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Have Deadlines
Deadlines are a fact of life
Deadlines and due dates are a necessity of life, not just of college.
However, one of the weakest points in homeschooling is the lack of solid deadlines. Everything is so flexible. You can do your lessons when and where you choose because it is just so easy to move deadlines back as needed. As much fun as it is to move your deadlines as you need to, this is not something you will be able to do in college, or in the rest of your life.
The advice here - do not get used to shifting your deadlines. This is a bad habit that can cost you later on. Nonetheless, I would suggest that not only should you set deadlines and due dates, but you should set your deadlines and due dates in stone. Do not move them unless there is a serious emergency.
Setting deadlines
What is a reasonable period of time to have for a paper or project? This is a pretty subjective question, although I would suggest you could give yourself roughly 3-5 days for every page required.
If there is any doubt about setting a reasonable deadline, I would think it would be better for you to be challenged to hit a deadline, rather than be laid back and have so much time that you can fool around instead.
Again, the deadline is something the teacher or person in charge should be setting. Let them set this deadline and then go by it, no matter how ridiculous or far-fetched it may seem.
You will sometimes encounter college instructors who want a lot out of you in a short amount of time. On the flip side there are instructors who will give you several weeks to write a one-page paper. It would be wiser to prepare for the former type of teacher because you will easily be able to deal with the instructors who have lower expectations.
Meeting those deadlines
Obviously, after you have set deadlines the most important thing is that you need to meet those deadlines. See if you can finish your work as far in advance as possible and then turn it in.
I have had instructors who will give grade-based rewards to the students who turn their work in early, because otherwise, the instructors get a lot of lengthy papers all at the same time. By having this incentive, they encourage students to work more efficiently and get their papers turned in sooner. This also benefits the instructors in that they can start grading the papers sooner.
So, even if the instructor has not put out a reward for papers turned in early, you can make most of them happy by turning your paper or project in sooner then expected. Most all of them will gladly accept early projects, and will even be thankful that you went to the effort to turn your work in ahead of schedule. |
