What are some effective strategies for dealing with difficult students during advising sessions?

Consider changing our mindsets - there are no "difficult students." In higher education there are many bureaucratic processes that cause people to become frustrated and it is our role to assist. Let's listen to our students without judgement and focus on their needs. By remaining calm, identifying the issues, solving the problem or finding alternative opportunities, we can best serve all our students.

Building rapport is a skill that is more naturally intuitive for some than others, but is a skill that can be developed by being mindful of how the learner is feeling. The cornerstone of rapport is active listening, ensuring that the learner knows their voice truly matters. Mindful gestures like maintaining positive body language and sharing a genuine smile can help put learners at ease. Strive strive to discover common ground and shared experiences - within these connections that we lay the foundation for profound and mutually enriching conversations.

Knowledge is Power. I believe, the first step is knowing your students. What are their strengths, their challenges, their interests, the changes that could be happening in their social circle. This knowledge is gained every day and begins with the day start. They need you to listen to them, so let them trust you. It’s very important that they make them confident that you will never judge them for their thoughts, differences, or struggles. In other words I believe that if I win their hearts, I will win their trust and attitude. I also believe in storytelling. Sometimes, people won’t find it easy to trust me. I use stories of certain themes purposefully to highlight specific morals or challenges. Encourage students and model how to reflect.

I agree it, and it’s quite common nowadays to mess with such students. According to me, the best way to build a rapport first and try to clarify their life goal, and push them to be micro ambitious rather long dreams or goals. Eventually they’ll be on right track. Most importantly, don’t expect them to do academic work for contribute the same during this period or even don’t compel them for the same. The way will work easier. Thank you.

Begin by actively listening to the student's concerns. Give them your full attention, and show empathy for their situation. Sometimes, students just need someone to listen to them and understand their perspective. Use language that conveys empathy and understanding. Phrases like "I understand this is frustrating for you" or "I can see why you're concerned" demonstrate that you acknowledge their feelings. Ensure that the student understands the purpose and goals of the advising session. Sometimes, conflicts arise due to misunderstandings about what can be achieved during the meeting.

I've always found the use of up-front contacts to be quite effective. Often instructors can quickly get caught up in wanting to be both the teacher and friend at the same time. Establishing boundaries with an upfront contract stating what the expectations are and what the consequences will be for each scenario is key to getting students to buy into the rules. Ex: one of my grade scores deals with deadlines, and students are told it's their job to get the assignment turned in. They are given many options, from scanning it, delivering it in person, or even snapping a cell phone photo and sending an email, they must show it's complete on time. If not, they lose that grade. Friendship aside, they know what to expect if they don't turn it in.

To advisors, I strongly encourage you to fully understand the overall degree requirements and required course progression flow for the portion of the curriculum you advise on—whether it’s a minor, a major, just general education/core requirements, or all of it. Knowing the degree requirements and course flow (base classes that are prerequisites for advanced classes or elective classes) will help you in advising: you’ll be able to communicate to your advisee better why they can’t jump right into an upper division course, how not taking course X will impact their graduation term or ability to take the elective they’re eyeing 1 or 2 semesters out. Most of all, it’ll lend you credibility and show that you have their best interests in mind.

When dealing with challenging students during counseling sessions, it's crucial to employ strategies that foster understanding, communication, and growth. Active listening, empathy, and building rapport are foundational. Setting clear boundaries and maintaining a calm demeanor can help defuse tension. Encourage open dialogue with open-ended questions, and avoid judgment. Adapt your approach to each student's unique needs and circumstances to facilitate a positive counseling experience.

Setting boundaries with students is an essential aspect of maintaining a healthy and productive teacher-student relationship. The key is to communicate clear guidelines, explain the reasoning behind it, and to be consistent with it. Communication expectations must be set - be it language, social media, or personal space. Any inappropriate behaviour must be communicated promptly. A regular review of the boundaries may be helpful.

this is good inside here, however it's also kind of a little bit self-apparent. again I have never really worked with a student in my career, who has not been at least somewhat interested in taking ownership of his or her own academic journey, by the time they reach college.

As a student, I believe that open-ended inquiries are beneficial because they enable me to provide my thoughts or perspectives with greater openness and to reveal my true thoughts, and assist me in gaining confidence. A vice versa, in which a closed-ended question is posed, prevents me from sharing my thoughts as a student, which gives me the impression that my voice is unimportant or that my teachers do not care or value me.

How one thinks is everything! I would add “what if questions” to more actively engage with students and their way of thinking. This will aid in assessing issues from their perspective. Be an active listener.

In my experience, I found that asking questions helps a lot in difficult situations. Most challenges stem from miscommunication or misperception. Therefore, asking questions and seeking clarity can provide resolutions. It also helps the student make sensible decisions!

Open-ended questions are great because it may produce self-actualization for the student. It also allows the student to lead the area of focus for the advising session.

Using open-ended questions in education fosters deeper understanding and encourages critical thinking among students. Unlike closed questions, which solicit limited responses, open questions invite students to express their feelings, perspectives, and experiences. Such questions delve into a student's motivations, challenges, and aspirations, facilitating reflection and self-evaluation. For instance, instead of asking if they like their major, probing about the aspects they appreciate or find challenging provides richer insights. Open questions stimulate meaningful interactions, empowering students to articulate their thoughts and, crucially, enabling educators to guide them towards self-discovery and independent problem-solving.

