David,
How can you motivate your students to push through when they feel overwhelmed. As a learning institution what can we learn from our student's behaviors?
Cindy Bryant
A breakdown in expectations. Dissatisfaction with the program, the school, or an unresolved complaint. Financial issues. Family obligations. Other interests. Lost interest. Lack of true commitment.
It's rare, but it happens. Some don't even start the first day due to financial difficulties, family medical situations, or guilt. Of the people who left on his own, I believe that student was lying to himself about what the program offered.
A great idea I read in a forum was the application process included a career projection from the applicant. That way, we could see if the expectation of the applicant met the program, or at least grounded the applicant in the program's scope.
Alexander,
Fantastic! I am very happy to see that you have been able to profit from the ideas people have shared in the forums.
Cindy Bryant
The graduates in my field are a small number, so an instructor in my field is even more difficult to find. Connecting with other teachers, regardless of specialty, has proven to be enlightening and inspiring.
Alexander,
That's great! I noticed that you have been posting in the Career College Lounge. The Lounge is a wonderful way to stay connected.
Cindy Bryant
I have noticed a trend wheras the students dropping have been due to failing or not meeting SAP. This is a clear indicator that they are not in the right program and perhaps time was not taken up front in the intial interview.
i.e.when students realize they can become a nurse they want to quickly enroll in that program...and many fail because this was not the best match for them. Some hate Math, some cannot deal with the hours, for some it has been a long time since they have been in school, etc.
Many of these students would succeed after completing another program, like medical assisting first. This would allow them to gain confidence in their ability to return to school as well as provide a medical background.
Linda,
It is critical that students are 'matched' with the appropriate program. Most schools have different levels of entrance exams that pre-qualify students for programs such as nursing. How does your school handle entering into different types of courses?
Cindy Bryant
True. We do have the Wonderlic, and HESI testing for Nursing, so often the student can meet the entrance requirements. However, we find that they struggle due to being unprepared for the rigors of certain programs.
Linda,
Thank you so much for responding to my question. The admissions process is not always full proof in every situation.
Cindy Bryant
Students pass the Wonderlick entrance exam and then have trouble with SAP by not putting in the effort that is needed -- either by studing at home or asking questions to instructors. to keep up their SAP. We are very focused on science-related areas and they sometimes think that they don't have to put in the study time.
We always stress great study habits and even have a free class.
Also, it seems to be the tendency for them not to put their "home" or "social" lives on hold while at school and that draws their attention away from where it should be.
Jane,
Welcome to the forum! Many students are not aware that they must put forth strong effort to master the subject matter and they need to be encouraged by the faculty and staff.
Cindy Bryant
In the case of my institution, financial reasons are usually behind most dropouts. In our school, students come from a wide variety of countries form all around the world, and we cannot offer them financial aid the way a regular student from the US would be able to enjoy.
Students enroll and withdraw for many reasons. The most typical reasons I have discovered lately center mostly around job or family related issues. Even though students know that the successful completion of their education would benefit them, maintaining a current job is important. During these economic times, many employees are being asked to do more with limited resources and this takes time away from the student for their own educational growth. The same is true about family circumstances. Ultimately, if the school treats the student right even when they withdraw, my experience has been that they will return when they have time.
Susan,
When people feel that their family is threatened they go into survival mode. They prioritize based on basic needs such as, shelter, food and clothing. Unfortunately education may not fit into their immediate needs. I agree that as long as people know that you care about them they will eventually return to school when the time is right.
Cindy Bryant
In most circumstances that I have seen most students withdraw for financial reasons. Most of them have lost jobs and are now forced to take jobs that will not work with a school schedule.
Another group of students we see are those students who were pushed by parents to enroll. Students need to be fully committed in order to complete the program.
There are a number of reasons that cause student drops. But the ones that seem the most prevalent are: the academic challenge becomes too great and attendance becomes a problem, and school/life balance issues.
In the case of academic/attendance issues, I believe many students were not expected to adhere to attendance standards back in high school, and sub-par academic work was not addressed. There were no consequences for neglecting one's studies, or being absent from school. When these problems are neglected in high school, too frequently the student doesn't realize the career school may have exacting standards - and becomes frustrated when we do.
In the case of school/life balance, a frequent problem is providing child care, since day care is unfortunately private and unaffordable for many people; another dilemma that is becoming more common is lack of transportation.
Nyssa,
You bring up interesting points for discussion. I would like to respond to the adherence of rules and regulations. It is hard to pinpoint exactly when students were not held liable for their actions in school. When "No student Left Behind" was enacted many educators interpreted it to be a vehicle to pass students along. When this occurs and the student is then faced with an educational obstacle they become very frustrated and their defense is to give up.
Cindy Bryant
Many times students have not been enrolled in school for a long period of times so as a returning student it may become a bit challenging for them to get accustomed to the idea of studying and most importantly learning how to study and so they can become fustrated once they see their first test scores and automatically come to a conclusion that this field is not for them.
