to financial reasons, confirming observations made years ago that prompted the publication of this article in 2012. The Post piece offers a crucial insight frequently overlooked amid the numerous excuses students provide for leaving: “Some students leave college because classes just aren’t going well.” The scope of this issue is more substantial than anticipated and doesn’t even account for those who remain in school but struggle unnecessarily.
The prosperity of institutions hinges on their ability to identify, engage, and adequately support good students. In doing so, higher education establishments reap the greatest rewards from their investments.
Good students hold the key to transforming the academic landscape.
Effecting cultural change entails influencing students who wield a disproportionate impact on academic norms. Good students serve as potent agents of change due to their vast numbers, amplifying their influence and their potential to make substantial improvements with relatively fewer resources. Paradoxically, colleges and universities often invest in initiatives with high demands but low impact.
From my experience, addressing the needs of good students propels the entire institutional average forward. These students intermingle with lower-performing students, thus a cross-pollination can catapult a considerable portion of academically low-performing students to elevate to “good students” status. This upward shift in academic performance not only enhances the student and faculty culture but also plays a pivotal role in fostering a transformative educational environment.
How can educators and institutions help their students?
In my upcoming How to Successfully Transition Students into College: From Traps to Triumph, I unveil the concealed pitfalls that insidiously erode students’ academic progress, strain teacher-student relationships, and artificially cap their potential. Furthermore, I outline strategies for educators to dismantle these traps, paving a clear path from diligent effort to exceptional performance for good students.
Considering that good students constitute approximately 80% of the student population, offering them proper guidance and tools is not only pivotal for cultivating a culture of academic excellence but also a critical element for ensuring financial stability. However, numerous institutions are currently overlooking these students, providing inadequate support, and inadvertently impeding their efforts toward institutional success.
Within your classrooms, a plethora of good students remain oblivious to their entrapment. Here are three specific traps I delve into extensively in my book, which will aid you in identifying these promising individuals amidst your student body:
The 80/20 Trap
The 80/20 Trap materializes when students’ misconstrued notions of learning, carried over from their high school experiences, clash with the realities of college-level education. This becomes evident when students rely solely on attending lectures, overlooking their personal responsibility in managing their learning process.
This trap typically surfaces within the initial weeks of the semester. For instance, I vividly recall visiting a study session at the University of California, San Diego, where students were collectively poring over their class notes. When I inquired about their subsequent plans, they appeared puzzled, believing they had completed their study session.
It’s crucial for students to grasp that validating and finishing class notes mark the start of their learning journey, not its culmination. College educators can help extricate students from this trap by making strategic adjustments to their course structure and resources, empowering students to embrace independent learning.
The Academic Myopia Trap
This trap involves cognitive narrow-mindedness, wherein students concentrate solely on absorbing course content, neglecting the cultivation of course learning outcomes. As an example, consider a student enrolled in a course named “Accounting for Decision Making.” This student might meticulously scrutinize corporate documents, like annual reports and financial statements, yet fail to grasp how to utilize these documents for making business decisions. Consequently, they fall short of achieving the desired outcome and inevitably underperform.
The Pseudowork Trap
Pseudowork deludes individuals into thinking they’re making progress, while their efforts eventually prove futile. Imagine dedicated nursing students meticulously filling whiteboards with copious information. Despite feeling productive as the hours tick away, their efforts yield disappointing grades. They have unwittingly succumbed to the pseudowork trap.
Moreover, when students become ensnared in this trap, they inadvertently pull faculty members into it as well. Faculty might recognize the trap’s hold when they find themselves reteaching material or reviewing concepts during office hours. Despite the extra effort, they feel overwhelmed and undervalued.
By understanding these traps and their dynamics, educators can recalibrate their approaches, offering targeted interventions that liberate good students from their confines. In doing so, institutions can unlock the full potential of these students, fostering not only individual success but also driving broader positive transformations within the academic landscape.
I admire your ability to tackle complex issues with clarity and compassion.
Thanks Kurye. Your comments mean a lot to me because that is my core mission. Check out my forthcoming book at: http://www.transitiontraps.com.
If only I was taught this before college. This was a amazing article it made me more woke and helped me open my eyes. I can definitely relate to this article.
I really wish two things: (1) I had read this before spiraling into failing out of college with no foreseeable opportunity of returning (at least for several more years) and therefore halting any chance of success in getting my dream job; and (2) that far more educators would also read this and apply it, especially in STEM-based degrees where frankly the stereotype holds (in my experience) of a limited mindset in teaching and a focused mindset in being a nerd and not understanding how to teach nerd.
