Microsoft Word - UoB 4 Guide to Student Attainment and ...€¦ · Web viewGuide No 4. A Guide to Student Attainment and Retention. May 2009. Teaching and Learning Directorate. This

Guide No 4

A Guide to Student Attainment and Retention

May 2009

Teaching and Learning Directorate

This Guide has been developed and revised with input from staff across the University.

University of Bedfordshire ii

Contents

1 SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................... 1

2 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 2

2.1 HOW DO WE DEFINE RETENTION? ................................................................................... 22.2 WHAT FACTORS IMPACT ON RETENTION?........................................................................ 2

3 ACTIONS TO SUPPORT RETENTION ............................................................................. 4

3.1 PROVIDE EFFECTIVE ACADEMIC INDUCTION ..................................................................... 43.1.1 Pre-Induction .................................................................................................................... 43.1.2 Induction ........................................................................................................................... 4

3.2 IDENTIFY ‘AT RISK’ STUDENTS EARLY AND TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION .............................. 53.2.1 Groups of ‘at risk’ students .............................................................................................. 53.2.2 Monitoring student attendance ......................................................................................... 63.2.3 STAR Boards..................................................................................................................... 7

3.3 ACTIVITIES AND STRUCTURES WHICH DEVELOP STUDENT ‘BELONGING’ ............................. 73.4 EARLY DIAGNOSTIC ASSESSMENT AND SUPPORT ............................................................. 73.5 DESIGN THE CURRICULUM TO SUPPORT ENGAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT ....................... 83.6 SUPPORT STUDENTS DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE APPROACHES TO LEARNING ........................ 8

3.6.1 Develop students’ academic skills .................................................................................... 83.6.2 Develop students’ ‘learning power’.................................................................................. 9

3.7 DESIGN ASSESSMENT TO SUPPORT ENGAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT ............................. 93.7.1 Assessment Strategy .......................................................................................................... 93.7.2 Formative feedback ........................................................................................................ 103.7.3 Reassessment .................................................................................................................. 103.7.4 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 10

3.8 PROVIDE AN EFFECTIVE PERSONAL TUTOR SYSTEM ....................................................... 103.9 MONITOR RETENTION AND ATTAINMENT ........................................................................ 113.10 SELF-ASSESSMENT...................................................................................................... 12


University of Bedfordshire 1

1 Summary

This Guide identifies effective practice in student attainment and retention and sets out the University’s expectations drawing on research findings from across the sector and experience within the University. It is focussed on the learning experience of undergraduate students although many of the issues identified are common to all students no matter what or where they are studying.

The following points summarise the University’s approach to the issue.

• Student attainment and retention is a whole-university issue requiring concerted action by the entire community.

• The factors which affect student attainment and retention are complex – there are no simple solutions (but there are solutions).

• All students ‘at risk’ deserve support – but scarce staff resource is best directed at those students where intervention is likely to achieve a favourable result.

Key actions:

A nine-point plan for addressing attainment and retention issues:

1. Provide effective academic induction2. Identify ‘at risk’ students early and take appropriate action3. Provide activities and structures which develop student belonging4. Provide early diagnostic assessment and support5. Design the curriculum to support engagement and development6. Support students developing effective approaches to learning7. Design assessment to support engagement and development8. Provide an effective personal tutor system9. Monitor retention and attainment and target actions

The remainder of this Guide discusses these issues in more depth and identifies more specific actions that course teams can take. These will depend on both the nature of the subject and the student population.



2 Introduction

Student attainment and retention are linked in the sense that if we don’t retain students then we can’t support them to maximize their potential. Given the importance of the issue to the University (in financial terms) and more importantly to the student (in terms of their careers) this Guide emphasises retention. However, the strategies identified will also support student attainment more widely. Maximising the attainment of our students is also the key focus for our curriculum framework (CRe8) and Education Strategy and is covered in more detail in other Guides.

