Harper College/Student Success/Motivation and Time Management

Introduction

Once a student enters college, motivation and time management become essential to success. With no motivation, you have no energy. With no energy, you get nothing done day to day, which can easily turn into weeks without getting anything done. Before you know it, you reach the end of the semester. In addition to motivation, time management is important because you only have so much time in the day. Without careful planning, you run out of time to get important things done. When you are in college, not getting your work done can have a disastrous effect on your GPA and your future.

Ernesto Valencia Every day is a new day. You want to get things done by that day or have certain things to be taken care of. But sometimes, it doesn't go as planned for many reasons. Sometimes, there are distractions in your life that you need to take care of beforehand or right away. It can be anything from work to simply school to even thinking about the next day. The things you can have control are to stopping yourself from procrastinating but it's harder to have control. Working full time to have enough to pay off certain needs and still going to school or not having a Schedule set makes it even harder. Time simply go by faster and faster until it's gone, and you really don't realize it. As college students, we have to waste frequently in our hands when we don't know how to manage for the purpose that we don't know how to maintain out time. We need a set schedule plan out for ourselves. Instead of finding solutions for stopping this problem, why not we find how the problem even gets started. How do you know when you start losing control in time to get done? How do you learn when you procrastinate too much that every little thing distracts you but doing this homework doesn’t. Some things that distract us or waste our time are really the little things like using our phones, leaving our homework for last minute, or having so much work outside of school can be the problems but little things like those we can fix it but by knowing what is the problem then it’s very easy to be fix later on in the future.

Verenice Martinez Do you ever feel unable to complete easy everyday tasks? Some fail to realize the reason why they can’t seem to complete their to-do’s list. Managing one’s time wisely plays a big role when trying to complete your tasks. It is also very important to stay motivated, although many believe it just takes one’s mindset. Our lack of motivation and our mindset play huge roles when trying to complete so many tasks with only a small amount of hours a day.

Learning Objectives: •Why to and how to create a to-do list to help manage your time •How to gain the motivation and mindset to use time efficiently •Avoiding distractions and procrastinating

Readings

College Stress

Ernesto Valencia

First, School can be very expensive and every year goes by it doesn’t make it any cheaper, it just makes it even more expensive. Students probably have to take out loans to just be paid for at the end. Talk about 20 years of being in debt. The amount you owe can probably be use for a house already. It can be very expensive and even more if it’s a university.” 2014 study by economists at the Federal Reserve and Iowa State University found that nearly 10 percent of students underestimated their total debt by more than $10,000”(Selingo, J. J.) Instead of helping Students really it’s hurting them. All this debt gathering up. 10,000 is a car and that’s for one year. For 4 years its 40,000 or more depending what you are taking plus the food you eat, and any bills you have like rent or car payment. If you have a credit card and you are using it to help you pay could even hurt your credit. All this debt would just bring stress everyday and probably give more problems in the future. Many years of being in debt, plus not being able to do anything after graduation except work because all you have is a big bill for just going to school. School won’t get any easier in the future. Probably get more expensive which is more problems for some people. Maybe that’s why not everybody goes to school because some people don’t have the money to pay for it.

Next, Work Problems Too much work can be a problem. All matters how much hours you put and if you really need the money or not. Some people need it to just pay off bills that they have every month. With going to school and working many hours can just bring problems, from not wanting to go to school, not sleeping enough or just not having enough time for school work that needs to be done the next day. Students need to pay for loans and make as much money as they can for they can have to buy necessary stuff. Students really won’t think about homework or what they have to get done because they have to get to work and focus what they need to pay off this month. Really how I see it now is that everybody needs to work after being 18. The only way you don’t need to work is if your family is rich and still get that income from them. Everybody needs to work to get what they want to get like clothes or foods or just pay off some stuff but some have to work more than others. Those who work more probably work full time plus overtime to even make it for the week or they would be left behind plus school. A lot of time put in work and so little for school is just a problem by itself. For a example like me I like to do all my work inside of school for the reason I won’t touch it at all outside of school just because I forget or I just work to much. It works out for me when I use the class time wisely and it’s good that I do all my homework in class for then I don’t have to worry outside of school. Using your time wisely is always a life saver but also its a key to being successful later on in the future. Balancing work and school is very hard but is possible, it all depends on how much time you give yourself in work and school. If your just giving time for work instead of school, then you are just setting yourself up. Knowing for the fact that you’re limited to time and limited to what you can do or want to do.

