I should warn you that this pechakucha will be largely made up of internet meme-based images. If you don’t know what they are, you may not get it, but please be open minded. If you don’t find internet memes funny, just close your eyes and listen. Either way, I’d like to warn you that I do not condone or endorse the memes themselves.Not sure if meme template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/futurama-fry-not-sure-if-x
So, welcome ladies and gentlemen, scholars and professors, doctors and masters. And bachelors and undergrads. I'd like to thank you for your time today. In my little talk I'm going to try and go some of the way to answering the question 'What on earth is a non-traditional student?' It's a question which forms the crux of my work and, I believe, is important toof many of your jobs.Rembrandt.(1631). A Scholar. [Painting]. Retrieved from http://www.abcgallery.com/R/rembrandt/rembrandt144.html
But to answer this question, I must first define traditional students. I need to place them in their context so we understand them. As such, I'm going to describe their environments, backgrounds and behaviours as students. My description will be based on archetypes of traditional students, because I was actually unable to find any real research on the topic of ‘traditional students’.Philosoraptor template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved fromhttp://knowyourmeme.com/memes/philosoraptor
So let’s start with a traditional university. You probably have a pretty solid idea of what this entails. Old. Prestigious. Oaks and ivy. Started by monks about centuries ago, or at least modelled on that structure. Largely residential, with a college/hall system. Hard to get into. Expensive. Probably smells like old books and smarties. St Edmund Hall [Creative Commons Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/photos/simononly/7988356171/sizes/l/in/photostream/
The next piece of the puzzle is the traditional lecturer. He (gender reference deliberate) is typically intelligent to the point of genius, expects excellence and is unsympathetic to those who don’t achieve it, and takes pride in creating his subject as a hurdle. High failure rates are a necessary by-product of a challenging subject and he is respected and feared by students and colleagues alike. Engineering professor – Come on guys it’s not rocket science [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/1gof/
Let’s now look at the tradition of where students come from. Typically, they are not first in family, and have been prepared extensively for university life and – perhaps – a lucrative or intellectually satisfying career beyond that. They are from the higher strata of SES, and will be supported financially by their family. University is seen as a normal part of life. As are suits and ties.FloriatEtona – Let Eton Flourish (Latin motto of Eton College)Eton College Crest[Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Etoncollegearms.svg&page=1Eton College 1921 Class Photo [Creative Commons Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/photos/carlitos/206305247/sizes/l/in/photostream/
Once they arrive at uni, they continue to apply their study skills as learned at their elite private schools. They know how to write essays, and have established workflows for doing so. Because they don’t need paid work, they can also participate fully in the extracurricular side of university life while still staying on top of their study. Sure they party, but it doesn’t get in the way of study.Studying in dorm room [Creative Commons Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/photos/english106/4357228667/sizes/l/in/photostream/
So here we have a traditional university student with a traditional background studying at a traditional university under a traditional lecturer (or professor). They’ll graduate in the minimum time and move into a well paying position. Hooray! However, in our context, there are no traditional students. Why? Well, to start with, I think our university is the antithesis of tradition.Success Kid [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-hate-sandcastles-success-kid
As a crude history, CSU was originally established in 1895 as an experimental farm on a horse racing track in Bathurst. It was borne out of practical necessities, and was a far cry from the centres of philosophy and theology that the traditional universities offered. One could even argue it was effectively a paddock with scientists on it. Bathurst Experimental Farm panoramic film [Image]. (1907). Retrived from http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=176621
The University itself came into being in 1989, and consists of a number of campuses in both regional and metropolitan Australia. It was – perhaps aptly – named after a man whose father could not afford to send him to university at Cambridge. Instead, Charles Sturt learned real, practical skills in the armed forces, which set him up for exploring Australia. Also apt, one could argue.Captain Charles Sturt [Image]. (1895). Retrived from http://atlas.nsw.gov.au/public/nsw/home/topic/article/exploration.html
Thus far, I’ve been leading you down the dark path of memes backed up only by stereotypes. From here on in, I am going to back up the remaining memes with actual research findings. These findings are based on admin data and primary research among our students in the Bachelor of Exercise Science and Bachelor of Primary Education degrees.
Firstly, many of our students did not actually achieve our indicative ATAR of 70 for either of the courses. About three quarters of students who achieved ATAR scores got less than 70. Just over half got less than 60. While some might argue this is not ideal, we must acknowledge that this is our reality, and will continue to be our reality. And then I said... template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/and-then-i-said
And, according to postcodes, about a third of our students fall into the low SES band. 80% are first generation uni students. The proportion of students who fit into the low ATAR, low to medium SES and first in family more than half. The proportion at the high SES, well prepared and high achieving end? One percent. Perhaps including our friends here.Haha! You are poor! Meme [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://weknowmemes.com/2012/03/haha-you-are-poor/
OK, so now we know a little bit about their background, let’s take a look at their study behaviour and achievement. To start with, two fifths have a GPA lower than 4. Now, doing a little statistical analysis, I found that while it’s technically possible to have a GPA higher than 4 with multiple fails, it never once happened in practice among this group of students. One does not simply walk into Mordor template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://memeorama.com/exploitables/one-does-not-simply-walk-in-to-mordor-meme-template-blank/
Ideally, your students would be diligent about attending every class, particularly if they are struggling. In reality, we know this doesn’t always happen. But the data did in fact support the sentiment expressed by lecturers everywhere – that higher attendance has a positive effect on final grades. However, higher attendance, while ideal, is not necessarily easy to achieve.College Freshman – Learns professor doesn’t take attendance [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/35uh25/
So why do students find university difficult? While there may be a perception that they’re simply not trying, our survey showed that many of our students are working more than you or I did while we were studying, with some working full time hours while also studying full time. And they tend to prioritise their time around work through financial necessity. College Senior – Due tomorrow? Do tomorrow. [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/359wqw/
So one thing we need to do is acknowledge that, if we’re generous, we could probably classify about one percent of our students as traditional. Given the 99 percent that are non-traditional, we need to make sure that our teaching meets the needs of our non-traditional students.What I actually do: Professors [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://dandiesandnewwomen.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/why-this-meme-matters-by-marc-dipaolo.html
Luckily, our lecturers are more like Good Guy Greg here than Scumbag Steve on the next slide. In our faculty, while expectations are his, lecturers are scaffolding their subjects, using best practice first year principles and making their classes as engaging as possible. Based on feedback from teachers, we are making lots of progress in terms of performance and engagement. Good Guy Greg template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/good-guy-greg
And with your help we hope to go further by building skills training into subjects where course designs are being reviewed, and recommending and developingthings like automated early warnings systems. By the time HEPP funding ends, we hope to have in place lots of resources and strategies to keep on meeting the needs of non-traditional students. Scumbag Steve template [Image]. (2012). Retrieved from http://wtfhub.com/2011/01/scumbag-steve-meme/scumbag-steve-template/
So there we go – I’m done! Now that I’ve subjected you to this presentation, I’m bravely putting my contact details out for all to see, and encourage you to get in touch with me if you have any questions about improving the first year experience, or to provide me with all of your university-themed memes for wider distribution. Thanks for being such a great audience!