2.1 How do we define retention?

The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), for example, uses two measures of retention:

“The first is the ‘completion rate’ – the proportion of starters in a year who continue their studies until they obtain their qualification, with no more than one consecutive year out of higher education. As higher education courses take years to complete, an expected completion rate is calculated by the Higher Education Statistics Agency… A more immediate measure of retention is the proportion of an institution’s intake which is enrolled in higher education in the year following their first entry to higher education. This is the ‘continuation rate’.” (NAO, 2007, p5)

To inform a more meaningful assessment of retention performance at institutional level, the Higher Education Statistics Agency calculates a benchmark for each institution, which takes account of students’ entry qualifications and subjects studied. Most measures, policy and research relate to full-time student retention, as oppose to part-time students. There is currently no consensus about the meanings of retention and success for part-time students and hence little clarity about data collection requirements (NAO 2007).

The University’s Planning office provides regular statistics on retention at the course level. These should be available to all staff through your Head of Department or via your Faculty Manager.

2.2 What factors impact on Retention?

Student retention is a complex issue and there is rarely one reason why students leave. There are a number of resources which detail the research into the factors which impact on student retention. An excellent summary of the literature can be found on the HE academy web site at: www.h e a c ade m y .a c .u k / r e s ou rc e s /det a i l / w p rs / W P R S _ r eten t i o n_ s y n the s i s and the National Audit Office report Staying the course acknowledges (see http:/ / www . nao . o r g.u k /pu b l ic at i on s / na o _ r epo r t s / 0 6 - 07 / 060 7 61 6 .pdf ) also provides useful background information.

Yorke and Longden’s recent survey (2008) identified the following seven factors as contributing to early withdrawal:

• poor quality learning experience;• not coping with academic demand;• wrong choice of field of study;• unhappy with location and environment;• dissatisfied with institutional resourcing;• problems with finance and employment;• problems with social integration.



The NAO report identifies the different issues which can contribute to students leaving.

Personal reasons

• Student may fall mentally or physically ill, or a longstanding problem may worsen• Homesickness is thought to be a common cause of very early withdrawal, especially

among young women and students from rural areas• Balancing domestic obligations against study requirements – for example, childcare or

elder care arrangements may collapse

Lack of integration

• An absence of positive ties means students fail to ‘bond’ with the institution and are more easily deterred when another issue arises

• Students ‘drift away’ without institutions knowing why or when they have withdrawn• Difficulty in fitting in socially — students from deprived areas may feel culturally isolated

Dissatisfaction with course/institution

• The student may feel bored or otherwise dissatisfied with the standard of tuition• The course may not lead to the professional accreditation they were seeking

Lack of preparedness

• The course content may not be what the student was expecting• Students may not have the study skills in place for success or realise the extent to which

progress will rely on self-direction• Students may not realise the level of commitment required to succeed• The level of the course may be too difficult• Late applications for Disabled Students’ Allowances may mean the student does not

have the support and equipment in place at the start of term

Wrong choice of course

• Students may not have researched their choice deeply, especially if entering late• Students may be channelled into inappropriate subjects (especially working class men)• Lack of information about higher education can lead to stereotypical choices of course

and institution (especially students from disadvantaged areas)• Working class students may lack the confidence to change course or institution

Financial reasons

• Students no longer pay tuition fees up-front, but they may still incur debt• The student may struggle to balance working while studying. Working in excess of 15

hours a week has been found to reduce chances of progression• Benefits and allowances may not come through in time to meet financial commitments• Fear of debt, more than actual levels of debt, may be an issue for some students• Limited funds may mean students from disadvantaged backgrounds cut short their

studies• Students may have unrealistic lifestyle expectations which drives them into debt and

early leaving (especially young men)

To take up a more attractive opportunity

• Attending the university or college may allow a student to achieve their career goals without necessarily completing the course

• Taking time out to travel• Late realisation of academic interests or career goals



Some of these reasons are beyond our control but:

