University College

UC Action: Academic Assistance using Faculty Involvement to

Increase Retention at the University of Oklahoma

Mark Walvoord, Interim DirectorStudent Learning Centerhttp://uc.ou.edu/action alc@ou.edu

Higher Education Conference on Enrollment Management

University College

University College: Where OU Excellence Begins

Encouraging students to take ACTION towards their

own academic success

University College

• Free, certified, on-campus tutoring• Convenient times (evenings) and locations (Wagner Hall,

Housing, and elsewhere)• Students able to have scheduled time-on-task• Sessions include active and collaborative learning to

promote critical thinking• Students are coached in practicing effective study behaviors• Content experts are available to guide students to learn the

material

UC Action Features

University College

Walk-in Courses We’ve Offered: ACCT 2113, ACCT 2123, ACCT 3113, ACCT 3123, ARAB 1115, ARAB 1225, ARAB 2113, ARAB 2223, BIOL 1005, BIOL 1013, BIOL 1134, CHEM 1315, CHEM 1415, CHEM 3053, CHEM 3153, CHEM 3653, CHIN 1115, CHIN 1225, CHIN 2113, CHIN 2223, ECON 1113, ECON 1123, ECON 3113, ENGL 1213, FREN 1115, FREN 1225, GEOL 1104, GEOL 1114, GEOL 2224, GEOL 3223, GEOL 3233, GERM 1115, GERM 1225, HEBR, HIST 1493, ITAL 1115, ITAL 1225, LAT 1115, LAT 1225, MATH 0113, MATH 0115, MATH 0123, MATH 1473 , MATH 1503 , MATH 1523 , MATH 1643, MATH 1743, MATH 1823, MATH 2513, MBIO 2815, MUTH 1511, MUTH 1611, MUTH 2512, MUTH 2612, MUTH 1522, MUTH 1622, PE 3213, PE 3223, PE 3413, PE 3723, PHYS 1205, PHYS 2414, PHYS 2424, PSc 1113, PSY 1113, RUSS, SOC 3113, SPAN 1115, SPAN 1225, SPAN 2113, SPAN 2223, SPAN 3073, Studying & Reading commons, ZOO 1114, ZOO 1121, ZOO 1124, ZOO 2124, ZOO 2234, ZOO 2255, ZOO 3103, ZOO 3113, ZOO/BOT 3333, ZOO/BOT/MBIO 4843/5843

University College

• Walk-in• Faculty/GTAs use

office hours--promotes faculty – student interaction

• Larger visit numbers

CentersTutoringAppointments • Walk-in• Usually hosted by 2,

trained, undergrad Peer Learning Assistants

• 1-6 students with 1 Peer Learning Assistant (2nd sem.)

• Wagner 245 or HLC• Some offered online• Offers extra subjects

UC Action Features

University College

Recruitment & Selection of Peer Learning Assistants (PLAs)

• Instructor recommendations• Demonstrated mastery in course

(A in course)• Successful academic history

(prefer 3.5 cumulative GPA or higher)

• Individual interview process• Peer recommendations

University College

PLA Training

• International Certification (College Reading & Learning Association, Levels 1 and 2)

• 12 hours of training/semester• Pedagogy and team building• Peer coaching, nightly GA rounds,

individual evaluations each semester

University College

PLA Training

Topics• Communication Skills

• Socratic Questioning• Non-verbals

• Learning Styles• Professionalism

• Study Strategies• Campus Resources• Academic Integrity• Group Dynamics• Tutoring pedagogy

University College

PLA TrainingTopics:

Pedagogy• Encouraging Critical Thinking

• Concept Mapping• Socratic Questioning

• Managerial Walkabout• Peer Collaboration

University College

• Walk-in• Faculty/GTAs use

office hours--promotes faculty – student interaction

• Larger visit numbers

CentersTutoringAppointments • Walk-in• Usually hosted by 2,

trained, undergrad Peer Learning Assistants

• 1-6 students with 1 Peer Learning Assistant (2nd sem.)

