Current Status of Personalized, Engaging Experiences for First Year Students

Personalized, Engaging Experiences for First Year Students

The University of Northern Iowa seeks to personalize learning and actively engage first year students in the educational process. This is implied in the focused vision statement for the University which reads:

The University of Northern Iowa offers a world-class university education, providing personalized experiences and creating a lifetime of opportunities.

This vision statement is part of the current UNI Strategic Plan and while it does not specifically mention first year students, the implication is that all students attending the university will be engaged in a personalized and individualized educational experience from the moment they arrive on campus until they graduate. The strategic planning process at UNI was first adopted in 1989 when President Constantine Curris established the University Strategic Planning Committee. This committee was charged with preparing a strategic plan that would be built upon the mission of the University of Northern Iowa and the strategic goals adopted by the Board of Regents for the Regents universities. (University of Northern Iowa Self Study Report for NCA Reaccreditation, 2001, Retrieved February 24, 2009 from The University has continued to engage in the strategic planning process over the years.

One task given to the Improvement Dimension committee was to assess the mission statement of the university and, more specifically, examine the statement as it pertains to the personalized experience offered to students attending the institution. The following working definition of a personalized, engaging experience was used: experiences that are tailored toward or adapt to students’ needs (personalization) and stimulate, energize, and involve students (engagement) in the learning process. Personalized, tailored, and individualized will be used interchangeably throughout this document when describing this aspect of first year students experiences. What activities lead to personalized, engaging experiences for first year students at UNI? How are those activities assessed? Is it systematic? What is done with the information from the assessment to enhance and improve experiences?

Activities/Services Leading to Personalized, Engaging Experiences

Many activities and services at UNI lead to individualized, engaging experiences for first year students.

Academic Advising. In 2007 the NACADA Consultants’ Report provided several recommendations for improving academic advising (and as a result changing how students are engaged) on campus. An Institutional advising mission/vision statement was created by a committee that was established as a result of this endeavor, and an intake model for select freshmen was developed. It was proposed that a common advising handbook be created for use across campus and that an ongoing professional development program for both new and seasoned faculty and professional advisors be supported. The report recommended that advisors undergo periodic reviews to insure that student needs are being met. As a result, the University Academic Advising Mission & Vision Task Force prepared a plan for academic advising to meet many of the recommendations.

The Office of Academic Advising redefined their mission and vision statement to better assist students in their transition to UNI, specifically focusing on engaging first year students at UNI. The main focus of the goals is the engagement of students in their educational experience. Their outcomes outline specific goals and action plans for transitioning students in a variety of settings (Preview day, orientation, weekly emails to advisees, career decision making class, PAIRs, new advisor in-service training). Academic advising uses many of the current assessments on campus, such as NSSE, to monitor engagement of its students. In addition, specific programs are assessed. For example, the Peer Academic Advisor in Residence (PAIR) program has been assessed annually since 2004. The Academic Advising Staff review the results of the survey assessments and use this data to improve the PAIR program and students’ experiences.

The adoption of the UNI intake model has resulted in a common advising syllabus given to all Office of Academic Advising advisees outlining the outcomes, expectations, and resources for their first year. It also makes information on starting/maintaining study groups readily available to students in an effort to increase their engagement and success on campus. Coupled with the intake model, the College of Business has developed a First Year Seminar for Business Majors. This seminar has well defined learning objectives that are designed to increase active participation and engagement of first year students in college, and more specifically those in a CBA major.

In 2008, a climate survey was administered to faculty and staff academic advisors by the Undergraduate Advising Council. Based on the results of this survey, the Council proposed four goals for academic advising at UNI. The goals include increasing funding for additional advisors to reduce advisor load, implementing and ongoing professional development program for university advisors, creating a campus advising network to increase collaboration and learning among advisors, and creating a web-based advisor handbook.

Academic Learning Center. The Academic Learning Center contains many programs focused on personalizing and engaging students in their learning at UNI.

Student Support Services began in 1984 ( It is a TRIO program funded by the U.S. Department of Education and provides services not only for first year students but also other students. Student Support Services overlaps with Academic Achievement and Retention Services Staff work with a variety of students, including first year students, to achieve academic success and to empower them to develop their personal and professional strengths. Assessment occurs by regularly gathering data on students’ academic standing, persistence toward graduation, graduation rates, and other factors. The data is used to incorporate programming changes, establish separate services such as services for transfer students, and implement modifications in activities.

