Identify student problems early.
Most students that drop here do so in the first or second term. We track attendance daily. Also, learning the students' name early on seems to make a big difference. It shows that we care enough to know who they are and that makes discussing their concerns easier.We get a sheet with the students' photo I.D., their name and program of interest. Memorize it. I wonder how many schools do this?
The school I currently work for does not at this time provide picture ID cards. I work the pm classes, and because the attendance is good (although low in number enrolled) it is much easier to identify students as well as their willingness to do the little "extras" to show intent. I too believe knowing a student's name, for instance, shows an understanding of that student as more of an "individule."
It's hard to tell someone that you care when you don't know their name. learning a student's name is an important part of establishing a relationship with them and it's one of the ways that schools can set themselves apart from the larger, impersonal institutions.
I agree that it is difficult at times to show the student that the school cares, because some students have so many internal arguments in themselves. Examples: the school only wants my money. I am just a number. They don't care if I finish or not. These arguments are preventing them from taking advantage of their class.
Good point, Rosalba. What can you, personally or as an institution, do to overcome those arguments?
The school I work at is concerned about student population from the momment they talk to someone on the phone. We have several stages set up where the student will be screened for any signs of week retention, the student will be taken into account and will go to the proper office to receive further assistance. This is a good way to get the students to think about their education. The school works hard on getting the student in the right frame of mind before they actually step into the classroom.
Sounds great, Dagger. Could you please share some examples of how the school gets students in the right frame of mind?
A major factor in changing the mind of a student is to change the mindset of the institution. This mindset should include the fact that motivation is the major key in identifying student problems early.
Success in any endeavor begins with motivation. A few years ago the common theme that everyone rememers is "Just do it." People all over the world bought the product but many made the negative choice to do nothing about "Doing something about it". Our population of college students is no different than others across the globe. I assume this is the same for other college institutions.It's easy not to do assignments. It is hard to put energy into something you don't want to do. There's always something else you might be doing. From time to time there may even be a good reason not to study or read the assigned text for the day. But often that "something else" is taking away the motivation and excitement of receiving a good education. Many college students are world-class procrastinators at having wasting time management. Many factors come into play when dealing with retention.
Students often have a preconceived notion that they are destined to receive a particular grade ("I'm just a C student.") regardless of energy put into grades. This is a great excuse for not putting positive energy where it belongs into education. In college no one is enforcing study hours, telling the student how and when to study. Most students have no idea of how to put forth the effort to understanding time management. No one is requiring students to do their homework--unless they are themselves and the primary goal is to get the best possible education.
I constanly remind our students why they are at our institution. What is the major factor why they came to school? What are the students professional aspirations? Why do you want a college degree? I put an emphasis on life-long learning skills instead of vocational training geared to the first job? Why did the student select this career field? How does it contribute to your personal and professional goals? I constantly push the students into think not only will this affect them, but will have ripple effects on their children, spouse, Boyfriend/ girlfriend and their
children's Children.
In truth, the students are doing it for themselves and the ones they love.
One of the factor I have learned from the reading and data collected from our school, I came to realize all students need help in effective, proactive, learning styles.
Listening, I feel is the important aspect we can do to build student renention. This is a great way to build relationships and build rapport. To understand the material presented in our institution is active involvement on everyones part. Everyone involved in the process of identifying student concerns and issues is vital. Merely warming a chair and desk generally results in minimal comprehension. Various techniques are likely to prove useful. Check for distraction at the door; no one I know can really do two things at once. I tell students and instructors to "Leave the drama for mama at the door". Understanding what students concerns might arise prior to the class for which students are assigned. Write down your questions, and don't be shy about raising them. If the professor lectures, ask yourself: What's the main point? What's the supporting evidence or argument? Record main points and key elements of information in your class notes. Brief each day's class notes before you go on to the next day's work; record the main points and summarize the reasoning. This process is likely to raise questions. If you can't find the answers, raise them in class. Talk to other students. They might have the answer or they might have the same question.