I wholeheartedly agree that It proved highly beneficial to receive feedback that was both specific and actionable, particularly when a teacher described how engaging the homework could be not only for the career but also for the unique way to learn new things and ideas to broaden knowledge and get good marks. Furthermore, when a teacher shares their experience and how it aided them in their own studies, it places students in a similar position and enables us to consider potential growth and work on it.

Providing positive and constructive feedback can be one of the most efficient ways to motivate individuals, reinforce good behaviors, and create positive relationships. Good feedback must be specific, genuine, and timely. Also, good feedback must encourage repetition, hence, followup can be helpful.

The Sandwich method is an effective way of sharing feedback with difficult students. When you start with the strengths and the positives, the student is in an open and receptive frame of mind. Feedback has to be an ongoing process, at regular intervals. Specific and timely feedback is very crucial as it will help the students to avoid major errors and help them from repeating the same at a later important stage in the learning process, which may prove to be detrimental to the final outcome.

Every student by the time he or she reaches higher education is aware of individual weakness . Most of the time lack of awareness about their strengths is the real reason gor them to be termed as difficult students. Best is to put positive perspective about what is being taught or undertaken as project so that interest persists. Other way round to to support with a complimentary work togetherness with other classmates. Repeated tutoring without making them feel low is the key challenge in the whole process for the mentor.

If an advising session reaches a point in which there is no progress being made, whether a student is refusing to follow P&P or take required classes or trying to find workarounds to policies, it is absolutely acceptable to point out that the meeting is no longer productive and to end the meeting. “This meeting is no longer productive. Let’s end here and schedule a meeting in 2 weeks for when you’ve had more time to review the information I’ve provided to you about what is required for your degree/major/minor/that elective you want to take.” This is a professional out for both you and the student so that emotions don’t run higher. It gives students time to reflect on the information and you time to consult a peer or supervisor.

Recognizing the perspectives and insights of students is a crucial component. When I see my teachers attentively listening to me in class without making me feel foolish and insignificant, this encourages me that I am valued and respected without being judged. I remember a situation in which a teacher was extremely rude to me in class, causing me to feel incompetent in front of my peers. As a result, I was hesitant to attend his lectures or participate in class discussions. As a result, I was forced to endure a great deal of mental stress, which ultimately led to my having to confront mental health issues. It is crucial for teachers to assist students in developing a sense of self-worth by instilling in them a sense of insignificance.

It's important to remember that emotional behavior is in response to feeling. Both traditional and non-traditional students are facing challenges that may have little to do with academics (on the surface) but are impacting their success. If we can help them relate their emotion to what is causing the emotion, we can help them mange their emotion.

Be aware that you have to manage your own emotions before you can help the student. Many difficult students can be volatile. It's not personal, they are just handling themselves the best they know how. And people around them can become collateral damage. Keep a calm demeanor. Speak with authority but with empathy. You don't know what situation they are dealing with, and what you say can stregthen or destabilize your relationship.

A mi me ha resultado útil dar la oportunidad al estudiante que exprese lo que siente, que se desahogue es decir que haga berrinche, que grite, que llore si así lo desea y luego juntos buscamos soluciones a su situación problema o a lo que en ese momento le preocupa.

The fact that the teachers follow up with me gives me the impression that they care about me, and I find that I give more effort to his course. This also assisted me in communicating with the teacher about the areas in which I am experiencing difficulty and the means by which I can overcome them without fear of being judged. This also contributed to the improvement of the student-teacher relationship.

Co-create the agenda Students may seem challenging, unco-operative etc., but the reality for them could be that they want to talk about different things than you do, or they may not want to discuss the subject in the direction you are taking. Work with the student to co-create the agenda, either at the start of the meeting, or even better, in advance. If you can let the student set the entire agenda, even better! The advising is for the student, so let them decide what they want to focus on, and then rapport, open questions, feedback and all the other strategies will support the student because they are going in the direction they wanted.

It all depends on the context you are working with the student in. If they have been referred for specific reasons to a session it is important to quickly establish their motivations for attending and what they want to gain from the session. If it is a routine supervisory type session that is compulsory that might also lead to different ways of handling the situation. More generally important considerations and things to remember are: - this is their award, not yours so it’s not personally about you - are they falling out of love with studies, if so are there any indications why? - what is critical in the situation for them to be able to progress, can you support breaking down the task to avoid overwhelm

Map out the session (include their goals) and stay focused. When you set that agenda, it’s the plan that you will both work to get through for an effective meeting. Maintain objectivity, and rein in any statements about policies, previous advisement, professors etc, to “here’s where we are and what comes next”.

Use your resources as an advisor. As I was an advisor for 10 years, know that you have other professionals and resources that are available to you to help students who you may be having difficulty in serving. A kind pass-off somewhere or to someone else can really ease the stress that may be there and could be a huge help in helping everyone involved in the end.

Give students examples that inspire them and help them 'see' how to proceed. Use these prior examples - and your own stories around how these prior students overcame hurdles and eventually succeeded - especially to help them chunk big, nebulous goals into manageable weekly tasks. These 'weekly sprints' create a momentum that students can see - and once they see the 'train is running,' it's much easier to keep moving to the finish line.