If you’re a professor, teacher, or grad student, you’re probably sick of hearing people say that you get the summer off. But for non-academic types, it seems like a sweet deal. This week’s blog roundup looks at why those summer months aren’t as much fun for teachers as they are for students; plus, insight into why feedback is so hard on so many of us, and what to do to really drive your co-workers crazy (if that’s your goal).
(Photo Credit: John Althouse Cohen/Flickr)
Danielle Rosvally at Dani Prose: What Teachers (and Grad Students) Really Do With Their “Summer Off”
It being summer, it also happens to be a time of year when us educators are faced with the frustrating situation of explaining away certain myths about our jobs. One still prevalent is the “summer off.”
I know that the university calendar tells you that there’s no class over the three-month span between June and September. I am also aware that conventional ideas about summer equate to vacation, beaches, volleyballs, and children frolicking in fields of free time.
But let me assure you, simply because school’s out for summer doesn’t mean that we get “three blissful months” of sitting on our couches binge-watching Netflix.
Here‘s what they’re really doing.
Marla Gottschalk, PhD at The Office Blend: Why We Hide From Feedback
You probably recognize the importance of being able to accept feedback … but that doesn’t mean that you like hearing it. In her latest post, Dr. Gottschalk discusses what goes into making a person more (or less) receptive to feedback.
Researchers have been examining a multifaceted construct, aptly named Feedback Orientation which captures a number of key elements that collectively influence our receptiveness. These elements include, perceived Utility (Our beliefs concerning the usefulness of feedback to help us reach desired goals or outcomes), Accountability (The belief that we should respond to given feedback), Social Awareness (The tendency to utilize feedback to gain a picture of our performance through others, and Feedback Self-Efficacy (An individual’s perceived competence to interpret and respond to feedback appropriately.)
To get the most out giving and receiving feedback, you need to know how you relate to these elements.
Dawn Rosenberg McKay at About.com’s Career Planning site: 10 Ways to Annoy Your Coworkers
The No. 1 reason on this list is one that our ancestors could never have imagined: talking loudly on your cellphone, while you’re in the bathroom.
Your coworkers are so interested in your cell phone conversations, they want to listen to them all the time. Don’t they? No, not really. Your conversations are not as entertaining to anyone else as they are to you. More importantly, they don’t want to hear you talk on your phone while you are in the bathroom. It makes them uncomfortable.
Reasons No. 9 through 10 are less disgusting, but no less irritating.
Tell Us What You Think
What’s the best career advice you’ve heard this week? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.
Leave a Reply