‘E-learning, e-teaching and e-motivation’- the LLB Progress and Retention project

Tom Inkelaar and Ormond Simpson

ormond.simpson@googlemail.comwww.ormondsimpson.com

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Graduation rates - distance education and conventional education

Conventional education Distance education

Probability of suffering depression, unemployment and (women) partner violence, according to educational

experience (Bynner, 2002)

Probability of:

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What happens to students who dropout? - effects of dropout on full-time students in the UK

dropouts

Dropouts from distance education

3 questions…

1. Why do they drop out?

2. Is there anything we can do about dropout?

3. Can e-learning make a difference?

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Why students drop outthe importance of learning motivation

“The best predictor of student retention is motivation.

“Retention services need to clarify and build on motivation and address motivation-reducing issues.

“Most students dropout because of reduced motivation”

San Diego Retention Conference 2003

Professor Edward Anderson

Direction of support - reactive and proactive

Institution Student Reactive student support – waiting for

students to contact the institution for help

Institution Student Proactive student support – taking

initiative to contact students from institution at particular critical points

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Proactive Contact

‘Student self-referral does not work as a mode of promoting persistence. Students who need services the most refer themselves the least.

“Effective retention services take the initiative in outreach and timely interventions with those students.’

(Anderson, US)

Proactive student support – evidence

Study Method Finding NotesRekkedahl ‘82 Norway

Postcards 46% increase in retention

 

Case & Elliot ’97 US

Phone calls 15-20% increase in retention

2 - 5 calls most effective

Visser ‘90 UK

Postcards 27% increase in retention

Small scale study

Chyung‘01 US

Phone calls Dropout reduced from 44% to 22%

 

Mager‘03 US

‘Telecounselling’ 5% increase in retention

Cost-effective625% return

Simpson‘06 UK

One phone call before course start

5.04% Cost–effective460% return

Twyford‘07 Aus.

Motivational emails 11.7% increase over control

 

Huett‘08 US

Motivational emails 23.4% increase over control

Significant at 0.5%

Simpson‘01 UK

Phone calls plus motivational emails

18.9% increase over control

 

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“The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn.”

-John Lubbock (1834-1913)

“No teacher can ever be certain that their teaching will cause a learner to learn”.

- Ramsden (2003)

Do distance educators spend too much time on teaching and not enough on motivating students

to learn?

podcasts webinars

blogs

Facebook

Social networking vlogs

wikis

Youtube

pencasts Moocs

Evidence that e-teaching via these media increase graduation rates?

Or do they increase costs without significantly increasing success?

VLE’s

Apps

E-learning or E-teaching?

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Motivational support?

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Motivational emails?

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Learning motivation theories 2

John Keller – ARCS Theory

Carole Dweck - Self Theory

Martin Seligman - Positive Psychology

Keller’s ARCS theory

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A = Attention

R = Relevance C = Confidence

S = Satisfaction

Visser 1990 ‘Motivational Messaging’

A = Attention

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Getting Attention

Use:- incongruity – eg humour*- empathy – eg stories, sharing personal thoughts - authority – displaying expertise

- and addressed individually

But everything in a message should be relevant to learning.

*eg see ‘Flipnosis’ – Dutton (2011)

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R = Relevance

• - address topics that are of immediate interest to students at that particular stage of their studies

• -be short – 400 words or less

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C = Confidence

• - messages should come from someone with academic authority - use ‘I’ or ‘we’?

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S = Satisfaction

?• A satisfaction survey

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‘Study Tips’ – Introduction

1 Are you ‘fixed’ or ‘malleable’?

2 What can you expect from studying the LLB with the London University International Programme?

3 Motivating yourself to learn

4 Getting organised for study - a Funnel in your mailbox?5 Finding your best study methods

6 Finding the time when getting behind.

7 Getting organised - making lists

8 “I’ve got those ‘why-the-heck-am-I-trying-to-study-blues….’”

