Benchmarking Effective Educational Practice

Community Colleges of the State University of New York

April, 2005

The Role of Community Colleges

Community colleges have the complicated task of:

providing full access to education through open admissions; AND

designing effective educational experiences for a highly diverse population — students with dramatically varying goals and competing demands for their time.

The Challenge for Community Colleges

Our students have significant time commitments in addition to their education. Most of them attend college part-time, and most of them work, care for dependents, and commute.

Two-Thirds of Students Are Enrolled Part-Time Most Students Work

The Critical Work of Community Colleges

The Solution: Engagement By Design

These challenges do not make student engagement impossible. They do mean it must be intentional. It must happen by design.

CCSSE: A Tool for Improvement

The Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) is a tool that helps colleges:

assess quality in community college education;

identify and learn from good educational practice — practice that promotes high levels of student learning and persistence; and

identify areas in which we can improve programs and services for students.

CCSSE: A Tool for Community Colleges

The CCSSE survey:

is administered directly to community college students during class sessions;

asks questions about institutional practices and student behaviors that are highly correlated with student learning and retention; and

uses a sampling methodology that is consistent across all participating colleges.

More than 92,000 community college students from 152 community and technical colleges in 30 states responded to the 2004 CCSSE survey.

CCSSE GROWS….

400 Colleges

400,000 Students

40 States

CCSSE: A Tool for Accountability

CCSSE:

provides reliable data on issues that matter;

reports data publicly; and

is committed to using data for improvement.

CCSSE opposes using its data to rank colleges.

ranking

Benchmarks for Effective Educational Practice

CCSSE reports survey results in two ways: national benchmarks — areas that educational research has shown to be important in quality educational practice — and students’ responses to individual survey items. The five benchmarks are:

Active and Collaborative Learning

Student Effort

Academic Challenge

Student-Faculty Interaction

Support for Learners

39.845.8

55.7

39.638

Active andCollaborativeLearningStudent Effort

AcademicChallenge

Student-FacultyInteraction

Support forLearners

CCSSEville Community College 2004 Benchmark Scores

Reaching for Excellence

CCSSE encourages colleges continually to ask whether current performance is good enough and to reach for excellence in student engagement. Colleges can:

1. Compare themselves to the national average (the 50 mark).

2. Compare themselves to high-performing colleges.

3. Measure their overall performance against results for their least-engaged group, aspiring to make sure allsubgroups engage in their education at similarly high levels.

4. Gauge their work in areas their college strongly values.

5. Contrast where they are now with where they want to be.

39.845.8

55.7

39.638

Active andCollaborativeLearningStudent Effort

AcademicChallenge

Student-FacultyInteraction

Support forLearners

CCSSEville Community College 2004 Benchmark Scores

50--

Active and Collaborative Learning

Students learn more when they are actively involved in their education and have opportunities to think about and apply what they are learning in different settings. The seven survey items that contribute to this benchmark are:

During the current school year, how often have you:

Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussions

Made a class presentation

(continued on next slide)

Active and Collaborative Learning

During the current school year, how often have you:

Worked with other students on projects during class

Worked with classmates outside of class to prepare class assignments

Tutored or taught other students (paid or voluntary)

Participated in a community-based project as a part of a regular course

Discussed ideas from your readings or classes with others outside of class (students, family members, co-workers, etc.)

Active and Collaborative Learning

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Collaborated on

Projects During Class

Students Who Collaborated on

Classwork Outside of Class

Student Effort

Students’ behaviors contribute significantly to their learning and the likelihood that they will attain their educational goals. The eight survey items associated with this benchmark are:

During the current school year, how often have you:

Prepared two or more drafts of a paper or assignment before turning it in

Worked on a paper or project that required integrating ideas or information from various sources

Come to class without completing readings or assignments

(continued on next slide)

Student Effort

During the current school year, how often have you:

Used peer or other tutoring services

Used skill labs

Used a computer lab

During the current school year:

How many books did you read on your own (not assigned) for personal enjoyment or academic enrichment

How many hours did you spend in a typical week preparing for class (studying, reading, writing, rehearsing, or other activities related to your program)

Student Effort

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Come to Class Unprepared

Hours Full-Time Students Spend

Studying

Academic Challenge

Challenging intellectual and creative work is central to student learning and collegiate quality. The 10 survey items associated with this benchmark are:

During the current school year, how often have you:

Worked harder than you thought you could to meet an instructor’s standards or expectations

(continued on next slide)

Academic Challenge

How much does your coursework at this college emphasize:

Analyzing the basic elements of an idea, experience, or theory

Synthesizing and organizing ideas, information, or experiences in new ways

Making judgments about the value or soundness of information, arguments, or methods

Applying theories or concepts to practical problems or in new situations

Using information you have read or heard to perform a new skill

(continued on next slide)

Academic Challenge

During the current school year:

How many assigned textbooks, manuals, books, or book-length packs of course readings did you read

How many papers or reports of any length did you write

To what extent have your examinations challenged you to do your best work

How much does this college emphasize:

Encouraging you to spend significant amounts of time studying

Academic Challenge

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Are Students Writing Enough?

Are Students Reading Enough?

Student-Faculty Interaction

In general, the more interaction students have with their teachers, the more likely they are to learn effectively and persist toward achievement of their educational goals. The six items used in this benchmark are:

During the current school year, how often have you:

Used e-mail to communicate with an instructor

Discussed grades or assignments with an instructor

(continued on next slide)

Student-Faculty Interaction

During the current school year, how often have you:

Talked about career plans with an instructor or advisor

Discussed ideas from your readings or classes with instructors outside of class

Received prompt feedback (written or oral) from instructors on your performance

Worked with instructors on activities other than coursework

Student-Faculty Interaction

Key Findings: All CCSSE 2004 colleges

Students Who Discussed Ideas with Instructors Outside

of Class

Students Who Talked with Advisors or Instructors about

Career Plans

Support for Learners

Students perform better and are more satisfied at colleges that are committed to their success and cultivate positive working and social relationships among different groups on campus. The seven survey items that contribute to this benchmark are:

How much does this college emphasize:

Providing the support you need to help you succeed at this college

Encouraging contact among students from different economic, social, and racial or ethnic backgrounds

(continued on next slide)

Support for Learners

How much does this college emphasize:

Helping you cope with your nonacademic responsibilities (work, family, etc.)

Providing the support you need to thrive socially

Providing the financial support you need to afford your education

During the current school year, how often have you:

Used academic advising/planning services

Used career counseling services

The Need for Inescapable Engagement

Students Who Earn Degrees

Students Who Transfer

Strategy 1: Engage Early, Engage Often

CCSSE Respondents by Credit Hours Earned at the College

Strategy 2: Stress Academic Advising

Students’ Use of Academic Advising/Planning Services

Students’ Use of Career Counseling Services

Strategy 3: Redesign Educational Experiences

Collaborative Learning among Students

Interaction with Faculty Members

Strategy 4: Redesign Educational Experiences

Question:

What are the key “design principles” for creating gatekeeper courses in

which students will learn and succeed at higher levels?

Building a Culture of Evidence

Better educational outcomes do not just happen. They depend on building and working within a culture of evidence:

Being relentless about putting data in front of faculty and staff — and using the data to promote positive change.

Being honest about current student performance to identify the means for improving.

Setting goals and implementing strategies to achieve them.

Basing every decision — about programs, policies, budgets, and staffing — on which action will have the best effect on student learning.