Ted, how about sharing the most successful way that you address Academic Erosion.
Loren Kroh
Nicholas, how much involvement do students have in developing their Student Development Plan? It seems to me that their involvement would increase the likelihood of success and increase their buy-in.
Loren Kroh
Interesting that you ask students if you can refer them for tutoring? Do they ever say no? If so, what's the next action for you?
Loren Kroh
The self evaluation component of your review is intriguing. What percentage of students actually do this? Have you seen behavioral changes as a result?
Loren Kroh
Gelena, sounds like a very thorough, thoughtful process. Has it produced positive results? How do you monitor faculty use of the system?
Loren Kroh
Trina, what are the results of this policy? Have you seen improved attendance or interaction with your students?
Loren Kroh
Intervention practices at my institution that address Academic Erosion are implemented in varied ways. From our weekly Stich program, simply asking students "how are you doing today", keeps you'r hand on the pulse of the students.
We use a program called "RYG" or "Red, Yellow, Green." Campus Management meets with teachers on a weekly basis to discuss the status of students' academics, attendance, general attitude, participation, etc.
A student may have impeccable attendance and high GPA but if they have a poor attitude and don't participate in class, they may placed in "yellow" status. This alerts instructors and management to meet one on one with the student to get to the root of the problem. Often, it means the student just needs more encouragement and needs verbal reassurance that they're doing well and what is expected of them.
For students that are "yellow" or "red" due to attendance or academics, Student Development Plans are created to get them back on track. In involves the student committing to re-taking tests, additional study time, agreeing to additional time to raise attendance, etc. The student is then given a copy of this development plan so management can leave the ultimate responsibility in the students' hands.
The RYG program ensures that all parties involved at the campus and corporate level are aware of any student situations prior to anything major happening such as a withdrawal from the program. Granted, there are surprises that can come out of nowhere but they are fewer and farther between.
We give pogress reports every Friday, and if a student is struggling, I ask them if I can refer them to our free tutoring in the Library. If the problem seems really serious, I refer them to one of our teachers responsible for student success.
We have a Six-Week Student Clinical Progress Record where the Instructor sit down one to one with each student, failing or not, and discuss their progress, attendance, areas of strength, areas requiring improvement if any, and plan of action if student is failing. There is also a portion where besides the instructor's evaluation, the student does self-evaluation, write their comments and affix their signature and is kept as permanent record of the institution.
We also offer Tutoring Classes which is voluntary for all students.
At our school we have mid-course evaluations, when about half-way through each course, an instructor meets with each student for a few minutes to discuss their progress so far. By then, the student had submitted a certain amount of assignments and tests, and based on those, the instructor and the student can make a judgement about how well the student is doing.
If during such mid-course evaluation, it becomes clear that the student is struggling, a plan of action is developed to remediate the problem and improve the student's academic performance way before the course ends with a failing grade.
Oftentimes, during such evaluation meetings, a student would communicate their problems and concerns outside of school that interefere with their studies. This allows the instructor to help student come up with alternative learning strategies and build a rapport with the student. This also shows the student that the instructor cares about the student's success.
Students that are not making satisfactory academic progress are notified by the school, but also the instructor is informed if the student begins to fall below accepted levels during the current phase. That way, instructors can intervene with survey or vertical questions and help the student, if possible, before an unsatisfactory final grade gets entered into the record that would continue a downward progression.
As Insructors, we seem to have an idea when a student is not doing the greatest and when something is not right. I try not to pry but I do ask my student if there is anything I can help them with or anyone I can send them to talk to.
At my institution it is required that all instructors reach out by phone to students who do not show up for class. We are also required to document any information that we may have as to why the student is absent.
At my institution we have pieces in place to address both, but I will address "Academic Erosion": We encounter many students who go through this issue. We are in constant communication with our students' teachers and a lot of times we find out through the teacher that a student is experiencing this type of issue. We spend time talking to the student to see where they are having issues of Academic Erosion. A lot of times this is a perception a student may have and we have a few resources availible. 1: The managers and teacher spend time talking to the student and see what they are feeling. Once we can get to the bottom of this issue, we are able to better reassure the student or give them suggestions on how to intrinsically build their confidence. We have class activities that focus on the class as a whole feeling good about what they are learning. 2: We also have the student if applicable spend some time with a fellow student who is an identified Student Mentor at the Campus.....IF the student who is having issues is ok with this we set them up with a student who maybe has felt the same way before........
We also encourage students to remember that they are just starting out and skills build as they go through the program. We find other ways to make them feel important, like if they have great attendance or have been a great participant in class. We empower our students to find ways to feel success at school. We are very intune with our students and check in regularly. We have prevented a lot of DROPS this way, the key is to identify what that specific student needs and how we can communicate effectively with them!
As Insructors, we seem to have an idea when a student is not doing the greatest and when something is not right. I try not to pry but I do ask my student if there is anything I can help them with or anyone I can send them to talk to.
On campus, we meet with students to discuss their academic progress. These are especially important times for us to gauge the student experience and to find out if there are any underlying problems that contribute to the student's sliding grades.
We offer support services to our students and make sure to point them in the right direction when there are instances that we are not equipped to handle (e.g. counseling resources, childcare, housing).
Who does this advising? Is always the same person for a student? What kind of paper trail is kept?
Loren Kroh
Patricia, what happens to the counseling forms? Does the student get a copy? If so, do you have them sign to acknowledge receipt? [If you don't I would recommend that you do in the future. It provides a paper trail if you should have to discipline the student for inadequate performance.] Does a copy go to their master file?
Loren Kroh
Darakshan, how do you know that the students have actually received the email about an overdue assignment? Students can be quite skillful in avoiding email from the campus address.
Loren Kroh
