Success in High School Can Mean a Tough Transition to College 

High school graduation season means many graduates will spend the summer getting ready for what lies ahead in college. It's a big transition for everyone, involving culture shifts, getting to know new people and systems, and adjusting to more demanding content and learning goals. For most students, it means facing any number of fears from academic learning to social acceptance to self-navigating in unchartered waters.

You might think that high-performing students transition to rigorous content well, and lower-performing students have a tougher time. However, this often plays out unexpectedly. Some students who struggle in high school adjust to learning challenges more effectively, because they have learned to put in effort, get help, and try different strategies. They have failed, suffered setbacks and have had to get back in the game. On the other hand, some students who sailed through high school struggle with the transition, because they haven't yet had to increase their effort, try something different, and ask for support. Their lack of struggle can often be an impediment to successful adjusting.

When coaches encounter students who performed well in high school but are struggling to adjust to college-level work, questions focused on the capacity to grow skills can generate a productive conversation.

Ask questions that:

Illuminate a student's personal perspective around their work

What is your self-talk around calculus? How do you feel about yourself as a writer?

Highlight their willingness to put in effort

What do you do to study for this course? How much time do you spend? How do you think your amount of work relates to your performance?

Invite them to identify actions they can choose

What haven't you done yet that you could try? Whom could you consult for help figuring things out?

Encourage them to investigate mistakes

What do you think caused you to earn this grade? Why did the errors happen? How might you avoid these errors next time?

Ask them to take stock of and appreciate the possibilities in the difficult situations in which they find themselves, rather than those that feel easy, safe and comfortable.

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