Online Academic Support - Anytime, Anywhere

ForMath (Basic Skills through Calculus II) Statistics Biology Chemistry

Physics Organic Chemistry Anatomy & Physiology Economics Accounting Finance Spanish Writing Reading ESOL

Computers and Technology Nursing & Allied Health

Online Tutoring-An Anytime/Anywhere Resource to Improve Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Barry Berman, PhDNovember 8, 2012

Topics

What is Smarthinking

Smarthinking Student Walkthrough

Q & A

Smarthinking helps high schools, middle schools, colleges and universities improve student learning success (at the moment of need) and retention through a network of tutors available up to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What We Do

With Smarthinking you can: Connect with an expert educator for live tutoring and homework

help. Submit your Writing to our Online Writing Lab for review and critique. Submit a Question and receive a reply the next day. Schedule a personal , one on one session with a tutor.

Up to

24 Hours a Day

Days a Week7

• Help improve student class completion rates, grades, persistence rates, retention rates and reduce dropout rates

• Complement, supplement and augment the work of faculty tutors, peer tutors, volunteer tutors and professional tutors by providing tutoring assistance to students:

– when on campus tutoring centers are closed or when tutors aren’t available. (Smarthinking math Tutoring is offered 24/7 and most students use Smarthinking from 10pm to 2am.)– when not enough tutors are available.– in subjects not covered by the tutors.– who work and can’t make it to see tutors.

• Help your institution be in compliance with the SACS requirement that services offered to students taking online courses are comparable to services offered to on-campus students

• Provide assistance to student athletes, particularly when they travel.• Provide support for students in your institution’s TRIO, Continuing Education, Dual Degree, Dual

Enrollment and Freshman Experience programs.• Help those students who are reluctant to use face-to-face faculty tutoring because they are

embarrassed• Provide assistance to students who span the spectrum from at-risk students to AP students. • Assist students studying for College entrance exams.• Provide support for faculty, particularly for those who assign essays

Potential SMARTHINKING Usage at Your Institution?

The Model

• Tutoring Works

• Tutoring from Trained Tutors Works Better

• Tutoring from Trained Tutors at the Moment of Need Works Best

Sources: Maxwell, 1990; Boylan, Bonham & Bliss, 1995; Mandernach, 2005.

What Do Students Want?

• 24/7 service• Wait times less than 5 minutes• Turnaround times less than 24 hours• Archives of tutoring sessions• Technical Support

“hi, i am taking college algebra right now.  I need your services.  what i need to do is fax you a set of 21 questions. and i need for you to

answer all the questions within a 1 to 2 hour time limit.  when you have

answered them i need you to fax the answers back to me.  i will pay you how much ever it costs.  but i will

need them answered within the 1 to 2 hour time limit.  can you help me

and do this for me?  get to me asap.  thanks.”

This Is What Smarthinking Does Not Do !!

Expert Educators

Smarthinking Tutors will– Engage students in discussion through Socratic dialogue.– Engage students in discussion and problem-solving

strategies.– Encourage students with constructive criticism.– Help students see areas where their work can be improved.

Smarthinking Tutors will not– Complete assignments for students.– Provide the students answers.– Re-write student papers.

Available Subjectswriting• Essay Critique• Grammar & Mechanics• Pre-Writing

• Documentation (APA, MLA)• Research Strategies

reading• Reading Comprehension • Vocabulary • Pronunciation

mathematics• Basic Math• Algebra• Liberal Arts Math• Geometry

• Trigonometry• Single-Variable Calculus• Statistics

• Math for Spanish Speakers• Math Beyond Calculus II• Advanced Statistics

science• Biology• General Chemistry• Organic Chemistry

• Physics• Introduction to Anatomy & Physiology

business• Accounting• Economics

• Introductory Finance• Statistics

Available Subjects

computers & technology• MS Word 2010• MS Excel 2010

• MS PowerPoint 2010• MS Access 2010

• Windows 7

English for speakers of other languages (ESOL)• Essay Center • Math in English/Spanish

Spanish• Spanish Essay Center • Grammar Questions

nursing & allied health• Medical-Surgical Nursing• Pathophysiology• Pharmacology• Nursing Care Plans• OB/GYN• Pediatrics

• Anatomy & Physiology• Medical Assisting• Medical Terminology• Oncology• Geriatrics• Mental Health &

Psychiatric Nursing

• Essays• Nursing Administration

Education Management Team – All Educators !!