Finally A Set Schedule. Having a set schedule or having one made for yourself is so good. It helps you in so many like keeping you in track in what you need to finish for that day. By not having a set schedule you will mostly forget or just be disorganized about getting your work done. A set schedule is like the best thing, for the fact you can make so many plans with people and still on top with homework and work at the same time. I’ve never used one but with the job I have I see the benefits in having one. It helps so much, and keeps me organize in what I have to get done. I know for a fact that if I don’t have one I will start losing money for not being in time for appointments or being there when I have to be there. A lot of people really don’t use a schedule for the fact that they aren’t in the habit for using one. In school we used it but really we or I stop caring about it in high school for the fact that nobody told me how important it is or how it can be used for. A schedule is more then just keeping track, it helps you benefits in life by making sure you’re in top of everything you need to get done instead of just doing everything last minute. By doing everything last minute you’re hurting yourself for the present and future. Everything you do will need or will use a lot of you time but students won’t think about it like money, it’s only one dollar, it’s only one minute but with so many minutes wasted it could turn to a hour or even more but just depends on what you do day to day. What I think also help outs is being focus in what you need to do instead of being distracted but sometimes it's just hard.

Reference

Thomson, Alice. "Universities Treat Students Like Cash Machines." The Times, Jun 06 2018, p. 14. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

Selingo, J. J. (2018). How much is too much to pay for college?. Washington: WP Company LLC d/b/a The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://prox1.harper.cc.il.us:2048/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2007790426?accountid=11300

Shervington, Julia. "Too Many Rich Kids are Going to University." The Daily Telegraph, Mar 28 2017, p. 16. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

"Working Out the Delicate school/job Balance." Irish Independent, Mar 20 2019, p. 20. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

Learning Disabilities-Luis Medina

Like college students, students with Autism, ADHD, and learning disabilities attend community colleges and universities to pursue a degree and choosing a career path that they wanted to follow through. Later on, they selected the classes that fit their degrees and what kind of schedules are they looking for. When the semester begins, they are prepared to go to their classes and getting ready to learn new things. Within weeks later, they are behind with the workload of assignments from different courses and unable to get some academic support and needs. They are asking for help on specific classes that are difficult and prepared for studying the upcoming exams or/and tests. Speaking of forthcoming tests and final exams, here are some services that the student might particularly need for academic adjustments such as student's abilities, classroom setting, methods of instruction. These type of services for students with learning disabilities, ADHD and autism must know these things about accommodations:

The student's responsibility to disclose his or her learning disability and which affects academic access.

For student's eligibility to receive services and particular type that he or she needs, it is only based on appropriate documentation.

It must be made on a case by case basis, and ensure the integrity of the academic program and the educational experience.

If you requested accommodations, it must respond in a timely fashion.

There is a decision-making process that may involve the faculty member, student, and learning disabilities professional.

Here are some examples of accommodations

Alternative test formats

Extended time

Alternative access to oral and written material

Course substitutions

Technological/Technologies and software options

Text to text/speech

Speech synthesizers

Visual outliners

Reading programs

Textbooks on tape

Print enlargers

Visual tracking

Phonetic spell checkers

You Have Be Fearless by Samuel Williams

It is a personal narrative of a college student with an autism spectrum disorder who attended Landmark College, an institution for students with learning disabilities and how the college helped him learn about his learning disability and other strategies for him to succeed at college.

References

• “You Have to Be Fearless.” (2016, September 23). Chronicle of Higher Education, pp. B15–B16. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=118310160&site=ehost-live

• N. (Ed.). (1970, January 01). Learning Disabilities: Issues in Higher Education. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://www.asha.org/policy/RP2000-00126/

Verenice Martinez Creating a to-do list

Why create a list? By creating a to-do list we’re allowed to stay on track of our day. Staying focused is important when trying to manage your time wisely, losing focus can affect your amount time to complete your to-do’s. It is easy to leave a task uncompleted when you don’t have reminders! Have you ever been home relaxed doing absolutely nothing, and out of nowhere you realize you totally forgot to do something? It happens to everyone, but these situations can be avoided. Instead of forgetting anything you could just easily create a list. It is very important to write down a list of your to-do’s not just so that way you don’t forget to do anything important, but so you can also manage the most convenient time to complete it.

How to create a list When creating your list remember to begin with listing the most important things first. List the most important tasks first that way if you were to run out of time that day, you’ve at least completed the most important things first. Once you create a list to-do’s staring at a list of things you need to get done is very helpful not just because it helps you stay productive, but because staring at a list of things that you have to do can cause stress and good anxiety that will motivate you to get things done.