I’m saving this article and hope to find it when the future allows me an opportunity to return to college, and therefore hope to enter college post-40-years of age with no career prospects past 50.
Hi! I’m a current college student and I see myself falling into the traps mentioned in this article pretty often. However, can you clarify on the 20/80 rule in college? How should I go about in developing the 80% of knowledge that is not imparted?
Hi Emily-
You develop the other 80% by using your thinking skills to go beyond the content that was delivered in class. For example, let’s say your professor references a definition of evolution and a definition of natural selection. She may reference a couple of examples to add more life to the definitions. Your job is to recognize that this information is only a small portion of what she will expect you to know. I can’t tell you exactly what she will want you to know, but I can tell you that, if the course is challenging, then you will need to know the information at a deeper level than this. So, you might use the ThinkWell-LearnWell Diagram to analyze the difference between evolution and natural selection. If you do the work to extend your knowledge to this depth, then you will be able to answer question prompts that are asking you to perform at this level. This is the other 80%. I hope this helps.
These are immensely valuable tips and insights for any college student to maximize not just the college experience but also self esteem and performance.
Great article, what you wrote really resonated with me because I could relate to many of the conditioned biases of a pre-college learning environment. I will review the outlined tips regularly in order to get back on track with academic achievements.
Wow this is definitely me… I’m a senior in college and I have never realized any of this until now… I feel ashamed for not knowing but no one ever told me..
This is exactly what I need to understand why my child is having such a hard time adjusting!
I am a freshman in college and struggling with the same problem. I can’t be the student that I was in my high school. Now, after reading this article, I am figuring out the reasons behind it and also trying to solve all of them as soon as possible. This is well-researched article and helpful to students like me.
I totally agree with this method. I have been struggling to adjust to college and i think this will help me out.
I love this article, because it’s just reflect my situation right now. I really want to adjust myself and adapt the college life. I think this article will help me a lot about it.
Thank you for sharing!
I was confused by same question for many years. Luckily, I found the explanation and solution in your article. I am looking forward to my future, in other words, college life!
Great information so insightful and really enlightening.
I really like the 80/20, 20/80 approach to explaining the Teacher focused approach vs the Learner focused approach!
Thank you for this information! my son is a college freshman and falls right into “good student” category. I’m sending him this information!
Interesting observations. I wonder how different math classes are from high school math classes. I don’t think that we require them to do much more than apply the information that they have learned.
The 80/20 – 20/80 concept is exactly what students need to understand upon entering college. I think the way this concept is represented is clear and help frame one of the major academic challenges facing students. Very rarely is ability the root of poor academic achievement, the cause is most often related to one’s effort.
Is it ok for these “good children’ to misbehave in class? Is there a reason for this misbehavior by them ? This is in the high school context.
Very useful information–thank you!
I struggle with getting students to understand that they need to put more effort into their studies in college than they might of had to do in high school, but could never explain it to their or my satisfaction as to WHY they needed to. I think this will help bridge the gap. May not convince them to do so, but if I can reach more students and help them to succeed that are currently struggling with how to do better I will be happy.
Interesting approach to a conflicting group of data. As director of doctoral curriculum, I find significance in the “pipeline” discussion – why are we losing diversity of mind too early in the educational path. Your metacognitive approach reinforces those tactics we bring to our students! I look forward to additional discussions with my fellow faculty and administrators. Thank you.
I teach a Managing Writing Anxiety course. You talk about mindsets! I am looking forward to sharing the infographic with my students. Leonard has some of the best. Thank you!
Diane,
Stay tuned for the forthcoming series on writing. I’ll cover the topic from the students and educators perspectives.
I teach an honors section of a first year experience course at a highly diverse state university. This makes for a compelling classroom experience for me and my students. It also means that the students often arrive with widely dissimilar academic preparation. Your 80/20 approach offers a perspective that I feel will really penetrate and aligns well with my presentation of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Many thanks for a terrific article and the pdf!
Great article! I would love to discuss this article with my College Success students this semester. I look forward to the PDF.
When Good Students do Bad is a great article! Very informative and useful information. Can you please send me the link to the pdf of the infographic? Thanks
Thank you for sharing this article! And it connects to so many helpful resources. I am a Student Affairs professional who coordinates and trains Study Skills tutors, and this information reflects much of what we teach in our trainings, and in our workshops for students. It’s so useful to have this information brought together in one article, and linked to research. I’d love a copy of the pdf if you are willing to share!
