Hi Mohd-Ibrahim,
Good advice for all instructors to follow. We need to keep this in mind each time we step into the classroom.
Gary
customized delivery method in a light humor (in accordance with current event, world news...etc.,) keep the student interested and keeping them updated with current event.
I have found that being nice to all the students and showing that you care is number one. Students understand that there are rules but if you understanding what they are dealing with and help them think of solutions or just lend an ear, it will go a long way.
I agree that instructors are responsible for student retention. They are also responsible with making sure that they personalize the material. The students will value it more if it has personal meaning to them.
Hi Sheila,
Your college has good support for its' students. The call and/or email keeps the communication lines open even if the student quits they know they can contact someone at the school at reestablish a connection.
Gary
I agree with you that students appreciate that someone cares enough about their success when instructors call or eamil them when they are absent. It is mandated at the school I work for that every student who is absent receives a call or email. Instructors have to love what they do in order for the students to feel the passion. If instructors are resentful in making the calls the student will feel that resentment.
I find the best ways to increase retention is to see the students outside of class on campus. As well as changing your lecture. The other way I find that works well is ending on cliff hangers. People like stories if they are curious what happens next they will come back to see how the story ends. I like to think of it like Arabian Nights.
Instructors see their students on a daily basis and most likely know them better than other administrators. Instructors should take into consideration the human factor about being fair and caring, but also maintain the high standards in the classroom. This will show the students that high standards will need to be met in their career field as well if instructors place these on their students today.
I've had the best success when I've built a personal connection with each student. I've taught classes with student numbers ranging from 5-85; obviously I can build a personal connection more easily with the smaller class size; so that helps.
If I am teaching a large lecture with 50+ students I make a point of breaking them up into smaller groups for projects so I can work with them more individually.
Overall, if a student feels accepted, successful and is getting encouragement for progress they are more likely to stick with it.
Instructors in my opinion are critical to student retention. We have all had instructors that we don't want to have ever again. They stood at the front of the room and lectured the entire time. That is a way to kill student retention. I think that if the instructors actually enjoy teaching the content that their natural enthusiasm for the subject material shines through. They should have an "interactive classroom" where the learning process continues through sharing of related life and professional experiences from the students aspect most importantly and be "hands on" learning as much as possible. I may also assign a part of a chapter to a group of students and have them teach the material to the class how they want to be taught.
I also believe in being sincere and encouraging to all students no matter what their grade in the class is. I also believe that students can tell when an instructor is being honest and genuine and cares about them as well. I think all of those things besides making learning fun again are all an important part in student retention and the learning process.
Hi Damon,
Good strategies. I just wish other schools had the same administrative structure as yours so instructors could work together and a collaborative way to offer customized instruction to their students.
Gary
By working within the departmental structure of one's institution as a "silo-less" team to facilitate the appropriate recourses for the student (i.e., faculty, student services/ accommodations, tuition planning/financial aid, the registrar and the Dean)
Re-work and modernize the learning outcomes and bureaucratic processes to be as intuitive, humanizing, relevant and transparent as possible.
make class interesting -- give some ncentives in class to get students to come to class daily and stay in class
Every one needs a reason. As an instructor I need to make sure class members feel good about attending class, and when they tell other students they also will want to attend my class. The lession can be like a chess game, and I let the students know that it is important to understand how each piece works, and then the "game" knowledge will have more meaning and give them more reason to keep comming to class.
I agree that positive feedback to the students is a necessary component to student retention. It's important to help instill confidence and importance to the student. They certainly need to know they belong in this class with everyone else.
Sometimes simply talking with a student may be the solution and sometimes additional effort is required.
I think that the items presented in this section are particularly relevant in answering this question. The personal greetings create a fair and caring environment that students thrive in. Perhaps some students don't have this environment anywhere else in their daily life. It's also important to make them feel important by providing positive feedback. With some classes over 2 hours, students appreciate some mild humor, discussions and variation of instruction methods. This can really make the class more interesting and further enhance the retention of students.
The instructor must create a conducive learning environment to ensure student satisfaction. If a student does nto feel comfortable in the classroom they may become hesitant in coming to class. This level of comfort must include the ability to approach the instructor as needed and they must feel that they are part of somthing bigger and better.
Hi Sarah,
It is amazing how something that seems natural really impacts a student. By knowing a student's name early in the course that person feels like they are being accepted and made a part of the class. This little things add up to big things like retention and course completion.
Gary
Hi John, This is a great idea. How large is your school? We have thought of doing this, but I fear we may overwhelm instructors with too many students. How many do you assign to each instructor?
