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1.
To improve student retention in distance education, Simpson suggested in 2003 that institutions analyse their own retention characteristics and ‘spot the leaks.’ In 2008 the Centre for Distance Learning at Laidlaw College, New Zealand, employed two part‐time academic support coordinators in an effort to improve student retention and success. This study compares the retention statistics for first‐time student outcomes across two semesters, one without and one with specific course retention interventions. Results are benchmarked across national data. Interviews with students who were retained revealed that students frequently attribute their success to their own efforts. Student support services in distance education might therefore be perceived by its beneficiaries as a ‘hygiene’ factor (Herzberg, 1968, 2008) in that their presence is not generally appreciated by students. However, their absence is noticed. The similarity of this finding with Shin’s institutional transactional presence (2002, 2003) is also explored.  相似文献   

2.
Diversity, understood in a multiplicity of ways, has been a focus of attention in education in recent years. As in many other countries, recent post‐school education policies in Aotearoa/New Zealand have emphasised previously under‐represented ethnic groups, such as Māori and Pasifika. The intention has been to widen participation in further and higher education (FHE) as a means to improve the country's economic performance in a global market. However, the same policies imply a deficit discourse – where diversity is perceived as a problem or deficit to be ‘fixed’. As part of a larger study into FHE student retention, 137 teachers were surveyed to identify what they did to cater for the learning of these ‘diverse’ students. The responses varied. For example, some insisted that, to be fair, all students had to be treated the same; others described teaching/learning approaches they used to ensure students succeeded. Five positions were identified in the data: universal, universal/group, group, group/individual, and individual. These positions are discussed and linked to Banks's cultural‐pluralist and assimilationist ideologies. It is argued that FHE teachers could draw on strategies from each of the three main positions to enhance student learning.  相似文献   

3.
Tom Inkelaar 《Open Learning》2013,28(2):152-163
Graduation rates in distance higher education are low compared with full-time higher education – often less than 20% compared with full-time UK rates of around 80% – the ‘distance education deficit’. In the University of London International Programmes, the difference between the face-to-face graduation rate of 61.5% and the distance version at 15.7% is particularly marked. A previous paper in Open Learning reported evidence that ‘proactive motivational support’ to distance students had some effect on their success rates. This paper reports an attempt in the International Programmes to use proactive motivational support in the form of ‘motivational emails’ which found an increase in retention of 2.3%. Although this increase was small, it had a positive financial return on investment to the institution. The paper suggests that motivational emails could be made more effective through the use of interactivity, nudging and priming. However, it also argues that distance student retention will always depend less on technology and more on personal human support.  相似文献   

4.
A survey of student satisfaction and dissatisfaction was undertaken within an undergraduate education studies cohort at a new university in the English Midlands. The cohort included both ‘traditional’ and ‘non‐traditional’ students and represented an increasingly typical ‘widened’ community of students within higher education. This student‐ informed survey enabled expression of facets of experience which were found to be deeply satisfying or deeply dissatisfying by the cohort and which also had the potential to impact upon their academic and social integration. The cohort was asked to link facets found deeply satisfying or deeply dissatisfying to the likelihood of their retention and degree completion or the likelihood of their exit from the institution. Themes emerging were concerned with teaching and learning, debt and money worries, workload and support. Many of the facets identified fall within institutional control and can be managed in order that both ‘traditional’ and ‘non‐traditional’ students may achieve integration, maintain their personal vision and be retained. The survey methodology employed can be adapted to accommodate contextualization within other higher education institutions. It is suggested that engagement with such survey methodology represents investment in both institutional, educational and financial health.  相似文献   

5.
Student success is among the most widely researched areas in tertiary education. Generalisability of research in this field is problematic due to cultural and structural differences between countries, institutions and programmes where the research is done. Engineering education in the Netherlands has not been studied in depth. In this paper, outcomes of studies done outside and inside engineering and outside and inside the Netherlands are discussed to help understand the complexity of student retention issues. Although generalisation is an issue, there are a number of concepts and variables that surface in many of these studies, including students’ background and disposition variables, education attributes, variables concerning educational climate and student behaviour. How these variables are related and how a university can apply the outcomes of research in this field of study are discussed in this paper.  相似文献   

