Academic Interventions that Support Student Achievement and Persistence: A Faculty Perspective

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Academic Interventions that Support Student
Achievement and PersistenceA Faculty Perspective

• David R. Arendale, Ph.D.
• General College, University of Minnesota-Twin
  Cities
• August 2005
• http//mccfl.arendale.org

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Session Objectives

• Best Practice overview
• Short overview of CLA programs
• CLA Program best practices
• Integrating CLA activities within the course
• Sharpening the saw, professional development
  resources

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Best PracticeOverview
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Best Practices (Definition)

• Comprised of policies, principles, standards,
  guidelines, and procedures that contribute to the
  highest, most resource-effective performance of a
  discipline. T. Finneran, CIBER, Inc.

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CLA Best Practices AreConsistent with the
Following

• Current student retention theories
• Professional standards
• Contemporary learning theories for a more diverse
  student population
• Survive rigorous evaluation
• Successful replication at variety of institutions
• Recognition of practice by national awards
  programs (e.g., Noel-Levitz, CRLA, NADE)

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Tintos Themes of Attrition

• Difficult adjustment
• Difficulty level high day-to-day
• Incongruence
• Social isolation
• Financial need
• Negative social group
• Vincent Tinto, Leaving College, 1993.

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A Staying Environment...

• Academic (Curriculum, Instruction)
• Progress toward educational career goal
• Academic success
• Program options clear
• Advising and support services available
• Social/Psychological (Peers, Environment)
• Feeling of belonging
• Social Integration
• Personal involvement
• Positive identity
• High self-esteem
• American College Testing Program

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Hierarchy of Learning Improvement Programs
Higher Potential for improved learning and
instructional change
Level 4 Comprehensive Learning Systems
Level 3 Course- related Learning Services
Level 2 Learning Assistance for Individual
Students
Lower potential
Level 1 Remedial Courses
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Sources of Standards

• Professional associations
• CRLA Tutoring Training Certification
• NADE Guides for DE and Learning Assistance
• NADE Certification for DE Components
• U.S. Department of Education (e.g. Principles of
  Scientific Research, Clearinghouse for What
  Works in Education)
• Council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS)
• Exxon National Study of DE Practices
• National Study of Postsecondary Student Support
  Service Programs (TRIO)
• Six national CLA programs

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Overview of Course-basedLearning Assistance
Programs
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Goals of the CLA Program

• Improve student academic performance
• Increase persistence and graduation rates
• Improve cognitive, metacognitive, and affective
  domain skills
• Serve as opportunity for personal and
  professional growth

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Common CLA Session Activities

• Meet weekly throughout academic term
• Integrate what to learn with how to learn it
• Allow students to make connections among prior
  knowledge, text, and lecture
• Frequent opportunities for feedback
• Modeled behaviors to adopt
• Supportive environment to achieve higher

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What issues does CLA address?

• Potential student dropouts do not always display
  symptoms or weaknesses
• Learning environment needs to be enriched for all
  students (Universal Instructional Design)
• Mismatch between the level of instruction and the
  level of student preparation
• Managing study time with a supportive learning
  and social community

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Common Venues for CLA

• Historically-difficult course for all or groups
  of students
• Rates of 30 or more of D or F final course
  grades and withdrawals
• High rates of reenrollment in the course
• Gatekeeper or prerequisite course
• Courses at undergraduate, graduate, and
  professional school level
• Test preparation programs (e.g., MCAT, USMLE)

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Key CLA Partners

• CLA program administrator
• CLA professional staff
• CLA facilitator
• CLA sponsoring Instructor
• CLA participating students

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Common Outcomes of CLA

• Participating students
• Higher success in challenging courses
• Higher persistence rates
• CLA facilitators
• Personal and professional growth
• Institution
• Higher revenue due to retained students
• CLA sponsoring instructors

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Potential Benefits of CLA forSponsoring
Instructors

• Better prepared students for class
• Higher levels of student class interactions
• Managed study time of students
• Adopt some CLA activities for use in class
• Higher student evaluations of class
• If requested, anonymous feedback
• Identifies general student learning needs
• Opportunity to revisit previous or alter future
  class activities and curriculum
• Professional development

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Course-based LearningAssistance Programs

• Accelerated Learning Groups (University of
  Southern California)
• Emerging Scholars Program (University of
  California-Berkley)
• Peer-led Team Learning (City Univ. NY)
• Structured Learning Assistance (Ferris State
  University)
• Supplemental Instruction (University of
  Missouri-Kansas City)
• Video-based Supplemental Instruction (University
  of Missouri-Kansas City)