‘Motivational emails’

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9 Survival Guide for You and Your Family

10 Managing your procrastinitus

11 Self-Discipline!

12 Learning to concentrate on learning

13 Are you a lucky student?

14. ‘Study Anxiety Syndrome’

15 Tactics In The Exam Wars

16 ‘Don’t stop now!’

‘Motivational emails’ continued

Subject: Study Tip 1 - Are you ‘fixed’ or ‘malleable’? Dear Ormond

As I promised I’m sending you my first study tip. I hope you find it useful!

Recent findings1 in psychology suggest that how we think about our own intelligence or IQ is the most important factor in how successful we are when we try to learn. Psychologists say that people fall into two groups – •‘Fixed’ intelligence people – people who believe that their intelligence is fixed at birth and can’t be changed by external factors or their own efforts.•Malleable’ intelligence people – people who believe that their intelligence is not fixed and that it can be changed through effort. 22

These beliefs affect how people learn, particularly when they run into difficulties or fail an exam. People who believe that their intelligence is fixed may work hard. But when they run into difficulties or failure they tend to believe that they’ve reached the limit of their intelligence and give up. People who believe that their intelligence is malleable will see difficulties as a sign that they need to try harder. This is because they believe that effort will overcome such difficulties in the end.

Your intelligence is not fixedWe now know that (despite what psychologists used to believe) that intelligence is not a fixed quantity for life. It can be developed by personal endeavour.

As psychologists2 now say “People often overestimate the important of intellectual ability. Practice and perseverance contribute more to accomplishment than being smart”. In other words the malleable people are right.

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Malleability is the keyMalleable people don’t see something hard to understand or a poor grade as a comment on their basic intelligence. They just see it as a sign that they need to ask for help and try again. So remember – your intelligence is malleable. With effort and support you can succeed on this course. Good Luck!

Ormond SimpsonDistance Learning Consultant, University of London International Programme

1Dweck, C. (2000) ‘Self-Theories’ Psychology Press 2Hoppe and Stojanovic (2008) Sci. Amer. Mind  Please do not reply to this email. Send any queries to the Information Centre enquiries@london.ac.uk To opt out of receiving these emails click here

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Catching up - Almost every student gets behind with their studies at some point. Life just happens! So here’s the world’s shortest guide on how to catch up - the 3S modelS = Skim. Sometimes when you need to catch up it’s ok to skim what you’re reading and just get a feel for it without reading it word for word.S = Skip. Sometimes it’s ok the skip some material all together if you need to and if it’s not vital for the next bit of study.S = Scrape. If you’re behind doing an assignment then occasionally it’s ok to aim to just scrape through. You don’t have to do everything perfectly!

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Complete texts on www.ormondsimpson.com

Can we switch learning motivation on

and keep it on using ‘e-motivation’?

What are the barriers to increasing retention?

“The biggest barrier to increasing retention in an institution... ... are the attitudes in the institution itself”

- Johnston (Napier University, Scotland, 2002)

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Attitudes to student retention 1

The ‘Darwinistas’

Students drop out because they're not intelligent enough, unmotivated or lazy.

“We’re here to weed out the unfit”

Fixed intelligence theorists?

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Attitudes to student retention 2

The Fatalistas

Students dropout for reasons beyond our control

“Students are doomed to pass or fail and there’s not much we can do about it”

Fixed Intelligence Theorists?

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Attitudes to student retention 3

The ‘Retentioneer’

Students most often dropout because

of lack of proactive support

“Help students be as successful as they can be”

Malleable theorists?

“E-motivators?” 3030

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The LLB Progress and Retention

project

•Pilot showed system technically feasible

•102 students out of 2587 emailed with ‘motivational texts

•So far no significant differences either way

“If everything you do works, you’re not trying hard enough”

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Apollo Group, the parent company of the University of Phoenix:

"Based upon the belief that learning is not a one-size-fits-all experience, Apollo Technology developed the technology to deliver data-driven, personalized education tailored to the individual.

“Apollo Technology’s unique student data system collects and analyzes individual student data, and delivers automatic just-in-time guidance that can significantly improve student outcomes.“

University of Phoenix graduation rate = 4%