6.
This paper presents the findings of an exploratory case study that investigated factors affecting the retention and progression of postgraduate business students at a major Australian distance education university. The majority of prior research addressing student retention focuses on undergraduate on‐campus students, while this research investigated the postgraduate distance education context. The findings of this research indicate that a range of factors, in many cases different to those identified in the student retention literature, impact upon retention and progression in this context. This paper concludes with implications for distance education providers and recommendations for further research.  相似文献   

7.
ABSTRACT

Universities are now compelled to attend to metrics that (re)shape our conceptualisation of the student experience. New technologies such as learning analytics (LA) promise the ability to target personalised support to profiled ‘at risk’ students through mapping large-scale historic student engagement data such as attendance, library use, and virtual learning environment activity as well as demographic information and typical student outcomes. Yet serious ethical and implementation issues remain. Data-driven labelling of students as ‘high risk’, ‘hard to reach’ or ‘vulnerable’ creates conflict between promoting personal growth and human flourishing and treating people merely as data points. This article argues that universities must resist the assumption that numbers and algorithms alone can solve the ‘problem’ of student retention and performance; rather, LA work must be underpinned by a reconnection with the agreed values relating to the purpose of higher education, including democratic engagement, recognition of diverse and individual experience, and processes of becoming. Such a reconnection, this article contends, is possible when LA work is designed and implemented in genuine collaboration and partnership with students.  相似文献   

8.
This is a systematic review article of 27 studies on what existing research tells us about the experience (or lack of experience) of inclusion in Physical Education (PE) among disabled students, which localised factors are promoting or hampering inclusion in PE and to what extent attitudes are decisive in these localised processes. Seventeen studies examined teachers’ attitudes and 10 studies examined students’ experiences. The analysis follows the guidelines recommended by Harden and colleagues for ‘view-studies’; systematic reviews based on both qualitative and quantitative studies. The main findings reveal that students with disabilities experience exclusion and a lack of belonging in PE, but in some of the most recent articles we find students with disabilities who ‘love PE’. PE teachers share the normative goal of inclusion but perceive it as impossible to achieve due to a lack of competence and a lack of resources, but mostly due to the presupposition of the constructed ‘normate’ PE student.  相似文献   

9.
Early school leaving is an international concern. Previous research indicates that the school context contributes to early school leaving. This systematic review is aimed to gather marginalised young peoples’ perceptions concerning contextual factors that contributed to and interfered with their decisions to stay in alternative education. Twenty-three databases and reference lists of reviews were searched, eliciting 1586 studies, which were then screened. Data from 24 mixed-methods studies that met the inclusion criteria were extracted and synthesised. Findings suggested that alternative schools which provided a sanctuary for students increased student engagement. Schools were sanctuaries when they offered physical, emotional and psychological safe spaces; fostered a sense of community; enabled students to affirm their racial/ethnic pride and employed flexible behavioural supports. Implications for practice and research are discussed.  相似文献   

10.
‘Motivation’ is a significant concept for teachers and students during programmes of learning which lead explicitly to high stakes assessments and examinations. This systematic literature review surveys current research evidence to find out how secondary school teachers use motivational strategies specifically in respect of student academic assessment and performance. Six research studies were identified describing the behaviours secondary school teachers engaged in to improve student performance in assessment. Taken together, the studies presented show the importance of teacher behaviours to students’ academic performance, with both positive and negative impacts. The review highlights a need for further research on teacher knowledge of the effects of teacher behaviour upon the motivation of students. The review recommends collaboration between teachers and students specific to the context of learning programmes that lead to high-stakes assessments, in order to provide a locally sensitive knowledge base for teachers’ practice.  相似文献   

