We have a Captains Meeting where the select students meet with the teachers and Education department every month to air out any differences.
The teacher informs the student of any possibility of falling below the SAP standard. In our school, faculty and the Retention Coordinator along with admissions try to nip any problems in the bud. In the first two weeks, the admissions reps are constantly mingling with their students during the intro module. When everyone in the responsible departments work together as a team, we can combat students falling through the cracks.
Some students do even if its not right away, but once they know you actually care and want to try to help them they will let you know if it's something they think you can help them with. I also let them know if they think I can't help there may be someone else here who can.
Our school utilizes the Student Services Director, who is skilled in counselling/advising, and has ample community resources to link students to. We also have a dedicated faculty who are well aware of the resources that the Student Services Director has on hand, and they frequently refer students to that department.
Any specific techniques to offer, Brian? Are the procedures the same in every department and for every student? If so, why? If not, why not?
Who are the people involved in this process? Do they share the information with other members of the organization who interact with the student? If not, why not?
Does a student ever really tell you anything when you casually ask them how they're doing? Some gestures are simply assumed to be perfunctory. When the clerk at a convenience store asks how I'm doing, I don't answer her seriously. Why would I think someone at the school is any more interested in my well being?
What happens when a student falls below the SAP standard? Who is responsible for initiating action? How well do faculty members understand the concept of SAP and the consequences?
It starts with orientation and continues until the student graduates. It's important to let the student know that they are an individual and our staff is here for their needs.
Dear Loren the class I instruct is only 4 weeks, very short, my most important goal is to reach/teach them Phlebotomy through exceptional patient care. Students arrive with mixed age groups 18-50 very diverse and some haven't been in a class setting in many years. In my class using needles and getting passed the fear and letting them know that I will be right there each time they use a needle until they become less fearful and more confident. No book or video can exercise this, I like calling it hands-on with a heart. I also give a different learning style, visual, audio and hands-on profile this helps with student paring during lab so that all senses are in full use.
The members of our staff talks with the students just to see how they are doing and to see how they like their classes. If they seem to have any issues, even if they don't say it, we do our best to find out if they are having any kind of problems and if they are we do our best to help them in any way we possibly can.
besides giving surveys our staff and faculty try to make a point to say hello to our students and ask how they are doing
Our schools education department monitors grades and attendance on a daily basis to insure students are maintaining SAP. Instructors are monitoring it as well.
Margaret, could you please share some of the helpful styles for reaching students? Specific techniques are useful to other forum participants.
Thanks.
Orientation covers class information and students are fitted for their scrubs. The students can take a tour of the campus with their representitive if they choose to, most do. The externship department coordinates with each student throughout the course. For example,"the course I teach is only four weeks they are there the very first week". I ask the student's to prepare any questions they may have regarding externship. On a quarterly basis my employer provides class/in-service that provides wonderful and helpful styles in reaching our students. All instructors must attend.
Points well taken, Tara. Subject mastery must be the fundamental basis for performance reviews. Having said that, I have seen instructors whose few surviving students showed great mastery but many students were driven out of the program by their attitude and draconian practices. Clearly, a balance must be maintained.
Is there a social component to these sessions where students can get to know their new classmates and the staff on a personal basis? What's the attendance rate for these events? How do you deal with no-shows?
I'm glad to hear that you use the surveys to make adjustments. What sort of things have you changed as a result of the surveys, Sarah?
That's quite a commitment! How long are the sessions? What do they cover in these meetings? Has your school seen improved retention since implementing this practice?
One of the reasons that I am here is because one of the schools that I work for implemented a policy of making the instructors' retention rates a basis for giving the adjuncts classes. This seemed to cause more problems than it helped, and I want to learn more about the research surrounding such practices. I think that it is important to give instructors the tools that they need and the support they need to be as available to students as possible. While instructors are very much an integral part of the institution's retention efforts, the problem is that they are not lone wolves in those efforts. Of course, the institution should ensure that the instructors are maintaining the outreach policies, but to base an instructor's job on his or her retention numbers invites grade inflation.
This relates to student expectations because there are also problems when recruiters tell students that their courses will be "easy." Furthermore, without a system in place to test students' readiness, helping students increase their skills seems a daunting task. In essence, such practices set students up for failure.
