Innovative Strategies for Improving Student Retention: A Question of Quality

1. Innovative Strategies for Improving Student Retention: A Question of Quality Ruby S. Alleyne Ph.D. The University of Trinidad & Tobago (UTT) Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

2. Higher Education Environment • Participation rate in Trinidad and Tobago rose from 7% in 2001 to 40% in 2008. • Expenditure on the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (GATE) increased exponentially from $102 m in the 2004/2005 fiscal year to $625 m in fiscal 2010/2011. • Cumulative cost to taxpayers over a seven-year period is $3 bn.

3. Investment in Education • In Trinidad and Tobago, the state allocated approximately $9.1 bn to education and training out of a total budget of $58.4 bnfor the fiscal year 2012/2013 (Ministry of Finance, 2012). • This represents approximately 15.6% of the national budget.

4. Wider access = Greater diversity Survey of new students at the University of Trinidad and Tobago in 2011: 8% - reported some form of physical, medical or other challenge 51% - first-generation (first in their family to attend a tertiary-level institution) 74% - primarily dependent on GATE

5. Student’s Terms and Conditions for Tertiary Tuition Funded by GATE GATE is a “loan from the Government to the Student which shall be repaid to the Government with interest” The student agrees to refund to the government the full amount of the loan if he/she: • Abandons the course of study • Fails to obtain the qualification where such failure is due to the Student not applying himself/herself diligently to his/her studies; or • Fails to accept employment in the public or private sector in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago after the conclusion or termination of the programme

6. “As at March 2013, $16,539,931 mnwas reimbursed for programmes which were incomplete” Source: FGAD

7. Undesirable consequences of student attrition • Unprofitable investment (state or other funding agent, personal/family) • Loss of revenue for the institution • Negatively impacts the student’s earning potential and career advancement

8. Global research Report by American College Testing (ACT) 25.9% of freshmen at four-year institutions do not return Highly selective institutions reported a dropout rate of 8% Less selective institutions – dropout rate of 35% Open enrolment institutions – dropout rate of 50% Source: Devarics and Roach, 2000

9. Retention theories and models • Retention refers to an institution’s ability to keep students enrolled from admission to graduation. • Voluntary departure occurs when the student takes a decision not to continue the course of study to completion • Involuntary departure occurs when the student is not permitted by the institution to re-enrol

10. Retention theories and models Early studies examined the causal relationship between student withdrawal and variables such as: • gender • type of institutional control • geography • size of student body • location Factors such as academic failure and financial difficulties were found to be linked to student withdrawal.

11. Astin Studies explored psychological, personal, familial, social and economic issues and environmental factors. Psychological factors included internal and external motivation. Personal factors in Astin’s study (1975)were academic and family background, age, marital status and expectations about college. Environmental factors included employment, academic environment and characteristics of the college.

12. Astin Experiential factors should be taken into account as students who participated in extra-curricular activities were more likely to persist to the completion of their degrees. He contended that these findings supported the ‘involvement theory’ that students who were more directly involved in the academic and social life of the college are more likely to persist (Astin,1985).

13. Kamens Kamens (1971) suggested that the more prestigious a college’s perceived identity, the higher the level of economic positions and occupational roles its graduates are likely to occupy. Students were encouraged to persist because of the belief that graduation would bestow privileges and prestige that were not available to others.

14. Spady Spady(1970) suggested that student withdrawal is best explained by examining the interaction between the student and the academic and social systems. He posited that students who successfully integrated into the academic and social systems were more likely to persist.

15. Tinto • Tinto (1987;1993) identified the student’s experiences within the college as the most important factor affecting integration. • Quality of academic performance or intellectual development = successful integration into the academic system • Close relationships or friendships = successful social integration.

16. Methodology There were108students who were expected to re-enrol to continue their studies in the 2012-2013 academic year but did not do so. A telephone survey was conducted and 44 students (40.7%) participated. A 40-item structured interview schedule with a mix of closed and open-ended questions was administered.

17. Methodology The survey probed: • Personal and institutional factors influencing the decision to withdraw • Student expectations of the university • Reasons for enrolling • Social interaction on campus • Assessment of in-class experience • Assessment of out-of-class experience • Assessment of student support

18. Methodology • Descriptive statistics were applied to generate percentages illustrating frequency of specific student responses. • Pearson’s Chi-Square test was also used to test for significance. • Content of responses to open-ended questions was analysed and summarised under appropriate descriptive headings.

19. Results and discussion

20. Distribution of Non-Persisters by Gender

21. Distribution of Non-Persisters by Age Group

22. Distribution of Non-Persisters by Student Status

23. Distribution of Non-Persisters by Programme Level

24. Reasons for withdrawal The majority of students who were surveyed withdrew for personal reasons (81.8%). These included: • challenges coping with tertiary-level studies (31.8%) • difficulty balancing the demands of private life, employment and study (22.7%) • family, medical and other issues (18.2%) • financial problems (9.1%)

25. Reasons for withdrawal Remaining students (18.2%) cited institutional reasons: Academic in nature Dissatisfaction with the lack of programme accreditation or academic regulations (15.9%) Administrative in nature Problems accessing accurate student records (2.3%)

26. Reasons for withdrawal 61.4% stated that their out-of-class experiencecontributed more to their decision to withdraw than their in class experience

27. ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE 44 Students – Mean CGPA = 1.62

28. ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE 108 Students – Mean CGPA = 1.62

29. Re-enrolment Potential 75% of students said that they would be interested in re-enrolling at UTT and approximately half of this figure (45.5%) would want to do so within the next year. Of those students who do not wish to re-enroll at UTT, 35.7% of them would prefer to enroll at another local institution. 60% of that figure reported that they have already done so.

