“The more frequently students engage with faculty, staff, and their peers, the more likely…they will persist and graduate.”

– Vincent Tinto, University of Syracuse

Try Speed Meetings

Did You Know?

According to A Matter of Degrees: Engaging Practices, Engaging Students, building instructor and peer relationships is critical to student retention. Getting students to reach out and meet their classmates will strengthen their resolve and keep them coming back.  Students should do something to connect with other students. Today’s activity gives students an excuse to meet and collect information from their classmates as they begin to develop valuable relationships.

Here’s how…

• Ask students questions about what they want from this class…
• View video.
• Distribute the Student Activity, review the instructions and complete.
• Time the interviews and keep them moving.
• Discuss the responses and share your own.

What is one thing you learned from these interviews?
Why do you think helping each other is important?
What surprised you about the responses you received?

• List ideas about how students plan to help each other succeed.

Above and Beyond!

Twitter can bolster student engagement, build community, and raise students’ GPA. For some great suggestions on how to use it in your courses here’s   “Can 140 Characters Matter?”  and 10 Great Steps for Using Twitter in your Classrooms.