EDUC-6263

The goal of student engagement is said to be achieved when education partners also benefit. With the implementation of student engagement plans, there will be better bonding between education partners (Kuh et al., 2006). This provides a better understanding of student’s needs to boost the campus experience and promotes a more responsive education system.

Educational Programs and Practices

Certain programs and practices for first-and-second-year students are needed. Tinto (1999) suggested that colleges and universities should make learning communities and collaborative learning a critical part of the first-year experience. The key goals for learning communities are to encourage blending of learning across courses and to involve students with big questions that matter beyond the classroom. I believe learning communities allows students to learn from each other. In addition, it is a great opportunity for instructors to make observations how well students are grasping the learning objectives and concepts (Tinto, 1999).

Feedback from instructors and peers are also critical for first-and-second year students. Along with individual feedback (written or verbal), instructors need to provide whole-group feedback on patterns they see in the collective class' growth and areas of need. Students also need to be given opportunities to provide feedback to the teacher so that they could adjust the learning process, materials, and instruction (Alber, 2015).

Institutional Factors

Institutional factors dealing with finances, teaching strategies, and support are all crucial when it comes to persistence and retention for first-and-second-year students. Tinto’s model of institutional departure states that students need academic performance and staff/peer in addition to, student engagement and peer interaction to persist (Tinto, 2010). Tinto (1993) tells us that institutional commitment to students is essential in assuring student success. He notes, it is a commitment that originates from the character of an institution’s educational mission (p. 146).

Colleges and universities are responsible for setting standards with students pertaining to persistence and progress. Supporting students financial and academically is critical to first-and-second year students. Tinto (2010) tells us that one benefit of support programs that focus on first-year students is that colleges and universities help students succeed in that semester, as well as enhancing students’ sense of belief and their ability to succeed.

Lastly, Tinto (2010) points out that work-study programs seems to enhance student retention and are progressively popular (p. 65). Colleges and universities are making it their mission to educate and support all students, especially the first-and-second-year students.

Conclusion

Access to postsecondary education has been steadily increasing however, the enrollment rates of entering first-year students has reduced since the late 1990s (U.S. Department of Education, 2006). Tinto (1993) suggests that conflicting, a lack of fit between the needs, interests, and preferences of the individual and those of the institution, are the reasons students leave college (p. 50). Student retention is needed to the survival of higher education institutions across the nation. Students persisting to the completion of their degree programs is not only a measure of student success, but also institutional success. When students drop out, it can result in remarkable loss to the institution. For example, financial and reduce institutional perceptions by community stakeholders (Lau, 2003).

It is important that all students are engaged, have resources available for them, such as, learning communities, finance support, students support services, and staff collaborative partnerships to help them be successful, so that they can become lifelong learners.

References