11.
ABSTRACT

Student attrition remains a persistent problem within the Australian higher education sector. Contributing factors include financial, reputational and quality issues, which can pose significant risks for a university’s sustainability. Institutional culture is fundamental to decisions student make about withdrawing or remaining in higher education. Therefore, student retention requires a sustained, deeply embedded commitment from all parts of the institution, placing student experience at the forefront of all activities in the student lifecycle. Applying a lifecycle approach to the way in which institutions think about student retention benefits students by providing comprehensive and consistent support. Given that less is known about how professional staff contribute to student academic learning journeys as part of whole of institution responses to student retention, this paper focusses on the contributions that professional staff make within the student lifecycle and how they can most readily map their contributions to student retention and success.  相似文献   

12.
In an increasingly complex landscape of diversification and massification, universities are grappling with challenges of student attrition. This paper presents findings from a project investigating how students from low socio-economic backgrounds at a regional Australian university perceive challenges and supports associated with retention and success. Twenty-seven students received intensive one-to-one support from a Faculty-embedded ‘academic advisor’, and reflected on this support, their overall student experience, and strategies to enhance student success. Students identified a range of challenges that they experienced across an academic year (personal circumstances, lack of preparedness for university study, timely access to support, course/programme difficulties) and what worked well for them (academic advisor, University support services, growing confidence in self as competent student, peer support). A range of strategies for enhancing student success were identified by students, namely consistency across teaching design and delivery, transparency of delivery modes, mandatory orientation, access to a dedicated academic advisor, and increased peer connectedness. The applicability and viability of the proposed strategies within current higher education settings are explored.  相似文献   

13.
Early withdrawal from higher education (HE) programmes can be detrimental for the students and institutions involved. Quantitative research has often concentrated on demographic and social antecedents (e.g. gender, prior education). Other factors may be more open to intervention e.g. students’ academic experiences in HE. Using data from an institutional survey (N?=?1170), logistic regression tested a range of academic experiences, regarding their relationship to contemplation of withdrawal (‘COW’: a recognised marker for actual withdrawal). COW was associated with student perceptions of low one-to-one contact with staff; non-traditional delivery methods; low peer-interaction; and high assessment load. Interestingly, COW was not associated with overall contact hours, large classes, or personal tutoring. The contributing factors explained 5.1%–8.6% of variance in COW, suggesting they may be meaningful levers for optimising retention. The paper discusses links to existing literature, future research directions, and applied implications for institutions.  相似文献   

14.
The literature suggests that student attrition at the university level has been of growing concern in many countries. Student attrition has a number of implications for universities, chief amongst them are losses to revenue and investment in higher education. While many studies have examined causes for attrition from an institutional perspective, this study examines how the Bachelor of Education (Early childhood studies) that sits within the School of Education can support the retention of students from the students’ perspectives. Using a qualitative methodology that recorded up to 40 hours of interviews with 20 students provided insights into why they stay at university and what aspects of the Early childhood studies degree support them in staying. Conversely, the students also comment on those aspects that are not supportive and could impact on retention. The data revealed that a sense of belonging was very important and that particular course-specific activities at certain times supported developing this belonging. The students identified the importance of a mentorship program and how this program needs to be made available from the commencement of their course. Other factors contributing to retention included well-placed practicums, career choice, designated study times, as well as study groups and supportive and responsive lecturers.  相似文献   

15.
This research explores student voice and student perceptions of teaching excellence in higher education, and authors suggest implications for student engagement and student/staff partnerships in teaching and learning. Edinburgh University Students’ Association facilitates the longest-running student-led teaching awards in the UK, receiving 2000–3000 open-ended student nominations annually which raise the profile of teaching and reward strong teachers. These extensive qualitative data were analysed using aspects of a grounded theory approach to investigate student perceptions of teaching excellence. This research identified four key themes of teaching excellence: (1) concerted, visible effort; (2) commitment to engaging students; (3) breaking down student-teacher barriers; (4) stability of support. This paper explores these themes with respect to theoretical work on teaching excellence and suggests that students’ perceptions of excellence in teaching and student support advance notions of ‘critical excellence’ and ‘moral excellence’.  相似文献   

