Enhancing Student Success: Closing Address. Professor Sally Kift ALTC Senior Fellow QUT, Australia

1. Enhancing Student Success:Closing Address. Professor Sally KiftALTC Senior FellowQUT, Australia

2. The Context Generally, Aust HE participation rates growing strongly Over last decade total HE enrolments have increased by 50% & overseas student numbers have trebled Relatively high level of uni attainment compared with other OECD countries (though not in the highest group with Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway & US) However, this growth in general population not matched in two of the most disadvantaged groups in Aust – Indigenous and low SES Bradley Review Discussion Paper at 3.2 Little similarity within and/or between equity groups That they are underrepresented may be extent of the similarity

3. Overview Starting with the students What we have heard today Recruitment vs/and Retention A partnership, whole-of-institution approach for retention (in the first year esp) ‘Access without Support is not Opportunity’ (Tinto, 2008) Tinto’s 5 educational conditions that promote success amongst low-income students A ‘Transition Pedagogy’ (ALTC Fellowship) – To intentionally mediate diversity and support

4. Myth-busting aimed particularly at students who are first in family to go to uni esp low-SES, regional & rural, and ATSI backgrounds 12 issues-based video clips; as identified by focus groups. A week in the life of 3 students Patrick – from small town of 250 people in S-W Qld. Jolene – a mature-age student who lives with two flatmates and a cat. Kaava – an Indigenous Australian descended from the Wirri (Mackay) and Kungalu (Burnett) people.

5. Addresses concerns that – Too hard to think about the future Too much information to get through It’s too much stress Uni isn’t hands on – its all theory It’s too expensive I have to move away from home It’s not worth going to uni when I can get a job What if…I don’t get in, I don’t know what course to choose, I don’t know anyone Maybe I will go later No one I know has been to uni so I don’t know what to expect It’s something other people do I don’t know where to get help.

6. Project U

7. What Patrick (et al) said… In transition to independent learning and independent living Daunting 1st experience and 1st memory of uni Mass experience – nos (45-1300); cohort diversity Social engagement important 13 contact hrs/wk week (Patrick) Expecting career relevance Lots of group work Needs self management & planning skills; stress Personal exp (rural & isolated; 1st in family; share house for friends) Taking 2nd yr subjects! Support for someone ‘not a uni person’

8. Have heard today Current national approach, A Fair Chance for All (1990), leaving agenda to individual institutions clearly not working; esp not for Indigenous, low SES and rural & regional populations Individualised and segmented Hasn’t accounted for access difference between Unis (eg Go8); Sectors (tertiary, VET/TAFE) Degree programs (medicine, law vs nursing, education) Undergrads and postgrads Nor overseas access (re globalisation) See generally NCSEHE submission to Bradley Review AND – this is a global issue

9. More about diversity w/i & b/w groups, in terms, eg, of their expectations, motivations and learning & resource needs – Clearly a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach will not work Range of specialist & targeted programs being delivered (eg, for Aust Indigenous, Maori, and Muslim students; for students on probation; in Laptop Clinics, etc) Role residential colleges might play Impact of scholarships on significantly improved retention (whatever the recruitment effect), sense of belonging, stress reduction, and more time & attention for study Esp the smart way students spend their modest scholarships A very positive message of diversity as an educational asset for all students Have heard today also (sessions)..

10. Recruitment vs Retention Recruitment – difficult Creating aspiration and mediating existing educational disadvantage require entire tertiary sector to work together AND all sectors to collaborate (primary, secondary, tertiary)….. led by HE?? Retention (student success and satisfaction) should be easier Within individual institution control – if taken seriously How will we know? When pass rates, retention rates and satisfaction levels of equity group students are comparable with those of other students.

11. A Positive: Our students understand this…

12. Recruitment and Retention At QUT since 2004, 4 pronged approach Creating aspiration – marketing/outreach to low-income schools & neighbourhoods and on-site visits to de-mystify uni Opening the door – admission mechanisms to take account of disadvantage & its depressing effect on academic achievement Helping with costs – scholarships, bursaries, and or financial support Supporting enrolled students – retention Based around the As – awareness, aspiration, accessibility, affordability, achievement Enacted by integrated, coordinated institutional partnerships

13. What does it mean for us? (briefly) Need to enact ‘joined-up’ institutional approaches, enabled by effective partnerships within and between academic, administrative and support areas. General and specialist Academic and non-academic Curricula and co-curricula Once 1st semester starts, key is to harness the curriculum to mediate as many institutional interactions as possible and to do as much ‘retention work’ as possible – sense of belonging critical. Both in and outside (physical and virtual) classroom – eg By inclusive teaching, learning & assessment practices Through pathways & interactions facilitated (Kift, 2008)

14. Project U

15. Access without Support is not Opportunity (Tinto, 2008, 9) ‘To be serious about student success, institutions would recognize that the roots of student attrition lie not only in their students and the situations they face, but also in the very character of the educational settings in which they ask low-income students to learn ….It is simply not enough to provide low-income students access to our universities…and claim that we are providing opportunity if we do not construct environments that support their efforts to learn and succeed beyond access. Simply put access without support is not opportunity’.

