Section C • Page 8
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, August 21, 2000
Tutoring program redesigned to help struggling students
By Mandy Symons Special to the Kansan
The Student Development Center is starting a small group tutoring program this fall.
The program costs $85 per semester. Groups are limited to four students and meet three hours a week. The groups will mainly meet in residence halls. Any student enrolled may sign up. Applications are available in the Student Development Center Office, in 22 Strong Hall.
Mary Ann Rasnak, center director, said that all students could benefit from the tutoring program, but that students in transition—freshmen, sophomores, or new students—might find them most helpful. The subjects available for tutoring—biology, chemistry, economics, Spanish and math—are ones that have traditionally given college students a difficult time.
given college students a limited number. Rasnak said that in the past, tutoring was available only by referral and that the center had little knowledge of tutors' abilities. And students formerly paid about $10 per hour for the tutoring sessions. The new program will be a better investment for students, and tutors are more accurately screened, she said.
Tutors are juniors, seniors or graduate students with faculty recommendations attesting to their academic ability, Rasnak said. Applicants are also interviewed on their communication and people skills. Tutors are trained each semester in recognizing learning disabilities and tutoring strategies.
ing usabilities and tutoring. When students have difficulty with academics, Rasnak encourages them to take the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory. The inventory is a computer questionnaire about study habits. The outcome of the test provides a starting point to help students improve their performance.
Each semester, the center organizes a series of Academic Success Workshops. The workshops are free. Topics vary from time management to overcoming test anxiety. Information for the workshops is also available in the office.
also available in the center. The center is not the only place students can turn to for help. Supportive Educational Services is a program especially designed for students with disabilities, those who need help in getting financial aid or those who are first-generation college students. The program provides small group and drop-in tutoring, foreign language help and counseling.
For students struggling with writing or editing papers and essays, the Writer's Roosts could be the answer. The main roost is at Room 4005 in Wescoe Hall. The other roost is on the KU Edwards Campus in Overland Park. Writer's Roosts are free and open to students.
For academic advising and enrollment assistance, students can go to the Freshman-Sophomore Advising Center. The center is mainly for newer students, but any student can use its services. It provides academic advising, peer advisers, and guidance in choosing majors and classes.
Freshmen taste independence, homesickness
By Melissa Davis special to the kansan
Leaving home and jumping into a newfound independence can be exciting for first-year students. But independence can have a downside — homesickness.
independence can have a positive impact. Dr. Frank DeSalve, director of University Counseling and Psychological Services, said many factors contributed to homesickness. But a major cause, he said, was missing the people back home. Students facing a new environment with new freedoms and new responsibilities can feel uncertain and long for familiar faces — parents, high school friends, boyfriends and girlfriends.
Ryan Atkinson, LaVerne, Calif., junior, said he thought it wasn't home many new students missed, but relationships with people back home.
"I don't miss home," he said, "but I do miss my girlfriend who still lives there."
DeSalvo said there were two ways homesickness could occur as students made the transition from high school to college.
"Either the student is homesick, or the parent misses the student, so they call, creating a system of the student not wanting to let go of home—or home not wanting to let the child go." DeSalvo said.
going to let the child go.
Sometimes parents have a harder time dealing with the separation. This was the case for Tony Damiani, Tempe, Ariz., junior.
tempta. ARIZ. JENNIFER
"I was happy to move away from my parents and have more independence," he said. "My moving away was hard on my mom, not me. She would call every day. If
"Some students just don't want to be here, and parents want them here," DeSalvo said. "Some students just wanted to go to a smaller school. Homesickness is a way out for some students from an environment they don't want to be in. A way to excuse themselves from the situation."
my thing, she was upset that I wash my homesick.
DeSalvo said that homesickness could be a symptom of deeper issues.
anything, she was upset that I wasn't homesick."
from the situation.
DeSalvo said students in this kind of situation should confront their parents and tell them how they feel. He said college students should be learning to make their own decisions.
make their own decisions:
Homesick students who experience significant changes in sleeping behavior, eating habits or physical appearance may need counseling. DeSalvo said, it could
"If symptoms last for longer than two weeks, it could still be homesickness, but might need attention." DeSalvo said.
Desalvo said women are both susceptible to homesickness, Desalvo said, but women are more likely to talk about it. This can be a healthy outlet. Men are more likely to deny their feelings.
likely to deny their feelings.
DeSalvo said homesick students shouldn't be afraid to let someone know they are having a rough time. Denying feelings of homesickness could cause other problems, such as depression and failed classes.
Obvious, such as you have a snowball effect," he said.
"If you start sleeping more because you are homesick,
you miss class; you start to struggle academically."
If you miss classes, you start to go to a large
Homesickness might not set in right away. DeSalvo
said. For some, it starts a month into the semester
said. For some, it harms them.
"Folks that arrive with some doubts about leaving home, might be successful in hiding doubts but they will start to surface a month down the road," DeSalvo said.
start to surface a month down the road.
DeSalvo said that the transition from home to college didn't happen overnight. "There is no time limit on homesickness, for some students," DeSalvo said "It could last a couple of weeks, a semester, even a year."
Fortunately, there are many ways to treat homeschickness. DeSalvo suggested that homeschick students try new activities that put them with with people who are dealing with the same issues.
"By pursuing new avenues they will know that they have something in common with other folks," DeSalvo said.
DeSalvo also suggested that homesick students think of the separation as a time to grow, and as an opportunity to try new things.
nity to try new things.
"So much is learned with every transition." he said.
"Homesickness can be useful, because it can teach us how to cope with changes in the future."
Disorganization is one reason why freshmen tend to become houseick, DeSalvo said. Freshmen should try to follow a schedule for eating and sleeping.
Homesick students could plan a trip home, but not too soon and not too often, DeSalvo said. New students should take time to allow themselves to adjust to the new surroundings.
"The biggest thing to remember is that homesickness is normal. Making a transition at any age is hard, not just adolescence." DeSalvo said.
Walking for peace
From left, Huckleberry, Eddie Gardner, Melinda, Human Being, and Mark Creek-Water walk down K-32 on their way from Lawrence to Kansas City. They were participating in Global Peace Walk 2000, a cross-country march to promote world peace. The marchers passed through Lawrence on June 21. Photo by Aaron Lindberg/KANSAN.