Inadequate Academic Preparation
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Lack of skill sets: reading and writing skills, study skills, critical thinking skills,
and math skills
Need for study skills specific to a discipline
Lack of knowledge of native language; continuing difficulties mastering English
as a second language
Lack of tech skills for online students
Varying levels of educational skills within a classroom
Patterns of passive learning inhibit students from actively engaging in class
Students take high level content courses before they have taken the reading,
writing, or math classes necessary to succeed
Students postpone their English and/or math courses until just before transfer
Students come to college with a “high school attitude” about studying; lack
structure and time commitment
Some take online courses because they are convenient, but this can lead to
“convenience” being applied to basic course requirements and standards –
timelines, exam dates, etc.
New students have an inflated idea of their academic abilities
Disconnection between students’ oral presentation of information versus written
presentation (papers, exams)
Social Constraints: Family, Finances, Housing, Work, Etc.
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Financial pressures impact amount of time that can/is spent on class
Lack of knowledge of college support services
Outside distractions: “impinging urgencies,” developmental/emotional issues,
employment, etc.
First generation college students sometimes encounter a lack of support at home
or failure to understand of demands of college
Students will borrow money for a car but won’t sacrifice time from work to
devote to school
Basic personal needs may get in the way of attending class (ex. child care)
Families may dictate majors (ex. business) leading to students who aren’t
personally invested in their goals
Distractions take away from schoolwork: jobs, family, social life, etc.
Large category of student “stressors”
Alcohol and drug problems
Lack of Understanding about the Culture of the College (e.g. student/teacher
expectations)
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Lack of realistic expectations about college: amount of work required, how to use
resources, how to work with teachers, etc.
Failure to see connection between course requirements and student goals
Failure to see practical application of schoolwork to the future (wanting to
“complete” courses rather than learn subject matter
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Desire to receive information rather than receive an education
Sense of entitlement; idea that showing up is sufficient (high school view)
Sporadic or inappropriate utilization of college services
Students take too many classes; this leads to time management problems, stress,
and poor performance in all classes
Inability to see how past choices have affected present circumstances
Students don’t know how to learn, how to negotiate the educational system
Disconnect between what early failure in college does to affect student’s future
Lack of recognition of what is gained by becoming a life-long learner
Students see grades as “given” rather than “earned.”
Lack of Motivation
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Students need incentives to do what is good for them
Lack of motivation or lack of insight into own motivation
Lack of self-direction
Students have perception that they can’t learn, that a class is too difficult for them
Unclear Sense of the College Community and Identity within It
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Mental health issues: campus not always welcoming; large numbers of isolated
students; the kind of unity that comes from international student community not
available to students from out of town
Night students have difficulty accessing all campus resources
Institutional Constraints
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Time pressures of the classroom: urgency to complete work in a given time rather
than achieve a level of quality in work
Pressures to choose a major, enter career path as soon as possible
Students don’t take necessary courses if they aren’t transferable (Ex. Eng. 103)
Lack of enforcement of skills advisories; students take courses without necessary
reading, writing and critical thinking skills to succeed
Learning styles aren’t always accommodated
Classrooms have motivated and unmotivated students, skilled and unskilled
students
Students feel standards are negotiable for different classes (ex. apply different
standards for writing assignments in non-English classes); expectations are
different among courses, even similar courses (lack of a “united front”)
Grades feed the syndrome of “What is the least I can do to get the reward?”
Models of instruction can increase student stress
Conflicts arise when instructors try to maintain realistic/high standards and
respond to pressure to raise success rates
Students may be focused on attaining personal goals rather than achieving
College’s definition of academic success