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Common SENSE Lessons. The First Three Weeks: Making it or Breaking It. Student Attributes – The First Three Weeks.
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Common SENSE Lessons The First Three Weeks: Making it or Breaking It
Student Attributes – The First Three Weeks Consider the osprey, snake, and duckling as students in your class. Identify the attributes and skills each might posses or lack in the first week of your class. How are they alike? How are they different?
The First Three Weeks What do you do in the first three weeks to prepare the osprey, snake, and duckling to be successful in your class?
Entering Students - CGCC 86.2 % agree or strongly agree they have the motivation to be successful in college. 82.2% agree or strongly agree they are academically prepared to be successful in college.
Entering Students - CGCC Within the first three weeks of class… 25.6% skipped a class. 33.6% did not turn in an assignment. 36.1% turned in an assignment late. 47.7% came to class without completing readings/assignments.
National Trends Re: Students • 75% of today’s students don’t fit the “traditional model” • 49% are enrolled part-time (true at CGCC) • 25% of full-time students work full time • 60% of full-time students work more than 20 hours/week at 2 yr. colleges • 27% of cc students have dependents of their own Working Their Way Through College; Degrees of Difficulty http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/degrees-of-difficulty.htm#
Expectations…Do your students really get it? “You want it to be one way, but it’s the other way.” ~Mario Stanfield (The Wire)
Expectations…Do your students really get it? • You understand what you expect, but do they understand what you expect? • Does every instructor have the same expectations? • Students don’t know what they don’t know.
Pencil Activity • How do you communicate your expectations to your students?
Case Study • Marcus describes himself as a perfectionist; he prefers to do a job well, or not at all. As a junior computer major, he is an effective and able student in most of his computer courses, which tend to be highly structured. However, this semester he is taking world literature, a course that has little structure and few deadlines.
Case Study, cont’d • His world literature professor told the class to read the text deeply and with understanding and to think about what they have read from an analytical viewpoint. The midterm and final exams are primarily in essay format. The research paper is even more formidable because the professor expects each student to create a project. Marcus’s response has been to procrastinate for the first month of the semester.
Case Study Question • How would you design a plan for Marcus’ professor that would help all of his students be successful in the course?
Strategic Teaching and Learning • Strategic teaching and learning occurs when an instructor intentionally helps students develop the skills they need to be successful in that discipline and at that level. • Skill instruction is integrated in content instruction. • “Helping under-prepared students prepare, prepared students advance, and advanced students excel.” (NADE)
Strategies to Ensure Students Understand Expectations • Assignment(s) • Meaningful feedback • Goal setting • Critical thinking All within the first three weeks!
Based on your experience at week 7 of the semester… • …and given what we’ve discussed, what important skill(s) should your students develop at the beginning of the semester in order to be successful in your course? • What assignment will you give them in the first 3 weeks to develop their proficiency in that skill? • What kind of meaningful feedback will you provide to convey the expected level of performance necessary to succeed in your class?
Students new to CGCC… 86.2 % agree or strongly agree they have the motivation to be successful in college. 82.2% agree or strongly agree they are academically prepared to be successful in college.