There is significant research evidence that learning and teaching environments are highly influential for students’ retention and success (e.g. Laing and Robinson, 2003). In the HE sector, Thomas (2002), drawing on focus groups with 32 students, reports that finance is important, but relations between students and with staff can be much more influential in decisions to remain in HE. Rhodes and Nevill (2004) reach similar conclusions using a student survey: debt and money worries are significant, but so are those of learning and teaching.They conclude that many of the issues identified are within institutional control, and thus all students can be supported to succeed in higher education. (WPRS Retention Synthesis)

We also have our own evidence. The steps we have taken have made a significant difference to our retention rates and innovations such as the Business Pods1 have had a major impact (data from the first year indicate a 7% improvement in retention and nearly two grades improvement in attainment).

3 Actions to support retention

3.1 Provide effective academic induction

3.1.1 Pre-Induction

Work on retention starts before students arrive. This period is about developing links between the student and the course, fellow students, and tutors. The University sends out information centrally but this is best augmented by communication direct from the course team and/or the department. Where students are recruited through the clearing process then the timescale can be short but all students should receive a pre-induction welcome pack and this can be augmented by on-line support.

Possible pre-induction activities

• Departmental or course newsletter• Establish virtual links through Hobsons or BREO putting applicants in touch with current

students, other new starters and the course team• Introduce key staff (biographies and pictures?)• Explain the plan for induction• Outline the support that will be available – allay fears• Provide the timetable

It is important that students know their timetable well in advance so that they can plan their other commitments around being at the University. Students commonly cite timetabling as one of their reasons for poor attendance which, in turn, leads to attainment and retention problems. There should be a timetable which recognises the difficulties of work and travel, minimises incidents where students have just one session a day or where sessions are spread across the day.

3.1.2 Induction

Induction is the process of welcoming students to the University and ensuring that they are familiar with our procedures, practices, customs and expectations. It is about easing the transition from students’ previous existence to life at university and sometimes their first time away from home. Induction is the subject of a separate Guide. Academic departments and

1 In Business the first year curriculum has been re-engineered, moving away form a traditional lecture and seminar model to a project-based delivery in specially designed business environments.



courses provide the focus for induction and other areas of the University should be integrated into this process rather than there being a separate ‘corporate’ induction.

As part of the induction, students should receive a detailed, friendly and welcoming introduction to the course. (The topics to be included are covered in a separate Guide and template available on the Teaching and Learning web site.)

The key features of academic induction are:

• The prime purpose of induction is social and academic acculturation.• Induction needs to be seen as a process which lasts for at least the first six weeks.• The primary focus of induction during the first week is the student’s course or

department• Students should have a planned programme of activities covering most of the first week

so that they are active for most of each day and have limited free-time.• Induction should involve frequent opportunities to meet staff and peers both formally and

informally.• Where possible induction should include activities where students actively engage with

other areas of the University (such as undertaking a task using learning resources) rather than just having support areas give presentations on what they do.

• Students should be given a detailed, friendly and welcoming course handbook – and be introduced to the key features that it contains through discussions and activities.

• Information flow to students needs to be managed and ‘drip-fed’.• Induction should link to other student support and guidance mechanisms.• Induction programmes need to be tailored for part-time and overseas students.• Students may need induction to every stage of their programme.• Induction provides the opportunity for initial diagnostic assessment.• Induction processes should be regularly evaluated.

3.2 Identify ‘at risk’ students early and take appropriate action

The first part of this section identifies different student groups and some of the actions that might be taken in each case. The latter part looks at the monitoring of attendance and the actions to be taken through StAR Boards.

3.2.1 Groups of ‘at risk’ students

Dead on Arrival

These are the students we were expecting but who never darkened our doors. They did not turn up to registration and we have heard nothing from them. They may have decided to go elsewhere or not to take up the opportunity of HE study at this time.

There’s probably not much we can do about this group but we need to contact them to ask why we haven’t seen them (so that we can reduce the number of DoAs in future), and flag up opportunities for late enrolment (if we are quick) or a start next year. Just letting them knowthat the place may be kept for next year, that there are other possibilities (a foundation degree for example) and that they can talk to us about course choice and career aspirations can be enough to open future opportunities to such students for HE study.

