Kyle Bettinger

Having expectations for the students and being consistent with the expectations will help them learn certain skills that will make them successful. We also need to be modeling these same expectations to set the example for them. Another thing would be to have the students come up with expectations for us as an instructor.

Placement services are critical for giving the students insight on what job opportunities are available and what steps they will be needing to take to gain that position they are interested in. The career services center is not only there for supplying information on jobs and job placement but it is very important that they student is aware of the other services such as resume building service, interview expectations, dress code expectations and help with any of these areas.

Providing access for students to network with peers can help them be more successful. Networking with peers allows them to find someone else that is either going through the same challenges or someone that can help them work through any particular challenge.

Mentoring during orientation will allow the student to be able to learn the expectation for being a student such as where to find particular resources how to use a computer software to complete their homework.

The admissions recruiters should have a very good understanding of the courses the students are interested in. They should also have a good understanding of what challenges the students may experience but not introducing these challenges in a way that the students will have a negative outlook on. The admissions team could also lean heavily on other employees such as instructors that they run into when walking the students through tours and asking the instructors to help explain the course they teach and what to they can expect to learn.

Majority of schools have multiple student services available. The biggest thing is do the students know that these services exist for them? One of our responsibilities is informing our students and having this information accessible. We also need to make the students feel like asking for help when needed is not a bad thing. We are not designed to go through struggles on our own because nothing good will come of it.

Connecting with the students is an extremely important role as an instructor. That's the whole reason we are in education period. Our students will struggle through some aspect of school and we are here to not just provide solutions but to allow them to feel heard. The best thing we can do is provide that safe environment for them to feel willing to talk through their challenges. Them feeling like they are priority not just completing a task will increase our retention and student satisfaction.

Students go through a lot of new changes as they start college on their own. Stress of finding balance between life, school, and work. As they navigate this challenge and constantly question whether it's worth going through school that is taking all of their time and focus away from what they used to enjoy. We as an educator can help them navigate these challenges by showing empathy and providing advice or a resource that will give them hope and inspiration. Focusing on how we can provide support as they go through life as a college student will help with retention… >>>

Instructors are around the students the most and typically have built a good relationship with students. We as an instructor have a greater chance noticing when the student is going through something that may be pushing them from continuing with the class. As an instructor we are able to catch these early signs and either talk with the student or recommend them to another department to ensure they do not drop their class.

To maintain students attention I need to keep eye contact, move around the classroom with out excessive pacing.