Love all this information and insight! Great conversation topics and visuals to introduce and discuss with Peer Tutors and SI Leaders, as well as in workshops with first year college students. Thank you!
High schools bear some of the blame; by 10th grade high school students should be treated like they ARE in college. No more extra credit. No more getting points for making corrections on tests. No more acceptance of late assignments.
I’m not sure if high school are to blame, but I do think the system in which high school operate bear some responsibility. My work with high schools show that teachers are responsive to a set of short-term metrics and outcomes that work for their environment, but are not compatible with higher education. I think federal and state legislative changes are needed to create a more seamless transition.
Excellent depiction of the transition from high school to college!
We have begun talking reaching the “murky middle” of our students, and this article zones in directly on those students. This is a great resource as we are trying to better understand this group of students and develop programs and services to help them move to that next level of learning and success.
Using this information in a presentation for new student orientation today and tomorrow. Perfect timing! Will be reinforcing it in my UNV 101 course.
These concepts have helped hundreds of students throughout the country and beyond make needed adjustments to college. Good luck!
I’m looking forward to incorporating these ideas into the first-year seminar I teach
Many good points–I’ll share ” 80/20-20/80 ” with my students this first week of class.
Interesting article. I look forward to looking closely at the infographic.
Very insightful article! I particularly appreciate the catch phrases to use when talking with students about building upon their strengths and shifting their paradigms. The 80/20; 20/80 mindset is hugely impactful! I really look forward to incorporating this information in campus stakeholder conversations and even training for academic peer leaders!
Very good article. I like the infographics.
I see this every year as I advise new college students. The graphic will be a great illustration of the concept for them. Thanks.
Thanks for this concise and applicable description!
Thank you for this perspective.
I would really like to fold this into one of my introductory classes.
Great article! I wonder if these same (or similar issues) occur in the transition from undergraduate to graduate school?
Very insightful article. I look forward to having a better look at the diagrams
I am the director of my institution’s tutoring center, and this article struck a chord with me. These are the students who wait until after midterms to seek help because they falsely believe, “I’ve got this. I can do this.”
The transition of the great high school student to the “good” college student can also deal a heavy blow to her self-concept. In fact, many high school honors students I have worked with spend a good deal of time in denial that they could possibly be doing as poorly as they are in school. When the realization occurs that it is them and not the professor or the school, they are confused and sometimes devastated. They feel short-changed by their high school teachers and chagrined with college faculty and staff who didn’t emphasize the difference between high school and college enough. I understand why they leave.
Well said! And this is why we lose so many good students.
The article is reflective of what I have observed as well at my university. Presenting the 80/20 principle and including the info graphic chart I believe would help students grasp what shifts in thinking might be needed in transitioning between high school and college.
One hurdle for students is understanding that trying harder is not the same as trying better. Given that they’ve have invested those 20,000 hours in what may be unproductive behaviors, they need convincing and coaching in order to develop better habits of mind.
The challenge is that students’ behaviors have been productive in their past academic environments. The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior, so it’s perfectly normal and expected for students to rely upon what has worked for them (hence the opening part of the article.)
Great information. Including the 80/20, 20/80 principle in a syllabus and reviewing these concepts the first day of class might help students know how to better apply their study time.
I agree. It’s one of the most consequential concepts that students must learn, fully appreciate the implications and work out in their daily academic experience. In addition to teaching it the first day, I recommend you revisit it in subsequent weeks.
Thank you for your work and for creating this project to share and disseminate your concepts and ideas to your colleagues. I have been following and reading your posts for years and always appreciate your insight.
Thanks for your interest. We have some awesome pieces coming out soon.
Interesting article I will share with my first year college students this afternoon.
I’ve shared the original 80/20 rule with the parents of our incoming freshman at orientation. They appreciate having this information!
I have always wondered what has happen to me in collage! I was spending more time and getting less grades! suddenly the honor student was way behind. I felt so misplaced and since then I doubted myself and the major I have chosen!
I really wish I knew this beforehand!!
I thought this article was interesting, especially the 80/20 and 20/80 rule. I can see how this rule is true, especially when I first started taking college classes. It is definitely important to learn how to take what the professor teaches in class, and figure out what other information you need to know. If you ask your professor what information will be on the test, the will tell you for the most part. The trick is figuring out what is most important to study when they are broad with the test material.
