XLS Commons
Posted on August 17, 2009
Filed Under Faculty and Student Support | Leave a Comment
By Diana Reetz-Stacey
We hear a lot about nontraditional students, we frequently assist nontraditional students, and many of us (including me) are ourselves nontraditional students. Who are they and what should we know as we work with them?
If we consider a traditional student as one who begins a Bachelors degree immediately after high school and completes the degree in four years on campus, then we may define a nontraditional student as any other student. Others may include in the definition students who are parents, even if they complete their degree in four years. Part-time status, age, and distance learning are other common attributes mentioned. “Adult Learners” is another common term used. UM defines nontraditional freshmen as “those students who do not enter college for a period of at least three years from the date of high school graduation or from the date they would have graduated from high school if they have a GED.” (2008-2009 catalog, p. 12) Nontraditional students may be working more hours than other students, have more dependents, fiscal and home responsibilities, and have fewer opportunities to network with other students, staff, and faculty.
Nontraditional students are not a new phenomenon, but have been a significant part of the student population since GIs returned from WW II. National statistics vary widely, depending upon how nontraditional students are defined. I found statistics that varied from 37% to 80% of the student population.
In a Spring 06 enrollment analysis, UM found that nontraditional students are more likely to attend part-time and have a higher dropout rate, which is a concern for FTE and retention. As a result, UM set the following goals which directly relates to our work (The University of Montana Partnering for Student Success Report, Fall 2008):
1) Create online orientation for nontraditional and returning students by FY2010.
2) Investigate the need and interest in specific degree programs for weekends, evenings, and online access by FY2011.
We need to remember that nontraditional students may:
There are plenty of online resources available, including discussion and support groups, tips, scholarship information, etc. Sites include:
http://www.antshe.org (Association of Nontraditional Students in Higher Education)
http://www.nontradstudents.com
I believe that by simply being aware of the different nature and needs of nontraditional students, we will be able to serve them better. I also welcome discussion about how XLS as a team could better serve nontraditional students and also about how we may be able to assist UM with meeting the goals of online orientations and flexible degree options. I’d like to propose that we invite relevant UM stakeholders to a round table to discuss this further and join our brainpower, staff talent and resources to these mutually advantageous goals.
Posted on August 14, 2009
Filed Under Emerging Technologies, XLi 2010 | 4 Comments
Sometimes, it’s not easy to select the right tool for the job. If you’re planning a conference for example, the obvious (traditional) way to go is to setup a website. If you have the means, you may also want to include the ability for participants to enroll online and proposals to be submitted. For our annual conference on online teaching and learning, the Extended Learning Institute (XLi) 2009, we did precisely this. We added a new page for the conference (Dreamweaver), included enrollment capability, account creation, abstract submission and scoring (in house), and administered the conference website using Contribute.
Anyone who has used Contribute will know what a frustrating experience it can be. It introduces random code into the website, crashes more often than not, and creates additional work for everyone involved. It is just too unstable.
In order to get away from these issues and address the lack of two-way interaction available on a traditional website, we are planning to use a Ning for XLi 2010. ‘Ning’ (’Peace’ in Chinese) is an online platform where individuals can create their own social networks (Wikipedia). It has a number of great features for promoting dialogue around shared interests.
A Ning provides:
These are powerful features for stimulating discussions and promoting networking before, during and after the conference, However, like every tool, Ning has limitations, and we can’t quite get away from the webpage for a couple of very good reasons:
1) The webpage provides a clean interface where key information can be readily accessed. A social network can be a rather chaotic experience for the novitiate.
2) We would like to keep the features that were developed in-house, so that we can more readily track enrollments and submission of proposals. While it is possible to see who has enrolled on the Ning, an additional document would probably have to be developed for concise viewing of this information. It is also not possible to submit documents to a Ning.
This month we will continue to explore the functionality of Ning in more depth as we explore its potential applications for XLi 2010. I would be very interested to know what other people’s experiences of using a Ning for holding a conference are, and what strategies you have used to promote interaction among members of your Ning.
Thank you,
Robert
Posted on August 3, 2009
Filed Under Operational Efficiency | Leave a Comment
Rafting is one of my favorite summertime activities. It can be relaxing to drift and let the water maneuver the boat with the flow of the stream. However, to navigate the river, catch some air and avoid the dangers that come with whitewater rafting, each paddler needs to work together as a team. Read more
