Back to basics: Combining analytics and early assessment with personalised contact to improve student progress

Abstract

Student progression, attrition and completion are key metrics for all Universities. Subject level progress rates can be a useful lead indicator of these metrics; thus allowing quality improvement activities to be piloted and evaluated in shorter timeframes. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the effect of a series of pre-census interventions on subject progress rates. In 2018, twenty five subjects from the Faculty of Science at Charles Sturt University were selected to participate in the pilot based on a history of poor subject progress rates. Approximately 700 disengaged students were identified via learning analytics and emailed in week 2. In weeks 3 and 4 a range of “triggers” were used to identify 425 students who remained disengaged and contact was made via phone and/or email. Overall average subject progress rates increased from 66% in 2017 to 80% in 2018 (p<0.05) with a significant reduction in the average number of fail and fail withdrawn grades (from 42 to 26 per subject, p<0.05). Overall, we demonstrated that significant improvements in subject progress rates can be achieved when academics and Divisional support staff work collaboratively to identify, contact and support disengaged students prior to the HECS census date.