The contract on magnetism was due three days ago, and Charlie still hasn’t turned it in.  I have also noticed that his behavior has changed over the past few weeks;  he’s become quieter, somewhat disengaged, not his usual energetic self.  When there’s an opportunity, I pull him aside.

“So Charlie”, I say, “I notice you haven’t turned in the last contract yet.  Is there a problem?”

“Yeah, I’ve been trying to get the last few items done so I can turn it in.”

“Why weren’t you able to finish it on time, when that work would probably have been more meaningful?”

“I’m just swamped.  It’s not just in this class.  I can’t keep up with the workload.”

“So why are you feeling so pressed right now.  What’s going on?”

“For one thing, I joined the swim team.”

“Aha.  That would account for it.  I know how much you guys practice.  Most swimmers I know are exhausted a lot of the time.”

“Yeah, and I’m still working 20 hours a week at the bakery.”

“Well, is it absolutely necessary for you to make money right now?”

“I’m trying to save up for prom.  I guess it wouldn’t be the end of the world if I cut back some.”

“If you can, it would probably make a pretty big difference in catching up, don’t you think?”

He nods.

“Well, let me ask you this;  since we already took the test and you did pretty well on it, are any of the things you’re working on right now helping you learn in any way? Or is it just busywork?”

“It’s definitely busywork.”

“Well, I don’t think that’s worth doing. How about you turn in what you’ve got, give yourself a grade for the contract that’s reasonable for what you have, and on the side of the contract put down exactly what you’ve been doing over the past few weeks.  That way, when we get to the end of the quarter, we’ll be able to look at the big picture — how you did before it got crazy, how you did after, and how much the grade you got on this unit should weigh in coming up with a final grade for the quarter.

“What would be a reasonable deadline for organizing what you’ve done so far and turning it in?”

“I can do that by the end of the day, for sure.”

“That sounds good.  And if you cut back on your working hours, do you think you’ll be able to keep up with the work on the unit we’re in right now?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Then do that, and let’s see what happens.”