Reading is the next process that must be understood to all concerned with student retention. A fair amount of our students would say reading is not something they enjoy or have the time to do.I try to assist students in thinking in educational outcome based ideas about reading equals freedom. I suggest setting aside regular times and places for reading. Choose times when you are at peak alertness. Choose places free from distractions where you will be in the right frame of mind: a deserted classroom where you once had a good learning experience. We are in the process of building an on site resource room where students can go and study, use reference material as well as looking at other alternatives than the internet. I tell students to be proactive and become a master student by using the tools efective to understanding and getting involved with reading.
Get actively involved in reading. Merely allowing your eyes to pass over the text generally results in minimal comprehension. There are a variety of techniques that might prove useful. If there is an abstract, read it first. If there is no abstract, look for a conclusion. Pre-read for general content; the first sentence in each paragraph is often the thesis sentence. Ask questions of the author: What's your main point? Can you prove that? Where did you get your evidence? Underline or highlight main points and key elements of information. Outline as you read. Brief each unit--chapter, essay, excerpt, case--before you go on to the next; record the main points and summarize the reasoning. Outline the chapters and write the information in your own words so the student can understand the material. Understand how the text is set up. Bold print, pictures, objectives of the chapter are all ways to put forth effort and be proactive in the understanding of what students are reading.
Effective preparation begins the first day of the class. No one can master the materials of the course in one or two days prior to an examination. Mastery of examinations begins with active involvement in reading and listening. If you have been conscientious in your preparation, examination time will find you with an outline of the class to date. Your outline will contain briefs of everything you have read and a review of days class organized in a way that facilitates your seeing the relationships between the two. All that remains is to review your course outline and give attention to matters that seem unclear. Read your course outline and write down everything important that you don't already remember. Writing is active involvement; it facilitates understanding and remembering what you've read. Before you know it, students will know what they need to know for the examination.
I try to assist every instructor with what they are trying to address to their classes. Sometimes it is hard to figure out what the student is trying to retain. Offering these ideas might help.
Read the instructions: It's a rare examination where some students don't penalize themselves by failure to read instructions. Common mistakes include answering more questions than required, writing two pages on the 10-point question and two sentences on the 100-point question, and continuing answers on pages where they may not be read.
Answer the question that was asked: By far the most common problem in essay exams is the irrelevant answer. You may be brilliant, but if you are brilliant on the wrong topic, you are unlikely to be rewarded. All rules have exceptions, but most professors use the English language with relative precision and are quite conscious of the word choices that go into exam questions. The words list, define, discuss, describe, differentiate, evaluate, compare, and summarize are not synonyms. They mean different things to exam writers; they require different kinds of responses from you.
Outline your answer before you write. Does it answer the question that was asked?" If the question has several parts, "Have I answered each part?" If the question has several parts, structure your answer in precisely the same way. You may believe that your essay addresses every component of the question somewhere, but the reader is far more likely to understand and give full credit to a response that puts your knowledge where the reader expects to find it.
Be concise: Deliver the maximum amount of information in the minimum number of words. Make your point and move on. There are often second, third, and fourth points to be made. Don't get bogged down in reiterating the first one. Your outline really helps here. In fact, if you run short of time, just copying your outline into the test may get you a lot of the credit your essay would have received.
Be specific: Cite examples, evidence, authors and sources. Many essay exams call on you to reach conclusions or make judgments. The difference between a conclusion or judgment, on the one hand, and mere opinion or assertion, on the other hand, is whether you provide effective support in terms of argument, evidence and sources.
Having students write essay papers also unlocks the door to potential styles of learning and helps student become more aware of what they are thinking. Time is also given to reading and criticism of your papers. This investment will result in a report to you discuss the strengths and weaknesses of your paper and calling attention to significant lapses of organization, grammar, punctuation, and style. You can ease task and improve your paper grade by following the advice provided here.
Do not assume that the quality of your thinking can be separated from the quality of your writing. You cannot write a good paper unless you have something to say. If you cannot express your thoughts with clarity in your native tongue, chances are your thoughts are themselves unclear. It is always a good idea to plan.
Begin your research and writing early. For most students getting started is the most difficult part. Big projects in particular appear formidable; breaking them down into a sensible series of smaller projects can help get you started. The alternative to an early start is a last minute rush. Rushed papers are almost universally poor papers. Good writing requires clear thinking, focused research, careful organization, and constant rewriting. In short, good writing takes time. You have the time you need, but only if you start early and budget its use.
