Student Affairs: Planting the Seed of Critical Thinking for First Time in College (FTIC) Students Presented by Barbara June Rodriguez Janice Stubbs NASPA Assessment & Persistence Conference San Antonio, Texas June 21, 2014

Workshop Objectives As a result of this workshop, participants will: Discuss strategies to cultivate critical thinking in FTIC orientation/advisement sessions Identify methods to assess critical thinking within orientation/advisement sessions Engage in hands-on activities

Broward College Offers baccalaureate and associate degrees and certificates 49,144 credit enrolled students 84% part-time students 16% full-time students 57.2% female students 41.8% male students 36.3% Black 34.6% Hispanic 21.1% White Based on Broward College Data

Critical Thinking Conceptual Framework

Critical Thinking Definition Critical thinking (CT) is defined as a process of evaluating information by questioning and testing assumptions, accepting and rejecting arguments and/or perspectives, and applying reasoning to make informed decisions.

Critical Thinking Goal & Outcomes Goal: To enhance students’ critical thinking skills Students will be able to: 1.Analyze and interpret relevant information 2.Explain questions, problems, and/or issues 3.Evaluate information to determine credibility of reasoning 4.Generate well-reasoned conclusions

New Student Orientation Mandatory for FTIC Students ◦ Approximately 10,000 students annually ◦ 22 students per session ◦ 3 hour session Program includes: ◦ Academic Expectations ◦ Student Rights and Responsibilities ◦ Overview of Student Resources ◦ Career Exploration (FOCUS) ◦ Financial Aid ◦ Advising and Registration ◦ Campus Tour

New Student Orientation Academic Expectations ◦ Syllabus, attendance, communication with faculty Student Rights and Responsibilities ◦ FERPA, code of conduct, complaint process, grade appeals Student Resources ◦ Tutoring, peer mentoring, Smarthinking, Student Life Advising and Registration ◦ Pre-advised for two semesters and registers for classes

Critical Thinking & Orientation Explain questions, problems and/or issues Analyze and interpret relevant information Learning Outcome Participation in New Student Orientation Engage in Think- Pair-Share Learning Experience Responses from Think-Pair-Share Multiple-choice Questions Assessment

FTIC Advising Session Review student’s Holland code and associated careers based on FOCUS Career Exploration ◦ Are they surprised or validated ? Review specific careers relative to : ◦ Educational Requirements ◦ Time to degree ◦ Laddering ◦ Job Availability Develop an Educational Plan

FTIC Advising Session FOCUS Career Exploration ◦ Work interest and skills assessment Holland Code (Based on Dr. John Holland’s theory) ◦ Interest Profile ◦ People and work environments are classified into 6 groups:  Realistic (Doers), Investigative (Thinkers), Artistic (Creators), Social (Helpers), Enterprising, (Persuaders), Conventional (Organizers)  Example: Code of RES means most like Realistic type; somewhat less like Enterprising type and less like Social type

Critical Thinking & Advising Session Analyze and interpret relevant information Learning Outcome Participation in NSO Completion of FOCUS Career Exploration Advisement Meeting Learning Experience Open-ended questions based on FOCUS results One-minute paper Assessment

Activity Directions Break up into teams of 2 participants Read the question within the Think-Pair- Share Table Complete the Think-Pair-Share exercise Report out to the larger group

Questions?