Fostering Climates of
Learning for Future
Students
Betsy L. Diegel, Ed.D
Director or Academic Services & Associate Professor
GROUND RULES
 Be open-minded
 Be honest with yourself
 Raise your hand and answer or verbally reflect on any
question I have in the presentation.
 Commit to making at least one change for future teaching
practices.
SURVEY
A student perspective view
of your classroom….
VINCENT TINTO
 5 main conditions that we as faculty have control over:
1. Expectation
2. Advice
3. Support
4. Involvement
5. Learning
 Students are much more likely to persist and graduate in
settings that support the above.
 Take control so students can realize their full potential of
developmental growth.
 Most important condition for student retention: Fostering
learning
NSSE (NATIONAL SURVEY OF
STUDENT ENGAGEMENT
 5 benchmarks of effective teaching practices





1. Level of academic challenge
2.Active/Collaborative learning
3. Student/Faculty exchange
4. Enriching educational experiences
5. Supportive campus environment
-academic & social needs
 Let’s examine this now through examples that you can
incorporate into your teaching practices on a regular
basis!
LEVEL OF ACADEMIC
CHALLENGE
No student rises to low expectations- Les Brown
 Teach the subject matter the first day of class.
-begin to build a sense of community
 How well do you feel you are doing in bridging the gap between
the high achieving student vs. less than prepared student?
 Listen and sit down in their group during active learning
activities, ask questions, walk around the room, offer praise
 Make frequent eye contact.
ACTIVE/COLLABORATIVE
LEARNING
 Hold students accountable for taking on their share of the
responsibility for learning. More of them, less of me!
 Put them in charge of their learning and encourage them to
reach higher
Ex) Leader of a class conversation instead of
a speech.
Ex) Ask students to suggest a new method of
learning material.
 Students will respect you when they know that they have a
voice in how they learn, not just what they learn.
STUDENT/FACULTY
EXCHANGE
 Are you the first one to arrive to class? Last one to leave?
 Casually chat with students before and after class, know
their names.
 Do you participate in the first icebreaker alongside of
them?
 Acknowledge them on campus or in public- less likely to
be scared if you know them and care
 Welcome them to your office hours
 Set a mandatory amount of visits students need to attend
your office hours (Ex) 2X per semester).
STUDENT/FACULTY
EXCHANGE
 Students love to give us their feedback but it is just as
crucial for us to be giving detailed, consistent feedback to
students.
Ex) in class counseling sessions
 Online environment- do you welcome every student
individually and respond to the Introduction DB during the
first week?
 Going beyond weekly office hours
 Video lectures
 Setting aside time to be available to assist with
groupwork
 Motivation (U of Phoenix, 2014)
ENRICHING/EDUCATIONAL
EXPERIENCES
 People don’t care what you know until they know you
care- (Marshall,2012)
 Build a community of learners- create a “Family”
-talk about things that matter to them
-have them create personal goals the first day
-rigorous but fun
 “Don’t even think about dropping this class because I will
hunt you down!” (Spencer, 2013).
ENRICHING/EDUCATIONAL
EXPERIENCES
 In class experience- Complete an exam in trios after they
have just completed the exam alone
 Weave diversity into the curriculum through an out of
class assignment (students interview each other, onlineFacetime each other)
SUPPORTIVE CAMPUS
ENVIRONMENT
 We are doing an awesome job! Results from Student
Satisfaction Survey every year.
 Do you assume students are not prepared when really they
could be fearful of you or the course?
 Fear of failure
 First Gens
 Educate ourselves about fear, recognize it, offer
guidance
 Video yourself
 Create a safe learning environment
 Receive feedback from a colleague about your syllabus,
ask to sit in on your class
 Fair policies, nuturing learning environment,
encouraged to ask questions, assignments are clear
SUPPORTIVE CAMPUS
ENVIRONMENT
 Refer a student who has psychological, emotional,
financial trouble. We are not counselors.
 Do not want the classroom climate that we have
established to be altered.
 Classroom relationships are involuntary.
ADDITIONAL
CONSIDERATIONS
The Teaching Professor- May 2014 issue
Taking the Tech Out of Technology
• Students did not want more technology
• Wanted and needed more instructor contact (talking,
professional bonding, feedback)
• Suggestion: Blend human contact ---- Technology
•
What ideas do you have?
ANOTHER CLIMATE TO
CONSIDER: IMPLEMENTING
THE FLIPPED CLASSROOM
 BIOL 121L- Fall 2013 through Spring/Summer 2014
 Past- spent too much time lecturing to prepare students
for lab activities
 End of semester survey, focus group
 Not an entirely flipped classroom
 Video(s)
 Handouts
 Weekly pre-lab quiz
SURVEY RESULTS
 77% better experience in BIOL 121L because of
pre-lab work as compared to other lab classes.
 78% had more confidence in lab each week
because of the pre-lab work and completing the
10 point quiz.
 92% liked knowing what was covered before
coming to lab.
 81% felt they could participate more in lab.
 38% felt their lab practical scores increased
because of the work they had to complete before
coming to lab.
QUALITATIVE
FEEDBACK
 Great and very beneficial
 Great approach, helpful
 Liked knowing what we were doing ahead of time
 Hit the ground running- begin with learning not listening
 I wouldn’t have pre-read otherwise, only would have done
what was due that day.
 Talked too fast
 Add cumulative questions to quiz each week
 Want it again in future
COME FULL CIRCLE
What do you think about your survey responses now?
Take time to make notes, reflect
TAKE HOME MESSAGE
Share the most valuable item you have
learned from today’s presentation.
Take what you have learned today to
inform future teaching practices.
My goal for you: Implement at least one new item this Fall
2014!
REFERENCES
Bledsoe, T., & Baskin, J. (2014). Recognizing student fear: The elephant in the classroom. College
Teaching, 62(1), 32-41
Boyer, S. Edmonson, D., Artis, A. & Fleming, D. (2014). Self-directed learning: A tool for lifelong
learning. Journal of Marketing Education, 36(1), 20-32.
Tinto, V. (2001, June 19). Taking Student Retention Seriously. Annual Recruitment and Retention
Conference, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Austin, Texas. Retrieved May 11, 2006 from
http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/fsd/c2006/docs/takingretentionseriously.pdf.