The First Year Seminar : a distant solution to a universal problem Anthony Cook The STAR Project, University of Ulster Summary First year seminars have been introduced into American University courses to enhance students study skills, better integrate them into the institution and to enhance their life skills. They are considered to be a key factor in student persistence.  In the UK modules supporting study skills are widespread but they do not address life skills and social integration.  The reasons for the differences are largely related to the contexts in which institutions and students operate. It is speculated that the adoption of such module may improve retention but that there would be considerable cultural hurdles to overcome before they could be adopted.  It will be important when this format is adopted for the evaluation to be thorough and well publicized if the benefits are to be widespread and the pitfalls repeatedly avoided.

Keywords: Retention, first year seminar, induction, study skills.

Introduction

Examination of student unrest in the 1960’s on American campuses led to the view that it was partly caused by students being distanced from the teaching institution and its staff.  One result was a movement towards a greater engagement of students in educational processes and attempts by staff to address the educational needs of students in a holistic manner.  From this arose the First Year Seminar (sometimes called University 101), a module that was designed to provide an extended induction to the university, independent living and thinking and learning methods in higher education.

The First Year Seminar in American Universities is held to be a significant contributor to increased student persistence (Pascarella and Terenzini, 1991). Studies using students assigned randomly to participating and non-participating groups (Yale, 2000) as well as those using a time series analysis after the introduction of these seminars (Vinson, 1993) have shown significant improvements in student persistence.  Given that student retention is a growing problem in the UK, it is worth examining these courses and questioning why they have not been introduced on a larger scale in UK institutions.

What is a First Year Seminar?

These modules represent one or two hours per week of contact time with associated directed study and activities.  The number of modules taken by American students is not determined by regulation but 30 contact hours appears to be a reasonable student load. Thus the first year seminar might represent about 1/15^th of that load and equates to about 80 effort hours (8 credits) in the UK system. The modules adopt deliberately small class sizes with large cohorts being divided up into sections of no more than 20-25 students.  The topics studied vary considerably and are less important than the interactions between students and between staff and students that the module engenders.  Reviews of such modules conducted by the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience indicate that the first-year seminar is offered as an optional course at the majority of postsecondary institutions (Barefoot & Fidler, 1996; National Resource Center, 1998).

Internet searches of American university curricula allow snapshots of the variety of forms. For example at Trinity College, Connecticut, 39 staff each offer a “freshman seminar” with topics as varied as: Curiosity and Madness in English Literature; Crime and Punishment; Highlanders:  Peoples and Cultures of the Himalayas; The Public and Science Policy; Sense and Nonsense". (Anon 2005a).

At Marietta College in 2003 there was a single subject and the module rationale includes the following statement:

“The academic component of this section of the class uses the study of space exploration as a model of how to succeed at various classroom tasks - note taking, critical reading, discussion, quiz and test-taking, paper writing, giving presentations, etc. At the same time, the subject matter itself - Space Exploration - will be a valuable resource for helping you learn about yourself and how you explore new worlds - i.e. college. In addition, the history of American space exploration is a window into the life experiences and values of several generations of Americans – the "greatest generation" the "baby boomers" and even "generation X". What does it have to say about your generation and the world you are moving into?”

McShaffrey (2003)

The University of South Carolina has had a University 101 course since 1972 at which time both the course and an associated staff development programme for those who teach on it were introduced.  It has since grown until, in 2004, 80% of new students enrolled on one of its113 sections.  Different sections cater either for different student groups (e.g. commuting students, student in halls) or different subject groups.  As befits a course with such a broad clientele the curriculum is not specified other than that it must contain specific elements such as:

·        Regular Writing and Note-Taking;

·        Oral Communication Skills;

·        Use of the Library;

·        Required examinations;

·        Sex and the College Student;

·        Violence/Alcohol-Drug Presentation;

·        Career Planning;

·        Computer and Technological Competency;

·        Community Service.

The goals of these courses are extensive and include many familiar study skills similar to those that can be seen in the STAR case studies (STAR, 2005). In addition however, it also aims to inform students about health and wellness issues, to acquaint them with the history and philosophy of the university and its support services as well as to meet a number of social goals such as making friends, their attitude towards staff, and participating in service learning. The assessment is designed to practice those skills that will be required in other parts of the programme and to provide feedback so that students can be secure in their appreciation of staff expectations. 

The goals of these courses then, are not necessarily to convey subject content but to use a content with which students are already familiar or in which they have expressed an interest to develop those skills and attributes that will sustain them through the rest of the course.  In taking a holistic view of the life of a student these modules include support for social integration and the acquisition of life skills as well as academic development.

Why have we not experimented with these courses in the UK?

In the STAR survey of practice in bioscience departments and in informal discussions there has been no evidence of centrally promoted, credit bearing modules which seek to promote the social integration of students and the development of their skills independent of academic content. Indeed the prevailing view would be that unless such material is delivered in the context of the subjects that students came to study they will not take it seriously. There is no national movement promoting first year teaching equivalent to that based in South Carolina (National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition at http://www.sc.edu/fye/).  The closest parallel in terms of teaching was the Study Skills in Higher Education module at Plymouth. (Harwood and McLaughlin, 2005) but this lacks the explicit social and institutional dimension. 