Missing in Action

There are the students who register but simply never engage. They are the ones we may never influence no matter how hard we try. Possibly they had criminal motives in applying (for example for grants/loans or to enter the country) or else having expressed an interest they quickly saw it as an impossibility for them, either due to personal circumstances or capability. Would anything we do make a difference here? Well it might up to a point – and it is important



that we get our customer care right at the outset of the course for many reasons – but it is likely that taking these particular students by the hand we will still only lead them a little part of the way. They may still drop out very early on. We need to identify these students, attempt to contact them and, if this is unsuccessful (we have a few students in this category who supply false addresses) remove them from our student registrations and inform funders or immigration that they are no longer studying with us. This process should be complete by the end of November so that they do not feature in our return to the funding council.

Wobblers

There are then a larger cohort who engage without conviction and then drift away. This group is sensitive to slight disappointments and rebuffs. Perhaps missing the kind of visible structures and attendance requirements they would have been used to in their previous educational experience – even if they ignored it at that time. For this group we can make a difference.

They still may not make the grade but at least we would have given them every opportunity and led them to a conscious and planned decision to disengage. In such circumstances, we can feel that we have done the best we can for them. To cope with this group we must have a way of spotting very quickly when their active engagement – not necessarily attendance – at the University stops – and then to be proactive and contact them. Spotting and contacting will both be difficult but the potential gains to us and them are significant. The range of issues identified in this Guide are designed to help support their engagement.

Lost in transit

A more serious group are those students who we were expecting to come back to progress with their studies but who never return. All progressing students should be contacted by their course/department over the summer to confirm arrangements for their return and maintain engagement.

Activities to prepare students for the next stage of their studies should take place at the end of the previous stage so that connections are already made and students feel motivated to return, know that they have the skills and support to progress, and that any concerns that they have can be answered. A clear timetable helps here.

There should be prompt action to identify and contact non-returnees to find out why they have chosen not to return and to encourage them back.

Underachievers

There will be a not negligible but probably a small proportion of students who are active in relation to their learning, who want to use our support services to improve their grades and who want to control their student experience. They need some help and guidance to find their way through to the support that they need. We must do our best to optimise this number, through just being there, giving them their say and showing them our commitment to help.

Beyond our reach

The University believes in providing students from a wide variety of backgrounds with the ability to engage with higher education. Most of our students are successful but some will decide it’s not for them and a (very) few others may never make the grade. We should do what we can to encourage students to progress with their studies but ultimately the decision is their’s. Once we have decided that we have done everything that is reasonable then further activity may not be in long run interest of the student, places an undue strain on University resources and detracts from what we can do for those students who can benefit from advice and extra support.

3.2.2 Monitoring student attendance

There is clear evidence that there is a link between attendance and retention, and a skills-rich curriculum requires attendance and engagement to develop the necessary skills and practices.



Although some students may successfully complete without attendance (a process which the use of BREO may support) - they are the exceptions. Thus, one of the things we need to know is whether the student is actually with us and actively engaging with the curriculum. And we need a mechanism to bring this together to identify students at risk (see section 3.2.3).

Examples of measures of engagement include:

• Attendance at selected seminars, tutorials and lectures (each course/department should have a strategy in place to record attendance at key sessions).

• Engagement with BREO (easily measured using the BREO tools).• Non-completion of assessments.• Use of the Learning Resource Centre.• Visits to personal or year tutors.• Measurement of engagement is only the start of the process which should be followed

up through a combination of direct contact, letters, SMS texting, emails and phone calls.

3.2.3 STAR Boards

Student Attainment Review (StAR) boards occur five times each year to consider student profiles and actions required. These are recorded meetings of the Field Chair, field administrator and other key staff (academic advisers, Heads of Department, key module co- ordinators) who review student progress. Where Units have been completed they also consider Unit attainment and confirm interim grades and referral decisions. Details of the operation of these Boards can be found in the Quality Handbook.

