Dr. J's Blog

Do you take time to focus on the mindset of your students? Do you implement any teaching strategies to promote a positive mindset? When you consider factors that are important for the learning process, from the perspective of your students, you might list factors such as academic skills, self-motivation, and time management. However, what any student needs to succeed over the long term is perseverance, persistence, and a growth mindset.

At the heart of all of these qualities and characteristics is a belief system which either supports or derails a student's progress. The beliefs that students hold about their academic abilities and capability to participate in the learning process will determine their level of effort, energy, and willingness to be involved. It influences their...

A difficult manager. We have all known someone like this or worked for this type of person. This is a person who seems to have an on and off switch which can be triggered or activated, with or without any warning. This manager is challenging to work with and when it is your manager whose personality or demeanor seems to constantly change – it poses even greater challenges as this person is responsible for your work assignments, performance evaluations, and establishing a reputation with your employer. When you find you are in this situation, there are coping strategies you can implement to help how you respond to and work with this type of challenging (and often difficult) boss.

Management Styles

While there are countless articles written about managing...

Do you know how to maintain an active presence in an online or virtual classroom? Do you understand the connection between an active presence and students' perception of your involvement in the class?

If you have taught an online course you know firsthand what it is like to teach in a virtual environment, along with challenges that are inherent for working and interacting in this type of classroom. Online teaching is viewed by some instructors as a function that must be managed, and others see the true potential that it holds and that it is a process to be nurtured. If instructors are going to create conditions that are conducive to learning they must do more than manage a class, they must be active, present, and available for students. This requires the development of a virtual...

"Self-confidence is the first requisite to great undertakings." -Samuel Johnson

There is one particular quality which makes everyone shine, one which shows through their work and even within their resume. Do you know what it is? It is having a well-established sense of self-confidence.

A person who is self-confident will approach their work with a measure of certainty; possessing self-awareness of the experience and knowledge or know-how needed to get the job done.

Even a resume will reflect that confidence through the word choice used and this will also come across through a person's tone during an interview. Being self-confident comes easily for some people, yet others struggle to try and sustain it. For most people this is a feeling that can fluctuate...