16. An institutional partnership evidencing commitment to equity group retention Adapt our approaches so that – Students encounter curriculum that is sensitive to their realities, diversity and transitioning status = engage diverse learners in their new learning WHICH is supported by – Adequate and timely access to support services, A facilitated sense of belonging to reduce sense of ‘otherness’ – includes normalising AND is student facing/centred – really!

17. What that might look like…

18. FYE… an holistic approach at QUT Curriculum – harness as ‘organising device’ – ‘transition glue’ (McInnis, 2001, 9-11) – inclusive formal & informal curriculum Includes personal interactions – peers, teachers & discipline professionals; internal & external/ curricula & co-curricula Support – pro-active, timely & tailored for all students, with specialist support for those at risk of disengaging. Seamless institutional processes for service & student type. Active interventions to prevent predictable issues arising. Tailored delivery of support through student-centred systems. People – committed to designing and enacting these both in and out of the classroom.

19. Educational conditions that promote success amongst low-income students (Tinto, 2008) Institutional commitment – all members, esp teachers, to student success and retention Expectations – holding uniformly high expectations of all students Not labelling (eg remedial); Equitable formal and informal advising (of expectations) esp where cultural capital may be absent); Peer mediation of expectations Support – academic (contextualised) & social (counselling, mentoring, specialist)

20. Educational conditions that promote success amongst low-income students (Tinto, 2008) Link classroom activities to support services Feedback on performance – to academics, professionals & students to enable all to adjust approaches as necessary Entry assessment of learning skills Early warning systems to enable assistance Involvement /engagement – academic and social; assure an institutional culture that students are valued (?sense of belonging?) Esp via curriculum/classroom – as only place many will come together esp time-poor equity groups Cooperative/collaborative learning

21. A ‘transition pedagogy’ for the FYE Kift ALTC Senior Fellowship QUT FY Curriculum Policy and Six FY Principles – currently being enacted across all QUT faculties Explicitly assists transition into learning in HE Acknowledges the diversity and reality of students’ previous experiences & preparedness (including cultural capital) Is designed intentionally for commencing students based on evidence from practice and research Incorporates pedagogies, teaching approaches and materials that engage students in their learning Relevant, consistent and integrated assessment with prompt and constructive feedback Monitors and evaluates students' engagement in learning.

22. Key Questions for FY Curriculum Design

23. ‘The Diversity Principle’ The first year curriculum should be attuned to student diversity and must be accessible by, and inclusive of, all students. First year curriculum design should recognise that students have special learning needs by reason of their social, cultural and academic transition. Diversity is often a factor that further exacerbates transition difficulties. The first year curriculum should take into account students’ backgrounds, needs, experiences and patterns of study and few if any assumptions should be made about existing skills and knowledge. ‘Diversity’ in this context includes, for example: membership of at-risk or equity groups; widening participation (e.g. non- traditional cohorts); students’ existing skills and knowledge; and patterns and timing of engagement with the first year curriculum (e.g. mid-year entry).

24. What that might look like… Curriculum retention strategies – eg Inclusive curriculum (re Indigenising, internationalising, inclusion of low-SES, rural & isolated examples, readings, references) Build transition & diversity issues into curriculum time to normalise (eg, class time for course & administrative advising; acad support services; pastoral care/ counseling; financial support; peer mentoring opportunities) Harnessing peer-to-peer networks and supports in FY At-risk monitoring Valuing prior knowledge: constructivism to assist students connect prior background, knowledge & experience with new learning. Scaffolded approaches (eg workbooks, cumulative assessments, for acquisition of essential academic literacies, etc)

25. QUT Student Success Project Re at-risk monitoring Karen Nelson et al (QUT Director, FYE) - Sem 1, 2008: Systematic monitoring of 362 students across five FY units “at-risk” of disengaging (= 616 student unit enrolments) 83.9% “at-risk contacted” students persisted in units with average grade of 4.68 42.5% “at-risk not-contacted” students persisted with average grade of 3.66 Also Auckland Uni of Technology’s systematic approach: http://auqa.edu.au/gp/search/detail.php?gp_id=2907

26. Other curriculum ‘checklist’ questions What are the diversity characteristics of the cohort? FY teachers aware? Are students provided with opportunity to self-assess & reflect on diversity of (for example) entering capabilities; learning preference; personality type; preferred team role; own cultural “grab bag”? With provision of follow-up developmental support in- or co-curriculum? Are program documents and other student communications jargon-free? Diverse learning styles accommodated? Diversity in L, T & assessment? Is flexibility built in to ensure greater accessibility by diverse cohorts (eg online, self-paced quizzes available)? Are supportive pedagogies adopted (eg model inclusive behaviour; est protocols for interactions; team-based learning www.teambasedlearning.org)? Have partnerships with support areas been harnessed?

27. To Conclude: Accentuate the positives… Which are – Focus of national attention due to recent research Bradley, BRADLEY, BRADLEY New (2008) National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (Director, Prof Trevor Gale) Body that could monitor institutional equity performance (if set) Tireless and committed practitioners – as evidenced here today

28. Diversity in entering preparedness?

29. To conclude: Helicopter parents

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