• Christa Ehmann Powers, Ph.D.– Senior Vice President and Chief Education Officer

• Kirk Benningfield, Ph.D.– Vice President, Education Operations

• Allyson Fetterhoff, Ph.D.– Executive Director, Writing & Humanities

• Andrea Kilkenny, M.A.– Director, Writing

• Julie Radachy, M.Ed.– Academic Coordinator, Writing

• Linda Bush, Ph.D.– Director, Mathematics & Science

• Kendra Douglas, Ph.D.– Associate Coordinator, Spanish

• Michael Wilson, M.A.– Efficiency Specialist, Writing

• Brenda Douglas, M.B.A.– Associate Coordinator, Accounting & Finance

• Randy Russell, Ph.D.– Associate Coordinator, Economics

• Amy Stuber, Ph.D.– Academic Coordinator, Writing

• Denise Woodson, M.A., M.T. – Associate Coordinator, Health Professions & Nursing

• Karen Vos, B.A.– Administrative Coordinator, Writing

Who are Smarthinking’s Tutors?

• QUALIFIED – Over 1,600 tutors. Over 90% have a Masters or a PhD degree in their given or related field; average tutoring and/or instructional experience is 9.2 years. Tutors are Smarthinking employees ensuring quality control. Only 10% of applicants are hired.

• VERIFIED – Screened by Smarthinking’s in-house Education Team

• TRAINED – 4 module online training program (12-15 hours) plus “practicum”

• MONITORED – All interactions with students are saved. Our in-house Education Team evaluates performance and provides professional development.

• BACKGROUND CHECKS - We now do basic, criminal background checks on all ST tutors. Conducted by Kroll, the background check is a Federal Criminal National Records Search. (no finger prints, no state or county level search)

Live Tutoring HoursMath (Basic Skills – Calculus II)

24/7Bilingual MathSunday through Thursday noon to 2 AM ETFriday and Saturday noon to 6 PM ETChemistry, Physics, and Writing

Sunday through Thursday 9 AM to 2 AM ETFriday and Saturday noon to 6PM ET

Accounting, StatisticsSunday through Thursday 12 PM to 2 AM ETFriday and Saturday 12 PM to 6 PM ET

EconomicsSunday through Thursday 3 PM to 1 AM ETFriday and Saturday 12 PM to 6 PM ET

Biology, Intro to Human A&P, Finance, and Organic ChemistrySunday through Thursday 9 PM to 1 AM ET

SpanishSunday through Thursday 9 PM to 11 PM ET

Nursing and Allied HealthSunday through Thursday 8 PM to 12 AM ET

Fall Schedule – 2011 – Access Is The Key

Online Writing Lab Essay Submission: 24/7Submit a Question (all subjects): 24/7Schedule a Personal Session: 24/7

Exceptional Service Levels 2011/2012• 91% of students would recommend Smarthinking

to a friend

• Average wait time for on-demand tutoring: < 2 min.

• Average essay return time: 19.6 hours• Over 4 million tutoring sessions to date• Implemented in in over 1,0000 institutions• More than 2.5 million essay reviews• 70% of live sessions occur after 5pm and before 8am

(e.g. outside of traditional business hours)

Spring 2012

• Whiteboard Exit Survey Results– Since 2005, survey response rate has been 38%– Ratings on a 1-5 scale, 5 is highly recommended– 88% favorable tutor rating (Ave. 4.2)– 87% favorable technology rating (Ave. 4.1)– 91% would recommend ST to a friend (Yes/No

answer choice)• Ratings are holding steady semester over

semester

www.facebook.com/smarthinking

SMARTHINKING Works

Research BasedResearch Proven

Independent Research

Pass Rate Comparisons - Students Using Smarthinking vs. All Other Students

Study: Broward College, Florida

Course Smarthinking Students All Other Students % Increase in Pass

RatesPre-Algebra 66% 49% 35%Elementary Algebra 52% 36% 44%Intermediate Algebra 50% 40% 25%College Algebra 58% 46% 26%College Trigonometry 88% 68% 29%Pre-Calculus 81% 59% 37%Introduction to Statistics 71% 63% 13%Composition I 76% 66% 15%Composition II 76% 71% 7%Developmental Writing 76% 57% 33%

Average Grades: Spring 2003 – Spring 2005

Study: Kapiolani Community College, HI

Subject Average Grade

English 22 - Others 2.09

English 22 – With Smarthinking 2.42

Success Rates Spring 2003 – Spring 2005

Grade Distribution A B C D F Total Success Rate

English 22 – Others 388 480 454 202 437 1961 67.4%

English 22 – With Smarthinking 70 72 59 33 33 267 75.3%

The Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, Fall, 2007

Note: English 22 – Others include students who did not use Smarthinking initially, but then used face-to-face tutoring at the CC Tutoring Center

Study: Volunteer State Community College, TN

Volunteer State Community College is one of 13 community colleges in the State of Tennessee, serving 9,000 students.

