Students less engaged at the start of their program
We find that our new students are often less engaged at the beging of their program and often drop from their program within their first month.
What sugestion do we have to wove them in enaging them the minute they first set foot on campus?
I always wanted to have a start class or a beginner 6 week intro class to see if the student has chosen the right field. I know we cannot do this but I think it would help or even invite potential students to come in to the classrooms to be sure this is what they want. This may help
No question that the first days on campus are difficult ones for many students. They are unsure of their ability to do the work; they don't know if they have selected the right school/program and they probably don't have much of a support system.
All those factors, and many others, make it easy to decide to drop out. Your job is to get them engaged immediately. Re-assuring them that they are in the right place doing something that will improve their lives is an important first step. Introduce them to successful graduates or upperclassman. Give them opportunities to meet their peers and relate to them on a personal level. Create early classroom assignments that involve interaction among students.
Intriguing idea. 6 weeks may be a bit long, particularly if you can't charge a student who's "just looking". At the school I was with we offered short summer programs aimed at rising high school seniors. Eventually, we found that charging a modest fee for supplies and other expenses [we provided lunch] reduced no shows and pre-qualified the students.
You might be able to develop a similar concept for your programs. For an adult population, it may be several evening sessions - just enough to let them get a sense of the field and school.
You might find success by providing a potential student with the opportunity to engage in a situational assessment by allowing them to sit in the class or audit for 3-5 days to stimulate and gage their interest.
It may benefit to develop a peer system where senior level students can serve as mentors for new enrollees and share their knowledge and experience with them to provide an improved comfort level.
Actually we use to have a two week preparation course for the students to attend before they actually started into their desired course. I believe it was called Career Readiness. It prepared the students for the workplace and also they were aware of the expectations that would be put on them before they attended class. This provided them the time they needed to adjust to a new class and career.
Victor, does your school use a mentor system? If so, could you share how it's structured? Who oversees the program? How are mentors selected? etc.
Does your institution still do this? If not, why not? What are/were the results? How did the students like the course?
I would like to see some type of two or three day "mandatory attendance" student success course. This would help retention on so many levels.
Tell me more about how a mandatory student success course would help retention? Are you proposing this before a student actually starts classes or would it be an addition to the first week? What are the barriers to implementation at your school?
I think you are on the right track. Engaging the student early on in team projects will help them feel they belong. but do you have suggestions on a good mentoring program?
Just like any other initiatives, a good mentoring program requires a clear vision and strong leadership.
"Start with the end in mind." What do you want to accomplish with the program? Who will develop and coordinate the people and activities? What scarce resourcs [ex. people and money] are you willing to commit? How will you integrate mentors into the institution's culture? How will you measure - and reward - success?
To be successful, the mentoring program must have the on-going support of top management and everyone must understand - and accept - their responsibilities to make the program work.
I find the opposite is true. They are excited to start working in their program of study. The challenge for us is that our first quarter classes have very little in their specialty. They are mostly Gen ed. I try to incorporate their future program analysis into the class. They then see what courses they will have each semester and what they will learn in each course.
There shold be a balance of certain things:
-interesting classes
-interesting teachers (let's face it - some classes are terribly boring, but the right approach can make the class enjoyable or at least bearable.)
-a moderate work load
-utilizing the majority or all of the class period
-student socialization
-making sure the students truly understand the material
I think all of these things help to engage the student.
Teachers err when they begin before gaining the attention of students, or continue after losing it. It is a mistake to urge students to listen after their power of attention has been exhausted, and when fatigue has set in. One must provide a change of state.
Some teachers make little or no effort to discover the interest and experiences of their students, or to create a real interest in the subject. Some teachers kill the power of attention in their students by failing to utilize any fresh ideas or to make any new, interesting statements to stimulate interest in the subject. They drone on through their presentation, thinking of it as routine. We call it "Pour" and "Snore"