They contain essential information on why you must cite, what you must cite, how you may paraphrase, and how you must integrate quotations. The task of documentation may end with a complete reference list (bibliography) and accurate citations (parenthetical notes), but it begins with reading and research. Unless you are careful in documenting the notes you take in the research process, you will not have the information required for effective documentation of your text. Use one of the approved manuals of style.
Strunk and Whites Element of Style is an excellent resource for students to use as a tool for writing courses.
Apply the principles of good documentation when citing on-line sources.
Develop a clear thesis for your paper, and state it plainly in the paper's introduction. Your introduction should provide the reader with a clear view of your intellectual destination and how you propose to get there. If you are unsure of the destination and/or the route, you are not yet ready to begin writing. Since a good introduction provides a synopsis of your outline, the text of a good paper will scrupulously fulfill the promise of the introduction.
Work to produce effective paragraphs. Just as the paper as a whole requires a thesis, each paragraph within it requires a thesis sentence. Just as every paragraph in your paper should serve some function in support of your overall thesis, every sentence in your paragraph should serve some function in support of the thesis sentence.
Write for the reader. The burden of communication is on the author. It is your job to make yourself understood to the reader. It is not the reader's job to decipher what you mean. The most common organizational problem I see in student papers is the chronology of research: I got interested in this, so I read some stuff. I learned this and that fact, and in the end I reached this conclusion. the face of admonitions There is a big difference between writing out your notes and writing a paper; the difference is organization. Organization by the author produces clarity for the reader.
Don't try to outline, write and edit at the same time. Outline first. Make sure you have a list of the major points you intend to make and the order in which you want to make them. Write second. Focus on the substance. Let the language flow. Get your ideas down on paper, but don't be so foolish as to think that you are finished. After you have a text, turn your attention to editing it for organization, style, grammar, punctuation, usage, spelling, and documentation.
Make effective use of the traditional writing aids. Dictionary, thesaurus, grammar, and style manual should be consulted regularly while editing.
Take advantage of the technology. Good writing requires rewriting, and word processing facilitates rewriting. Modern word processing software will assist in word choice and spelling and virtually assure a clean and presentable paper. Word processing will also facilitate rewriting, which is sometimes required and always permitted.
Make effective use of human helpers. The staff Within the limits of my time and energy, I am available for consultation and draft reading. In some classes a student writing coach is provided as well. You can use your own talents as well. Read your paper carefully. Read it out loud, and listen to what you are saying. In conferences I often read back sections of student papers. The authors wince, cringe, laugh, and cry. The problems, it appears, are often readily apparent to the authors themselves. If only they had listened to what they were writing!
Proofread your text carefully. Don't blame your computer. You--and only you--are responsible for the paper you submit.
Improve the life of your instructor.Humor me in my idiosyncrasies. When I ask you to submit your paper as an e-mail attachment, I expect to get one file in Word, if printed, will produce the proper manuscript version of your text.
Study the comments I provide. Believe it or not, the detailed feedback I provide is for your benefit, not mine. Contrary to what some students believe, there are widely accepted standards for good writing. My comments are based on those standards. Improving your writing in this course is improving your writing in general, and improving your writing ought to be a major goal during your college career. Reading my comments is like reading anything else. It's not sufficient to allow your eyes to pass over the words. Read my comments carefully and reread your paper in light of the comments. Think about how your paper can be improved.
Improve the Paper. Don't just think about improving your paper; do it! Whether or not you are required to rewrite your paper, locate each of the marked errors in grammar, punctuation, etc. and make the corrections recommended. Examine the whole paper for additional examples of the same errors. Where you make the same error repeatedly, I don't generally mark every instance. Don't limit your improvement to fixing the technical errors in grammar and punctuation. Reorganize, edit, and clarify your prose. Make this the best paper you have ever written.
Often the quick fix is not the optimal fix, and they haven't the time to rewrite my text. I'm in the same situation when I read your papers. I can point out specific problems, but I haven't the time to rewrite your paper. If the quick fix I've suggested leaves you dissatisfied--often it should--look for a third approach that avoids the difficulties associated with your original text and with the quick fix.