Vol State has a diverse student population, with a significant number of first-generation college students.

Over 50% of incoming students are tested into Learning Support courses in math, writing and reading.

With new state rules basing funding on student outcomes, Vol State recognized that rapid improvement in student success was needed.

RESULTS: Students Using Smarthinking’s Online Writing Lab were 8 times More Likely to

Successfully Complete Their Course

USER SATISFACTION: 94% of students said Smarthinking was “very easy” or “easy” to use and 88% said it was helpful. Seventy percent (70%) of faculty respondents found Smarthinking “very useful” or “useful.”

Study: Antelope Valley College, CA

• AVC is a 2-year college in Lancaster, CA• Study – Online Writing Lab (OWL)• 2 Cohort Groups to Compare performance in Eng

095, Eng 097, Eng099, and Eng101• Over 95% of incoming students are placed in a Basic

Skills course.• Study measured % of students who passed the

aforementioned English classes• Research Lead: Aaron Voelcker

TERM Non-Smarthinking Users Smarthinking Users

Summer 2009 43.7% 86.1%

Fall 2009 48.0% 75.3%

• Commissioned by the Evaluation Unit of the Division of Florida Colleges• Examined the use and impact of Smarthinking’s online tutoring

services throughout the System. (Note that 27 of 28 Florida State Colleges use Smarthinking)

• Study showed that among students who are taking either developmental education courses or first college-level courses in math or English, those using Smarthinking’s services received higher grades.

• Study showed that scores of study participants and non-participants on the College Preparatory Test, a pre-assessment required of all incoming students, were similar, proving that the higher grades of Smarthinking students do not appear to be a result of self-selection.

• Almost 76,000 Smarthinking tutoring sessions provided to 21,400 Florida students from July 2009–July 2010.

Study: Florida College System

Source: Florida College System, “A Review of the Use of Smarthinking Tutorial Products in the Florida College System,” 2011

Study: Northwest Florida State College

• NWFSC is a 4-year college in Niceville, FL with 7,556 students• Study - 2 High Enrollment Courses in which students

experience difficulty: Composition I (ENC 1101) and Intermediate Algebra (MAT 1033A)

• Study performed during the 2007-2008 academic year• Research Lead: Iris Strunc, Coordinator of Educational Support

Services• Conclusion: Cost of Service has proven worthwhile in assisting

students

Students Using ST Tutoring Students Not Using ST Tutoring

Course Number of Students

Percentage Earning A, B or C

Number of Students

Percentage Earning A, B or C

Difference in Percentage Points

ENC 1101 395 71.8 1,240 63.2 8.6

MAT 1033A 194 60.3 554 43.7 16.6

Study: Open Universities Australia

• Assumption: Using SMARTHINKING increases success rates, course completions, and retention

• Study Profile– Stage 1: 1,312 students in 3 courses used the

Smarthinking Online Writing Lab (OWL) over a 3 month period (Fall 2007)

– Students submitted essays for individualized critique and review.

Results• Achievement

— 80% of students using SMARTHINKING passed— 34% of non-users passed— Students who used Smarthinking were students of limited

academic background• Retention

— “SMARTHINKING users are more likely to re-enroll than non-users” ST users re-enrolled at rate of 54% Non-user re-enrolled at the rate of 43% Depending on the group studied, retention rates

increased from 10% to 17.4%• Quality

— 93% of students were satisfied or highly satisfied with the OWL

Study: Open Universities Australia

Outcomes in Pre-Calculus Fall - 2008 • Out of 900 students who had math needs prior to taking

calculus, 188 students used some type of intervention: F2F peer tutoring, group tutoring, ST

• Student Pass Rates:With Intervention = 60.1% With No-Intervention = 49.2%

• Pass Rates by Intervention Type:F2F Tutoring = 59.3%Group Tutoring = 61.5%Smarthinking Tutoring = 67.7%

• These statistics are impressive since the University had many years of previous experience with F2F and Group Tutoring, but had less than one year of experience using Smarthinking.

Study: Old Dominion University, VA

July 18, 2011Community-College Students Perform Worse Online Than Face to FaceBy Ryan BrownCommunity-college students enrolled in online courses fail and drop out more often than those whose coursework is classroom-based, according to a new study released by the Community College Research Center at the Teachers College at Columbia University.

