Working with high school students on meeting deadlines.

One of the more challenging things that I do in my life is to try to inspire high school students to understand how to "really" meet deadlines. By that, what I mean is to not just get the work done. That is easy (or it should be). The more difficult issue is how to get them not to merely turn something in on the day that it is due, but to get them to turn in something worthwhile. While I am relatively happy with the students' ability to get things done by the due date, I am asking myself if it is at the highest possible quality level. I have to continually ask myself to assess the skill levels of the people involved and to also assess how much artistic effort they have put into each piece. I know that effort is a real issue for all employers, and if they get an employee these days (in this economy) that they feel is putting forth minimal effort, they will let them go and find one of the VAST numbers of people out there looking for a job to replace them. So how do I impress this upon high school students?

Fortunately, many of my students have jobs. They know how bad things are in the economy from personal experience. Either they work with people who lose their jobs because they think they can do it halfway (and find out otherwise), or they have family members or friends who wish they had jobs and can't find one right now. So more is expected of these students.

Maybe more than ever.

That is why my patience runs a little short if I find a student with a "who cares" kind of viewpoint about meeting professional standards. Yes, they are still in high school and high school students once had the luxury of being thought of as "carefree kids" in this nation. Unfortunately, the age of accountibility is getting younger and younger due to the fact that we need to teach them at an early age to be professional and to put more care into what they do. Especially if they plan to keep a job for any length of time. I know that it is stressful for many of them, and I know that they don't think it's "fair." Really, neither do I. However, it is important for them to learn to face the rather harsh facts of the world. It's tough out there, and so those that prepare at an early age to have high expectations of themselves, in classes like the one that I teach, will be more prepared for the high expectations that others will have of them when they get into the workforce.