He was making bad decisions all term long, which resulted in failing the course. In order for Edward to pass my advanced academic ESL course and move on to English Comp, he would need to repeat the course. He would also need to change his habits such as coming late and forgetting assignments or doing them with little effort.
After he found out that he failed, I emailed him to let him know that I could give him advice about how he could pass next time. To my surprise, he asked for it.
My first impulse was to make a list of all the things that he needed to change in his study habits. Then I realized that there was a more positive approach that I could take to giving this advice.
I have found that students seem to be more affected by what other students do in a class than what an instructor tells them to do.
Common Sense Teaching ESL 