Strategies for Retaining Students

Information in this post comes primarily from the article "Retaining Students in Classes: Putting Theory into Everyday Practice," by Laura Saret.

Saret explores several reasons why students may not persist in college, including money, lack of goal alignment, isolation, and outside responsibilities, just to name a few. Although many reasons may be outside of our control, if we better understand our students and their needs, we stand a better chance of helping students see the value in staying in our class and attaining an education.

Some of the suggestions that Saret makes in the section titled "Classroom Practice: Strategies for Improving Retention," include the following listed ideas. These suggestions are paraphrased for this blog post. For full information on each bullet, please read the article in full.

• Show your passion for teaching and the subject matter.
• Get to know your students and help them get to know you as well as each other.
• Show students that you think they can be successful and are willing to help them accordingly.
• Encourage active engagement and participation in class.
• Facilitate activities to help the students read and understand the syllabus on their own terms.
• Show students the relationship between the course goals and their personal goals.
• Allow students to openly express their fears and anxieties.
• Clearly communicate expectations.
• Make sure students have plenty of notice for assignments and tests. Consider their other responsibilities.
• Emphasize the importance of grit, time management, dedication, and hard work.
• Keep students for the full class period on the first day to set expectations for the remainder of the semester. Continue making effective use of class time.
• Ask students who miss the first class to meet with you.
• Frequently refer to the syllabus throughout the semester.
• Practice flexibility when possible.
• Show your students that you care about them and their success.
• Provide frequent and low-stakes opportunities for success.
• Move around the room and be accessible to students.
• Help your students prepare and study for your class.
• Make attendance expectations clear.
• Make your classroom a community of invested learners.
• Request student feedback on your performance.
• Help students with advising needs.
• Share ideas with colleagues and do research on best practices.

Some of these suggestions seem to be obvious, but it is the combination of all of them that make the classroom more conducive to student learning.

Progress Meetings

The first major test or assignment can set the tone for the remainder of the semester.

For many students, their results on the first major test or assignment can serve to encourage or discourage them for the rest of the course.

For teachers, results from the first major test or assignment help us assess our students' comprehension, skill level, and overall preparedness.

But results of these assessments should also help us evaluate and adjust our plan of action for the upcoming assignments and assessments. Many times, we may not recognize flaws in our delivery system until we see grades that reflect comprehension issues. Of course, not all poor grades are a reflection of our mistakes. Sometimes, students simply are not prepared, interested, or ready (for whatever reasons) for our course.

Meeting with students directly after the first major grade can help us determine what we need to do as well as assist our students in developing a plan for what they need to do to successfully complete the course. Midterm success conferences are required here at our college for students who are not passing the course; however, if we can find the time to meet with these students sooner than midterm, we may provide necessary intervention before the second problematic grade rolls in. Some teachers even elect to meet with all students regarding the first major grade. During these meetings, students often reveal issues that may be delaying or jeopardizing their success. We can choose to review the grade with each student, or we can simply ask the student to elaborate on factors that may have contributed to the grade. Additionally, these individualized meetings encourage students to open up to us, ask questions, and seek our help moving forward.

In some cases, we may even find that the solution is simple, and the student may become immediately successful as a result. We also have the opportunity to refer students to helpful college resources for additional assistance or issues outside our area of expertise.

Overall, meeting one-on-one with students facilitates a deeper understanding of the students' needs and teacher's expectations. It also develops a relationship of trust and rapport between the teacher and students.