Improving Student Learning through Student Engagement

January 18, 2006

Community College Survey of Student Engagement 2004 Findings

Student Engagement

“The research is unequivocal: students who are actively involved in both academic and out-of-class activities gain more from the college experience than those who are not so involved.”

Ernest T. Pascarella & Ernest T. Pascarella &

Patrick T. Terenzini, Patrick T. Terenzini, How College How College Affects StudentsAffects Students

Student Engagement

Students’ involvement or engagement proves to be central to both persistence and learning. Even among students who persist, those who are more involved show greater learning gain.

Vincent Tinto

CCSSE Workshop 2005

The Solution: Engagement By Design

Community college students’ challenges do not make student engagement impossible. They do mean it must be intentional. It must happen by design.

Benchmarks for Effective Educational Practice

CCSSE reports survey results in two ways: national benchmarks — areas that educational research has shown to be important in quality educational practice — and students’ responses to individual survey items. The five benchmarks are:

Active and Collaborative Learning

Student Effort

Academic Challenge

Student-Faculty Interaction

Support for Learners

39.845.8

55.7

39.638

Active andCollaborativeLearningStudent Effort

AcademicChallenge

Student-FacultyInteraction

Support forLearners

CCSSEville Community College 2004 Benchmark Scores

Reaching for Excellence

CCSSE encourages colleges continually to ask whether current performance is good enough and to reach for excellence in student engagement. Colleges can:

1. Compare themselves to the national average (the 50 mark).

2. Compare themselves to high-performing colleges.

3. Measure their overall performance against results for their least-engaged group, aspiring to make sure allsubgroups engage in their education at similarly high levels.

4. Gauge their work in areas their college strongly values.

5. Contrast where they are now with where they want to be.

39.845.8

55.7

39.638

Active andCollaborativeLearningStudent Effort

AcademicChallenge

Student-FacultyInteraction

Support forLearners

CCSSEville Community College 2004 Benchmark Scores

50--

Reaching for Excellence : 2004 CCSSE Benchmark Scores

2004 Colleges

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

Active andCollaborative

Learning

Student Effort AcademicChallenge

Student-Faculty

Interaction

Support forLearners

MontgomeryCollege

MarylandConsortium

Active and Collaborative Learning

Students learn more when they are actively involved in their education and have opportunities to think about and apply what they are learning in different settings.

Active and Collaborative Learning

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Collaborated…

Active & Collaborative Learning "…Often or Very Often"

0

10

20

30

40

50

Montgomery College MD Consortium 2004 Colleges

Students Who Collaborated onProjects During Class

Students Who Collaborated onClass Work Outside of Class

Active and Collaborative Learning

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Active & Collaborative Learning "...Never"

05

101520253035404550

MontgomeryCollege

MD Consortium 2004 Colleges

Students WhoCollaborated onProjects During Class

Students WhoCollaborated on ClassWork Outside of Class

Students Who Collaborated…

Student Effort

Students’ behaviors contribute significantly to their learning and the likelihood that they will attain their educational goals.

Student Effort

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Hours Full-Time Students Spend Studying

2% - MC

61% - MC

18% - MC

20% - MC

Student Effort

Students Who Come to Class Unprepared

22% - MC 78% -

MC

Academic Challenge

Challenging intellectual and creative work is central to student learning and collegiate quality.

Academic Challenge

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Are Students Writing Enough?

Are Students Reading Enough?

26% - MC; 29% - MD 27% - MC; 24% - MD

Student-Faculty Interaction

In general, the more interaction students have with their teachers, the more likely they are to learn effectively and persist toward achievement of their educational goals.

Student-Faculty Interaction

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Talked with Advisors or Instructors about Career Plans

38% - MC 33% - MD

20% - MC 21% - MD

Student-Faculty Interaction

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Discussed Ideas with Instructors Outside of Class

14% - MC 14% - MD

43% - MC 49% - MD

Support for Learners

Students perform better and are more satisfied at colleges that are committed to their success and cultivate positive working and social relationships among different groups on campus.

Support for Learners

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students’ Views of Academic and Student Support Services

Percentage of students who say their college provides the support

they need to succeed — either “quite a bit” or “very much.”

69% - MC 72% - MD

The Need for Inescapable Engagement

Students Who Earn Degrees

Students Who Transfer

The Need for Inescapable Engagement

Students’ Plans after the Current Semester

When do you plan to take classes at this college again?

20% - MC 12% - MD

55% - MC 68% - MD

6% - MC 6% - MD

20% - MC 15% - MD

Strategy 1: Engage Early, Engage Often

CCSSE Respondents by Credit Hours Earned at the College

14.8%

38.8%

18.1%

10.7%13.2%

4.3%

MC% are in red font

The Best of Times, The Worst of Times: The Front Door of College

Question:

What are your incoming students’ experiences when they first “meet”

your college?