3.3 Activities and structures which develop student ‘belonging’

Retention is linked to a strong sense of belonging to a community and a social network. The course and the department are the key community for students that we need to consciously develop. Here they know some friendly faces, can get formal and informal support, subject information, sympathy, signposting and referral.

Examples of actions to develop a sense of community include:

• Activities designed to introduce students to their fellow students and to provide the opportunity to make new friends (largely as part of induction)

• Social activities• Student mentoring and peer-assisted learning schemes• Regular meetings with the course team• Meetings with the wider department (staff and research students)• Being exposed to departmental research through invites to research presentations,

poster sessions etc.• Student-led subject societies• Creating a virtual community• External visits• Departmental areas, ideally including social learning spaces.

3.4 Early diagnostic assessment and support

Diagnostic testing should take place as part of induction and is a simple process to identify students who may need additional support with aspects of the HE curriculum. The most likely needs are in the area of English language (oral and/or written) but other generic skills such as IT or numeracy, or subject-specific skills may also be assessed. Students identified as requiring support should be supported within the department or directed to PAD as



appropriate. A separate Guide to Diagnostic Assessment and student support is available from PAD detailing possible strategies that can be adopted.

3.5 Design the curriculum to support engagement and development

Fundamentally, good curriculum design is about supporting student engagement and attainment. The CRe8 framework contains many elements designed to support this with the intention that these are part of the learning experiences of students.

Curriculum activities which support student attainment and retention include:

• providing and open and transparent curriculum which articulate the behaviours, actions and end-goals expected of students

• activities which embrace the key elements of Realistic learning (Meaningful, Active, Reflective, Collaborative and Challenging)

• explicitly addressing subject cultures, values and codes of conduct• key issues being presented in alternative ways to accommodate different learning styles• PDP processes which provide structure and support to learning, allow students to

understand how they learn (and how they might be better learners) and emphasise learning as a process.

• teaching pitched at the level where students are• making connections between activities within the curriculum, to the world beyond and to

possible future careers

3.6 Support students developing effective approaches to learning

3.6.1 Develop students’ academic skills

Students may have poorly developed learning strategies or may need additional help with aspects of their learning or development (English language skills is often an issue). The first line of support should always be through the curriculum which provides a means of developing the required characteristics for all students. As students move from stage to stage then the demands we place on them increase and we need to make these changing expectations explicit and actively and openly support students’ development.

Some students will require additional support beyond that can be provided through the curriculum. For some students this may be done through directing them to appropriate resources available through the University’s Professional and Academic Development (PAD) department (htt p :// l r web . b e d s .a c .u k /pad ) and their associated PAD site within BREO. For students deemed to be ‘at risk’ this should be through formal referral so that PAD know that these students are expected, the nature of the initial assessment of their needs (PAD will conduct more detailed assessments), and it also means that engagement with PAD can be monitored and tracked.

Student support:

• Make students aware of PAD as part of their induction and through the course handbook

• Integrate activities to support student learning into the curriculum• Direct students with particular needs to PAD – and monitor their progress• Support students exploring their own learning styles and being exposed to alternative

ways of learning• Provide activities which support students understanding their motivations and

aspirations



3.6.2 Develop students’ ‘learning power’

Learning Power is defined as:

A complex mix of dispositions, lived experiences, social relations, values, attitudes and beliefs that coalesce to shape the nature of an individual's engagement with any particular learning opportunity

The notion of ‘learning power’ stems from what makes for effective learning at school level and is currently being evaluated at HE level by a consortium of universities including the University of Bedfordshire. It is associated with an Effective Lifelong Learning Inventory (ELLI) questionnaire designed to find out how learners perceive themselves in relation to the seven dimensions of learning power:

• Changing and Learning• Meaning Making• Curiosity• Creativity• Learning Relationships• Resilience• Strategic Awareness

These dimensions also resonate with those working with students at HE level and, if ELLI really is a lifelong learning inventory, then they may prove useful in identifying where students have particular problems and thus identifying how all students can improve their learning. ELLI provides a means of targeting our interventions to students’ particular needs.