What’s procrastinating and how can it affect our time management Procrastinating is when you make excuses to why you can’t do something. As Scott H. Young mentioned “Priorities clears up the need for excuse making, since it simplifies decisions with conflicting values.” When you procrastinate it really affects your time management. Many of us don’t have a whole lot of time to complete things and delaying in completing them can make us run out of time.

How to determine whether you are procrastinating or not. The moment you realize you could have completed a task if you would have just put more effort into completing it, you procrastinated. We all have tasks we don’t enjoy completing, which is when we begin procrastinating and telling ourselves excuses to why we weren’t able to complete it. There can be times were we procrastinate not being aware we are doing so. Many times when we decide to procrastinate we don’t think of the consequences we will face after doing so. It is ok to delay a task if there is no harm holding it off and getting to it a more convenient time. Here are some phrases that can help you snap off the procrastination: • I can do it, if I… • I will do it, or else… • It is possible, if I… • If I do it now, later I can… • It’s better to start now, because later…

Verenice Martinez Copper, B. B., (2014, February, 7), The Two Brain Systems that Control Our Attention: The Science of Gaining Focus, Retrieved from URL https://buffer.com/resources/the-science-of-focus-and-how-to-improve-your-attention-span The Mind Tools Content Team. (N/A), To-Do Lists The Key to Efficiency, Retrieved from URL https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_05.htm Wrenn, S., (2017, July, 24), Admit it- You’ve Checked your phone while driving, Retrieved May 1, 2019 by URL https://blog.thinkreliability.com/5-causes-of-distractions-and-4-solutions-to-prevent-recurrence Young, S.H, (2009, July), The Top 20 Motivation Articles at ScottHYoung.com, Retrieved from URL https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2009/07/23/the-top-20-motivation-articles-at-scotthyoungcom

Interesting Facts

Verenice Martinez Sarah Wrenn stated that,"You get distracted because you don’t stop yourself from not getting distracted." Verenice Martinez We know it’s against the law to be on our phones while driving because we’ll put ourselves at risk of an accident and some of us still do it because we tell ourselves, we convinced ourselves that nothing’s going to happen(Wrenn,2017).

Activities

Ernesto Valencia

What do you do to manage your time, how does it work for you?

What distracts you from doing what you need to finish day to day?

Do you work to pay off school, If so how do you do it?

Do you go to a college or university?

Do you think your more successful when your more active outside of school?

Do you think using's phones help you manage your time?

Can going to school become a problem?

What are some problems you face when managing you time?

Do you do everything at once or wait to do it last minute?

Verenice Martinez 1. I can’t do homework because it’s late and I’m going to fall asleep while doing it. Procrastinating: a. It is an assumption to say I will fall asleep, it is possible for me to stay up. Not procrastinating: b. I can’t stay up when it’s late. 2. I shouldn’t go to the gym, because if I go I won’t have time to pick up my brother from school. Procrastinating: a. I could go to the gym, just not take too long. Not procrastinating: b. I cannot go and risk running out of time. 3. I am going to take a nap, I can’t go grocery shopping because I don’t have money to go today. Procrastinating: a. I could go but I rather take a nap. Not procrastinating: b. I really cannot go due to money issues. 4. I can’t go school because I don’t have a ride and I don’t think I’ll find one. Procrastinating: a. I could go, but I don’t want to struggle looking for a ride. Not procrastinating: b. I have any friends to ask for a ride. 5. I won’t be able to go to work later because I’m too tired from school. Procrastinating: a. I could go to work but I’m being lazy. Not procrastinating: b. I can’t work properly when I’m tired.

Intriguing Quotes

Motivational/Inspirational Quotes about ADHD & Autism- Luis Medina

"If you're going through hell, keep going." -Winston Churchill (www.additudemag.com)
"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." – Winston Churchill (www.additudemag.com)
"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength." -Gandi (www.additudemag.com)
"You may encounter my defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, and how you can come of it." -Maya Angelou (www.additudemag.com)
"Nothing like ADHD and a good fight to the death to make time." -Rick Riordan (www.additudemag.com)
"Autism can't define me. I define autism." -Kerry Margo (www.everydaypower.com)
"If they can't learn the way we teach, we teach the way they learn." -O.Lvar Lavaas (www.everydaypower.com)
"To measure the success of our societies, we should examine how well those with different abilities, including person with autism, are integrated as full and valued members." -Ban Ki-Moon (www.everydaypower.com)
"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism." -Dr.Stephen Shore (www.theartofautism.com)
"My autism is the reason [why] I'm in college and successful. It's the reason [why] I'm good in math and science. It's the reason I care." -Jacob Barnett, sixteen-year-old math and physics prodigy (www.theartofautism.com)

