Mentoring
Mentoring is a way for a school to demonstrate its caring for students, and mentoring are among the many strategies that increase retention.
Huseina,
Yes, Let students know who their mentor is and provide opportunities to meet early on.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Yes, for mentoring to work, you have to have it in place early. It is ineffective to assign a mentor after problems have surfaced - a mentoring system needs to be in place from orientation, so that you can catch problems before they become problems!
Karen,
Yes, sometimes just listening to a student makes all the difference.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I agree that mentoring increases retention. As soon as I start to see a student struggle with attendance or academics I set them up with a mentor. Most times just having them talk about what is going on in their life and giving them encouragement sets them on track.
Stacy ,
All students could use a mentor. Even those that are doing well. Yes, it helps.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I have encouraged mentoring with some of my students who have entered my program and developed personal issues. Those who mentor seem to have a very positive effect on those students which ultimately does result in retention
Teri,
It sounds like your mentoring program is also a tutoring program.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Georgia,
Mentoring should be reacting to what a student needs. Does your program have topics a mentor must "cover"?
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Mentoring is a good thing, however the person that is doing the mentorig should stick to the topic because it is easy to loose focus and get distracted.
I have mentored students in between classes and I definately feel if I had not they probably would not have passed a course. They are always grateful and I believe it is manditory for the student that just cannot figure out how to study.
terri,
That is a key benefit of a mentoring program.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Mentoring is an effective tool and it will go a long way. Student will gravitate back to their mentor when they have isues in other classes to get advise and that will help retention.
Gloria,
Consider asking this of students on a individual basis.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I think mentoring a student is a very good gesture. It makes them feel comfortable enough to open up and reveal problem that may or may not interfere in their success in the classroom. I've decided that beginning next term I would incorporate into my first class discussion the statement, "If there is anything anyone would like to talk about, school related or not, I would like to listen."
Lisa,
A great post. Thank you for sharing.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I really like the idea of mentoring because it sends the message that there is a good human quality related to their education. Some students have issues related to educational experiences and feel as if they are alone. If they had someone accessible to them, who has been through these same issues, then maybe they could come up with some resolution to help the new student. The mentor may even know of some outreach programs to help with personal issues related to school as well. I have witnessed this informal mentoring happening in my class from time to time. It a great basis of support and I think that it can positively impact retention.
Nicolette,
If you have the data to prove that the program helped your campus needs to use the program for all majors. Good work.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
I'm an instructor in a career college, and as far as I know, our program is the only one with a mentor program. We're proof that it works because we have the highest retention in the school. Our students have commented on how it makes them feel like a family, they always have support and encouragement.
James,
You hit the nail on the head, Human Contact! Yes everyone can be a mentor but their should be training as to how to be a mentor.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