Many of the ways in which the individual dimensions of ‘leaning power’ can be developed are discussed elsewhere in this Guide and work is underway to develop actions and activities which can strengthen each of the dimensions and are appropriate to HE level. If you want to consider using the ‘ELLI in HE’ instrument with your students as part of a structured process then contact Mark Atlay.

3.7 Design assessment to support engagement and development

3.7.1 Assessment Strategy

There is a growing body of research evidence that suggests that the nature of the assessment process can have a significant impact on student retention. Formal examinations, in particular, can act as a barrier especially where students have negative prior experiences of exams or where they have not had much experience of the exam process (many pre-university courses now have large elements of coursework). Examinations are often an important part of the undergraduate curriculum and may have a role in dealing with plagiarism and in preparing students for exams at later stages. However, they can also lead to surface learning and student disengagement from the curriculum. Some points to consider:

• Is there an assessment strategy which uses a variety of assessment instruments to develop and test a range of skills?

• Do exams support deep approaches to learning – ensuring that students have the fundamental skills and knowledge to progress?

• Are students supported in developing examination techniques and being fully prepared for the experience?

• What weighting should be given to the examined component of a Unit – If this is the student’s first experience of exams do you need to give it a high weighting and hence make it ‘high stakes’?

• Are there opportunities to practise the development of exam technique?• Are students given access to past papers and model answers?



• Are students clear about the task(s) set and the criteria by which they will be assessed?

3.7.2 Formative feedback

Formative feedback is important in making it clear to students what they need to do to improve. No matter how well the student has done ideas for improvement should be provided.

Feedback can be given individually on scripts and also to groups. This should be linked into departmental or field plans for dealing with Personal Development Planning. Reflective practices such as getting students to self or peer assess can also be helpful.

3.7.3 Reassessment

Students who fail a small element of their programme may be progressed at the end of the year. However, all students who have failures should be considered ‘at risk’.

The University’s strategy is built around providing an opportunity for the student to undertake referral in a supported manner – students should not just be presented with the referral work and expected to complete it to a higher standard. Actions include:

• Explaining to the student why they failed and how their performance could be improved (through formative feedback on the assignment, support tutorials or one-to-one sessions)

• Providing the opportunity for reassessment as soon as possible. For assignments this can be undertaken as soon as the provisional results of the initial assessment are known (i.e. within the Unit). For end of unit assessments this is by the agreed referral date. For Examinations, this will be the next round of referral examinations – students should be made aware of this and that there will be no opportunity for reassessment if this opportunity is missed.

• Provide sessions on the skills the assessment requires (exam technique, essay writing, presentations etc.) or refer the students to the specialist advice which is available.

• Provide support and guidance on the reassessment task on BREO.• Stress the importance of the students building a profile which will enable them to

progress with their cohort at the end of the year.

3.7.4 Summary

Does the assessment strategy help retention and attainment?

• Are students aware of their strengths and weaknesses?• Are students being supported in developing the required academic skills?• Is formative feedback being given to enable students to improve?• Are students aware of, and using, reassessment opportunities?• Is the reassessment process structured and supported?

3.8 Provide an effective personal tutor system

Whilst much can be done to address retention issues at the course level through the way in which we design the curriculum and assess students, problems are individual to students and to identify and address these we need to talk directly to students on a one-to-one level. The personal tutor system is designed to do this and is an important part of making students feel valued, part of the university community and treated as an individual. University expectations for the personal tutoring system are set out in a separate Guide.

Effective personal tutoring:

• Does each student have a named personal tutor?• Does engagement with the personal tutor have a purpose and an agenda?



