Raymond Manginell

I agree that students should understand the “rules” and I also agree that they should know the rules before starting their first class. Prior to the first class the student mentor or advocate should be following up with a student to make sure that they understand the rules. This would help keep the students from being distracted by the rules as well as address the issue of a student saying they never knew the rule. An orientation needs to be focused more on addressing the students learning needs and letting the students know what attending the institution will do for them.

Ginny Wiser

We have a policy of 3 strikes your out.....because we have more adults in our school that have so many responsibilities with family and work they are given two chances and no more...first time they are talked to privately about not obeying the rules they agreed to the first day of orientation as we have them sign a statement that says they agree, understand, and will obey. However, if they perform the same offense twice they are written up like a ticket
which they sign and then goes in there file and they then know if it happens a third time they will not be able to attend class which means they will have to make up the time on there own which may cost them additional fees.

Susan Backofen

Nancy,

But perhaps an 'overview' video would be nice as well; showing active hands-on classroom activities, and testimonials from current students and alumni.

Susan Backofen

Nancy Bosch

Since the school does orientation all of the time, They could create a youtube video and a powerpoint presentation that late arrivals watch before entering the classroom. Of course, it would feel more personal if there was also someone there to answer their questions in person.

Miguel Rosales

I agree, starting them off on the right path and holding them to it, will help make for a better overall school experience for everyone.

Nancy Smeeth

One of the things we do is give the students a copy of the power point presentation and an orientation bulletin. We state the most important things they need to hear about attendance being crucial, how to make up missed classes, dress code, and tell them they do not need to remember it all but to reference their paperwork or student handbook or call us with any questions or concerns. I agree they need to hear the most important points up front.

Susan Backofen

Tasha,

I completely agree. Some people in these forums have outlined a follow-up orientation their schools provide week 2 or 3. This allows them to see how things are going and also review important material.

Susan Backofen

Tasha Witte

One of the problems i see is that we give the students so much information during orientation, policies and procedure, introduction to all deprtment and what they do, what to expect the first day and so on that the students tend to forget about the policies and say they didn't know or were not told when it was discussed in orientation.

Susan Backofen

Robert,

Agreed. There is a fine line between equity and equality. But rules, for the most part, should be rules that are enforced--assuming they are rules with strong rationale behind them. There is no sense having rules that don't really matter.

Susan Backofen

Robert Freeman

I think the bigger problem may be that we all have rules, but very few of them are really ever enforced. Being empathetic for one student may lead to other students feeling that they are not being given equal treatment. This can lead to undermining the entire feeling of trust that we are trying to install among the student population.

Susan Backofen

Lynn ,

Excellent points and realistically, things that are better addressed from the faculty perspective since you deal with them daily. This is part of the 'realistic expectations' that should be set during the admission process.

Susan Backofen

John Mazi

I think its possible to balance a positive, motivational orientation with a program that also informs the students of any necessary policies and/or rules of which they should be made aware. I agree that shying away from speaking about rules and regulations at orientation might ultimately do them a disservice.

Lynn Haddad

Yes, I see this problem as well. I think it helps if a student is allowed to have an interview with a program director during the admissions process, so that the program director can assess any problem areas. "Did you know that that tattoo on your forearm will have to be covered every day while you are on campus or at clinicals?" "Do you have any transportation concerns?" If a student has the idea that everything is taken care of once they enroll, they can start to think that they carry no responsibility in the process. We tell our students at the outset how many hours a day they will need to study.

Jessica Barrow

I agree with Elizabeth. During orientation, students are overwhelmed with information, and the majority of the stuff they hear is not retained. It is very important for teachers to restate the important points because repetition is a great strategy for committing information to long-term memory. I also agree that repetition can help boost retention because students will not have to deal with the plaguing uncertainties of, "Well, I thought that..." or "Someone told me that..."

Susan Backofen

Craig--

Great question! Some institutions have a scheduled 'late' orientation sometime during the first week to catch all the late enrollments at once. This is a little more efficient than doing them one-on-one.

Others have utilized student ambassadors who can do a good job as well.

Susan

Elizabeth Melvin

Students get so much information; I can understand how something would have been missed. I think it is important in my class to restate the important points. Repetition is helpful to retention – and by that I mean helping students to retain information and retaining students.

Craig Vest

This is a good point. What do you suggest for classroom orientations in a program in which there are a handful of late arrivals each semester? I often find it difficult or time-consuming to explain everything explained in the first day, and of course I can never be as thorough.

David Welch

One of the major problems I see with orientation is that the admissions dept. may have given the student one idea of what the school standards are like when in actuallity it may be very different.

James Fraser

These all seem like very good points however to ensure a student is ready for orientation ie proper uniforms ect they have to have the uniforms prior (requiring much planning)and explained even in the siplest terms how to wear it. Rules, procdures and standards must be presented in a timely manner with a message that is clear and consistant; with the support of all facluty and staff