Richard SmithCHEP

I like this more than most will think. Graphic organization works very well for me and some of my students. When I take notes I do so in picture form. People say a picture is worth a 1000 words, they are correct. I encourage my students who like to doodle to draw what I lecture about. It is “AMAZING” what the students come up with for notes. I encourage an open mind too.

Every student has a trait when they enter a classroom. My job is to get them to understand something new and sometimes I will have to a relative fact between their past and what they are learning. It is like putting together a puzzle.

With past experiences that the students bring in the class room, either from a prior employment or even past schooling the students apply what they can to be successful.

The students that I work with are either visual or hands on. Luckily I can fulfill both styles at the same time. Being in a tech school my student are rarely analytical and they want to be shown everything! Because of their learning styles I really enjoy my job!

Some students already have a job lined up when they graduate. That is one of the reasons why they come here. Other students like the industry but do not know where they want to go. Some students like to relocate and not return to their home state and some students do. Having an employment services staff on site always gives a good impact on retention. This will aid the undecided student and keep retention up.

Teaching style has a very large impact on retention in my opinion. I have wittiness students leave classes and want to go to a different class just because of the interaction from instructors. Just by keeping the students engaged in activities means a great deal in some learning styles.

Orientation really starts when the prospective student first steps on campus. A new student that walks into an unfamiliar area automatically goes into a defensive mode. Mailing out small packages to the students with maps of the area will give them a familiar sight and help ease the tension.

Improving Admissions; I really do not know much about the admission process here but from what I have read from the module, have check list and keeping in touch with the students should help retention. I do see one of our representatives quite often checking on her students. I think all reps should do the same.

Believe it or not, we work great has a team. Myself, I have learned from you some very positive ways to help students achieve their dreams. Keep up the awesome work.

Positive Influence; Generally when an instructor keeps a positive influence the students do too. Most of the students feed off of the instructor attitude.