In the Summer of 2017, San Francisco State University made news for their report on ethnic studies courses taken and student retention and graduation at their institution, setting off conversations across higher education about the meaningfulness of the data. What are the potential impacts for online and distance programs?
Online and distance education has long recognized its role in providing educational access and degree attainment to populations historically out of the reach of traditional degree programs. Higher percentages of adult learners, female students, underrepresented minorities and first generation students have been reported in many distance programs.
San Francisco State University’s report reinvigorated a conversation about student identity and recognition of diverse experiences within the undergraduate curriculum. In the case of traditional higher education, where students frequently enter as a relative “blank slate” with several general education slots to fulfill, and with “exploration” as a guiding principle in how we advise students about their college experience, courses that are outside of a major requirement are a core component of the curriculum and can be in ready supply for deployment.
Often students in distance programs, by nature of their experiences, are pursuing degrees that align to specific career goals, and may also have less need to take general education coursework due to previously completed credit. Additionally, the pressure that many students face to graduate on an accelerated timeline can produce a view that coursework outside of the program of study is a waste of time, a waste of scant financial resources, or both. In light of these challenges, those servicing this population must be creative if we aim to increase the presence of identity-based programming.
This session will be a guided conversation amongst interested colleagues on student identity within online programs. While there will be facilitation with set questions, the goal of this session is to collect a passionate group with a desire to push the envelope in student success in online programs and explore ways in which our community can respond to the conversation for our respective programs. Does our online curriculum reflect the needs of identity recognition for our students? How do we have these conversations on our respective campuses? Where are the places we can influence the conversation? Come ready to engage and learn from each other.
The Inside Higher Ed story on the report can be found at: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/07/09/san-francisco-state-finds-evidence-ethnic-studies-students-do-better