I hope to become a vertical learner and learn how to interact with the content I will be studying throughout college. This model of learning will help me throughout college. I believe that becoming a vertical learner will help me not only with Professor Hedrick’s FYE class, but in all my classes within my four years of college. I hope to keep up all my grades and study the right way to be able to become a nurse.
This article was incredible. It definitely gave me a different outlook on how to view a ‘great learner’ versus a ‘good learner.’ I wish I would have read this article before my semester started, but it is something I can always apply to my studies from here on out. The funny part is I have always put so much time and effort into my studies and received nothing higher than a ‘B’ but the person beside me barely studies and aces the test. Now I understand why based off the facts about 80/20 and 20/80 learning. Thank you for providing a solution and explanation to help improve our work/study habits!
I am a Freshman student in Dr. LePrevost’s FYE, and I found this article very insightful because it further elaborated on reasons why high school is not an accurate model for college. It is a little daunting for me because I always did well in high school by listening to the teacher, taking notes, and studying for tests, usually on the night before. I did not have to exert much effort because it was not difficult to memorize the required material. I hope to achieve “vertical” mobility in my learning and I realize it will take much more concentrated, out-of-class effort on my part to “know” what and how I am studying and actively reading. Thank you for giving “good students” hope to become “great” learners and thinkers. I will apply these different thinking skills to the way I learn and use the metacognition techniques to deepen my understanding of college-level material and how it relates to the real world.
Dear Mr. Geddes,
Thank-you for your presentation on August 13 for the partime faculty of CCCTI. You would make a most excellent clinical psychologist. Your model of the learning…thinking process is so refreshing and simple to understand and implement in the learning environment. It is very similar to the model of clinical psychology that I was taught in my graduate education. It is very exciting to have your model to use to demonstrate and identify the cognitive processes that students are using and need to develop to be successful in the academic environment. I agree if that if a student can identify their thinking level or strategy then they can increase the depth of learning. This is very similar to the process of successful psychotherapy at least as I have experienced it over 30 years. Please continue to develop your model as we need to rediscover the fundamentals of learning and instruction are linked to how we think. I am excited about your efforts.
I wish I knew this before I started this semester. Transitioning from high school to college was a little major for me. But I’m glad that I got this information now because it has enlighten me on what I was doing with my study habits that wasn’t really working for me. I read to apply this and see a big change in my test scores as well as my overall grades.
Thanks for posting Ayana. It was a pleasure working with you. Make sure you post your results — I know they will be great!
thanks you so much, this really helped me. it’s a very useful tool and will hopefully lead me back on track. thanks.
Thanks for your interest Ming. I wish you the best success. Check out some of the articles on the blog as they will provide some valuable insight into issues that affect student learning.
This article was absoulty fantasic! And should be handed to every student prior to entering college. If i wasn’t an INTP personaility learner, i would have probably failed my first college class. This article should definitely be taken by conderation of high schools nation wide.
Wow! This is some extremely valuable information. I think every new college student should read this article.
This was a very well organized and informative blog. In all of my years of studying, I never considered actually diving into the subject, I was only taught to memorize facts. Although memorizing facts are helpful, doing this alone is impossible for just about any college student to do while maintaining A’s at the same time. Aside from just memorizing, students have to really “know” what the subject is talking about. We cannot just read the words off of the page, but we need to truly understand what the text is saying.
I really like how this article hit home for me. In high school, I wasn’t taught how to learn OUTSIDE of the classroom, only how to pass the tests coming up. I now realize that I have to put in the effort to take the time to learn on my own and actually become the “good student” I know I can be. Very helpful tips!
A very interesting article, this REALLY sums up how people learn in college and how successful they will be and why.
Oh my god. I really wish I knew this before my freshman year. I went from being an all honors straight a student…to finishing my freshman year of college with a 2.7. I almost gave up hope completely, but then I took one summer class and I learned how to study for that class appropriately….saving me later on. Now my brother is struggling with the same thing and I intend on showing him this article.
Thanks for sharing the diagram. I’m going to ask my college orientation students to read this post!
Becky, please ask your students to add their comments to the blog so that others can benefit from their insights. Thanks.
This dovetails very nicely with the conversations I have with my students–thanks for a very clear description of the problem, and for a diagram that can help me make clear how we are working to change their study habits.
Thanks for this! I really wish I would’ve known this in high school and before my freshman year, so that I could’ve been better prepared for my college experience. I’m ready to better my college education and learn how to do my very best!
