Does Anybody Know My Name The Need for Relationship

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Does Anybody Know My Name? The Need for
Relationship

• Professor Paula Hixenbaugh
• FACE Seminar Series
• 23 October 2007

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Overview

• Establish importance of relationship
• National context
• Evidence from University of Westminster
• UK/USA evidence
• Personal tutoring as key

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Importance of Relationship to Higher Education

• Mass higher education
• Importance of retention
• Emphasis on the student experience
• Student wellbeing

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HEFCE Strategic Plan 2006-2011

• Students as fee payers are likely to become more
  demanding, and their interest and the quality of
  their learning experience are at the heart of our
  plans

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National Picture

• 30,000 UK students fail to get a qualification
  (NAO,2002)
• HEFCE Strategic Plan 2006-2011
• We think that a high proportion of students
  completing their courses is an important
  indicator of good quality learning, teaching and
  student support.

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Survey of the Student Experience University of
Westminster

• Greater understanding of our students
• Evidence on support needed by students
• Identify factors leading to student success and
  student withdrawal
• A rationale for interventions

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Questionnaire

• On-line
• Demographics
• Life Style Questions
• Psychological and Physical health
• Academic and Social Integration
• National Student Survey Questions

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Procedure

• Given to all first year undergraduate students at
  Westminster in February 2005, 2006 and 2007
• Response rate approximately 25 each year approx
  3,000
• Analysis complete for 2005

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Ethnicity
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(No Transcript)
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Considered Dropping-Out
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Reasons for Considering Abandoning Course
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Analysis

• The higher feelings of integration
• the higher current health ratings.
• The higher feelings of integration
• the higher evaluations of social
• support

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Summary Quantitative Results

• Poor mental health, low student satisfaction and
  poor institutional integration were significant
  in predicting whether students considered
  abandoning their course

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The data allow us to identify possible factors
involved in student attrition (2006)

• For example, those who seriously considered
  dropping out of their course differ significantly
  from those who did not on almost all measures.
• Compared to students who did not consider
  dropping out, they report
• Poorer estimations of physical health (p lt0.001).
• Poorer health now compared to one year ago (p
  0.008).
• A poorer sense of well-being (p lt0.001).
• Significantly lower estimations of social support
  (p lt0.001).
• Significantly lower sense of integration (p
  lt0.001).
• Significantly lower levels of satisfaction with
  their course (p lt0.001).
• Lower levels of education for both their mothers
  (p 0.007) and their fathers (plt0.001).

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Needs of Low Participation Groups

• Thomas (2006) has found that students from
  working class backgrounds may lack the confidence
  to approach personal tutors and may benefit from
  a tutoring system which is more proactive,
  structured and prioritises relationships.

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Integration and Satisfaction

• Strongest relationship found so far
• A strong positive correlation between
  satisfaction with course and Institutional and
  Social Integration.

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Implications

• If we can increase the degree to which students
  feel integrated, it is very likely to lead to
  greater feelings of satisfaction.
• Support for the conclusion that greater
  satisfaction leads to high rates of persistence
  on course.

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Personal Tutoring Key

• Effective personal tutoring can improve
• Integration
• Student satisfaction
• Student persistence

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Qualitative Analysis

• Looking back on the semester, are there any
  particularly positive or negative aspects you
  would like to highlight?
• Optional question
• 403 participants filled in positive question
• 442 participants filled in the negative question

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Sample Qualitative Analysis

• Four themes emerge for both positive and negative
  comments
• Course, staff, student experience, institution
• Concerns about feedback, want quality teaching
  and more staff contact

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Personal TutoringPositive

• I found a great deal of support from my tutor.
  It was reassuring to have one particular person I
  could talk to
• Developing a good relationship with my personal
  tutor was definitely a good thing

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Personal TutoringNegative

• Student - I feel we dont get enough time spent
  with tutors to discuss our work, they always seem
  too busy
• Staff I like personal tutoring and do think it
  is very important but it is time consuming,
  draining and under-resourced

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Resources

• Yorke and Longden (2004)
• Not just additional resources
• ..the way in which teachers interact with, and
  support , students is critically important

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Vincent TintoInnovations in Student Success2006

• A wide range of studies in a variety of settings
  and for a range of students have confirmed that
  the more frequently students engage with faculty,
  staff, and their peers, the more likely, other
  things being equal, that they will persist and
  graduate. Simply put involvement matters.

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UK Evidence

• Retention Team University of Teesside (2005)
• Lack of support from University staff a key
  factor in deciding to leave
• Support from staff also a key factor in deciding
  to stay despite difficulties

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Innovations in Personal TutoringA Growing
Evidence Base

• Faculty based student support officers (Liz Marr
  and Sheila Aynsley-Smith)
• Students 1st (Barbara Lee and Alan Robinson)
• Platoons (Peter Hill)
• On-line Personal Tutoring (Rosalind Croach and
  Ruth Barrett)

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Relationship at the heart of the process

• The concept of relationship includes students
  relationships with staff, with other students and
  with the institution. Personal tutoring has a
  key role to play in the fostering of these
  relationships

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References

• HEFCE Strategic Plan 2006-2011 Consultation,
  November 2005/45.
• http//www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2005/05_45/
  05_45.pdf
• National Audit Office (2002). Improving student
  achievement in English higher education Report
  by the Comptroller and Auditor General, HC486,
  Session 2001-2002 18 January 2002
• Retention Team (2005) Retaining non-traditional
  students in higher education, Centre for Learning
  and Quality Enhancement University of Teesside
• Thomas, L. and Hixenbaugh, P. (2006) (eds.)
  Personal Tutoring in Higher Education, Stoke on
  Trent Trentham Books
• York, M. and Longden, B. (2004) Retention and
  success in higher education, Maidenhead SRHE and
  Open University Press.