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I am guilty of procrastination as I sit here typing this article the
day that it is due. Procrastination is a lapse of discipline that nearly
all of us have been guilty of from time to time, and it is one of the
hardest habits to break. What are some of the reasons we (and our students)
put off working on assignments until the very last minute?
- Fear of failure. Not spending enough time on an assignment is a
recipe for failure. However, it is a socially acceptable way to fail.
No student likes to appear intellectually inadequate by expending
a great deal of effort but still failing an assignment, but if that
student was "too busy" to spend time on it, he has an "acceptable"
excuse for his failure (or at least one that is less socially embarrassing.)
This student may realize that he lacks the necessary skills for success,
but is embarrassed to ask for help.
- Perfectionism. A student may want his work to be "perfect,"
but he knows that he must spend too much time in order to get the
result he wants. Putting off the assignment forces the student to
do the assignment in less time, and gives him an excuse for the less-than-perfect
result. This tactic frees the student from the guilt he feels for
turning in a less-than-perfect paper. Sometimes the student who calls
himself "lazy" is really a perfectionist.
- Rebellion. The student does not want to do the assignment because
he is rebelling against something or someone. Perhaps he dislikes
the instructor, disagrees with the subject matter, or is rebelling
against parents who have forced him to attend that particular college
or follow a particular field of study.
- Boredom. Some assignments are just plain boring, and students are
tempted to give them lowest priority.
- Time management issues. The student may be overscheduled, or have
difficulty organizing and prioritizing key tasks.
- The thrill of operating in panic mode. Some students enjoy the adrenaline
rush they experience as they work hurriedly.
Procrastination becomes problematic when it interferes with a student's
achievement levels, the student is dissatisfied with his work and the
resulting grades, or when the student becomes "stressed out."
What can we as learning center professionals do to help students overcome
the procrastination habit?
- Help the student explore his reasons for procrastination.
- Help students to acquire the skills necessary to complete assignments.
- Point out that perfectionism hurts rather than helps performance,
especially when the purpose of completing an assignment is not to
be perfect, but to develop critical thinking skills, practice problem
solving, etc. Perfectionists often engage in "all or nothing"
thinking, so it is important to point out that even though the student
believes he might not be able to earn an A or a particular paper,
working hard and earning a B or C is better than procrastinating and
perhaps earning a D or F.
- Students who rebel only hurt themselves in the long run. It is important
to talk with the procrastinator who may be rebelling and help him
to find other, more productive ways to express his anger.
- Many tasks in life are boring, but necessary, and some tasks are
so boring that they may seem monumental to a student. Strategies for
dealing with boring assignments include breaking up the assignment
into more manageable chunks, rewarding yourself upon task completion,
viewing the assignment as a stepping stone toward the one's larger
goals, and focusing on the academic rewards for completion, i.e. better
grades.
- Most students are busy. Many do not organize their time well, and
should learn to use a planner to schedule study time. Some students,
however, are so overscheduled that they need to examine the number
of activities they are participating in, set priorities, and perhaps
drop one or more activities to focus on studies.
- Some students actually enjoy the rush of, well, working in a rush.
Eventually this behavior takes it toll, however, and they may become
"stressed out." Stressed-out students will need lots of
help organizing themselves and learning to take better care of their
bodies, including avoiding situations that cause unnecessary stress.
A number of websites describe even more reasons why people procrastinate,
and provide useful information on how to treat this problem. Here are
a few good ones to help you help your diehard procrastinators (or maybe
yourself!):
http://www.k-state.edu/counseling/topics/career/procras.html
Kansas State University Counseling Service provides a list of "symptoms"
that help the student to see how procrastination negatively impacts
his life, and provides a detailed list of reasons why students choose
to put things off.
http://ub-counseling.buffalo.edu/stressprocrast.shtml
State University of New York-Buffalo offers a list of strategies for
students to use.
http://www.sas.calpoly.edu/asc/ssl/procrastination.html
California Polytechnic Institute offers the "simple" and
"complex" reasons for procrastination, and includes an exploratory
activity for students intended to help them gain insight about their
tendency to procrastinate. CalPoly also offers a list of impediments
to overcoming procrastination, and suggestions for jumping these hurdles.
Editor's note: If you are aware of a really great web page that
deals with procrastination issues, and you would like to share it with
us, please log on to
www.learningassistance.com/forums
and post the link or URL. Thanks!
Questions or comments? Contact the author at edpelkey@juno.com.
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