Yes, I totally agree with this, I kinda feel like I wasn’t prepared enough in High school and maybe didn’t take it as seriously, I wish I would have started this my freshman year and taken things seriously before
I really wish I could have read this my first year at college. As I was reading this, it was kind of eye opening to see that I did bring my study skill to college with me from high school, which required little to no time of studying. I could usually pay attention in class, read over my notes one time, take the test and make an A. I have realized that in college it does not work like that. I actually have to put in some study hours, and I do not have good study skills because I had never needed them in high school. I’m glad that I have read this and taking action in improving my grades and “learning” how to study in a more useful way. I can’t wait to receive great advice and tips during the next four sessions!
I wish I knew about this my Freshman year, because I now feel as if I’m behind. Hopefully this workshop will not only help me but everyone else who is trying to boost their GPA. I felt as if I was reading about myself, and I hope this will help.
This was great, can’t wait to start this class !!
All of this information has made me realized that I have been one of those students that conforms to mediocre grades. Know i have made the decision of stepping up and beginning to really become applied in school. I am really hoping, that with this method, I can improve my GPA.
I really see my self as a “Hope So” learner after reading this and seeing that when it comes down to it alot of the time I am hoping that what I study is going to be on the test or quiz if the professor doesnt tell the class. I have always struggled on my quiz/test taking skills and would really like to be able to come out of the study being better in that area. My Goal is to be a “Know So” learner if I can be.
I really do wish I had learned about this in high school. I remember hearing this at a convo a few months back, but reading the article on my own has helped me to better understand how I’m not really studying the way I should be. I’m hoping to change that.
I am looking forward to hearing more advice from you! The little advice you gave my class has helped me get closer to the “know-so land.” I hope this 4-week study will get me on track and get me to the grade I know I deserve!
Knowing this information would have made high school so much easier. I knew that college would present a challenge but I thought I’d be coasting through my first year much better than I am. With it still being early, I know that I can still change. Hopefully learning and understanding this new information will make my next years of undergraduate studies less of a struggle.
This article describes me to a “T.” I was a “good” student in high school and I never really had to study too much. I’m having trouble trying to find a way of studying that fits me best and reflects good grades. I think that the 80/20; 20/80 idea is great. I know that a lot of what my teachers discuss is explained more in the book. Fifty minutes is just not enough time to elaborate on topics. Generally, the book is where all of the answers are and I struggle trying to figure out how to read textbooks and be well prepared for tests. I’m so excited for this study and cannot wait to become a GREAT student!
I really wish I knew this when I was a freshman. I mean I knew that my high school did not prepare me for college. But all along it was just wrong studying habits that I developed in high school. Hopefully I will be able to do what need to be done to improve.
I really wish I knew this freshman year. As a junior now I feel as if I’m still studying wrong and that by trying this new way of studying out my grades will see an increase as well. I just hope its not to late to change. I really hope my mobility is good
I most definitely wish I would’ve known this information during high school. Like most high school students, I thought that college would be just the same and I could easily get through it just like I did in high school, but it’s way different. I’m ready to improve!
I thought I had all the keys to becoming a great learner after you came into my class a while back but now that I have a job on top of my school work I am struggling to use what time I have to study wisely. I am hoping that by hearing and reading this information again I will be able to redirect my study habbits an get some better grades.
This is really a great blog!! I learned and identify myself in the situations and can label myself as a “good student”. I believe this Study will help me, at least I hope-so (ha humor there). Though as a student, that always did great in high school, I really can only hope that this is something that can help be with my studies to become that doctor I want to be. Strange, I am the student that you can ask a question to and 8 times our of 10 I can answer it orally. I’m a great oral presenter, just a horrible test taker, now anyway. I will know why at the end of the 5 weeks though!
Thanks for this!
This is a really good article. I believe that students that did really well in high school expected college to be a breeze because they did so well in high school. Especially students that made good grades without studying. Students are too cocky, they believe that they know everything and that their way is the right way since they have been doing it that way the entire time and it has been working just fine for them. However, now that they are in a totally new environment with different people. Things will not always be the same and they will have to learn how to adapt to the new changes.
I wish I would have been taught these things sooner like in high school. Even if I would have known these things freshmen year I think I could have done well. I’m ready to do something that will help me show that I know what I am learning.
I feel like if I would have known these things in high school I would have been more prepared for college. Even if I would have known these things freshmen year I think I could have done well. My problem is I always feel like I am so prepared for things but when I get the grade back, I guess I still don’t understand. I’m ready for help so I can show that I do know what I am learning.
