Vincent Tinto Ph.D. and Learning Communities

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Vincent Tinto Ph.D. and Learning Communities
Retention is a community thing Tinto, Ph.D.

• Presented By Fredrick Butler
• Instructor J. Baier. Ph.D.
• Course EDHE 6520
• Term Summer I, 2001

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Vincent Tinto

• Earned his Ph.D. in Sociology of Education from
  the University of Chicago in 1971
• Noted as a Distinguished Professor in the School
  of Education at Syracuse University
• Current research focuses on the impact of
  Learning Communities on 1st year higher education
  students academic achievement and retention rates

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Insights

• Dr. Tinto suggests that there are several
  determinants
• of student learning that must be met to foster
  student
• success.
• Student abilities and skills
• High expectations of student performance
• Support ( academically and socially) and,
• Student involvement (e.g. time on task)

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Proposed Solution Learning Communities

• Learning Communities are supportive environments
  that foster active involvement and high levels of
  performance by allowing students to connect with
  faculty and other students in efforts of forming
  supportive peer interaction.
• This is best accomplished when faculty build
  common academic connections among courses or
  disciplines.

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Examples of Learning Communities

• Linked Course communities in which students are
  enrolled in courses that have overlapping
  content.
• Interest Groups communities in which students
  are assigned to a discussion group in addition to
  common courses.

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Examples of Learning Communities

• Cluster-Learning communities in which clusters
  of students take all of the same courses, one of
  which is a seminar course that helps make
  connections explicit
• Coordinated Study communities that offer longer
  courses that are co-taught by two or more
  instructors.

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Additional Components to Theory

• Frequent assessments of learning
• Frequent feedback about learning
• Frequent feedback about teaching, and
• Emphasis on group activities and assignments that
  encourage out of class interactions

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Closing Thoughts Quotes from Dr. Tinto

• An institutions mission is what makes the
  education valuable.
• Students expectations must match reality, they
  must make connections with their teachers and
  their peers.
• Begin at the beginning and make sure everything
  you do early (New Student Orientation, Welcome
  Week, University 100) meets students needs and
  helps them become more connected to the
  university.

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Bibliography

• Butler, Darrell. Learning Communities
  http//web/bsu.edu/tla/resources/news/1997-98/Apr1
  998A1.htm
• Tinto, Vincent. Vincent Tinto http//www.nmsu.edu/
  NMHEACT/Tinto.html
• Craig, Tom. Retention expert says focus on
  mission and values. http//sam.acu.edu/events/news
  /000118-retention.html
• National Center on Postsecondary Teaching,
  Learning, and Assessment. http//www.ed.psu.edu/cs
  he/htdocs/research/NCTLA/nctla.htm