CLEP and Advanced Placement exams are often taken by first year students. If passed, these provide the student with college credit in certain areas and open an avenue for the student to be able to access additional courses tailored to their specific interests. No assessment is done at UNI regarding the Advanced Placement exams, but CLEP is assessed informally through one-on-one discussions with students after taking the tests.

Academic Programs and Courses Leading to Personalized, Engaging Experiences

Academic programs and courses within them often offer first year students experiences that engage them in critical thinking and personalize learning to prepare them for success. Assessment is done on these programs. Two examples are given below.

The CHAMPS (Challenging Athletes’ Minds for Personal Success) Life Skills course is based on the NCAA Foundation’s program, This course is designed to assist first year student athletes in making connections and engaging students in their learning experience at UNI. The development of content for the course is a collaboration between the primary faculty member and other faculty who assist with elements of the course. Data gathered through faculty observation and coursework is used to modify the course to meet the needs of first year students and ensure relevance in the development of skills needed for success in the classroom and in life.

Experiences in which first year students reflect on their work and that of others provides personalization to their studies and engages them in critically thinking about their own work and that of others. One tool for facilitating reflection is an electronic portfolio. A campus wide tool is available for student and faculty use. Portfolios allow for assessment at the course or program level. Reflections on one’s work can easily be included as well as peer reflection on others’ work. In the Department of English, the Liberal Arts Core (LAC) 1A Draft Assessment Plan is used. While in a pilot stage, students work to improve their writing skills based on an assessment rubric given to them. Students then reflect on their writing and improvements made over time leading to individual engagement in the learning process. Faculty review the rubric and the process to ensure it is meeting the needs and requirements for the program.

In mentioning the Liberal Arts Core in the previous section, it is important to note an apparent shift in the type of LAC courses being offered. Course data on the number of sections and average class size per course over the past ten years indicates a trend toward offering fewer performance based courses (particularly in the Fine Arts) and larger classes with a lecture type format. The Transitions Dimension looks more closely at this phenomenon, but we wanted to high light it in this section as well.

While not widespread across campus, various departments on campus have, in an effort to improve student engagement, taken steps to link themes and instructional goals across course sections. For example, the Oral Communication course, taken almost exclusively by first year students, requires uniform course syllabi and textbooks across sections as a way to provide consistency with the department. As a result of this consistency, student outcomes for the course can be designed and communicated to first year students, increasing first year student engagement.

As previously stated in the Learning Dimension report, the recent (March 2009) Academic Program Assessment (APA) conducted on campus has the potential to reveal documentation of specific instructional methods used to provide engaging experiences for UNI students in the classroom. While no data is available at this time, several dimensions of the APA are appropriate to include as they relate to student engagement and learning. This evidence, listed earlier in this report in the Learning Dimension section, includes:

Quality of teaching, and specifically innovations related to student engagement and learning.
Program Student Outcome Assessment plans, with optional descriptions of how the plans are used for program improvement.
An “opportunity for distinction” category which allows programs to list cutting edge teaching and/or research accomplishments.
An “outreach and engagement” dimension that relates to faculty and student involvement outside of the classroom, including external audiences, constituents, and target groups.

Assessing First Year Student Engagement and Personalization Through Surveys

Surveys conducted often measure the level of engagement on campus.

The most comprehensive assessment of engagement of UNI students occurs annually through the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The NSSE instrument examines how undergraduate students spend their time at the university, looking specifically at the level of academic challenge, the amount of active and collaborative learning, student-faculty interaction, supportiveness of the campus environment, and the type and amount of enriching academic experiences. The NSSE survey has been an ongoing initiative, conducted annually at UNI since 2006. FSSE, the faculty and staff version of NSSE, was conducted one time in 2007. The data obtained in the survey is compared to the results from UNI’s peer institutions, as well as a Carnegie peer group, to determine how well UNI does compared to the benchmark institutions in engaging students. The results of the UNI NSSE survey are posted on the Office of Academic Assessment website for use by the campus at large to improve the undergraduate experience at the university.

Surveys conducted for the purposes of the FOE initiative have several items related to student engagement (e.g. knowing where to get help with coursework, knowing where to get involved in institutional sponsored activities, achieving life goals). The open ended survey questions of the FOE survey of faculty and staff were analyzed by a group of communication students. The results of this assessment are being used by various committees in the FOE process as they review and make recommendations to the institution. Items include those related to first year course teaching, UNI’s strengths and weaknesses, teaching strategies, and more.