There may be a number of reasons why explicitly social goals are not a feature of modules in the UK system:

·      Many University teaching structures were constrained rather than liberated by the introduction of modular schemes.  Some courses are now devoid of free choices especially in year 1. In many US institutions, in contrast, modular systems have led to a greater range of modules and choices for students. Such choice promotes the use of “electives” which may be specified or recommended for some categories of student.

·        In contrast to the “liberal arts” philosophy of many American institutions that focuses on benefits to the individual (see Appendix 1), the UK tertiary education system has increasingly focused on notions of employability, i.e. benefits to society.  This has led to a narrow focus on employment related skills and content rather than a more holistic approach to education.

·        The business philosophy of many UK University managements requires the maintenance of large first year classes in order both to reduce the class size in later years as the curriculum becomes even more specialized and to release staff for non-teaching activities.

·        A common reaction of staff to the suggestion that room should be made in the curriculum for activities aimed at social goals is often that the curriculum is already overcrowded.

·        Many UK students now study from home and the University has less of a social focus than hitherto.

There are, of course, some exceptions and the STAR project has identified a number of practices that, while they do not amount to modules on the American pattern, recognize and attempt to attain social goals alongside the development of academic skills.  Elements of the social inductions at Wolverhampton (mini project), Sheffield (Bread and butter) and Manchester (Homestart) as well as the field based activities at Plymouth (Pearce and McLaughlin, 2005) and Ulster (McLaughlin, Southall and Rushton, 2005) all represent attempts to integrate students socially with the course team and their fellow students early in the course.

Conclusion

The module that aims to promote appropriate student life skills, engender a community spirit within the university and develop critical and analytical thinking skills is a common feature of American first year courses. It can be compulsory for some; it can be credit bearing; its content can be fixed or variable. Although it can be subject based this is not its key feature. It has been associated with improved retention statistics and is heavily promoted by a national organisation.  In the UK, specific study skills modules are rare and that aspect of student development is more often integrated into subject specific modules.  There appears to be less freedom in the UK to rebalance curricula in favour of those aspects of academic and social development that do not directly support the subject being studied. It is the social aspects of student development, in particular, that are most often kept strictly separate from academic modules and, although social ends may be achieved, they do not appear in formal University curricula.

Whether there are advantages in the UK of the adaptation and adoption of US style “University 101” modules will have to await some trials and the empirical evidence that will hopefully accrue.

References

Anon (2005) Trinity college first year seminar faculty at http://www.trincoll.edu/depts/fypgm/faculty/spring01.htm accessed on 9/12/05

Barefoot, B. O., & Fidler, P. P. (1992). Helping students climb the ladder: 1991 National survey of freshman seminar programs. (Monograph No. 10). Columbia, SC: National Resource Center for The Freshman Year Experience, University of South Carolina.

Harwood, D. and McLaughlin, S.M. (2005). A module in “Study in Higher Education” The STAR Project, Coleraine. At http://www.ulster.ac.uk/star/curriculum_development/skills_plymouth.htm accessed 12/12/05.

McLaughlin, S.M., Southall, D. and Rushton,B.S. (2005) Residential events for induction. The STAR Project, Coleraine. At  http://www.ulster.ac.uk/star/induction/uuresidential.htm  accessed 12/12/05

McShaffrey, D. (2003). FYSE Syllabus  at http://www.marietta.edu/~mcshaffd/fyse2003/fysesylla2003.pdf accessed on 9/12/05

National Resource Center for The First Year Experience and Students in Transition. (1998). 1997 national survey of first-year seminar programming. Columbia, SC: University of South CarolinaPearce, J and McLaughlin S. Off Campus Events for Induction The STAR Project, Coleraine. At  http://www.ulster.ac.uk/star/induction/off_campus.htm  accessed 12/12/05

STAR (2005).  Curriculum Development, Case Studies. At http://www.ulster.ac.uk/star/curriculum_development/curriculum.htm accessed  12/12/05

Vinson, R. B. (1993). A working program at Averett College. Freshman Year Experience Newsletter, 6(1), p. 8.

Yale, A. (2000). Bloomsburg University sets its FYE program’s effectiveness. FYE Newsletter,   12(4), pp. 4-5.     Carolina..

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Barefoot, B. O. (Ed.) (1993a). Exploring the evidence: Reporting outcomes of freshman seminars. Monograph Series No. 11. National Resource Center for The Freshman Year Experience. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina.

The Purposes of Higher Education

The Dearing Report (NCIHE, 1997) sought to define the purpose of higher education in the context of assessing how it could best achieve those purposes.  It highlighted four aspects of activity summarized below:

1.      the development of the individual

2.      the increase in knowledge and understanding both for its own sake and its application;

3.      to serve the needs of a knowledge-based economy;

4.      to shape a democratic, civilized, inclusive society;

The mission statements of individual Universities reflect this approach. Thus

Northumbria

to meet the diverse needs of an international learning community and to contribute to society and its economic development through research, excellent teaching and high quality student support.

Paisley

an international, innovative and inclusive university; committed to excellence in teaching, research and knowledge transfer; and to serving the social, cultural and economic needs of the communities of the west and south-west of Scotland.

Some American Universities also have mission statements but they tend to reflect greater concern with the needs of individuals.

The University of Kentucky

a public, research-extensive, land grant university dedicated to enriching people's lives through excellence in teaching, research, and service.

Quinnipiac University

a supportive and stimulating environment for the intellectual and personal growth of undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education students.

NCIHE (National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education) (1997) Higher Education in the Learning Society. The report of the National Committee (The Dearing Report) London. HMSO.