"Dear Bella,
You've done it. You have become a helicopter proffie. You know way too much about your students' personal lives. You're not a therapist or a social worker, and you are not their mommy. You are however pretty gullible as you seem to assume the veracity of the sad stories your charges produce for you. Stop wasting your time (and theirs) trying to be something you are not..."
Which brought to mind the recent Higher Ed article featuring a debate about the "good mentoring" of students, where one instructor introduced the notion of friendship. While the discussion held by various instructors evoked the age-old debate of the student-instructor relationship, it seemed mostly set on semantics. Generally, it was agreed that like most other academic issues, the key is in striking a balance.
And like most other academic issues, it is something easier said than done, but certainly worth working towards.
Which brought to mind the recent Higher Ed article featuring a debate about the "good mentoring" of students, where one instructor introduced the notion of friendship. While the discussion held by various instructors evoked the age-old debate of the student-instructor relationship, it seemed mostly set on semantics. Generally, it was agreed that like most other academic issues, the key is in striking a balance.
And like most other academic issues, it is something easier said than done, but certainly worth working towards.
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