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Most of the time people think a student is
successful when they get good academic
grades. But when you look a little closer,
those who achieve good grades are
sometimes unhappy students who have only
learned to do what teachers ask.
It’s also said that a student is successful when
he or she finds something that motivates him
or her to go every day to university, sit down
for several hours and seek answers to the
questions their teachers and colleagues pose.
A student can be successful only in an area
and gain social recognition too, for example
in a sports or artistic field.
But sometimes we must think beyond,
questions like: Does a s successful student
always find success when he or she leaves
the University?
Various studies show that the answer… is not
necessarily. Actually, sometimes they feel
lost without the tight schedules and the need
to determine their own execution, after
many years that others identify and assess
their performance.
One option is teaching Metacognition, but is
not necessarily a good way, especially if it is
seen more as another academic subject and
it fails to explain the benefits of it outside
the classroom. That’s why I think t the best
thing is to clearly explain the use of it in
everyday life.
Another element of success, without doubt,
it’s planning goals. How many students go
from one task to another without stopping to
meditate on the impact of their work and the
formation of skills? This is the reason when
they are ready to complete their studies, they
are so anxious and it’s usual to hear
someone say, “I don’t know that I know”.
The worst comment of all, though, is “I do not
feel confident about myself”.
So when I think about a program with a
meta cognitive strategy, this should add
several elements to push to students to
success, both inside and outside the college
classroom, and I just will mention a few
elements:
- Meta cognitive Skills, applied not only
to deliver tasks, but solving everyday
problems, planning tasks and goals, scope of
goals, analysis of resources, search solutions,
environments, analysis and synthesis of
information, search for information skills,
and handling computer devices.
- Cognitive abilities, of course, reading,
writing because they will be essential in any
environment. Math skills are not left behind,
regardless of the working area, will be
essential, and I cannot forget skills of
analysis and synthesis of information
applied to the reading.
- Planning of short, medium, and long-
term goals, not academic goals, but life goals,
where they see themselves at 6 months, a
year or 10.
- Creativity, no doubt the resolution of
tasks is a good scope, but this implies flexible
thinking and this is so important to the
adaptation of the environment.
- Leadership, ability to see myself as a
leader capable of action not those others
require them, but begin tasks on its own
initiative, by owns efforts and a team.
- Ability to adapt to not usual
environments. This feature is curious, but
there are many university students who do
not know to do outside of the environment
which for so many years has nestled. Even if
they have been at work in companies by way
of training for the exterior, they continue
seeing themselves as “student” and this
prevents them from understanding that the
time they spend doing work in real
environments is only a preliminary step
towards “real world”
- Ability to rely on own strengths and
know the weaknesses. Sounds easy, right?,
because it is one of the major weaknesses of
the University. Students are told all the time
what to do, when to do it, how to do it.
- Extrinsic motivation, of course will
certainly be something good in all
undertaken in the future.
- Search for success. There is something
called the “the imposter syndrome,” it’s
linked particularly to higher education
students, and it’s the fact that people do not
feel like they have worked hard to achieve
goals, they believe that all have been gotten
is based on luck. But luck is the audacity of
being at the right time, with work and
precise skills.
- Sense of humor, successful people has
the feature to take life with philosophy. They
learn from their mistakes and make them
successful. How do you teach that?.
Finally I would like to say that there is
controversy if Higher education should
promote the work skills or skills for life. I
think that both, finally the dream of all
students is to conclude their education and
find a good job where allow you
demonstrate what they learned.
Alternatively, apply to their life and touch
the lives of others with what you learned.
What do you think?
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