2.7 STUDENT SUPPORT
2.7.11 M EASUREMENT STRATEGIES OF STUDENT SUPPORT INTERVENTIONS ’
responsiveness
This component of the literature review section examined the discussions on the strategies put in place in the higher education sector to trace students’ progress after the use of support interventions, which have been designed to assist them to cope with the difficulties they encounter, and to meet their needs and expectations. It is intrinsically valuable to immerse into the discussions of this nature to enhance an understanding of effective social and academic support-oriented practises, which are followed by the higher education institutions. Additionally, the main purpose of this research is to develop, ultimately, the framework for student-support for the open and distance learning system and to prescribe the best practises suitable for the adoptions of the anticipated framework.
The objective is to get insights into the measurement strategies for evaluating the effectiveness of the student support interventions that higher education institutions put in place for dropout at-risk students. Several measurement instruments have been used over the past decades to measure a particular challenge and an effectiveness of the intervention and to further reflect whether there is a need for student support or not. Despite an extensive use of variant preclusive forms of measures which are centred on promoting student commitment and participation at high schools, the responsiveness of dropout support prevention and intervention measures have not,
until recently, been given a sufficient focus. Measuring the acculturative stress that international postgraduate students suffer from in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Desa, Yussoff and Kadir (2011, p. 364) have applied the self-administered questionnaire which comprises the social, attitudinal, familial and environmental acculturative stress scale (SAFE). The instrument was developed to measure students’ acculturative stress, which includes the social, familial, attitudinal and environmental-related stress. Where blended learning has been adopted as form of student support in higher education institutions, measuring its effects according to higher cognitive order of learning that includes reflective and critical thinking should be a pivotal priority. Garrison and Kanuka (2004, p. 104) posit that the standard aspects which measurements for effective blended learning system should involve student retention, satisfaction and attainment of the learning outcomes.
In the context of the increasingly espoused bridging programmes to advance admissibility of students who do not directly meet the admission requirements for higher education qualification programmes, contemporary measurement approaches still rely heavily on the variety of conventional models including the Wiggins and McTighe (1998)’s model for evaluating the effectiveness of bridging programmes.
Figure 2.3 Model for evaluating the effectiveness of bridging programs Source: Adapted from Wiggins and McTighe (1998)
According this model, measuring the effectiveness of the bridging programmes for the acceptance of students for higher education qualification programmes entail three
fundamental stages. The first one enhances the admissibility to degree programme and a set of the desired outcomes are given to which students must conform. If students had performed well and achieved the outcomes of the programme, they are then granted admissions based on the evidence that they are prepared to study the degree. The last stage involves the design of the bridging programme that contains the teaching mode, the content and the structure of the programme.
Contrary to some of the deprecations that the shortcomings of the higher education bridging programmes are that the evaluation methods are shoddy, their periods are short, they are not accredited and assessments are only from within (Ssempebwa et al, 2012, p. 142), the South African Department of Higher Education and Training for Post-School Education and Training system (WPPET) proposes a post-school system in which there should be no dead-ends to students who want to further their studies (Department of Higher Education and Training , 2013, p. viii). This view implies that bridging programmes will continue to be of a higher value as a means to support students for admission into the degree programmes within higher education institutions. The proposed post-school education and training system further envision that higher education institutions should address students’ needs and expectations and make sure that there are often accessible paths to improve qualifications without undue reiteration (Department of Higher Education and Training , 2013, p. viii).
In addition to establishing students’ preparedness to study at a particular qualification programme, diagnostic tests are used by some higher education institutions in the global education arena. The physics and biology tests utilised for admissions in the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Manchester University (Sharif et al, 2007, p. 220) serves an embodiment of diagnostic tests.
More recently, and in addition to the discussed traditional model conceived by Wiggins and McTighe (1998), the contemporary salient measurement approach for the assessment of the effectiveness of the support strategy proposed for the use in the higher education sector emphasises creating partnership relationship between the higher education institutions and their students. In the assertion made by Appleton and Abernethy (2013, p. 208), partnering with students helps higher education institutions to be effective and to develop and continue to advance the library and student support services (L&SS). A range of student support measurement methods