Monday, November 19, 2018

Starting Early to Foster College Readiness and Independence

Today's New York Times has an excellent article on college readiness and what happens to many students who are not prepared for college, noting that almost one-third of students won't continue in college for their sophomore year and that only slightly more than half of students will graduate within six years (No, that's not a typo. Six years is the "new" four years).


As the authors note,  "...many teenagers go away to college only to recognize — either because of their grades, their habits, their mental health or all of the above — that they’re not ready for college life." The Times piece cites two primary factors in college failure: the nature of college itself, with poor sleep patterns, lousy diets, and the easy availability of liquor and drugs; and the fact that many students haven't had opportunities to manage their own lives in a way that would prepare them to handle the personal and academic demands of college.

Notably, while the Times piece mentions students with emotional and executive function difficulties, it does not discuss students with previously diagnosed learning and related disabilities. For these students, there are additional complexities involved in arranging and using the accommodations and supports they need.

We've addressed many of these issues before in this blog, and you may want to take a look at some of these past posts once you have read the Times piece. They include:

Choosing the College that Fits

Things to Consider When Heading to College

How to Head Off Academic Trouble in College (in retrospect, perhaps doesn't say enough about fostering student independence)

Other suggestions are set out in your blogger's book, Life After High School -- especially the final chapters dealing with medication and managing the distractions of college life.

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash


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