You know your college student is having many different kinds of experiences while she is at college. You want her to have experiences that will expand her world, increase her independence, and broaden her thinking. But you also know that your student will be spending a significant amount of her time at college (hopefully!) just doing the work of studying. When you visualize your student diligently studying, where do you picture her? Do you visualize her sitting in her peaceful residence hall room at her carefully organized desk? You might be surprised to find that this may be the least desirable place for her to accomplish her work.
Reminding your student to spend enough time studying maybe one of the things that you expect to do, and your student probably expects to hear that from you. But remember, your student needs to take charge of making her own decisions about studying. If you want to take a slightly different approach that migh help your student do well, you might suggest that he get creative in his thinking about where he is studying as well as how much he is studying. Many students find that having just the right spot to settle in and get work done makes a big difference. Recognizing that every student’s needs are different, and that every campus provides different options, of course, is important.