• Is the role of the personal tutor set out in the course handbook?• Is there a timetabled opportunity for students to meet their personal tutor within the first

two weeks of the course?• Are other opportunities and expectations clearly set out to students?• Do personal tutors know what to do as part of their duties?• Do personal tutors have information on students’ progress on which to base interactions

and discussions?• Is engagement with personal tutors monitored and does this feed into and support StAR

Boards?

3.9 Monitor retention and attainment

Finally, we need to review how well different groups of students perform to identify key characteristics of student attainment and retention in order to identify those students deemed most at risk. This should be done as part of annual monitoring at course level and at the Scheme level where comparative issues can be more easily identified.



3.10 Self-assessment

A quick checklist of actions to improve student retention and attainment. Course teams are not expected to provide all of these activities but should have effective actions in place under all bold headings. Use a tick, cross, ? (uncertain evidence) or NA (not applicable) to indicate whether you could provide evidence that you do each activity. Then use this to action plan.

Effective academic induction

Students are clear about the purpose and the programme before they arrive

Induction is a process which lasts more than the first week

Information flow to students is managed and ‘drip-fed’

Students are given activities during induction which encourage active engagement

Students have a ‘full’ first week

Induction activities explore key aspects of the course and study

Activities encourage socialisation

Identify ‘at risk’ students early and take appropriate action

Mechanism in place for identifying attendance

Summative assessment undertaken within first six weeks

Star Boards operate effectively

Non-attendees contacted

Permanently absent students withdrawn from course

Provide activities and structures which develop student belonging

Students have opportunities to engage in activities with different groups of students

Social activities provided

Student mentoring and peer-assisted learning schemes supported

Students meet course team and other key staff

Students exposed to departmental research through invites to research presentations, poster sessions etc.

Student-led subject societies active

Activities help create a virtual community

External visits offered

Departmental areas, ideally including social learning spaces, identified

Provide early diagnostic assessment and support

Early diagnostic testing in place

Diagnostic testing covers key areas



Diagnostic testing routine for all students

Diagnostic testing links to clear actions

Design the curriculum to support engagement and development

The curriculum is open and transparent and identifies the behaviours, actions and end-goals expected of students

Teaching is meaningful, active, reflective, collaborative and challenging

Subject culture, values and codes of conduct discussed with students

Key issues are covered in alternative ways to accommodate different learning styles

PDP processes emphasise learning as a process provide structure and support

Teaching pitched at an appropriate level

Connections made between activities across the curriculum, to the world beyond and to possible future careers

Support students developing effective approaches to learning

Students are aware of Professional Academic Development (PAD) area of university as part of their induction and through the course handbook

Activities to support student learning are integrated into the curriculum

Students with particular needs are identified and directed to PAD – and their progress is monitored

Students explore their own learning styles and are exposed to alternative ways of learning

Activities are provided which support students understanding their motivations and aspirations

Activities encourage students to believe that they can become effective learners

Activities support students considering alternative approaches to learning

Students undertake ELLI (or similar) questionnaires to analyse their approach to learning

Students actively supported in working with the questionnaire outcomes

Approach encourages students to believe they can achieve

Design assessment to support engagement and development

Assessment strategy avoids bunching of submission dates

Students understand the criteria by which they will be assessed

Students aware of their strengths and weaknesses

Students supported in developing the required academic skills

Formative feedback enables students to improve

Students aware of, and using, reassessment opportunities



Reassessment process structured and supported

An effective personal tutor system

Each student has a named personal tutor

The role of the personal tutor is set out in the course handbook

Engagement with the personal tutor has a purpose and an agenda

There is a timetabled opportunity for students to meet their personal tutor within the first two weeks of the course

Personal tutors understand their role

Personal tutors have information on students progress on which to base interactions and discussions

Engagement with personal tutors is monitored and feeds into StAR Boards

Monitor retention and attainment

Profile of ‘at risk’ students developed

Targeted support

Documents

Microsoft Word - UoB 4 Guide to Student Attainment and ...€¦ · Web viewGuide No 4. A Guide to Student Attainment and Retention. May 2009. Teaching and Learning Directorate. This