Panther PATHways

This study examined the relationship between 10 high-impact practices and graduation rates at four-year public colleges and universities in the United States. The Association of American Colleges and Universities defined high-impact practices as especially effective for student learning, engagement, and career preparation in the 21st century. While advocacy for these practices and their inclusion in undergraduate curricula is growing, little research has examined their relationship to institutional outcomes. Based on data from 101 participating institutions, this study used both primary and secondary data to investigate whether offering high-impact practices as required for all students, required for some students, or optional was related to an institution’s four or six-year graduation rate. The findings suggest that high-impact practices are in widespread use across different institutional types but have limited relationships with graduation rates. This study contributes to the body of literature on college completion. Findings suggest that offering high-impact practices may not lead to increased graduation rates at public institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The success of the information commons service model in academic libraries has brought a keen awareness in the academy of the potential for undergraduate learning centers situated in libraries and supported by a set of collaborative services. The information commons, a technical and reference service center, is successful because it meets the needs of the undergraduate learner. The undergraduates have been able to access, acquire and create information using the tools and support that the library has provided. It has not escaped the observation of the academy that the users of the commons are actually learning, both formally and informally. It has also not escaped their observation that more partners would create a better learning environment and thereby better learning outcomes. Undergraduate retention and success are of paramount concern to academic leaders. In response, library leaders are implementing a model of learning support, by refining the information commons model, which brings collaborative partners together in the heart of the university, the library. This model not only fosters the learning of the undergraduate but also enhances the learning support role of all the academic partners. This paper will examine the service models for collaborative learning support in the learning commons by drawing from world-wide examples of information commons, learning commons and learning centers which illustrate the best practices of learning support in an academic library environment. This paper will also discuss some of the issues, problems and possible solutions related to emerging partnerships in undergraduate learning support in academic libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, higher education institutions have codified practices that increase the attainment of outcomes associated with a holistic college education and the preparation of students for the 21st century workforce (Beitman, Gahimer & Staples, 2015). Institutions regularly focus on providing opportunities for students to contribute to their communities through civic engagement or service-learning, known as “High-impact practices”, creating added value and augmenting traditional classroom curriculum (Campus Compact, 2016; Goff, Bower & Hill, 2014). The triple loop learning model outlines three feedback loops of learning that underpin how students can assess their actions and mental models. This model proposes that most actors in collaborative conservation planning are unaware of how their individual mental models effect collaborative decision-making (Biggs et al., 2011).

In this study, we explored student learning facilitated through HIPs – research, service-learning and internships – facilitated through interdisciplinary, conservation leadership coursework provided by a public institution in the southeastern U.S. Student learning was explored from participation in the Conservation Leadership minor. Specifically, we were curious whether HIP experiences within a classroom setting, service learning field work, and U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service internships throughout the southeastern U.S. aided in students “triple loop learning” (Biggs et al., 2011). Results of this study show the Conservation Leadership minor achieves its goal of providing multiple learning pathways for budding conservationists, but could be enhanced through additional stakeholder outreach, training, and engagement.

