Retention: Teaching Practices
The
Service Learning Center at Central Piedmont Community College
A Best Practice of CPCC, the Service Learning Center supports curricular
and co-curricular activities that enhance student learning, promote civic
responsibility, and respond to the critical needs in our community through
collaborative campus and community partnerships. The website provides information
for faculty, students, and community partners. Learn more
about the programs of the Center in the Service-Learning Annual Report 2005-06 (Adobe Acrobat File).
Promoting
Student Retention Through Classroom Practice (Word File)
In his remarks to the international "Enhancing Student Retention" conference
held in Amsterdam, Vincent Tinto, Distinguished University Professor and
Chair, Higher Education Program, Syracuse University, explores the five
conditions known to promote persistence: expectations, support, feedback,
involvement, and learning. He then explains how enhancing student involvement
leads to an enriched student learning experiences, and in turn, improved
retention.
Learning
Better Together: The Impact of Learning Communities on Student Success
(Adobe Acrobat File)
Student engagement and retention scholar Vincent Tinto describes several
learning community models designed to enhance the learning experience through
"shared knowledge, shared knowing, and shared responsibility."
Retaining
Students in Classes: Putting Theory into Everyday Practice
(Adobe Acrobat File)
This monograph by Laura Saret, Professor, Computer Information Systems,
Oakton Community College (IL) begins with an overview of retention theory
called "Why Students Do Not Persist in Community College Courses."
This piece is followed "Classroom Practice: Strategies for Improving
Retention" which contains practical ideas for student connection, engagement,
and success.
A
Brief Summary of the Best Practices in Teaching
Tom Drummond, Professor, Early Childhood Education, North Seattle Community
College, provides a detailed list (with references) describing "practices
that constitute excellence in college teaching." Topics include: lecture
practices; group discussion triggers; thoughtful questions; reflective response
to learner contributions; rewarding learner participation; active learning
strategies; cooperative group assignments; goals-to-grades connections;
modeling; double loop feedback; climate setting; and fostering learner responsibility.
Ideas to Encourage Student Retention A list of 63 good ideas compiled from responses at a faculty seminar at Jefferson Community College (KY). Suggestions range from general classroom management practices to strategies for increasing student-faculty interaction.
Classroom
Assessment Techniques
Based on the seminal work by Angelo and Cross, the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville
has developed a site that explains the use of CATs to collect feedback on
how well students are learning what they are being taught. Instructors are
encouraged to use CATs to determine which concepts need to be re-taught
or taught in a different manner before students are tested or assessed for
a grade.
Nine
Principles of Good Practice for Assessing Student Learning
Developed by the American Association for Higher Education's Assessment
Forum, these guidelines outline the philosophical and practical foundations
underlying good assessment practices.
Community
College Inventory: Focusing on Student Persistence, Learning and Attainment
(Adobe Acrobat File)
This inventory, developed by Kay M. McClenney and Byron N. McClenney, provides
descriptions of eleven characteristics of colleges that are strongly focused
on student success. Related to each characteristic is a set of indicators
that more fully describe observable institutional practices. The inventory
as a tool for prompting institutional review, reflection, discussion and
improvement.
