Hi Karen! =D
To reduce procrastination, I try to "catch" students doing something right & on-time throughout my course & then lavishly praise them for it.
To reduce anxiety, have you tried slowly transitioning them through phases of learning the skill? After explaining the usefulness of the skill we're about to learn in the "real world," I like to break it down into learning phases to gradually ease the student into the new skill. I remember this approach as "I do; We do; You all do; You do." Take for example teaching students how to solve an algebraic equation. The steps would look something like the following:
- "I do:" I demonstrate how to solve a couple of equations that are similar.
- "We do:" While demonstrating, I start asking students questions to regarding the steps like, "Okay, now what should I do to solve for 'x?'" or "What should I put here?" I keep going until students are comfortable with directing me before moving to the next phase.
- "You all do:" For this phase, students are put into groups to solve equations together while I supervise & answer questions as needed. I don't let the student move to the next phase unless I'm confident they're ready.
- "You do:" In this phase, the student is to work on solving equations on their own. If the student was allowed to successfully progress in each of the previous phases, they should be comfortable & confident when moved to this phase. Therefore, it's important to not rush them before they're ready. Doing so could diminish their confidence & cause a set back.
With this approach, student anxiety should be significantly reduced.