Study your Mistakes and Make a To Do List. Most people make the same errors repeatedly, because they don't seem like errors to those making them. Make a "to do" list of habitual errors. An entry might look like this: run--ran--have run (NOT have ran). Edit your prose with the list in had. Consciously look for the things you know you do wrong, and fix them. Over time you will come to recognize your habitual errors when you make them--even before you make them. When that time comes, they won't be habitual errors any more.
Talk to Me. Most of the specific comments I make about your paper should be relatively clear if you take the time to study them. Some might not be. Even the clear comments are likely to provoke questions from enquiring minds. Ask them! Tell me how I'm doing. Everything I do is with the intention of helping you develop your intellectual resources. If what I'm doing is working, I need to know that. If it isn't, I need to know that too. Communication is so vital in all aspects of student retention.
We aks our faculty to get involved directly in this process. Before class start we provide the list of the the student enrolled in the course and aks the professor to call them as firendly reminder..it works very good. In any of the student reports a problem for starting the in the course we take care on time.
After the first class in we follow-up attendance and again call the student that didnt show and take care of them helping and encouraging.
this process helps a lot..
Faculty is a key in these process of indentyfing students problems.. and consequently in retention.
I agree, Elvira, that faculty members are the key to identifying student problems. What kind of training program do you have to help them? Do you have any kind of reward program to recognize good performance?
The school I work at is concern about student population form the momment they talk to someone on the phone. We also have several stages for student screening for signs of possible poor retention. In addition to having a Student Service Department we establish a student retention department in an effort to utilize all resources avaible to assist students in acomplishing thier vocational goals. My department is calling students that canceled or dropped, conducting a survey on our services and the delivery of our services as an organization to see where we are going wrong and what we are doing correct. The feedback we receive will facilitate our school to continually improve and grow.
That is great unfortunately we do not have that in my school and that makes it much more difficult on all. We do the surveys and do feedback but do not have the man power to call students and assist with outside issues to increase retention rates. We do the best we can but are in need of additonal resources to do that. I would love to have a Student Services Department to assist in all of that and I believe it would help make our campus grow and be much more successful.
We are fortunate to have a student services departmant. It is helpful to assist with retention. Careful screening is the most important part of admissions.
Congratulations, Nancy. It sounds like your school takes student satisfaction very seriously. Who is your Chief Retention Officer? What's the chain of command? How are retention goals set?
If it's any comfort, Teresa, I'm certain you are not the only one in this situation. The challenge is to demonstrate to the budget decision makers that retention initiatives more than pay for themselves by reducing drop out rates and improving public perception of the institution. It's not too hard to make some calculations about the revenue benefits based on a few simple assumptions about improved persistence. You gotta play to win.
I am the Student Retention Cordinator (Chief Retention officer) We have a Student Retention Cordinator II assisting me in following up with all our cancels and drops for possible re-entry, as well as conducting a survey on how we can delever our services better to achieve self improvement for each campus. As well as Three Student Services Personell to directly assist with students and help identify at-risk students. My department reports directly to the COE and CEO. As well comunicates with faculty to get feedback on potention students concerns. We are a new department set up to hopefully plug up the retention leak. Our retentional goals are set by corporate and reviewed on a monthly basis. We are in the process of implementing a comprehensive retention improvement program that involves all departments in our school.
I prefer to call my students Mr., Miss or Mrs. - and their last name - because it shows my respect for what they are attempting to accomplish. My students are all adults.
I think when students are enrolled they expect a sort of different relationship with their instructors. Instructors find out so much about the personal lives of their students and that can help the student to overcome obstacles that other people have not taken the time to help them with.
An instructor can encourage a student and get a response from that student where someone else may not. I encourage my students to e-mail or call me if they will not be in class. It is important to me what happens to them and in their lives and I try to convey that to them from their first day.
What sort of obstacles have you helped students overcome? Have you ever gotten into a situation where you feel uncomfortable with the amount of information the student is sharing?
While I agree the prefixes show respect at varying levels, I wonder if most students view it that way. I for one feel that communication on a fist name basis provides, if nothing else, the perception that there is a comfort zone that already exist. If one of the major issues with retention, is the student feeling uncomfortable in revealing his/her personal issues to the "stranger" in the room, I would think that as the "stranger" one might want every edge possible to gain the confidence of the student. (just a thought)
