The key to address student fears during the orientation process, is to communicate with them all the positive aspects in this new experience as a students. Also very important is to ask them for any questions, doubts they may have. Giving a clear answer to all those questions, the students will have a better feeling about starting this new experience in their lifes. Also it is very important to let them know about all the success and accomplishments from past students,after finnishing school.
I reinforce to the students that I am there to work for them. They are our clients and I am available to them whenever they need assistance with things pertaining to my class or anything, really, that pertains to school.
One of the greatest fears our students have is overall performance and I address that by likening our fundamentals courses to their knife kit, which is also discussed during orientation. I explain that just like they have a knife and/or tool for most needed occasions, we will be providing them with instruction that accomplishes the same purpose.
During orientation we introduce our students to the key people and resources that are available to them at the school. We explain exactly how they will help facilitate the student’s success and we explain how keenly aware we are that the students are possibly entering an environment with which they are unfamiliar and that we understand the stress that this can cause.
As a team, we try to channel the fear of failure into the nervous energy that drives success.
Victoria--
I really like your asking students to talk about their goals and motivations for enrolling in school. I think this accomplishes a lot by allowing them to really think about their motives and aspirations and also lets them know they are not the only ones making large life changes. Great!
Susan
Ray--
This sounds wonderful! I especially like that you take an entire week to do this. Spreading out the 'orientation' to their new environment helps them build confidence day-by-day.
Susan
Cindy--
That is great! It certainly sounds like you set a good tone in your classroom and I think students are pleasantly surprisede to find out you view them as clients.
Susan
Barry--
Great analogy!
Susan
Our college relies on current students serving as "buddies" during the orientation process. This seesms to be an effective way of putting the new students at ease with the new environment. During the orientation process, we also try to communicate all that the student will experience in order that there are no surprises.
On the orientation we make sure that all student understand that ours doors are always open for them in case they need us.
Reggie--
I love the idea of your 'buddies'. How do you
decide who can serve in this role? Do they receive any type of recognition for being a buddy?
Susan
The orientation process at the school is very detailed,and gives the students a lot of information,inorder to reduce their fear s.
At orientation they show the students a video which shows footage of all the important faculty staff,and what they are in charge of,they show who they should contact when they have a problem, or need guidance.They have an open door policy so the student feels comfortable seeking help.
the video shows classroom settings with classes being held,so that the student knows what to expect.the video shows all the campus facilities to familirize them with the new environment.Students are taking on a physical tour of the campus explaining in details and allowing students to ask questions.
I feel that the school does alot to ensure that the students feel well informed and comfortable in their new classes.
During orientation I try to make myself as approachable as possible. If we come off arrogant or detached it can add to the stress of starting a new chapter in the students life. It is important that the transition ot college is made smoothly so that the student is less likely to drop out.
I concur with all of the points that you stated. I think it is important that the message being delivered is sincere. The students are excited and nervous about taking this first step and they have an preconceived idea as to how this is going to improve their current situation. Therefore, they want or expect the institution to treat them with respect, be honest with them and live up to your reputation or what was promised.
Good afternoonn Susan,
one of the things that i do si try to find out what is the fear about, and what i found out is that 90% of the students have fear of failling, fear of a new environment, fear of new people, etc. so first thing i do on the first day of class is introduce myself and have the students introduce themself and then i tell them that being in school is one of the best things that could happend top them because they will be prepared for success in their professional life.
i would give examples of how their career will make an impact in their lives.
I usually discuss the fears I had in school and how I went about dealing with them. I give a few pointers and give a joke or two to them. I will give them a few get to know you and me type exercises. I also explain to them what I expect from them and what they should expect from me.
Anthony--
Telling stories and giving personal tips is wonderful! I am sure you students appreciate the humor and 'real life' experiences.
Susan
I give the new students the tours to various of the Kitchen classes and let them feel comfortable by expalning how to get things ready for their classes
We introduce members of the executive team and each person explains a little bit about their department and how each supports the students.
We recently started having break-out sessions with each program director. The program directors thoroughly describe the program and answer specific questions.
Students may not ask questions in a larger forum, but when they break-out with their PD, they often ask more questions specific to their programs.
We try to make orientation fun while also setting clear expectations for students--I tell students that our middle name is 'Career' and that's what we are about--helping them reach their dream career!
We are supposed to have a class discussion (it is part of the provided talking points) This would be excellent except for two things: #1 our live sessions are not required so very few students show up. #2 In that first meeting, many students are too uncomfortable to share. It ends up coming up in the class several times until the students are comfortable. The problem is that many are lost before we reach that point.