• Wagner 245 or HLC• Some offered online• Offers extra subjects

UC Action Features

University College

Action Centers

Faculty are:• Asked to use two or more of their office hours in a neutral location• Offered one or more paid, trained Peer Learning Assistants• Able to apply for a $400 grant for session activities (candy

incentives, copies, supplies)• Advertising in class, leading to higher visit numbers at sessions• Interacting with students, which research shows increases

retention

Faculty directed, course-specific, collaborative, problem-based learning

University College

Faculty/Instructors Advocates: Brad Abbott, Mike Abraham, Ari Berkowitz, Melody Brooks, Mauricio Carvallo, Cindy Cuccia, Ann Dunn, David Durica, Peggy Ellis, Doug Gaffin, Ann Gettys, Phil Gibson, Daniel Glatzhofer, Cindy Gordon, Shawn Gralla, Ron Halterman, Mariëlle Hoefnagels, Penny Hopkins, Emily Johnson, Liz Karr, Heather Ketchum, Carol

Faculty directed, course-specific, collaborative, problem-based learning

Knapp, Chris Knapp, Rosemary Knapp, Keri Kornelson, Qihong Liu, David McCauley, Karen Meysick, Mark Morvant, Mayasam Pournik, Paul Sims, Carl Sondergeld, Wayne Thomas, Clarissa Thompson, Jim Thompson, Hilde Votaw, Mark Walvoord, Gary Wellborn, Don Wilson, Ning Yu,

Action Centers

and Bing Zhang

= 41 since Fall 2007

University College

Action Centers

University College

Action Centers

What UC Action Faculty are saying: • “Action Centers are the best thing to happen to my class since

clickers.” Dr. Hoefnagels, Concepts of Biology• "It's what I wish I could do in the classroom." Dr. Morvant, Organic

Chemistry• [It is a] "Great way to engage students in learning." Dr. Cuccia,

Accounting• “Action Centers are low cost, high reward.” Dr. Gordon, Human

Anatomy

University College

I love the action center tutoring program. Action Center tutoring is tied for first place for reasons I like OU along with the professors I have had here (interestingly mainly the professors who have integrated this into AC tutoring into their classroom).

It was a lot of help and i encourage everyone to try it out! They helped alot!!! This is the second year I have used

the action centers. I find them extremely helpful and very informative. I plan to use them next semester as well.

I would recommend more professors take the time to add this into their curriculum if at all possible. It really makes a difference.

I don't know what I would do without this resource!

Action Centers

What clients are saying:

University College

Evaluation

• Usage• Mid- and End-semester client satisfaction surveys• Change in faculty advocacy • Success rates of users vs. non-users (currently per subject,

requested from professor)• Equalizing for ACT or other covariates (in progress)

• Persistence in course series (in progress)• Yearly retention rates (in progress)

Usage and Subjects Offered by Semester

Usage & Visit Data

University College

• Usage• Mid- and End-semester client satisfaction surveys• Change in faculty advocacy • Success rates of users vs. non-users (currently per subject,

requested from professor)• Equalizing for ACT or other covariates (in progress)

• Persistence in course series (in progress)• Yearly retention rates (in progress)

Evaluation

University College Fall 2010 mid-semester

Client Surveys

n=275

Peer Learning Assistant category

University College

n=275

Facilities & Visits category

Fall 2010 mid-semester

Client Surveys

University College

• Usage• Mid- and End-semester client satisfaction surveys• Change in faculty advocacy • Success rates of users vs. non-users (currently per subject,

requested from professor)• Equalizing for ACT or other covariates (in progress)

• Persistence in course series (in progress)• Yearly retention rates (in progress)

Evaluation

ZOO 1114 Fall 2010 (student that sought

academic assistance)

Repeated Measures ANOVA; p=0.0004

Organic Chemistry Spring 2008,Change in Exam Average

Organic Chemistry Spring 2010

University College Future Plans

• Staffing• Full-time Student Learning Center front desk staff• Continued recruiting of faculty for focus subjects• Recruit education research-oriented PhD student as new GA

(goal: 5-year employee, research publications)

• Continuous Improvement• Focus on improving quality rather than increasing number of

subjects offered or PLAs hired• More usability of TutorTrac search function used by clients for

session booking/viewing• Improve ease-of-use/training for online tutoring

• Assessment• Allow quantitative analysis through

download of Banner data (enrollment, grades) to our tracking software (TutorTrac)

• Improve setup of reporting in TutorTrac

University College

UC Action: Academic Assistance using Faculty Involvement to Increase

Retention at the University of Oklahoma

Mark Walvoord, Interim DirectorStudent Learning Centerhttp://uc.ou.edu/action alc@ou.edu