At my institution we have implimented whats called the stich program. Once a week instructors meet with administration to discuss any "at risk" students. The stich program insures that no student falls between the cracks.
As the Academic Coordinator during class start/finish and breaks I try to walk around the school talk to students and make myself available. Also when a student is absent we call them immediately to follow up, and the students generally appreciate it. Also we provide report cards after each module, and generate a letter stating if the student falls short on hours or performance.
How do the Student Services employees know who needs help? How do they share the outcome of their outreach?
Loren Kroh
Trina, do you have to offer any type of enticements to get employers to participate in these events? Do they come even if they don't have any immediate openings?
Loren Kroh
David, how are these interactions coordinated? What sort of training do the ambassadors get? Do you keep notes regarding their activities?
Loren Kroh
Gelena, what sort of feedback have you gotten by stopping by classes? Have the students been forthcoming or guarded in their reaction? How do you choose the classroom to be visited?
Loren Kroh
Nicholas, what's the curriculum that involves retail goals and guest compliments? Do you think LEAP could be used for any curriculm?
Loren Kroh
If a student is absent we call them at the break. I usually ask them if they will be attending the second half of class. Most of the students really appreciate the call and feel that the university/professor cares about them.
Stacy, that's certainly an example of real time intervention. Has it improved attendance? Would you recommend this practice for others?
Loren Kroh
I am at a small University. I don't know how well it will go over at a large University. When teaching adults all kinds of things come up for the students such as having to work late, a sick child, etc. I do notice that if they are absent again they will email/phone me that they will not be in class and the reason why. I do believe it improves the communication between the professor and the student. I also believe that the student feels that they are important and not just a number or a warm body sitting in class.
Thanks, Stacy. Nice to hear how the system works for you. Arguably, student load is the same regardless of the size of the institution, so making this work is more a matter of culture and commitment than school size.
Loren Kroh
If a student is absent, then the instructor must call and e-mail the student within 24 hours.
abdalla, what results have you achieved with these calls?
Loren Kroh
We utilize newsletters asking for success stories from our students and publish these for other students to see. We get a great response and students are able to see that other students came to us for help, and we helped them. It demonstrates through example how we operate in that manner.
I also like to tell my students when I have other students in their situation. I anonymously share their successes and their failures. the student I'm talking to then feels like they have someone to relate to and they can "act out" the way they'll feel if they make similar decisions.
We make calls to students who are out of class for more than 3 days. Since it is an online program, it happens often. Instead of calling and saying "Why weren't you in class?", we say things like "Kathy, I see you haven't been in class for a while. Are you ok?" It seems to open the door for issues to come out before they are insurmountable in a way that is comfortable to the student.
Mr.Kroh,
When I called the student, he or she feels very important and thanks me for caring, and that makes the student more responsible and they do their best to attend the class, and work hard.
It has very positive effect on the students.
We call and email students who are absent, we have an office for directing them to resources if they are in trouble, we have free tutoring in the library. I meet with my students bi-weekly to discuss their progress, showing them I care.
The Center for Academic Excellence is always open for anyone who needs any kind of help in order to improve their grades.
Ashley, how do you respond when they do open up? What sort of support services are available to them?
Loren Kroh
Jaime, that sounds good, but how do you connect students to these services?
Loren Kroh
