On- line support system
I believe that being a good listener or just a sounding board is the key of any intervention you may have. If a student is timid to discuss a situation with a person face to face, I would love to see a online support system in our organization.
We have a 24/7 on-line and phone support system at our school, but word is that corporate is about to pull the plug on the program. I must say that I frequently get students coming to me with issues that I am not qualified to give advice on (domestic abuse, financial melt-downs, marriage difficulty). I am not a social worker or a therapist, and I am trying to figure out how I can ask a student to trust me when I am simply not qualified to give advice on their problems. I do try and support my students to the best of my abilities, but sometimes the problems are deeper than I'm comfortable with. This fact is touched on in the course we just took, but there is no information or thoughts on what to do about those issues... the inadequate training of the faculty and staff to handle the monumental difficulties the students sometimes bring to us.
Good point, Ed. We're trying to develop a communication system and that requires timely participation by both parties. Getting a student to open up and then ignore them will have negative consequences.
Expectations and its timing should be explained in the online system. For example, responses should be expected within a 48 hour period.
I think our organization could benefit from a computer system response system. It seems that today's generation wants action / resolution for everything right there on the spot, though the system might not be able to give that to them, they would atleast be able to sound off which might releave some of the stress of the sitution. At that point the follow up and follow through would ensure the success of the system.
I don't understand the concern about an online tool becoming a sounding board for too much negative commentary. To be most effective, it seems to me the system should be one-to-one communication, not a forum. Isn't the purpose to identify student problems and address them on a timely basis? If you want to improve retention, don't you want to know about the negatives? Furthermore, it's naive to think that students are sharing the negatives in other ways.
Find out what the problems are; fix them.
We have thought about implementing this idea at our school a discreet anonymous place for students to voice concerns, complaints, problems an online "suggestion box" if you will, we still have yet to put it in place some of our higher administrators feel it would be a sounding board for too much negative commentary, however some of us are of the belief that that is what it is for a way for us to be proactive with student concerns.
Of course, the downside to online access may be an expectation of 24/7 monitoring.
I think the online would be a great resource for the students. Not only would it provide a more discreet way to discuss issues, but the fact that it is available at any time would be valuable in it self. limiting the availability of help to "office" hours would be a hinderance when sometimes an issue needs to be communicated immediatly.
I agree I also think that some of the cases my be handled by student volunters they are sometimes more in tune with current afairs and can offer real life experience
