Some of the challenges from students comes from a combination two characterisitics. Aptitude and Persistance. Aptitude is the student's ability to grasp the material and persistance is the student's effort put forth for learning. A student with a high aptitude and a high level of persistance knows a lot and tries hard. We like these students because they make teaching easy. They get it the first time and they are willing and eager to learn. A student with a high aptitude and low persistance are the ones we view as "lazy." These students would be hard pressed to get an extra point at the end of the semester if they were bordering on an "A" or a "B." The student with a low aptitude don't usually get it the first time around but they hang in there. They come for extra help. They stay after class and ask questions. These students are the ones that we appreciate and come the end of the term and they're close to a "B," they will tend to get the extra point to help them over. Then there is the student with a low aptitude and low persistance. These students, unfortunately, characterize most of the students we teach. These students to get things every easily and they give up the moment something seems insurmountable. These are the students that miss class frequently and have many excuses for not turning in assignments. Remember, we are a career college. Our students either weren't planning to, or weren't prepared to go to college. But it's incumbant upon us to help them change. One of the best ways I know to increase effort is by decreasing the preceived difficulty. For example, in the beginning of the semester I may give a quiz that everyone can pass. This builds confidence, and provided it's not too easy, it creates a sense of accomplishment. This actually creates a kind of feedback loop. Once the student experiences a success, that motivates them to try more. Then they experience another succes and want to try more. The caveat is, the opposite is also true. If the work is perceived as too diffucult, our typical student will want to bail. So, to deal with the low aptitude and low persistance student I take it one success at a time.