Part V of the Fifth-Year Interim Report - VCU SACS/COC Tenth Year ...

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SACS/COC Fifth-Year Interim Report, Part V First-year retention Below are VCU’s first year retention rates for Fall 2006 to Fall 2009. Fall 2006 82.3% Fall 2007 82.7% Fall 2008 84.2% Fall 2009 83.4% Several important factors related to freshman retention have been used to evaluate improvements since the Focused Inquiry program has been implemented. First is a comparison of the DFW rates from the English 101 course during the time period from fall 2003 to spring 2006. During this three-year period, the DFW rates averaged 27.5%, with a high of 33% and a low of 20%. Rates from the 2006-07 academic year were not used in this analysis because both English 101 and a piloted version of the Focused Inquiry courses were offered simultaneously. In the 2007-09 academic years, Focused Inquiry had replaced English 101 as a required general education course. The DFW rates during both the fall and spring semesters averaged 12% across all course offerings in 2007-2008 while falling to 10% and 6.6% in the 2008-2009 year. The Focused Inquiry program was successful in keeping the DFW rates relatively lower and was able to maintain stability in those rates over both the fall and spring semesters. Academic standing among freshman is directly related to the success rates of freshman enrolled in the required general education courses such as Focused Inquiry. Generally speaking, retention will be higher when more students are in good academic standing with the institution. The number of freshman students in good academic standing at the end of the fall and spring semesters for the past five academic years has been improving. As is expected with lower DFW rates and higher levels of student engagement in the classroom (as will be illustrated later in this report), more freshman students were in good academic standing at the end of both their first semester and their first full year of college than in the previous five years. The percentage of first-year students choosing to reenroll at VCU after completing their first full year of college has gradually been on the rise for the past eight years. The first-year retention rate for the 2006-2007 academic year at VCU’s peer institution averaged 82% with a high of 95% at the University of Southern California and a low of 73% at both Wayne State University and the University of Utah. However, a significant increase in freshman retention at VCU is evidenced during the past three academic years after the implementation of both University College and the Focused Inquiry program. NSSE and CLASSE target data for freshman A number of NSSE items were targeted as possible areas where the Focused Inquiry curriculum could help improve student engagement. These areas deal with classroom engagement, collaborative work with other students, writing goals, and faculty/student interactions. The results from the 2006-07 and 2007-2008 NSSE results are compared to matching items on the CLASSE which was administered in each Focused Inquiry course during both the spring semesters. The Focused Inquiry curriculum brought about significant results regarding the number of students that actively engaged in classroom presentations and collaborative work with other students during class time. The only category where change was not indicated is in the use of electronic mediums for discussing or completing class assignments. In the area of student engagement in a classroom setting, significant improvements are indicated by the CLASSE. Over 75% of first-year students during those fall and spring semesters indicated that they participated in class discussions in their Focused Inquiry course often or very often. Similarly, significant increases in the numbers of students asking questions during class are indicated. An additional goal of the Focused Inquiry curriculum was to increase students’ experiences with higher order thinking skills, such as analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information in the classroom and on assignments outside the classroom. Both the NSSE and CLASSE contain items related to the frequency of engagement in these processes. Once Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e | 8
SACS/COC Fifth-Year Interim Report, Part V again advantages for the Focused Inquiry curriculum were realized and showed an improvement of almost 10% in the NSSE. In 2009 we clarified the concepts of analysis, synthesis and evaluation for the students by defining each for them. In that survey 92%, 93%, and 91% respectively responded “Quite a bit” or “Very Much” to each item. In contrast, the Focused Inquiry curriculum did not emphasize lower order thinking skills such as memorization. Student survey responses confirm that memorization was not a large part of what they were required to do in Focused Inquiry courses. Finally, one way to measure student/faculty interactions is to look at student perceptions of feedback provided on academic assignments. Both the NSSE and the CLASSE include a question which targets this area. The results indicate that 75% of freshman students reported receiving prompt written or oral feedback regarding an academic assignment “often” or “very often” during the spring 2008 semester in their Focused Inquiry courses. “Very often” was the most common response to this question during the spring 2008 semester. NSSE results indicate a modest improvement from 2007 to 2008. Service-Learning In the original QEP we committed ourselves to expanding our service-learning program. As data has shown participation in service-learning opportunities can be related to both engagement and deeper learning. Again, our strategic plan took up this charge and made community partnerships one of the five themes for the next fifteen years. We have made significant advancements in this area over the last five years. A full-time Ph.D. level director has been hired to lead the service-learning program. The director reports to the Vice Provost of Community Engagement. Funding for service-learning (in addition to the director’s salary) includes support for a graduate assistantship and an annual faculty development program. The number of faculty participating in service-learning courses has increased 120% in five years from 19 to 42. The number of distinct courses has increased 150% in five years from 19 to 48. The number of service learning sections has increased 100% in five years from 49 to 109. A service-learning faculty advisory council was established in 2008 and an annual faculty development program offers eight to ten faculty members training and support in the development of high quality service-learning courses. The number of students enrolled in service-learning courses has increased 120% in five years from 831 to 1826. In end-ofcourse surveys completed by students during 2008-2009, 58% of students reported that the service-learning course increased their speaking and communication skills, 72% said that the course increased their leadership skills; 75% indicated that the course increased their awareness of needs in the community; and 75% noted that the course improved their ability to work more effectively with people of different backgrounds and interests. A leadership focused undergraduate Service-Learning Teaching Assistantship Program has been established and annually enrolls approximately 20 students. Information about VCU service-learning is disseminated to community partners through the program’s community partners website, through workshops offered at the Nonprofit Learning Point annual conference, and through local online clearinghouses for the nonprofit community (e.g., ConnectRichmond.org). Community partners are recognized through an annual recognition reception and the Currents of Change award Finally, a university-wide definition of service-learning has been institutionalized. All courses designated as servicelearning are required to meet key criteria and to include the institution’s service-learning definition on service-learning course syllabi. Clearly we have made significant progress in the area of service-learning over the past five years and intend to continue that trend by expanding the program into many of our recently developed capstone experiences. Learning Communities VCU provides two types of learning community programs: Residential Villages and First-Semester Learning Communities. Residential Villages are living-learning communities in which students live on particular residential floors and learn in a Virginia Commonwealth University P a g e | 9
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