Impacting the Student Retention
I support the report of Tinto about the greater students' involvement or integration in the life of the college, the greater the likelihood that they will persist. Every institution should develop multiple and creative activities that motivate the students to get involved in the academic and sociocultural activities provided.
In my opinion, the ability of an institution to fulfill the social integration of the students is a powerful factor in persistence. Nevertheless this is not an easy task due to the multicultural diversity of the students.
Multicultural or social integration is much easier when it is an integral part of an instructors class technique and skill. Instructors must be careful not to see just a student body, but a collection of individuals with different cultural or social backgrounds. We cannot ignore or be ignorant of the diversity of students, however, we cannot let that diversity affect the way material is presented to any great degree. There has to be a neutral ground for the presentation of curriculum or ideas that does not offend any sector of the student population. Proper presentation of course materials without offence, will keep the students coming back.
Multicultural diversity can also be a real strength for an institution. Frequently, our student body reflects the work force. Lessons learned in the classroom will transfer to the work place. Do you have any programs in place that focus on different cultural heritages represented in your school, Betzaida?
The points you make are good ones, Lance. Does your institution have any formal cultural sensitivity in-service programs? Do staff and faculty members from different backgrounds share insights into their cultures?
So far we do not have any program that focus on the multicultural heritages in our institution. Our university campus recently opened in this area. We are in the process of identifying the interests of our students in order to developing programs. As part of the inauguration of our campus, we've had different socio-cultural activities that reflect the different cultural heritages. After doing this course I am considering doing survey among the students to know what activities or programs they would like to have in the institution. Actually, a student called to ask me if she could organize a theater group among the students. I am also motivating students to participate in a professional organization that have common ethnicity.
I've notice that daytime students are more apt to join a student organization than night students. Night students are more likely to have jobs and family obligations.
Has anyone has success with night time students taking part in group organizations? If so what did you do to get time involved?
What organizations do you have different organizations for the night students? If not, when do the organizations meet? Usually meeting times that are convenient for day students are during work hours for night students and vice versa.
Typically, night schedules are very tight and don't allow for extraneous events. Have you considered incorporating related professional organizations into the curriculum? [ex. student chapters of ASID for interior design students] This allows the opportunity to develop leadership skills while staying focused on the career objective.
It seems that the students are already providing some of the direction that is needed in the new institution. Perhaps, they can be a part of the process of its creation.
At my campus, we have dealt with some of the same concerns. Fortunately, student members of our campus organizations has also recognized the need to more involvement during the evening. So, these students have designated members of the organizations to act as a liason between the day and evening students. In most cases, this particular student will conduct evening meetings for their organizations to inform the evening group of what is going on and answer any questions they may have. In addition, they are able to collect feedback from the evening group to bring back to the day group! This generally works out very well. Let's face it, you're right, the evening students usually have different personal obligations that they are focuing their attention on and don't have as much time to be part of anything more than their classes....but it's nice for them to be informed of campus activities and to feel involved with something.
I have the opposite issue. I have a larger night population than my daytime and we do have a hard time getting them to participate with student/industry clubs and organizations because of their other personal commitments.
Any student who has a full time job and family responsibilities/commitments will be hard pressed to find time for additional activities beyond the normal requirements of the classroom.
However, there is no question that clubs and service organizations offer a great opportunity to develop some of the 'soft' skills sought by employers. If you are able to incorporate these activities into the curriculum everyone is able [perhaps required] to participate.
I would agree with your assessment especially the need to provide a neutral ground for presentation of curriculum. Although our student body is not very large it is culturally diverse and reflective of the inner city culture which we service.
Cultural diversity presents an opportunity for education in the broadest sense. It requires sensitivity to non-academic issues. This is particularly true around main stream religious holidays. Being sensitive to major holidays of all groups provides an opportunity to educate everyone about other cultures and beliefs.
It's a great opportunity but must be handled thoughtfully.
Yes, you're right, Lance. On priniple, diversity/nothing else, for that matter, should have any negative impact on how the program or course content is presented and how the quality is achieved. I, being somebody different and from a totally diffrent culture, find it easier to achieve/strike the balance you alluded to. I can even talk about it without any apprehensions and with sensitivity.
What about outside the classroom? Does diversity determine that type of services provided by the institution? Should an institution provide additional support services that may be specific only to a segment of the student population?
Betzaida Fuentes , wrote,”I support the report of Tinto about the greater students' involvement or integration in the life of the college, the greater the likelihood that they will persist. Every institution should develop multiple and creative activities that motivate the students to get involved in the academic and sociocultural activities provided. In my opinion, the ability of an institution to fulfill the social integration of the students is a powerful factor in persistence. Nevertheless this is not an easy task due to the multicultural diversity of the students.”
There are neither enough carrots nor enough sticks to improve education without the commitment and action of students and faculty members. They are the precious resources on whom the improvement of education depends. It is my belief that following seven principles/guidelines are must, especially if we want to keep a handle on our retention rate.
1. encourages contact between students and faculty,
2. develops reciprocity and cooperation among students,
3. encourages active learning,
4. gives prompt feedback,
5. emphasizes time on task,
6. communicates high expectations, and respects diverse talents and ways of learning.
7. We can do it ourselves - with a little bit of help…
These seven principles are not ten commandments shrunk to a 20th century attention span. They are intended as guidelines for faculty members, students, and administrators -- to improve teaching and learning. These principles seem like good common sense, and they are -- because many teachers and students have experienced them and because research supports them. They rest on 50 years of research on the way teachers teach and students learn, how students work and play with one another, and how students and faculty talk to each other.
I find that through open communication during in class discussions is the first and easiest step towards overcoming any multiculturalism issues. The ability of the instructor to be the example of diversity/tolerance sets the stage - lead and they will follow.