I wish high school would have prepared me better than they did. They did not teach me how to study or what to study. I cannot wait to start this study and get information on study strategies on how to help me in my college courses.
This is all very good information that I wish I would have known before college. I am glad we have people that care for us. I am here and I have learned so much by reading this article and seek to be a “great learner”. I did identify myself a lot with some of the students here. It is very difficult to adapt but it is very fulfilling to know that we can do it! Thanks for the help and looking forward to raising that GPA!
I can definitely relate to all of the descriptions of a “good student” in this article. I can’t wait to go through the study and learn more, as well as learn how to put into practice what I learn to become a great learner.
I am ready to join those in know-so-land!
Gaaahhh, I wish I knew this last semester!!
I like this web site very much so much good info.
I had already quoted the ideas I heard from you at the recent Lenoir Rhyne parent info session before finding this article. I will try to spread the word among my fellow educators. It’s never too early to foster these kinds of behaviors.
Thanks for the diagram. I teach a humanities course called Critical Literacy which focuses on the theme of how we create knowledge. These scales are all addressed in various forms and activities during the course, but it’s really nice to see it in one concise sheet. I use the learning goals when we address reading and asking questions about what we have to read. The better questions one asks, the better answers (hopefully) one will get from a reading. Questions that ask for higher order thinking responses help students make knowledge more usable and retainable.
Thanks for sharing your insights. I hope I can communicate them clearly to my students.
Teaching at a community college I find most of the students are imbedded in the 80/20 rule. The second thing is they are very insecure about what they know and what they think they know! It is not lack of desire but lack of confidence. I plan on using this article for a workshop with other faculty in the near future. Thanks for the article!!
Thanks for your reply; it is very much aligned with my own experience and what I hear from colleagues at other institutions as well. Good luck with your faculty workshop.
What a great post.
I particularly like the way you explained 80/20 vs. 20/80 rules. I see so many of my students fall prey to the fallacy that they’re still functioning under the 80/20 rule in college.
And of course, metacognition holds a special place in my heart since it forms the foundation of so many reading skills.
Great site. I look forward to reading more content.
Hi Lori,
It is great to hear from you! I must give credit to my Kellogg buddies, you all inspired me to take my research to the next level. Stay in touch!
Thanks Leonard, for making your viewpoint available to others! I am particularly proud that you are sharing this from your perspective as a student affairs staff person – as a fellow student affairs professional, I am glad that others can know that we care about student learning just as much as facutly!!!
Thank you for this! The blog is great and the chart will be incredibly valuable at our Learning Center.
I’ve seen lots of versions of Bloom’s Taxonomy/Thinking Skills and this one works beautifully, especially in that it ties the Metacognitive Goals and the Learning Outcomes to Bloom’s Taxonomy (or hierarchy). So it’s easy to understand the “pre” goals and the “post” results, and how they tie into the general Thinking Skill.
Best wishes for your endeavors—it sounds like you are providing an amazing service to students. Keep it up!
Thanks for your feedback. It’s gratifying to have colleagues see value in this information.
This article has really identified some major problems I already have faced and really did not know any answers. I have a pre-med curriculum to finish and realized when I took my first couple of science classes I was really struggling. I quickly understood that material covered would be given in massive amounts and to memorize it was not realistic and not even effective. Not effective because things memorized really did not have much, if anything to do with test questions. I also liked the explanation of 80/20 rule being reversed to the 20/80 rule by moving from high school to college. Understanding the way the professor is presenting the information and how to obtain information needed are very important variables in maximizing learning. I am exited to form these new learning skills because I realize that there has to be a strategic was to efficiently review a mass amount of material and be able to expound on in with sound understanding. The reality of learning is everything usually builds from previous information. So there is no way to get around being able to use massive amount of information if you are really trying to be successful.
Are there any “role play” or scenarios that can illustrate concretely how this plays out for students? I think they would benefit from “hearing” exactly what the “typical” student is doing/thinking in a real (simulated) situation.
Yes, there are some scenarios that I do in trainings. Unfortunately, it would be too long to communicate in this forum. However, I will be covering this in the upcoming Fortifying Students for Academic Success webinar: https://thelearnwellprojects.com/product/fortifying-students-navigate-crucial-early-days/
This applies to so many students. The analogy really gave me insight into how the students feel. I will definitely be using this information when advising students.
I really wish I knew this before I started my Freshman year!!!!