Teamwork
The number one thing about retention that stands out to me is the importance of teamwork among all departments found on campus!
I agree, and team work can help make the work place easier to come to.
What can be done to make sure that you have a strong team and a shared message, Jeffrey? Do teams meet frequently to example their performance?
A strong team with a consistant message and stance can keep the students onboard. As soon as you start sending a mixed message, the students will learn to manipulate the system and begin to fall through the cracks. They are here in search of guidence and they definately expect to see us demonstrate what we are preaching. We can't be hipocritical and we must do what is right as we prepare them to do what is right when they leave the program. If we make the material have relevance and challenge them, they will feel that what they recieve is worth what they pay. It's just like when you go shopping, you expect to get what you paid for and if you don't, you will probably go to a different store.
What's a facilitator? Do they have classroom responsibilities?
Do you have meetings with all departments to brainstorm on resolving this issue? Maybe you could present the "hard facts" you mentioned and hopefully it would shed some insight to the issue.
Yes, we notify the immediate supervior first and he/she will call a meeting to address the issue. In doing so it helps to prevent the breakdown in communication to continue. However, I must say that the staff and faculity do a great job in keeping the lines of communication open, especially through e-mail.
Does your school have a well developed system in place to communicate problems among staff and faculty? If so, what are the basics?
I would agree that teamwork form all departments is critical. One thing I find is that sometimes is difficult to get some people to work together within a department such as facilitators who are accustomed to working by the hour. I'm particularly referring to the medical profession where nurses work on shifts by the hour. When they become facilitators, they tend to have this same mindset and some actually do not see it as their job to work outside of the hour helping students. Students then perceive this as facilitators who do not want to help them. We are trying all kinds of things, but nothing really seems to help. I'm at the point of now using some hard facts because students are failing. Does anyone have further ideas?
Yes, I agree totally. Working together as a team is so important in helping the students to stay focused and to succeed. Especially by getting a heads-up from the instructor on a student at risk of failing early on will help us to identify the problem and find a workable solution to the problem the student is facing.
Tomika, do you have some examples of how you stick together and work as a team? Do you have inter-related courses, a common syllabus or exams for multiple instructors teaching the same course?
Good observation, Glenn. How does your campus create teamwork?
YOU KNOW THAT'S A MOUTH FULL THAT YOU SAID. WORKING TOGETHER AS A TEAM SHOWS THE STUDENTS A GREAT DEAL ABOUT OUR PROGRAM. ONCE THE STUDENTS SEE THAT ALL THE STAFF MEMBERS STICK TOGETHER, AND DO EVERYTHING AS A TEAM WE'RE SHOWING A HUGE EXAMPLE OF TEAMWORK. KEEPING ALL STAFF AND DEPARTMENTS ON THE SAME LEVEL SHOWS ORGANIZATION AND TEAMWOK AS WELL. SHOWING THE STUDENTS HOW TEAMWORK WORKS, WILL MAKE THEM WANT TO BE APART OF A TEAM AND POSSIBLY WANT TO STAY IN A POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT.