The UNI Strategic Plan Progress Report 07-08 demonstrates institutional progress on achieving the goals set out in the 2004-2009 strategic plan. Several components of the strategic plan focus specifically on creating a personalized and engaging environment for students at UNI. Goal 1.0 is to provide intellectually challenging and character-building experiences for undergraduate and graduate students in a personalized learning environment. Objective 2.5 of Goal 2.0 is somewhat related to student engagement as it seeks to increase the focus on research and creative activities that provide additional experiential learning opportunities for students. Goal 4.0 contains two objectives directly related to student engagement and personalized learning. Objective 4.3 strives to broaden participation in University governance activities by students, and Objective 4.4 is to enhance the opportunities for mentoring and social interaction among all members of the University community. Assessment of the Strategic Plan goals appears to need some reevaluation and revision (please see recommendation section). It appears that the current measures do not really get at what the goals are trying to accomplish.

Assessing First Year Student Engagement—Systematic Assessment

Institutionally, the most thorough assessment of engagement on campus is participation in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The routine assessment provides a wealth of data that measures the engagement experience of UNI students. Aside from the information obtained in the NSSE administration, little else exists in the form of systematic assessment of student engagement on campus.

At the departmental level, while the initiatives related to academic advising show great promise in promoting student engagement, overall there is no visible evidence of how other efforts to engage students are assessed. The NACADA document states that a systematic campus-wide advising evaluation program based on student outcomes assessment is needed. The Office of Academic Advising and the College of Business advising center have recently developed and implemented pre- and post-tests to track advisee progress and student outcomes over time. This effort reaches two-thirds of the freshmen student body at UNI, but no longitudinal data exists to determine progress over time. The system is in place on many levels, but the trend data does not yet exist.

Similarly, there is no evidence of systematic assessment related to programs offered by the Academic Learning Center. While certain programs are assessed, often through informal means, no longitudinal data exists over time to show progression toward certain goals.

Academic Programs and Courses are also assessed systematically. However, no evidence is provided that this information specifically assesses personalization and engagement. There is also no indication that the assessment data results in critical review and analysis of the program/course eventually leading to modifications or restructuring.

The data resulting from various surveys can be used systematically to lead to improvements, however, it does not exist in a central location. Access to the data is difficult for many. Interpreting the data can be time consuming.

Use of Assessment for Improvement

While various assessment initiatives are ongoing across campus, there is not much evidence, other than anecdotal information, to demonstrate that the results of the assessments are being used for improving the student experience on the UNI campus. The efforts undertaken in academic advising are the most advanced at this point. The assessment endeavors by the Provost’s Academic Affairs Council have resulted in an action plan that will be put in place in 2010. Several other initiatives mentioned in this section have created the building blocks to take steps toward the action plan, but the plans are in their infancy and we cannot expect to see the results of their efforts for several years.

The results of the faculty and staff portion of the FoE survey that pertain directly to the improvement dimension show that while assessment is being conducted, the results of the assessments are not widely used to shape the first year student experience at UNI. Faculty and staff believe that UNI does a marginal job of assessing what is relevant to first year students (45.2% responded fair). The majority of respondents (74.3%) rate UNI as fair to poor in disseminating assessment results in a timely manner, and 72.8% say that the assessment results are rarely used to make improvements on campus. This feedback is supported by the lack of evidence of assessment related improvements in the FoE evidence library and across campus as a whole.

Recommendations

We recommend that the university create a common definition of what it means to offer a personalized, engaging experience at UNI. This definition will aid in the systematic assessment efforts to enhance engagement across campus.

As the Strategic Planning process occurs, an action plan for assessing the progress toward meeting the goals included in the plan should be articulated. This will ensure that the outcome measures are properly aligned with the goals and provide the university with accurate and relevant data.

A reevaluation of the surveys administered, and more specifically the questions asked pertaining to personalized/ engaging experiences, should occur.

As the Foundations of Excellence report comes to fruition, an effective plan must be developed to assess the various aspects of the First Year experience as outlined by the Foundations of Excellence initiative. It is important to define and implement ongoing assessment, not only for personalized and engaging experiences, but for all of the Foundational dimensions.

We need to articulate the goals of engaging activities/co-curricular activities that occur outside of the classroom and assessment developed to measures those goals.

We recommend that LAC committee examine the trend that seems to be occurring of offering less engaging (more survey based) LAC courses.

We recommend that assessment being done by the various programs in the Academic Learning Center be made more accessible.

PI 9.1 Assessment: To what degree does UNI’s program/mission statement regarding “personalized and engaging opportunities” include systematic (are appropriately timed, focused, and based on data collection and analysis methods that provide high quality information for decision making) assessment? Our Grade:1 Very Low / None (based on a 1 Very Low/ None and 5 Very High scale)