Joanne Damminger, Ed.D. Rowan University Annual Conference on the First-Year Experience

1. First-Year Experiences Focused on Intentional Learning and Decision Making Joanne Damminger, Ed.D. Rowan University Annual Conference on the First-Year Experience February 19, 2007

2. Objectives To inform participants about: • A comprehensive learning community • Research results • Intentional learning techniques • MyRoad • Discover • Let Me Learn and LCI • LCI First-Year initiative

3. “Visions of the Future”(VOF) Learning Community Visions of the Future: Setting Your Career Plan in Motion is A comprehensive first-year learning community for undeclared students. It is sponsored by the Office of VP for Student Affairs

4. Learning Community (LC) Learning Outcomes Students will: • Readily meet and know other students, professors and administrators to ease their social and academic adjustment • Learn about themselves and what it means to become intentional learners • Be well-informed as a result of community meetings and activities • Understand the value of career advising • Intentional academic advising • Exploring self, learning patterns, majors, and occupations.

5. Components of the Program • Grouped housing • Paired courses (CCIand Rowan Seminar) • Faculty interaction • Peer mentors • Intentional career advising (more to come) • Sense of community • Structured monthly meetings • Self-assessment of learning patterns, interests, values, and abilities • Exploration of majors and careers • Socialization • Time management • Campus involvement

6. Relationship to Theory • First-year Experience • John Gardner (1999) states that the learning community is the “structural and pedagogical innovation currently being developed in American higher education [that] may hold the greatest promise for improving first-year student academic performance and retention” (p. v). • Tinto’s Integration Theory • Tinto (1987, 1993) states that students who become integrated in the institution’s social and academic systems maintain commitment to degree completion. • Theory of Involvement • Astin (1977, 1993) states student involvement leads to learning and determining the quality college experience. • NACE Virtual Seminar, Career Counseling & the Elusive Freshman, 2/6/03 • Developmental freshmen need information, self-knowledge, sense of community, and self-management

7. Self-Assessment, Majors, and Occupations • MyRoad.com • by Collegeboard.com • www.collegeboard.com, 1-888-331-8300, myroadinfo@collegeboard.com • Personality Profiler • Discover • by ACT • www.act.org • D. Killingsworth, Atlanta, Georgia, 404-231-1952 • UNIACT Inventory Both are Internet Accessible

8. Career Advising • Build relationship with academic advisor • 2 advisors assigned to VOF program • Invited to monthly meetings • Students visit each semester • Include self-assessment results in academic advising and course selection • Discuss well-matched majors and criteria to apply • Research related occupations • Consider short and long term career plans

9. Learning Connections Inventory (LCI) • Administer Let Me Learn learning preference inventory by Christine Johnston and Gary Dainton • Learning Outcomes • Students can identify and understand their own patterns and others’ • Students decode assignments and utilize strategies for academic achievement Website: www.letmelearn.org, 856-358-0039

10. LCI Patterns • Sequential • Precise • Technical • Confluent

11. The Sequential Pattern Use First: • I want clear directions. • I prefer step-by-step directions. • I want time to do my work neatly. • I like to do my work from beginning to end. • I want to know if I am meeting the instructor’s expectations. Avoid: • I do not value directions, plan or live by a schedule • I find directions confusing and sometimes frustrating

14. The Precise Pattern Use First: • I ask lots of questions. • I like to answer questions. • I need to be accurate and correct. • I want complete and thorough explanations. • I like a lot of details Avoid • I rarely read for pleasure and don’t attend to details • Memorizing is tedious and a waste of time • Much of the conversation going on around me simply sounds like “blah, blah, blah”

17. The Technical Pattern Use First: • I don’t like to write things down. • I need to see the purpose of what I am doing. • I like to work by myself. • I like to figure things out. • I don’t like to use a lot of words. Avoid: • I don’t like to take things apart; I hire others for building and repairs. • I problem solve with others, not by myself.

20. The Confluent Pattern Use First: • I don’t like doing the same thing over and over. • I see situations very differently then others do. • I like to do things my own way. • I don’t like following the rules. Avoid: • I think taking risks seems foolish and wasteful. • I like to be very careful and cautious in making life decisions.

21. Safety Patrol Report No Report

23. LCI Freshman Initiative • Fall 2006, 73% of class took LCI via email communication • Learned about its value at Orientation, Residence Hall programming and RS class • Fall 2007, first-year students are taking with NJ Placement Test Challenge is informing all constituencies – campus, students and parents

24. Benefits • Assist with academic and social adjustment • Meet and know peers and faculty • Explore self, patterns, majors and related occupations • Apply to well-matched majors in timely fashion • Promote faculty interaction • Increase active student classroom involvement • Encourage campus involvement • Provide transitional support • Foster and model collaboration

25. VOF Retention Data Note: 2005-2006 retention data not yet available.

26. Faculty Feedback FACULTY SAY VOF students: • Develop a sense of community • Students are different in class • They take care of one another • Have an awareness of one another • Interact more frequently • Fail and drop out of class less frequently • Are more engaged in class

27. Student Feedback STUDENTS SAY • It’s an experience you will thank your parents for. The moderators and advisor are really enjoyable to be around and they help you understand college and key strategies for successfully getting through your first two semesters.    • VOF helped me learn a lot about choosing a major and gave lots of advice about getting involved on campus.   • While it was not something I was thrilled to join it has helped me make friends and become comfortable on campus!     • In the confusion of freshman year, VOF is a guide providing information and clearing up any misconceptions. VOF is a bank of information and everything one could know about Rowan!       

28. Learning Community Model in Academic Departments • Currently • Biology all majors • R/TV/Film Pilot • History 2-year model • Fall 2007 • Computer Science

29. Applicability Easily applied and adapted to other institutions

30. Contact Information Joanne K. Damminger, Ed.D. Rowan University 201 Mullica Hill Rd. Glassboro, NJ 08028 (856) 256-4453 damminger@rowan.edu

31. References • Astin, A. W. (1977). Four critical years. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. • Astin, A. W. (1993, Fall). What matters in college? Liberal Education, 79(4), 4-13. • Gardner, J. N., & Levine, J. H. (1999). Trends and future directions. In J. H. Levine (Ed.), Learning communities: New structures, new partnerships for learning (Monograph No. 26) (pp. 9-18). Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina, National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. • Tinto, V. (1987). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. • Tinto, V. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition. (2nd ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. • Wallace, N., February 6, 2003. Career counseling and the elusive freshman, why and how. [NACE Virtual Seminar].