Focus on the Front Door

Question:

If we were to redesign students’ college experience from the moment

of first contact with the college through to completion of 15 credit

hours, what should be the key elements for that experience?

Focus on the Front Door

What does the evidence suggest?

HIGH EXPECTATIONS

REQUIRED ORIENTATION

COLLEGE SUCCESS COURSE

LEARNING COMMUNITIES

EARLY AND FREQUENT FEEDBACK

TUTORING/SUPPLEMENTAL INSTRUCTION

EARLY ALERT SYSTEMS

Strategy 2: Stress Academic Advising

Students’ Use of Academic Advising/Planning Services

39% - MC 37% - MD

37% - MC 43% - MD

14% - MC

9% - MC12% - MD

Strategy in Action

Central Piedmont Community College initiated a student success planning initiative entitled ICAN. After initial advising, students consult with faculty advisors who are experts in their field, familiar with specific courses in their department, and knowledgeable about educational and career opportunities in their areas.

Peer advisors, who are usually students, assist other students in navigating the catalog, preparing schedules, locating classrooms, etc. Finally, ICAN has developed a comprehensive online interactive advisement system intended to supplement the student/advisor relationship.

http://www.cpcc.cc.nc.us/

Central Piedmont Community College (NC)

Strategy in Action

The LifeMap program at Valencia Community College provides developmental advising that supports student planning (for education, career and life) and aims to strengthen students’ self-confidence and decision-making skills.

Developmental advising refers to the process of making students self-sufficient. Faculty and staff are students’ advising partners, providing significant information and support initially. The expectation, however, is that as students gain experience, they will increasingly take the lead in defining and implementing their educational and career goals until ultimately, they are completely directing their own learning process.

http://valencia.cc.fl.us/

Emily Hooker, Learning Evidence Associate

ehooker@valenciacc.edu

Valencia Community College (FL)

Strategy 3: Emphasize Effective Developmental Education

34% - MC

36% - MC

43% - MC

33% - MC

27% - MD

31% - MD

51% - MD

30% - MD

Strategy in Action

Miami-Dade College (FL)

…has learning communities that combine mathematics and student life skills (SLS) courses. The math classes focus on math competencies while paying attention to study skills and habits. The SLS course addresses time management, math anxiety reduction, test-taking strategies, learning styles and self confidence. This approach leads to math retention and pass rates that are consistently above the norm.

http://www.mdc.edu/home/

Strategy 4: Redesign Educational Experiences

Collaborative Learning among Students

Interaction with Faculty Members

34% - MC

24% - MC

59% - MC

34% - MC

14% - MC

Strategy in Action

Northwest Vista College (TX)

New instructors participate in an extensive orientation each semester involving exercises on active and collaborative learning.

A full-time instructor serves as a mentor to each adjunct. Mentors guide new instructors to incorporate active learning and ASK outcomes into curriculum. ASK (Attitudes, Skills, and Knowledge) is a college-wide initiative aimed at providing all students with specific critical thinking and collaboration skills.

Building a Culture of Evidence

Better educational outcomes do not just happen. They depend on building and working within a culture of evidence:

Being relentless about putting data in front of faculty and staff — and using the data to promote positive change.

Being honest about current student performance to identify the means for improving.

Setting goals and implementing strategies to achieve them.

Basing every decision — about programs, policies, budgets, and staffing — on which action will have the best effect on student learning.

COMMUNITY COLLEGE FACULTY SURVEY

OF STUDENT ENGAGEMENT (CCFSSE): A FIRST LOOK

CCFSSE: A First Look

In 2005, the Community College Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (CCFSSE) was administered for the first time.*

CCFSSE:

Elicits information from faculty about their teaching practices, the ways they spend their professional time both in and out of class, and their perceptions regarding students’ educational experiences.

Is aligned with CCSSE to allow colleges to contrast student and faculty perceptions.

CCFSSE: A First LookEffective Educational Practice: Student and Faculty Responses

CCFSSE data are based on results from 39 colleges. When student (CCSSE) and faculty (CCFSSE) views are shown side-by-side in this presentation, the student responses include data only from colleges that participated in the faculty survey. It also is important to note that while CCSSE results are expressed in terms of benchmarks, which are created through a complex statistical analysis and peer review, there are no benchmarks for CCFSSE. For this presentation, CCFSSE results are presented in groupings of survey items that correspond to the CCSSE benchmarks.

Source: CCSSE 2005 data

CCFSSE: A First LookStudent-Faculty Interaction: Student Experiences/Faculty Perceptions

Source: CCSSE 2005 data

The Metaphor

“This college is like a

______________.”