Our campus does the usual thing as far as metrics go. In the class room (daily) you have to reinforce why they are taking the course they are and what it will do for them. However, in the education department many instructors have taken it upon themselves to try and provide a more personal experience for each student. And by that i mean being mentors and roll models for our students. This also means that when you see a student that just looks like he/she is having a bad day we as instructors/mentors and roll models always try to talk to them and seek the appropriate deparment and personnel to help them. It may not be just a bad day it could be somthing catostrophic to their education. The great benifit to this approach is that we may actually be able to affect somones life and at the same time give retention rates a little boost. I cant count the number of times I see or hear of a student that was struggling to stay in school and now that student has graduated and is acceling in the industry.
As a manager, how do you assure these practices? Are staff and faculty evaluated on their adherence?
Our admissions reps give each studentan accurate description of what they can expect from their course. It is not oversold.
Our instructors start their courses with a detailed explanation of what their students can expect from them and what they, the instructor, expects from them, the students.
Hector, what are your thoughts on getting students to feel that they are part of the system? How can you tell if they are? [or aren't?]
students are surveyed and their concernes are quickly met
once a student feels they are a part of the system-retention is much easier.a quick and effective reply to a suggestion is concrete.
our school utilizes a survey every 3 weeks based on the course clinic and about the instruction given .we also have a person to go to if he/she is having problems or is not satified with the course or class,and also to help them if they have a problem at school or personal to a certain point.
Do all the instructors do the informal weekly feedback? What's the format - individual conversations, class discussions, selective feedback? Are the results recorded?
Our program uses end of course surveys to help determine what the school is doing right and where we might improve the students' experiences. We also have a more informal weekly feedback session in each class, and it's this feedback where we quite often get the really valuable information that helps us improve both the program and the facility. On the individual level, instructors, managers and support staff are constantly watching for challenges that arise to try to minimize any negative impact from those challenges. We all take ownership of the responsibility for retention.
At our school almost all staff members are involed in this. From Addmissions to Education managers to Instructors, we all get involved with understanding and meeting students expectations as well as the needs of the industry we service. Through out the year we do evaluations, surveys, fairs and even presentations that involve our industry partners.
It is very important to spot retention issues early and address them. Student are pleased when they find that an instructor is concerned about the personnal problems.
Our school also uses serveys at the end of each course. This way each course and instrustor can be evaluated and any areas of concern can be addressed. Students may also request a meeting with an education manager to discuss specific topics they feel the survey didn't cover or something they feel need to say.
I set expectations pretty high,there is no room for a mistake when working on motorcycles. I drive the fact that we need to be perfect, most everyone is in my classes, they get great satification when they do perfect jobs. I set them know there job was perfect.
We do surveys every 6 weeks and then review and evaluate them. We have conferences with the students every 6 weeks privately to address any concerns.
The Program Advisory Committee input is a new twist to me. Has it been effective? Does it change instructor behavior knowing that this group will also see the responses? What sort of suggestions have they offered?
I like this, the students have an active part in governing themselves. Especially getting them involved with community service projects, which we do but it would be interesting to have a committee of students to see what they come up with.
Student surveys every 6 weeks which are reviewed not only by administration but also a summary is reviewed by the Program advisor committee for input on how to improve retention.
They are advised by staff and student services. They do not need a budget. Their main goal is to improve student life, and retention falls into this.
That's good news, Myron. What has this person done to make such a difference?
Are you okay with this situation? If not, what are you going to do to improve it?
