Getting involved with retention
I have recently been chosen to "clean up" our retention issues. I was advised to take the ball and run with it, although the situation is larger then I intially thought. I have developed and applied new "retention policies" that seem to be working with most teachers. What is the best way to gain active participation from other departments as well as teachers?
Congratulations on your opportunity, Abigail. Unfortunately, these situations are usually larger that expected. Active participation takes time and successes. I would suggest celebrating every positive event that you can identify. Success builds on success and even the nay sayers don't want to be left out when kudos are being handed out. If your budget allows, why not have some sort of modest awards or recognition for those who are having the best results?
What policies have you implemented that are working?
well for starters We now have students "calling out of class" they leave a message on my extention by a cetain time then I report to teachers.
we have developed the contact sheet with the students information (phone number, email, etc) that is redone at the begining of every module so the information is current. the instructor calls the first 2 days the student misses class. If they do not respond it gets turned over to me immediately. I then have 5 days to work the student. I call, send registered letter, and email the student. Any means to get their attention that someone notices they are not there. It seems to work when they receive the letter.
We are currently revamping our retention plan, and I really like your ideas, Abigail. For the most part, it has been up to the instructors to track student attendance, but now I'm involved in checking attendance & reporting discrepancies to the instructors. The instructor making contact with the student at that point has been a challenge, so I welcome the idea of using several means to contact the student...In retrospect, it seems silly that we didn't actually think of this before. I mean, it's simple enough; I guess we sometimes get too bogged down in our work to think on a smaller, more personal scale. Instead we try to come up with grandiose ideas that become too cumbersome, when something far less complicated that makes perfect sense would work a lot better. Thanks and kudos!
Follow up calling is a tough, tedious job. You should never ask a question [ex. what haven't you been coming to class] unless you are ready for any and all answers. Most people aren't - they don't want to get involved with the problems that have caused the problem. I have always believed that this is the reason instructor calling programs seldom work.
What success have you had in your program, Cynthia? Do you rely on - and get - good support from your faculty?
I think one way to get teachers involved with retention is to educate them. As I took the first module of this course, I found myself agreeing with many of the points made. As an instructor, I often feel that I am asked to do things unrelated to teaching (i.e. calling students who are absent; completing action forms for absent students; progress reports done at mid-point of a 4 week module, when I've barely had time to get a feel for the students..perhaps having only given one quiz at that point; etc. However, as I read the module content, I was silently saying "Aha! That's why 'they' have me do that!". No one ever bothered to explain WHY I was asked to do these things unrelated to teaching.
New instructor orientation is often overlooked or done cursorily. Hopefully, you will be able to use this experience to change the training given to new instructors at your institution.
It would be useful if Forum participants could describe some best practices for new instructor orientation.