30. UTT could encourage them to re-enroll by: • Providing more academic advisement and support for part-time students, freshers and younger students (50%) • Improving programme administration(25%) • Getting specialised accreditation for specific engineering programmes(12.5%)

31. UTT could encourage them to re-enroll by: • Monitoring more closely the ability of students to cope with the demands of university life (4.2%) • Providing small group tutoring to support instruction particularly when class size is large (4.2%) • Offering programmes at different geographical locations to make it easier for students to commute(4.2%)

32. Academic Integration A clear majority of students expressed satisfaction in the following areas: • Useful feedback from lecturers on assignments (84.1%) • Fair assessment of student academic performance (81.8%) • Quality of instruction(75%) • Grades earned (65.9%)

33. Academic Integration When asked whether they had problems coping with the academic demands, 59.1% said they had. Only 47.7% of that figure sought any academic advice or mentoring. Of 38.6% of students whose personal problems made it difficult for them to study, only 11.8% reported that they sought counselling.

34. Social integration Bond of social relationships with peers and family members appeared to be strong among respondents. 90.9% benefited from the time spent at UTT. Of this figure, 62.5% said major benefits were friendships and other positive social interactions Remaining 32.5% said that they had acquired useful knowledge and practical skills.

35. Social integration 47.7 % did not think there were adequate opportunities for social interaction/extra-curricular activities Only 25% were actually involved in clubs or student committees. In making the decision to withdraw from UTT, 84.1% had consulted primarily with their peers, 9.1% with family members and only 6.8% with UTT faculty.

36. Student characteristics Employment status 63.6% of students were working while studying at UTT (54.5% full-time and 9.1% part-time). Following their withdrawal, the figure for those employed rose to 72.7%.

37. Student characteristics First generation students 40.9% were the first person in their family to enroll in a tertiary level institution. Geographic location of Secondary school 70.5% completed their secondary schooling at a school in south or central Trinidad.

38. Reasons for enrolment at UTT The majority of students (77.3%) indicated that their course of study at UTT was relevant to their current career or their career aspirations. Among the specific reasons why respondents had enrolled were: • Study was related to career choice or current employment (40.9%) • UTT offered a programme in an area of interest (34.1%) • Coercion or influence by family members or friends (15.9%) • UTT was the only institution offering the programme(9.1%)

39. Expectation of the University experience 65.9% said the experience at UTT met their expectations. Proportionally males who withdrew appeared to be less satisfied with the UTT experience than females.

40. Retention strategies and programmes

41. Retention strategies and programmes Seidman Formula and Success Model (2012) Ret = Early ID + (E+In+C)IV • Early identification is assessment of student skill levels • Early intervention starts an intervention at the earliest time possible after identification • Intensive intervention creates an intervention that is intensive or strong enough to effect the desired change • Continuous intervention persists until the change is effected.

42. Recommendations • Pre-enrolment Skills Assessment • Modular Skills Mastery programmes • Transition Assistance • Early Alert System • Active Learner Communities

43. Pre-enrolment Skills Assessment • Focus on the reading, writing, computation and information technology skills required for successful academic integration into tertiary level institutions. • Purpose of the assessment is to identify skill gaps that must be filled for the student to cope with the academic requirements of the programme in which he/she is seeking to be enrolled.

44. Modular Skills Mastery Programmes • Intervention must be designed to bring about the desired improvement in the student’s academic performance or personal behaviour. • It must also be sustained until the desired outcome has been satisfactorily achieved.

45. Transition assistance Areas that should be emphasised for successful academic integration are: • study skills and habits • time management • use of libraries and other institutional resources Areas that should be emphasised for successful social integration are: • Stress-management • healthy lifestyles • personal goal-setting • emotional intelligence • interpersonal skills

46. Early Alert System • Student performance and conduct should be monitored by faculty and staff and early signs of problems must be addressed. • An Early Alert System can be set up using the university’s website so that it is widely accessible and offers the student a less intrusive, or observable, avenue for requesting support or assistanceeg. Web Adviser - an online academic advisement system or Web Counsellor– an online personal guidance and support portal.

47. Active Learner Communities • Many students experience difficulty coping with the multiple demands of family, employment, studying and commuting to classes, particularly during late evening and night. • Learner communities can make instruction more effective by facilitating and encouraging active learning and developing collaboration and cooperation among students and faculty.

48. Active Learner Communities • Information technology allows students to: • collaborate in real time • video chat and participate in online meetings • create and share documents and work collaboratively • communicate and work as teams on projects or assignments • Clubs and committees can meet as virtual communities • These communities would reduce the need for face-to-face contact, not replace it, as they facilitate higher levels of student interaction, engagement and participation.

49. Many students drop out of college instead of seeking help Research also shows that students are surprised when contacted by an institution to discuss their reasons for leaving and many of them often re-enroll (Seidman, 2012).

50. Many students drop out of college instead of seeking help In this survey: 88.6% of students said that they were surprised that UTT had called them 99.3% said that they appreciated UTT’s interest in their reasons for leaving 75% of students said that they would be interested in re-enrolling