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Best Practices in CLA

1. Organizational and administrative practices
2. Essential program components
3. Critical learning practices
4. Important personnel practices
5. Rigorous evaluation procedures
6. Necessary institutional practices

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1. Organizational and Administrative Practices

• Centrally administrated and organized
• Attached to a specific course with high rates of
  unsuccessful enrollments
• CLA program follows guidelines established by
  national organizations
• CLA program has been certified
• Clear written mission, goals, and objectives
• Collaborates and coordinates with other campus
  units

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CLA Program Collaborates withOther Campus Units

• Enrollment management program
• First Year Experience program
• Developmental education program
• New student orientation
• Personal counseling program
• Academic departments
• Admission office
• Education department
• Office of research

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2. Essential CLAProgram Components

• Scheduled sessions held throughout the term
• Coordination of the course and CLA session
  activities
• Assessment and evaluation activities
• Involvement of course instructor
• A supportive learning and social community
• Mandatory attendance in CLA sessions
• Mandatory assessment affective/cognitive skills
• Available support services to make referrals
  (advising, counseling, DE courses, disability
  services)

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3. Critical Learning Practices by the CLA
Facilitators

• High expectations for all to achieve
• Varied instruction for diverse learners
• Frequent assessment and feedback
• Facilitating skills used by CLA staff
• Employ active and cooperative learning
• Develop capacity for other courses
• Model behaviors for learners to practice during
  CLA sessions and adopt for use
• Integrate what to learn with how to learn it
• Link prior knowledge, textbook, and lectures

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4. Important Personnel Practices

• CLA facilitators reflect diversity of student
  body
• Provide intensive training for all facilitators
  prior to the academic term
• Continuous professional development for CLA
  facilitators (training, group meetings,
  visitations)
• Facilitator already successful in target course
• Facilitators attend class lectures and talk with
  instructor frequently outside of class.
• CLA professional staff observe and supervise CLA
  facilitators periodically during the term
• CLA professional staff involved with professional
  associations and CLA organizations

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5. Rigorous Evaluation Procedures

• Systematic program evaluation
• Regularly conducted
• Variety of measures
• Rigorous evaluation protocols (quantitative/qualit
  ative)
• Evaluation results lead to changes in CLA program
  practice
• Widely disseminate evaluation reports to
  stakeholders

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Evaluation Measures

• Formative evaluation measures
• Student and faculty satisfaction ratings
• Number of students served
• Grades in CLA courses
• Summative evaluation measures
• Grades in subsequent non-CLA courses
• Comparisons of student groups regarding
  persistence
• DE students completed DE program of study
• DE students did not complete program
• Non-DE students

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6. Necessary Institutional Practices

• Strong institutional support
• Top administrators can articulate mission of
  program
• CLA program cited in important planning documents
• Campus-wide advisory board for CLA
• Encourages buy-in by wider community
• Informs the CLA unit
• Financially supports CLA unit
• Helps solicit outside grant funds to expand
  service
• Hard money institutional funding for critical
  functions
• Stable room scheduling in appropriate settings
• Student retention and success viewed as a
  campus-wide responsibility

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Integrating CLA Activities within the Course
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Making Explicit Connections

• Prior knowledge
• Previous class session
• Current class session
• Next class session
• Textbook
• Supplemental readings

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Model Thinking

• State thought process to reach conclusions
• Share original solution solving notes

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Focus on the Big Picture

• Identify the main purpose of big idea
• Course
• Class session
• Textbook chapter
• Connect course to contemporary life

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Make Explicit Instructor Values

• Refer to course syllabus throughout the academic
  term
• Use textbook frequently in the class
• Refer to supplemental readings

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Employ Active Learning

• Implement planned peer cooperative learning
  activities
• Employ simulations to engage students

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Support Metacognitive Skill Development

• Employ classroom assessment techniques
• Provide mock exam before first major exam
• Before first major exam administer a moderate
  quiz with low grade impact
• Return major exams within one week

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Embed Best Practice of DE within the Course

• Employ graphic organizers
• Practice with test preparation and test-taking
  strategies on mock exams
• Debrief major exams
• Share strategies for textbook reading
• Incorporate how to learn along with what to
  learn

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Support Multi-Cultural Education

• Employ variety of assessment methods
• Reflect diversity in selection of curriculum
  materials
• Ensure relevance to society
• Assess the campus environment (i.e., MAP-IT).

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Sharpening the Saw

• Professional Development Resources

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For More Information

• David R. Arendale, Ph.D.
• Assistant Professor,
• College of Education and Human Development
• 262 Appleby Hall, 128 Pleasant Street SE
• University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis,
  MN 55455
• [phone], E-mail arendale_at_umn.edu
  http//arendale.org