There are a variety of useful resources for retention. An especially usefully website for professional academic advisors is NACADA (link = http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/ ) Ths website has many articles on retention. Seeking out professional journals and associations is an excellent way to increase instructors' awareness of retention strategies.
What has worked for me is being genuinely interested in the student and the students needs. Honest feed back during practicals is one example. Honest meaning showing empathy and looking from there perspective. For instance if it is the first time a student has executed something that would take repetition normally to get better at then the student should know that the finished product isn't perfect for that reason and that the repetition will make all the difference. They should be incouraged when ever possible
One thing I started doing that has received positive response is asking for students to send me pictures they want to share with the class. During live chats, I share pictures (for a few minutes). This lets the students know what I look like and what they look like. It puts a person's face to their name and makes them "human". This has gone over very, very well. Students really feel like they know each other when they know what they look like.
Hi Tracy,
How do you get feedback from your students so they can let you know what they want? Do you have a Q&A session, written comments, etc.?
Gary
Knowing what the students want is important. We need to ask them and keep that information on hand for future reference.
Knowlege of students . . . once you get a feel for where you students are coming from you have a key that will allow you to relate to them
Hi Michael,
I use this method often in my courses and have had great results with the interaction that the students have with me in giving valuable input for the course. As you know they really like to give this type of input and feedback. This really helps them to become invested in the learning process.
Gary
By engaging the group on a regular basis and asking what matters most to them.
Also handing out 3x5 cards and asking for suggestions or topics that they think might be relevent to the class. These do not require names if some one chooses not to sign them that is alright. I go through them and check to see if there is a common theme and if so that will usually be the first to be included. Also by looking at these cards I can see if I am actually reaching all my students or are there areas I need to focus on more.
Hi Linda,
Good point about how simple human interaction really is. It is important that we as instructor take the time to show our students we care about them and their success. By doing so their interest and engagement will increase as will their success. This way the course requirements can be covered as well because the students will be more focused on the course content as a result of the instructors excitement.
Gary
I don't think this is as complicated as it sounds. It is a matter of treating students like adults, showing respect for them, and being observant. By being observant, asking questions of students who appear to be having a rough day, and being interested in students as people the instructor is demonstrating that he/she is approachable and is willing to help the students in any way possible. Sometimes this is difficult in large classes because class time is precious. There is a lot of material that needs to be covered in a short amount of time. But, when instructors get caught up in covering the material and forget to engage the students, the time spent on the material is wasted. Students do not get what they need out of the material and get very frustrated. Therefore, instructors walk a fine line. Sometimes the material may be covered in ways that allow for interaction so that students get what they need--and instructors meet the course requirements.
Hello,
Some effective retention strategies include:
Clear daily communication with students
Sometimes, just asking how everyone is doing at the beginning of class tells a lot
Phone and email contact with students if they are absent one day
Communicating with students and making them feel comfortable will allow them to be more open with you.
Student feedback and a question and answer period provides a good perspective of where students are retaining and not. Using real life experience that relates to the individual student and keeping a positive attitude will help maintain student engagement.
In the end the instructor can directly ask students what the best methods of learning and retention work for them. Be aware of the different methods of how people retain, and be prepared to provide a unique experience.
Finding the students that need the extra boost to succeed in a early portion of the course is key to laying the ground work and plan the path for success.
survey the class in the start to see what they hope to get out of the class. Survey the class in the middle to see it is going correct to their expectations and finally survey at the end to see what went correct and what can be improved on
Hi Cheryl,
Your effort to follow up with your students is very important because it lets them know they are not forgotten. They know their instructor wants them to be successful and this can be a powerful motivator.
Gary
Instructors can become aware of effective retention strategies for use in their classes by discussing classroom practices with other instructors, taking classes such as this one, reading articles and learning more about their students.
Individual attention is measured by the individual perception or desire of the person. In other words, there needs to be a reasonable presentation demonstrating why the information is important, how can the information be used immediately, and how can it be applied in the future.
by issuing quizes at key points after the information has be taught. They can be in the form of written and lab to cover the different learning styles
Retention is not usually talked about in our faculty meetings. If we had reminders about some strategies to employ, we could then implement. Just like we are reminding our students of due dates, we could be reminded of these strategies. One strategy I implement is emailing students weekly that they are missing assignments and asking them if they will be submitting soon. Some students are not aware that they can post assignments late. This helps them earn points and strive to keep up to date.
Hi Sabrina,
Thank you for sharing these great comments and this wonderful example of how you were able to impact the life of this student. This is what teaching is all about. You are creating a legacy for this mom and her son. Together they can enjoy success in their studies. Mom now and son when back from his tour. Great to hear that she was able to regroup and rethink her efforts in spite of all that was going on in her life and complete the required work.
Gary
