Wednesday, April 11, 2012

TESOL 2012 - UCIEP Meeting for Assistant/Associate Directors, Coordinators - Student Concerns Breakout Group

Student Concerns – ROUND 1

·         Bridging the gap between the IEP to the university

o   How to get students to see the value in what the are learning in the IEP

o   University of Delaware – direct admit after finishing IEP…

§  Students who would have been eligible, but they elect not to take that path

§  Karen Asenavage – kasen@udel.edu

·         Will provide advice on how to get agreement with university in order for ELC students to be able to have direct path

o   Sometimes, professors have had bad experiences with international students, to they are resistant to the direct path

o   When there is a direct path, sometimes students still need to take “transitional courses”

o   Bridge mentor program

o   Conditional admission is good for recruiting – some people aren’t good test takers but still can do well with academic studies

o   Population is heavily Chinese at U Delaware – the university is no longer accepting Chinese students…. However, developed a series of partners with other universities where students can go through IEP and then transfer to the partner university

§  Must be very careful about students being ready, or it will come back on the IEP

o   Talk to students about their goals… why did they come?

o   Students complete top level, but they don’t have TOEFL… so, what happens ? those students leave.  What about adding another level?  This university created a “super-senior class” (temporary solution) [for students who don’t have the scores but want to remain in the country]

§  Reasons for doing this

·         If students have already done curriculum, this gives them new material

·         This prevents teachers and other students suffering

o   Because those students become poor attenders and they only focus on TOEFL, etc.

o   Have to be careful about teachers – must be extremely confident and competent

o   Students end up working harder because there is a higher expectation

o   Teachers are relieved because they can focus on students

·         If a student is failing due to attendance, they must transfer… but if the student is more like “creeping along”…. Consider “WHY” is the student repeating a third time – is it because they just need more time learning the language – these cases are considered on an individual basis

·         Kansas State à Formal appeal Students can make appeals at some programs – this makes it so the student can be reinstated “We shouldn’t be working

o   2-credit, Separate class for chronic non-performers – students pay for everything…

§  Physical component

§  Team-building

§  Study hall commitment

§  Lectures

·         University of North Texas….. All students repeating a class, must repeat a study skills class…. 2 hours per week.

o   If Ss does not attend class, they don’t get a third chance

§  30 minute study hall

§  30 minute question/answer session

·         Hire university students to be mentors – there is a retreat/orientation

o   On Course – textbook… Cengage – study skills book for native speakers

§  Upper-Intermediate through High

·         Kansas State - Student tutors… must have Bachelor’s… must maintain an activity portfolio to keep the job… $9-20 per hour

·         Student counselors – (advisers)

Student Concerns – ROUND 2

Addressing Issues of Student Behavior

                Attendance Issues

                                Requirements?

                                                                45 max hours missed

                                                                80% attendance

                                                                90% attendance

                                                                40 hours per semester (~8 class days)

                                                Probation/Warning/Drop System

                                                                If on warning 2 terms in a row, they must leave

If dropped for attendance purposes, they don’t get dropped from SEVIS, they just have to go to another school

Can’t make *conditionally admitted* students leave… must follow procedures of university

If student’s I-20 is up at end of session, they must transfer to a new program

Michigan State

5/10/15 week attendance reports – instructor must make comments for why students are failing

Instructors must turn in attendance reports weekly… helps send up red flags

                                                Tell students “there is a problem with their visa” – it gets them in!

If 1 week of class missed in any one class, there is a flag – in each section or level, there is a teacher responsible for writing a letter that goes to student and director… then the director sits down with student to determine what is going on

Less than 80%, no certificate

Less than 70%, get dismissed                                     

8am classes – Michigan State… register students, but then, if they are good after the first week, they can move to a different section

                Re-placement tests (with permission) – University of Alabama

                                2nd day of classes, but registration is closed

                Establish an appeals committee – can go by the book, or consider emergency situations

                                If dismissed, they have 24 hours to appeal the decision

                Committee or section leaders is good, because then the advisors don’t get burned out

                On committee – 2 administrators, 1 faculty

                “I was  “volun-told” to do something…” J



Gender Issues with Advising

                How do you deal with it when a student does not want to speak to a female advisor?

                                Initially, it can be an issue for a new student.

                                Does anyone make a point to have a male and female advisor? Yes.

                                Advisor chooses which student to see…

Family Issues?

                What about when family members accompany?

What about low-level students?

                Georgetown – sends students who are true beginners to other school

                                Tried pulling students out with tutors, and th

                Denver – Basic 1 class

                Old Dominion University – Integrated Skills/Experiential Learning

Women’s Night? – no boys allowed… shades pulled, building locked      

Dismissing Students – use the analogy of yellow/red flag in soccer…

                Student contracts

                “reasonable progress report”

                Send them to International Student Services Office – works for scaring them



DISCUSSION PARTICIPANTS

Matthew Griffin – University of Denver – Matthew.Griffin@du.edu

Ms. Tobie Hoffman – Drexel University – tobie@drexel.edu

Vicki Sorensen – The University of Texas at Arlington – Sorensen@eli.uta.edu

Laura Ray – Old Dominion University – lray@odu.edu

Heidi Vellenga – Indiana University – vellenga@indiana.edu

Karen Asenavage – University of Delaware – kasen@udel.edu

Carol Wilson-Duffy – Michigan State University – wilson77@msu.edu

Marci Daugherty – University of Alabama – marcid@eli.ua.edu

Catherine Siska – SUNY New Paltz – siskac@newpaltz.edu

Mandy Kama – Georgetown University – kamam@georgetown.edu

Kristi VerMuhn – Iowa State University – kvermulm@iastate.edu

Dawn McCormick – University of Pittsburgh – mccormic@pitt.edu
Leena Chakrabarti – Kansas State University – leena@ksu.edu

Sabine Thepaut – University of North Texas – Sabine.Thepaut@unt.edu


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