Institute/Session Summary:

“Send me 33 weeks of Time and bill me for $3.97.”

This advertisement for subscribing to Time magazine from the 1970s would read “bill me for $19.14” today, but the idea is still attractive. What if we could literally buy time? Would we be willing to do it? Would we meet our goals more easily?

The topic of time management is important to most college students. In a survey of students at 132 two-year institutions taking first-year seminars, 81% listed time management as one of five of the most important course topics. In a similar survey for 239 four-year institutions, the percentage was 52.2. Clearly, students recognize the need for strategies they do not possess when they arrive at college.

The overall purpose of this session will be to review successful strategies for time management such as classroom activities and curriculum modifications. Specifically, the objectives are for participants to be able to:

• Integrate time management strategies into study-oriented and developmental courses
• Guide students to see the explicit relationship between time management and goals

The content of this workshop will include a brief introductory discussion of the time issues related to making the transition from high school or the workplace.

Next, participants will learn the activity, “Send a Problem,” an excellent tool for helping people recognize the strategies they already know. Students undoubtedly already know many techniques for managing their time, but they do not always employ them. This activity establishes prior knowledge.

Additional activities will include “Time is Money” (addresses the concept of spending time vs. wasting time); a case study, “Time is on Your Side”; and a modern classic, “Rocks in a Jar.”

The significance to the field stems from the fact that many students are overwhelmed by the responsibility that is thrust on them when they start college.  The moment they fall ill or have a change in their work schedule or get a call to pick up a sick child, they find they are without a safety net. They have not banked any time. Even “A” students may turn into failures if they cannot learn quickly how to juggle their time needs. Our commitment to students should always include teaching them how to manage.

CRLA members are especially dedicated to assisting students to learn the basic techniques for success in addition to the content of our courses. Time management fits in well.

The Specific Plan to Engage the Audience includes guided practice within the context of the workshop. Participants will have the opportunity to work individually, in pairs and in small groups, depending on the activity.

Media will include a Powerpoint presentation to reinforce the material, music, and a variety of inexpensive props. Handouts will provide detailed descriptions of the activities and some will be “bonuses” we will not have time to do in the session. A list of URLs to  sites describing current research about time management and goals will also be distributed.

Presenter’s experience: I have presented numerous workshops on study strategies for the International Reading Association, CRLA, NADE, and for several state chapters of NADE and CRLA. I taught study skills courses to high school students for six years and to college students for over twenty years. I currently work as a consultant for Houghton Mifflin in their College Survival program.

Presenter1 Name: Maggi Miller
Presenter1 Institution: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Presenter1 Bio: Maggi Miller is a Program Manager for Faculty Programs and Training of Houghton Mifflin. Previously, she was a Professor of Reading and Study Skills at Austin Community College. While there, she directed the Learning Communities program and developed the initial Alternative Teacher Certification program.

She completed her undergraduate work at the University of Texas at Arlington and earned her Master’s of Education Degree in Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Texas at Austin. Before beginning her teaching career in Austin’s public schools, she was a VISTA (Volunteer in Service to America) developing and directing a tutoring program for low-achieving children in five elementary schools. Subsequent to graduation, she managed federally funded projects for the Regional Education Service Center, disseminating best practices in the area of teaching reading.

She has developed curriculum in reading, study skills, and vocabulary for students of all ages and is the author of Laughter Is a Basic Skill, a book about using humor to teach reading. Maggi has long been active in local, state, and national professional organizations, and has been recognized by the International Reading Association “for exemplary service in the promotion of literacy.” She has presented over 100 workshops and has been training educators for over 25 years. She has served on the board of Reading is FUNdamental of Austin, a literacy program which serves over 20,000 children annually. She also served four years on the Editorial Advisory Board for the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy.