Student Engagement at Lutheran Colleges Story Lines from Employers and NSSE in an Era of Accountability George D. Kuh LECNA Destin, FL February 6, 2010

or “It’s the Learning, Stupid” The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande

Context  Global Competitiveness in Degree Attainment  The New Majority and Demographic Gaps  Questionable Levels of Student Performance  In an Environment of Increasing Fiscal Strain…  We Need Higher Levels of Student Achievement at an Affordable or Value-Based Price

Overview Overview  What the world needs now  Why engagement matters  High-impact practices  Spirituality and LECNA schools  Implications

Advance Organizers  To what extent do your students engage in productive learning activities, inside and outside the classroom?  For what should a Lutheran college be known?  What is distinctive about your school? How do you know?

The Promise An educational experience resulting in “a reinvigorated liberal education of high quality for all students” (p. 10), one that “prepares them for personal success and fosters a just, democratic society” (p. 21).

The Promise “For students to engage intellectually and seriously with what is taught… [leading to] deep learning…the ability to defend positions…” to “write well and think clearly…” to develop “rational and reflective minds, open to continuous learning…” (pp. 8-9)

The Promise The Promise “to develop a coherent constellation of integrated values and ethical principles….”

Association of American Colleges and Universities

Narrow Learning is Not Enough: The Essential Learning Outcomes  Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical & Natural World  Intellectual, Practical & Technical Skills Personal and Social Responsibility  Personal and Social Responsibility  “Deep” Integrative Learning

Personal & Social Responsibility Personal & Social Responsibility  Civic knowledge and engagement—local and global  Intercultural knowledge and competence  Ethical reasoning and action  Humanitarian, allocentric sensibilities

“Deep learning is learning that takes root in our apparatus of understanding, in the embedded meanings that define us and that we use to define the world.” J. Tagg (2003). The learning paradigm college (p. 70). Bolton, MA: Anker

Deep, Integrative Learning Deep, Integrative Learning  Attend to the underlying meaning of information as well as content  Integrate and synthesize different ideas, sources of information  Discern patterns in evidence or phenomena  Apply knowledge in different situations  View issues from multiple perspectives

HART RESEARCH P e t e r DASSOTESCIA Raising The Bar Employers’ Views On College Learning In The Wake Of The Economic Downturn Key findings from survey among 302 employers Conducted October 27 – November 17, 2009 for

Raising The Bar – October/November 2009 – Hart Research for 15 Employers’ expectations of employees have increased. % who agree with each statement Our company is asking employees to take on more responsibilities and to use a broader set of skills than in the past Employees are expected to work harder to coordinate with other departments than in the past The challenges employees face within our company are more complex today than they were in the past To succeed in our company, employees need higher levels of learning and knowledge today than they did in the past

Raising The Bar – October/November 2009 – Hart Research for 16 % saying two- and four-year colleges should place MORE emphasis on helping students develop these skills, qualities, capabilities, knowledge Employers’ Top Priorities for Student Learning In College Effective oral/written communication Critical thinking/ analytical reasoning Knowledge/skills applied to real world settings Analyze/solve complex problems Connect choices and actions to ethical decisions Teamwork skills/ ability to collaborate Ability to innovate and be creative Developments in science/technology

Raising The Bar – October/November 2009 – Hart Research for 17 % saying two- and four-year colleges should emphasize MORE helping students develop in these areas Other Areas Of Learning Needing More Emphasis Locate/organize/ evaluate information Understand global context Global issues’ implications for future Understand & work with statistics Understand role of U.S. in the world Knowledge of cultural diversity in US/world Civic knowledge, community engagement Foreign language proficiency Understand, apply democratic values

Student Engagement What Really Matters in College: Student Engagement Because individual effort and involvement are the critical determinants of college impact, institutions should focus on the ways they can shape their academic, interpersonal, and extracurricular offerings to encourage student engagement. Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005, p. 602

Student Engagement Trifecta  What students do -- time and energy devoted to educationally purposeful activities  What institutions do -- using effective educational practices to induce students to do the right things  Educationally effective institutions channel student energy toward the right activities

National Survey of Student Engagement Community College Survey of Student Engagement National Survey of Student Engagement (pronounced “nessie”) Community College Survey of Student Engagement (pronounced “cessie”) College student surveys that assess the extent to which students engage in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development

NSSE Project Scope Since 2000: 2,000,000+ students from 1,400 different schools 2,000,000+ students from 1,400 different schools 80+% of 4-yr U.S. undergraduate FTE 80+% of 4-yr U.S. undergraduate FTE 50 states, Puerto Rico 50 states, Puerto Rico 59 Canadian IHEs 59 Canadian IHEs 100+ consortia 100+ consortia

Effective Educational Practices Level of Academic Challenge Active & Collaborative Learning Enriching Educational Experiences SupportiveCampusEnvironment Student- Faculty Interaction

Grades, persistence, student satisfaction, gains across a range of desired outcomes, and engagement go hand in hand

Both the NSSE benchmark and deep learning scales are…significantly and positively linked to … effective reasoning and problem solving, well being, inclination to inquire and lifelong learning, intercultural effectiveness, leadership, and moral character… These associations persisted even after introducing controls for important confounding influences. Pascarella et al., 2009 reporting on the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education (WNSLAE)

How Do Lutheran Colleges Stack Up

NSSE Participation LECNA schools 32 LECNA schools 12 also did FSSE 12 also did FSSE 12 recoded to either Bac LA or Gen Bac 12 recoded to either Bac LA or Gen Bac

Level of Academic Challenge

Active and Collaborative Learning

Student-Faculty Interaction

Enriching Educational Experiences

Supportive Campus Environment

It’s more complicated than this…   Many of the effects of college are “conditional”  Some are compensatory

Who’s more engaged?  Women  Fraternity & sorority members  Full-time students  Students who live on campus  Students with diversity experiences  Students who start and stay at same school

Who’s more engaged?  Women  Fraternity & sorority members  Full-time students  Students who live on campus  Students with diversity experiences  Students who start and stay at same school  Students who have done “high- impact” practices

Narrow Learning is Not Enough: The Essential Learning Outcomes  Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical & Natural World  Intellectual, Practical & Technical Skills Personal and Social Responsibility  Personal and Social Responsibility  “Deep” Integrative Learning

 Integrating ideas or information from various sources  Included diverse perspectives in class discussions/writing  Put together ideas from different courses  Discussed ideas with faculty members outside of class  Discussed ideas with others outside of class  Analyzing the basic elements of an idea, experience, or theory Essential Learning Outcome: NSSE Deep/Integrative Learning  Synthesizing & organizing ideas, info., or experiences  Making judgments about the value of information  Applying theories to practical problems or in new situations  Examined the strengths and weaknesses of your own views  Tried to better understand someone else's views  Learned something that changed how you understand an issue

High Impact Activities  First-Year Seminars and Experiences  First-Year Seminars and Experiences  Common Intellectual Experiences  Learning Communities  Writing-Intensive Courses  Collaborative Assignments and Projects  “Science as Science Is Done”; Undergraduate Research  Diversity/Global Learning  Service Learning, Community-Based Learning  Internships  Capstone Courses and Projects

Effects of Participating in High-Impact Activities on Deep/Integrative Learning and Gains

Effects of Participating in High-Impact Activities on Student Engagement

High-Impact Activities Increase Odds Students Will: Invest time and effort Invest time and effort Interact with faculty and peers about substantive matters Interact with faculty and peers about substantive matters Experience diversity Experience diversity Get more frequent feedback Get more frequent feedback Reflect & integrate learning Reflect & integrate learning Discover relevance of learning through real-world applications Discover relevance of learning through real-world applications

Participated in a community-based project (e.g. service learning) as part of a regular course Seniors

Participated in a learning community or some other formal program where groups of students take two or more classes together Seniors

Worked on a research project with a faculty member outside of course or program requirements Seniors

Studied abroad Seniors

Practicum, internship, field experience, co-op experience, or clinical assignment Seniors

Culminating senior experience (capstone course, senior project/thesis, comp exam, etc.) Seniors

Developed a deepened sense of spirituality Seniors

Participated in activities to enhance your spirituality (worship, meditation, prayer, etc.) Seniors

The Role of Spirituality 1.Students who frequently engage in spirituality-enhancing practices also participate more in a broad cross-section of collegiate activities (461 institutions)

The Role of Spirituality 1.Students who frequently engage in spirituality-enhancing practices also participate more in a broad cross-section of collegiate activities. 2.Students at faith-based colleges (n=29) engage in spiritual practices more and gain more in this area, but participate less often in certain other activities associated with liberal education outcomes.

Four Steps Toward Becoming (and Staying) Educationally Effective

1. Insist on using engaging pedagogies campus wide 1.One minute papers (variations) 2.Case studies 3.Debates 4.Small group problem sets… 5.Others

2. Put money where it will make a difference to student success “…in professional baseball it still matters less how much you have than how well you spend it”

2. Put money where it will make a difference to student success a. It’s not how much you spend but where

Targets of Opportunity Use valid placement tests Use valid placement tests Reduce D/W/F rates Reduce D/W/F rates Deploy early warning systems Deploy early warning systems Organize residences around educational themes Organize residences around educational themes Communicate with at-risk student family members Communicate with at-risk student family members

2. Put money where it will make a difference to student success a. It’s not how much you spend but where b. Sunset redundant and ineffective programs c. Invest in “high-impact” activities that contribute to student success c. Invest in “high-impact” and other activities that contribute to student success d. If it works, maybe require it?

3. Ensure programs are of high quality  What kind of evidence will signal effectiveness?  Where, how, and to whom do you report your performance?

We value what we measure 1.Spirituality or other character measures not featured in U-CAN, VSA, NSSE or other public reporting templates 2.Character measures not likely to appear on AHELO context strand tools

4. Cultivate a campus culture that fosters student success  Unshakeable focus on student learning (“teach the students we have, not the students we wish we had”)  “Get the right people on the bus”  High performance expectations for all  Human-scale settings  Improvement-oriented ethic  Inclusive language and traditions

Project DEEP Project DEEP To discover, document, and describe what high performing institutions do to achieve their notable level of effectiveness.

High performance is not guaranteed to last High performance is not guaranteed to last It’s not complacency but over-reaching that better explains how the once invincible self- destruct

Five years later, DEEP schools took one of two tacks a.Advancing the student success agenda –Pervasive –Targeted b.Drifting off course

Keys to Sustaining the Student Success Agenda Keys to Sustaining the Student Success Agenda a. Student success becomes an institutional priority when leaders make it so. b. Measure and act on what matters to student success c. Stay positively restless

Questions &Discussion