GMITprovide a range of student engagement and teaching development opportunities to support retention and to empower learners to be successful at third level and in their future careers. GMIT has faced a number of challenges including: supporting students as they transition into higher education; retaining students on STEM programmes; developing the teaching community; an increasing demand for academic writing and maths support; research and academic integrity; and the need to support students as they transition out of higher education and into employment. In 2015, in response to these challenges, GMIT agreed strategic priorities and assigned resources to develop initiatives across various functions and academic departments. This paper will present the student success model that emerged in GMIT in 2019, following the collaboration of multiple functions and discipline groups. This paper will discuss initiatives in GMIT that enable student success, support student engagement, promote employability and the professional development of teaching in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter describes how peer learning support programs can be used to improve learning and success in gateway courses. It provides examples from two institutions to further illustrate how this promising approach can improve student outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the grade distribution within a course shifts towards higher grades, it may be due to grade inflation or grade improvement. If the positive shift is accompanied by an increase in achievement or learning, it should be considered grade improvement, not grade inflation. Effective learning-centered teaching is designed to promote student learning due to increased responsibility for learning, engagement with course material, and opportunity for formative assessments prior to summative assessments of course learning outcomes, which leads to improved grades. We suggest ways that faculty members practicing learning-centered teaching can collect and analyze data to support increased learning and grade improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the implementation of a university-wide initiative aimed at providing a holistic view of a student's academic standing by conducting early, formative assessment for all first-year students. It tracks the Early Assessment System as a student support intervention at Stellenbosch University and suggests that the system has been instrumental in effecting change across the entire university. The early focus on student success and the establishment of dedicated structures to facilitate such focus have served as catalysts for dialogue around issues of teaching and learning. The coordination of resources across the university to support faculty activities around first-year student learning has set-up powerful collaborations with the potential to influence thinking across the campus. Using Hersey, Blanchard, and Johnson's (2001) 'participative change cycle' as base, and drawing on the associated work of Pennington (2003), the successes and ongoing challenges of implementing an initiative of this nature are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To correct students' shortcomings in writing proficiency, colleges and universities have adopted initiatives such as Writing Across The Curriculum and Writing In The Discipline, demonstrating that integrating writing strategies results in improved student writing. This curricular movement inspired by the premise "writing is thinking," suggests that writing activities increase students' learning and engagement. Institutions dedicate resources for faculty to integrate writing throughout courses. Additionally, colleges and universities have developed quality enhancement programs addressing student writing needs, requiring students to complete Writing Intensive courses in their fields of study. Any course in any discipline can and should support student writing, even those taught by instructors without preparation to directly teach writing. In Writing Intensive Courses, students read and write actively to achieve student learning outcomes. Students often struggle to meet course demands and achieve a positive outcome. Student writing is positively correlated with engagement; the more students write, the more they engage in active and collaborative learning, student-faculty interaction, enriching experiences, and deeper learning. Numerous strategies can increase student success. The design and structure of the course and its assignments, as well as high engagement strategies are discussed. Strategies can support students in achieving success improving their overall writing skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes a study conducted to design independent listening learning pathways for first semester English Department students at a state university in Malang, Indonesia. The pathways were designed based on the analysis of the students' common problems in listening comprehension. The research data were collected from two sources, that is, the students' answer sheets in the listening pre-test and independent study listening materials available in the English Self-Access Centre of the English Department at the university. The data were coded by three researchers and triangulated to resolve any inconsistencies and contradictions in the coding and analysis. The coding was based on Lund's (1990) taxonomy of learner function and response matrix, resulting in the identification of the students' strengths and weaknesses in the listening tasks in the pre-test and the mapping of task types provided in the listening materials in the English Self-Access Centre. Listening learning pathways were designed based on the results of the data analysis to guide the students in their independent listening to improve their ability in performing the specific tasks they found difficult. The results of the study are useful for improving the students' listening comprehension skills, and more importantly, to improve the quality of the Independent Study program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advocates of different approaches to inclusion are often adamant that there can be only one true form of inclusion – yet advocated forms differ. Ultimately, inclusion is about empowering students to succeed and wrapping them with the support necessary to do so. This article presents the story of Forrester Hill State School where varied approaches to inclusion are blended according to students’ need. Individual goal setting and personalised learning pathways are the norm. Schoolwide pedagogical principles designed to support the learner are actioned and enhanced through wide spread commitment to the collectively developed school vision. Towards the end of 2012, the steadily increasing number of students with special needs at Forrester Hill had been noted at a district level and intervention strategies were in place to encourage parents to access schools closer to home because, due to recommendations made by other parents, many families were moving well outside their catchment areas to enrol children at the school. This approach was only minimally successful and by 2013 numbers were managed by system staff concerned that the high percentage of students with special needs was placing strains on available resources at the school. Despite these measures, by March 2014, the numbers of enrolled students with diagnosed special needs had risen to 86 out of the 630 students enrolled at the school. Within this same time, internal and external achievement data were trending upwards. With these obvious signs of ‘success’ in mind, this phenomenological case study was conducted to discover the essence of inclusion at Forrester Hill. The harmonies of student, staff, parent voices and others are woven together indicating the principles underpinning and sustaining this inclusive school culture – a culture that empowers students to know both how they learn and why they learn, becoming independent learners capable of reaching the high expectations that guide their learning journeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article will explore usage patterns and perceptions of online learning support among university students. As higher education expands to include increasingly diverse student cohorts, alternative onlinesupported learning services have gained attention as a mechanism to support student success. However, there is a paucity of research regarding student perceptions and usage patterns for online support and the impact of these services on students' learning experiences. To address this gap, this study explored student usage patterns and perceptions of impact of students enrolled in a large research-intensive university in Australia, using data collected through the third-party provider and a supplementary student survey from July 2018-June 2019. Overall, 90.4% of students considered their interaction with the service to be positive, with 81% reporting that the service assisted their learning. While the service is not aimed at replacing face-to-face tutoring of academic skills support, this study suggests that online- supported learning services may provide an increasingly relevant and useful service to students and supplement face-to-face offerings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the results of the studies on internships and experiential learning programs by the National Survey of Student Engagement, National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), and the Association of American Colleges and Universities in the U.S. It was found that more than half of all senior respondents participate in a practicum, internship, or clinical assignment. About 44.6 percent of the Class of 2009 hires from employers that take part in NACE study come from their own internship programs. About 73 percent of employers express their desire for universities to emphasize more the ability to apply knowledge and skills to real-world settings.

An emerging consensus exists in the school reform literature about what conditions contribute to student success. Conditions include high standards for academic learning and conduct, meaningful and engaging pedagogy and curriculum, professional learning communities among staff, and personalized learning environments. Schools providing such supports are more likely to have students who are engaged in and connected to school. Studies show students with caring and supporting interpersonal relationships in school report more positive academic attitudes and values, and more satisfaction with school. These students also are more engaged academically. The study reported in this paper was guided by a reduced version of the Self-System Process Model developed by Connell. In this paper, optimal and risk thresholds for the Student Performance and Commitment Index (SPCI) and engagement are reported, and then data on how much engagement matters for later success in school are presented. Thresholds associated with teacher support also are presented with estimates of how much teacher support matters for engagement in school. (Contains 4 tables and 9 figures.)