Wednesday, August 5, 2009

From a Reading Instructor Who Recently Did a Major Course Redesign

 
OPRIE did a recent survey of our students in the   new redesign classes.  Our population is mostly first time in college students, and many come from impoverished backgrounds.  The majority are female, and there is a significant percentage of ESL students.  The bulk range in age from 18-25.  There are also many Latino and African Americans, two of our retention-related KPI issues being addressed in course re-design.

There's a huge gulf between college work and what they did (more accurately didn't do) in high school.  Until recently, many have been unable to bridge the divideIt's also fair to say that our students frequently lack support for their efforts from parents and peers.  This is especially true when it comes to motivation and persistence.  About 1/3 of our students in 0093 give up before they finish the course (about .25-to-.33 don't even take the course exit assignment!) .  In DWRI, we are addressing the problem with study skills workshops.  For example, we use LASSI to teach students about their deficiencies.  In addition, developmental education students typically lack good technology and social skills. 

For another source, take a look at SENSE from UT-Austin.  Survey of Entering Student Engagement looks at entering students across the country; it also provides great information on developmental education students.  In fact, SENSE team participated with OPRIE in a focus group of our instructors.  I hope this helps, Gary.

No comments:

Post a Comment