By Sarah Nicell || Layout Assistant
As the pandemic proceeds into its twelfth month of devastation, world citizens continue to face the great uncertainty of where their lives are headed. When will people be able to go about their days as they did before the outbreak? Despite the introduction of multiple vaccines, the answer is uncertain.
As a college student, my concerns have gradually become more specific to my own responsibilities. Rather than concentrating my energy on avoiding a widespread illness, I have begun to worry about the maintenance of my academic motivation. I addressed this issue in my last article titled “Quarantine Slump: How Quarantine Has Affected Student Motivation.” My conclusion, after analyzing student concerns, is that Franklin and Marshall students are finding it increasingly difficult to contribute an adequate amount of energy toward their course work when the rest of the world is fighting the effects of COVID-19.
Fortunately, your college provides resources to combat this decline in motivation and mental health. Whether you are at home or on campus, support is available. Provided by Amy Faust, Learning Support Specialist for F&M’s Office of Student Affairs, here are six resources to help improve your academic success and keep you feeling good.
These resources on the F&M website allow you to meet and interact with Learning Support Specialist Amy Faust and a collective of Peer Academic Coaches (PACs). Their goal is to help students develop healthy and productive habits, allowing young adults to thrive in an academic environment mentally and emotionally regardless of circumstance.
PAC provides strong support to students and tries their very best to aid with student motivation and academic success.
3. Pocket-Size Workshop Series
If you are in need of some academic tips but are in a time crunch, the Pocket-Size Workshop Series is for you. Workshops are only 20 minutes long and run on Wednesdays from 12-12:20; there are multiple per semester and are recorded and housed on the school website for the convenience of F&M students. There is one recording that specifically addresses the motivation slide and is available for viewing online.
4. Resources for Online Learning
This is a link to F&M’s resources for online learning, but most importantly, there is a specific section about motivation and Zoom fatigue. Suggestions are provided and can be read quickly, and employing these tips will definitely help your motivation levels increase.
5. Engaging in Productive Habits
This link takes you to a page of the F&M website that lists productive habits that you can personally employ, as well as a CBS video titled “Why Habits Are The ‘Compound Interest’ of Self-Improvement.” At six minutes long, this option is a quick and easy way to improve your mindset.
6. Wellness in The Age of Coronavirus
“Wellness in The Age of Coronavirus” is a series put together by the Covid Wellness Working Group, of which Amy Faust also is a part. It is run through Wellness and Violence Prevention. Though its purpose is not specifically to combat student motivation, its existence certainly moves the conversation regarding managing and surviving the stress of quarantine forward.
By taking advantage of these six support systems, your life may become just a little bit easier. And in the middle of a pandemic, political chaos, and civil unrest, the slightest bit of help makes a big difference.
First-year Sarah Nicell is a Layout Assistant. Her email is snicell@fandm.edu.