“Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” - Henry Ford
Mr. Ford was right about that. And spending three decades around college students probably doesn’t hurt either! I loved working with countless students during my time at McNeese State University. I still feel proud of them, and I enjoy seeing them and learning about their personal and professional successes after college. Some of those students have even reached out to help with my campaign, and it’s a great feeling for those tables to turn full circle!
Of course, I wasn’t the only one doing the teaching. They say the hardest thing to change is your own mind. It sure is!
The Problem
Teaching at the junior and senior levels in the College of Business was actually much easier than teaching at the freshman level. At the upper levels, the content was more complicated, the assignments were more complex and grading was more time-consuming. But the students seemed motivated, dedicated and serious about their educations. This made teaching enjoyable.
However, at the freshman level, it was much different. I could share information and instructions face-to-face in the classroom, provide it in writing via paper handouts or share it electronically. Still, there was always a significant number of students who didn't grasp the information.
How does the grading system work? What day is the exam? What material will be covered on the exam? What are the requirements for graded assignments? When is this due? It seemed like the questions never stopped. I just wanted my students to succeed!
I was perplexed and exasperated. My first inclination was that I was the problem. Am I not communicating clearly? Am I moving through the information too quickly?
After some time spent reflecting, I realized that some students at the freshman level didn't seem able to understand how their actions positively or negatively affected their outcomes. In other words, they needed help with critical thinking skills.
The Solution
I began to research how to teach critical thinking skills. What I learned surprised me!
The problem was not necessarily their lack of attention or failure to listen and follow instructions. The problem was also not my communication skills.
The problem was that the human brain is not fully developed in women until about age 21-23 and in men until about age 24-35. The frontal lobe of the human brain is the last part of the brain to fully develop, and that is the part where critical thought processes occur.
Critical thought processes can be summed up with an "if-then" statement. For example, "If I stay out all night, or if I don't study, or if I don't read all of the material...I won't perform well on the test. If I fail the test, I won't be able to make a good final grade in this course, and my overall GPA will be adversely impacted."
I was once advising a student regarding which classes he should take and in what order. He had completed his first two and a half years of college with less than a 2.5 GPA. He had three semesters remaining, and he was ready to become serious about studying and making good grades. He hoped to graduate with a 3.0 GPA. I explained how that would be impossible, because even if he made straight A's in every course until graduation, the poor grades in the first couple of years weighed down his GPA. It was mathematically impossible to achieve a 3.0 overall GPA in the next three semesters he needed to graduate.
After advising this student, I strived to teach this valuable lesson to all my freshman students. College is a critical time in young people’s lives, and my goal as their professor was to help them all succeed.
What I Learned
Learning about stages of human brain development helped me become a more effective educator in many ways. I was more patient and understanding. I made a greater effort to get the message across and ask questions to the class to ensure they understood the material. Ultimately, I came away with a few key lessons.
When you do not know the solution to a problem, research! I would have never been able to adequately change my ways as a professor if I hadn’t taken the time to educate myself. I took this concept with me in my other endeavors as well. We have endless knowledge available at our fingertips, and I won’t take it for granted.
Patience truly is a virtue. Many times I felt frustrated with my students, but I always had to remind myself that these freshmen are still developing. I truly would not have been able to approach them with patience and understanding without lots of prayer! It was (and is) something I constantly have to work on, asking God to grant me this virtue.
You learn lessons at work you can bring home to your family. After learning about the development of the frontal lobe and its connection to critical thinking, I went home and made up a game to play with my two young daughters. It was called "Mama, can I marry him?" I would ask questions like, "Are you both at least 25 years old? Did you finish school? Do you both have a good job? Is he nice to you? Does he take you to church? Would he be a good father to your children?". Yes, I may be guilty of brainwashing, but a mama does what a mama needs to do!