16.
This paper explores student mobility among Irish higher education students. It specifically focuses on the profile of ‘stayers’, that is, students who have no plans to study abroad, thus addressing an underexplored topic in existing literature on student mobility. The article aims to identify factors that impact on students’ decisions not to pursue study abroad. Drawing on a national survey of students, Eurostudent V, the findings demonstrate that immobility is predicted by mother’s level of education and family income, showing the salience of socio-economic factors. Age and language proficiency are also visible factors, with the main obstacles to mobility being finances, language barriers and not wanting to separate from family and friends. Trends are also visible in the education institution a student is enrolled in, with those in institutes of technology more likely to be immobile than those in universities.  相似文献   

17.
There are several concepts in molecular thermodynamics which easily befuddle students. PV-type work done, presents one such example. Classifying the systematic mistakes made by students in response to a concept-based question on work done in thermodynamics, and sharing them across a public forum results in a paradigm of learning called the ‘mistake based approach’. This approach is a subset of a popular genre in science education known as ‘student conception studies’. It extends beyond thermodynamics itself, is particularly amenable to undergraduate education and applies to multiple disciplines of science and beyond.  相似文献   

18.
How can universities build ongoing, committed relationships with students, able to withstand the financial and emotional challenges of studying in higher education? The research proposes that students’ ongoing attachment to their university, based on positive feelings towards the university, is an important aspect of the student experience. This ongoing attachment is conceptualised here as students’ affective commitment towards their institution. Using an online survey-method and a research sample comprising undergraduate students studying in the UK, this research identifies three factors which drive students’ affective commitment towards their institution. These factors include students’ affective commitment towards academics and students’ calculative commitment towards the institution; factors which draw from the relational literature. A third factor, commitment balance, was developed within this research. Commitment balance occurs when a student’s commitment to their university is perceived to be reciprocated by the university’s commitment to the student. The study found that commitment balance was the most important driver of students’ ongoing attachment to their institution. The paper proposes that commitment balance is a key idea to consider within relational studies generally, but has a particular relevance in the higher education context for understanding the student experience. Commitment balance reflects the pulse of reciprocity which energises relational exchanges between students and institution. The findings of this research reinforce how critically important it is for universities and academics to build relationships with students. The desired outcome is to enhance the student experience, create positive attachment between students and university and ultimately improve student retention.  相似文献   

19.
European universities are facing demands for better student retention, especially in countries where state funding is no longer based on the number of students, but on the number of graduates. An extensive literature on retention focuses on the characteristics of students who leave higher education without a degree. Much less is known about the measures taken by higher education institutions to encourage study progress. This article examines whether retention strategies are incorporated into the institutions’ overall strategies and the policies and activities developed by universities to foster study progress and enhance retention rates. The results suggest that the universities’ overall strategies and retention activities are loosely coupled and that the universities tend to use blanket measures addressing retention, regardless of why students are leaving.  相似文献   

20.
While past research has focused on how student background characteristics and university experiences predict student retention and achievement, very few studies have examined the role that student-institution ‘fit’ might play in this process. In this study, we developed and validated a student-institution fit instrument that assesses the correspondence between student and institutional characteristics. We then examined the extent to which student-institution fit and friendship groups predict indicators of student success (e.g. academic adjustment and disengagement), which in turn predict future intentions. Using independent samples of undergraduate students from two Australian universities, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provide evidence for a unidimensional model of student-institution fit. Moreover, structural equation modelling analyses indicate that student-institution fit predicts greater academic adjustment and less disengagement, which in turn predict intentions regarding retention, transferring to another university, and changing major or career choice.  相似文献   

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