Multimedia

Verenice Martinez: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=F5JI_6nsgaM

Summary

EV Time management, self motivation, it doesn't matter. College students are always going to have a problem with cooping with one or the other. Time Management is always a problem from being a student to being a adult it doesn't matter. What really matters is how they coop with managing their time instead of procrastinating most of the time. There is always ways to coop with managing your time but just depends how you do it and how early you start doing it knowing that it will help you later on in life. By managing you time you get things done and always have more time to do extra things, more sleep, more free time, less stress for the price of one.

Luis Medina

Despite the challenges that students with learning disabilities, ADHD and autism faced in community colleges and universities, there are services and academic assistance to make your life easier and becoming successful within your classes. No matter what you are taking, what type of subjects for each of your courses, take advantages of these services and any other academic modifications. It doesn't matter what kind of disability or disorder that you have, and we wanted to make sure that you are getting the help that you need.

Verenice Martinez: Overall, as college students having time to complete our to-dos list can be challenging, but not impossible. It takes more than just managing your time wisely, but it takes the right mindset and determination. It is very hard to focus on just being productive but anyone is capable to accomplish anything and everything desired to. Think of the feelings that you will create if you do or if you don’t do what you wanted to accomplish. Always remember to set priorities, and always put important things first because of the end of the day those are the ones to matter and affect you the most. When you set time for the big things, there will always be time for the little things there’s a reason why they are little, because they are not necessarily urgent. . Having a healthy mind when trying to get things done is very, very important. It takes for one to set a mindset to accomplish something without getting distracted. As I was writing this I got distracted about 20 times but it happens. Next time I’m doing homework I won’t listen to good music.

Key Terms

Luis Medina

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)-Refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech, and non-verbal communication
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder- Is a brain disorder marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development
Accommodations- Supports and services provided to help a student access the general education curriculum and validly demonstrate learning
Modifications- Individualized changes made to the content and performance expectations for students
Learning Disabilities- Disorders that affect the ability to understand or use spoken or written language, do mathematical calculations, coordinate movement, or direct attention

Resources

• www.autismspeaks.org

• www.nimh.nih.gov

• www.friendshipcircle.org

Resources

Luis Medina

• www.autismspeaks.org

• www.nimh.nih.gov

• www.friendshipcircle.org

Verenice Martinez https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_05.htm https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2009/07/23/the-top-20-motivation-articles-at-scotthyoungcom/ https://blog.thinkreliability.com/5-causes-of-distractions-and-4-solutions-to-prevent-recurrence https://buffer.com/resources/the-science-of-focus-and-how-to-improve-your-attention-span

References

EV

Thomson, Alice. "Universities Treat Students Like Cash Machines." The Times, Jun 06 2018, p. 14. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

Selingo, J. J. (2018). How much is too much to pay for college?. Washington: WP Company LLC d/b/a The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://prox1.harper.cc.il.us:2048/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2007790426?accountid=11300

Shervington, Julia. "Too Many Rich Kids are Going to University." The Daily Telegraph, Mar 28 2017, p. 16. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

"Working Out the Delicate school/job Balance." Irish Independent, Mar 20 2019, p. 20. ProQuest. Web. 17 Apr. 2019 .

Luis Medina

• “You Have to Be Fearless.” (2016, September 23). Chronicle of Higher Education, pp. B15–B16. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=118310160&site=ehost-live

• N. (Ed.). (1970, January 01). Learning Disabilities: Issues in Higher Education. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://www.asha.org/policy/RP2000-00126/

Verenice Martinez Copper, B. B., (2014, February, 7), The Two Brain Systems that Control Our Attention: The Science of Gaining Focus, Retrieved from URL https://buffer.com/resources/the-science-of-focus-and-how-to-improve-your-attention-span The Mind Tools Content Team. (N/A), To-Do Lists The Key to Efficiency, Retrieved from URL https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_05.htm Wrenn, S., (2017, July, 24), Admit it- You’ve Checked your phone while driving, Retrieved May 1, 2019 by URL https://blog.thinkreliability.com/5-causes-of-distractions-and-4-solutions-to-prevent-recurrence Young, S.H, (2009, July), The Top 20 Motivation Articles at ScottHYoung.com, Retrieved from URL https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2009/07/23/the-top-20-motivation-articles-at-scotthyoungcom