The study, which followed the enrollment history of 51,000 community-college students in Washington State between 2004 and 2009, found an eight percentage-point gap in completion rates between traditional and online courses. Although students who enrolled in online courses tended to have stronger academic preparation and come from higher income brackets than the community-college population on the whole, researchers found that students who took online classes early in their college careers were more likely to drop out than those who took only face-to-face courses. Among students who took any courses online, those with the most Web-based credits were the least likely to graduate or transfer to a four-year institution.………….

The report suggests several ways to improve online courses, including increased technological support for students and more extensive training in online-teaching methods for faculty. The research was backed by the Lumina Foundation for Education and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

STUDY: The Chronicle of Higher Education

• Altamaha Technical College• Atlanta Technical College• Atlanta Metropolitan College• Georgia Virtual Technical College• Central Georgia Technical College• Southeastern Technical College• Ogeechee Technical College• Okefenokee Technical College• Southwest Georgia Technical College• Savannah Technical College• Gwinnett Technical College• University of West Georgia – eCore• University of West Georgia• Georgia College and State University• Georgia Gwinnett College• Georgia Perimeter College• Savannah State University• Piedmont College

Schools in Georgia That Use Smarthinking

• Capitan High School • Dexter High School • Goddard High School • Hagerman High School • Hondo High School • Lake Arthur High School • Loving High School • Mescalero/Apache School • Roswell High School • University High School • Roswell High School Tutoring Program• Mississippi Gear Up Program• State of Florida• Halstrom High School• Mt. Pleasant Area School District, PA• Milliard Public Schools• Insight Schools – Washington and Wisconsin• Nash/Rocky Mount Public Schools, NC• Washoe County Schools, NV• Anson County Schools, NC• Osceola County Schools, FL

Partial List of K-12 School Districts in the United States That Use Smarthinking

University of Alaska - AnchorageTroy University, ALOpen Universities, AustraliaUniversity of California - DavisUniversity of Georgia eCoreGeorge Washington University, DCGallaudet University, DCUniversity of The District of ColumbiaFlorida Institute of TechnologyUniversity of Northern IowaMoorhead State University. KYLouisiana State UniversityMcNeese State University, LAUniversity of Louisiana, LafayetteFayetteville State University, NCPfeiffer University, NCUnion University, TNTuskegee University, AL

Boston UniversityTriCounty University, MAMNSU - Minnesota State Colleges Universities Elizabeth City State University, NC Minot State University, NDUniversity of North Dakota Thomas Edison State College, NJ Eastern New Mexico University University of New Mexico Empire State College, NYOhio University University of Cincinnati Youngstown State University, OHUniversity of Tennessee Regents Online Degree ProgramBethel University, TNTennessee State University, TNThe University of West Alabama

Duquesne University, PAMiddle Tennessee State University Baylor University, TXSul Ross State University, TX Texas State UniversityTexas Women's University The University of Texas Medical Branch University of North Texas University of Northern Virginia Central Washington University Glenville State College, WVWest Virginia State UniversityOld Dominion University, VAWestern Carolina University, NCAppalachian State University, NCThe University of AlabamaThe University of South Alabama

A Small Sampling of the over 1,000 Schools That Use Smarthinking

SMARTHINKING Provides Substantive Reports to Help Schools Monitor Usage

• Usage Report

• Usage Summary

• Registered Students

• Usage by Student

Reports

What Is Desirable About Smarthinking?

• Institution can purchase by the hour, by the FTE student or attached to a purchase of Pearson products

• Institution only pays for services at the times they are used• Some students prefer the anonymity of SMARTHINKING • Clients report that their face-to-face tutoring has increased

after they implement Smarthinking• Institution can choose student usage limits, subjects available,

and logo and colors• Single Sign-on Access through Angel, Bb, WebCT, Moodle and

other LMSs• A Smarthinking Implementation Specialist will work directly

with you to set up service and train faculty and students

Barry L Berman, PhDSales Director9635 Huntcliff TraceAtlanta, GA 30350-2615Office: 770-587-2082Cell: 678-521-8622E-mail: bberman@smarthinking.com

Danny ClarkImplementation SpecialistCell: 727-424-0325E-mail: dclark@smarthinking.com

David CashwellVice President6001 Silkwood WayRaleigh, NC 27612Office : (919) 803-4681Cell: (919) 623-3328E-mail: dcashwell@smarthinking.com

Thank You from Your Smarthinking Team

A Walkthrough of Smarthinking from a Student’s Perspective

Live Demonstration