The document discusses strategies to boost student engagement and retention in educational settings, emphasizing the importance of active, collaborative learning and effective faculty-student interaction. It highlights tools and resources, such as self-assessments and feedback mechanisms, that can enhance student participation and accountability. Additionally, it outlines methods for early intervention and addressing student challenges to increase course retention rates.

1. Boost Student Engagement
and Retention
RANDI PLAKE
INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGNER
FACULTY WORKSHOP
AUGUST 12, 2020

2. Contents
2
Student engagement
Student retention
Tools and services
1
2
3

3. STRENGTHENING
STUDENT
ENGAGEMENT

4. Student engagement is “the
amount, type, and intensity of
investment students make in
their educational experiences.”
4
—JENNINGS AND ANGELO, 2006

5. STUDENT
ENGAGEMENT
• Affective engagement
• Behavioral engagement
• Cognitive engagement
5
Conner & Pope, 2013

6. FIVE BENCHMARKS OF
EFFECTIVE ENGAGEMENT
1. Academic challenge
2. Active and collaborative
learning
3. Student-faculty interaction
4. Enriching educational
experiences
5. Supportive campus
environment
6
Kuh, 2009, Fredricks, Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004

7. ACTIVE, ENGAGED
LEARNING

8. ACTIVE,
ENGAGED
LEARNING
• Online instruction can be as
effective as traditional
instruction
• To do so, online courses need
cooperative/collaborative
(active) learning
• and a strong instructor presence
8
University of Minnesota, 2015

9. MORE ENGAGEMENT? DO
THESE TWO THINGS
1. Use active learning strategies
2. Incorporate meaningful ways
of interacting with students
9
Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 2010

10. ACTIVE LEARNING DEFINED
10
Active learning involves
teaching methods and
strategies that involve student
participation and engagement
with the material in a
meaningful way during
learning

11. ACTIVE LEARNING DEFINED
11

12. 12
Very Well

13. ACTIVE LEARNING DEFINED
13

14. RECAP
• Students learn best
through active,
engaging learning
opportunities
14

15. LEARNING
COMMUNITIES

16. ACTIVE LEARNING DEFINED
16
Garrison, et al., 2000

17. TOOLS TO BOOST
STUDENT
ENGAGEMENT

18. TOOLS TO BOOST
STUDENT
ENGAGEMENT

19. Announcements
19
Communicate to engage

20. ANNOUCEMENT TIPS
• Make contact early at the start
of the class
• Stay active throughout the
course
20

21. ANNOUNCEMENT
STRATEGIES
21
• Provide weekly or bi-weekly
updates
• Communicate due dates
• Highlight upcoming
assignments
• Post video recording

22. SAMPLE WEEKLY ANNOUNCEMENT

23. Discussions
23
Encourage participation among students

24. DISCUSSION TIPS
• Share perspectives and
experiences
• Develop relationships
• Learn through discussion
24

25. SAMPLE INTRODUCTORY DISCUSSION

26. Assignments
26
A way to provide effective feedback

27. EFFECTIVE FEEDBACK
• Frequent
• Prompt
• Specific
• Written in supportive tone
27
Faculty Focus, 2014

28. PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON BRIGHTSPACE

29. Self-Assessments
29
Offer time for reflection

30. SELF-ASSESSMENTS
• Students evaluate their own
work
• Take ownership of learning
Under Course Tools on the Navbar
30
Center for Teaching, Vanderbilt University

31. SAMPLE SELF-ASSESSMENT

32. ePortfolios
32
Compile and reflect on work

33. ePORTFOLIO
• Link learning to future
planning or goal setting
• Develops self-awareness and
decision-making skills
Under Course Tools on the Navbar
33
Gallaudet University

34. SAMPLE ePortfolio

35. Rubrics
35
Streamline grading and help students recognize learning goals

36. RUBRICS
• Clearly identifies and
articulates specific outcomes
of learning
• Helps students recognize
learning goals
Under Course Tools on the Navbar
36

37. SAMPLE RUBRIC

38. RECAP
• There are many
different tools you can
use in Brightspace that
will strengthen student
engagement
38

39. Any questions?

40. STRENGTHENING
STUDENT RETENTION

41. STRATEGIES TO
IMPROVE COURSE
RETENTION

42. Think Like A Student
42
Approach your class from a student perspective

43. Set Clear Expectations
43
Manage expectations with clear guidelines

44. Fight Isolation
44
Provide a learning community for your students

45. Collect Feedback
45
Gauge lesson effectiveness and student comprehension

46. Early Intervention
46
Identify and reach out to struggling students

47. BRIGHTSPACE TOOLS

48. BRIGHTSPACE TOOLS

49. BRIGHTSPACE
TOOLS
• Class Progress Tool
• Completion Tracking
• Intelligent Agents
49

50. CHECK STUDENT ACTIVITY IN BRIGHTSPACE
50
CLASS PROGRESS
Track individual student progress
COMPLETION TRACKING
Track activity related to specific
topics in Content
Under Course Tools on the Navbar

51. CLASS PROGRESS TOOL: OVERVIEW

52. CLASS PROGRESS TOOL: USER

53. CONTENT COMPLETION TOOL

54. CONTENT COMPLETION TOOL
Checkmarks automatically appear when adding items to Content modules

55. CONTENT COMPLETION TOOL

56. CONTENT COMPLETION TOOL

57. CONTENT COMPLETION TOOL: STUDENT VIEW

58. CLASS PROGRESS TOOL

59. LOGIN HISTORY PROGRESS
This does not indicate the last time the student logged into your course.

60. COURSE ACCESS

61. INTELLIGENT
AGENT
• Automatically sends
customizable emails
based on certain criteria
(missing assignments,
not logging in, etc. )
61
Under Course Tools on the Navbar

62. RED FLAGS

63. RED FLAGS
1. Goes days without logging in
to your course
2. Misses a few assignments in a
row
3. Stops coming to class
completely
4. Quality of work decreases
suddenly
5. Any number of things
63

64. STUDENT CARE
REFERAL FORM

65. EARLY NOTIFICATION ALERT

66. RECAP
• Student engagement strategies
and tools
• Active learning
• Learning communities
• Increase course retention rate
• Brightspace tools and SMC services
66

67. Any questions?

68. Boost Student Engagement
and Retention
RANDI PLAKE
INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGNER
FACULTY WORKSHOP
AUGUST 12, 2020