Tricks and Tips to Facilitate Learning
Whether we’re Teachers, Academic Advisors, Education Advisors or members of a college’s administration, the success of our students is at the heart of our mission, and the raison d’être of our organizations. And regardless of whether we provide in-class instruction or deliver distance education, we are always looking for ways to assist our students to develop their personal and professional skills.
As with any college, at Cégep@distance, every member of our staff plays their part in ensuring that our students succeed. Recently, Cégep@distance has initiated an array of activities that will benefit the entire college network. These activities aim to better equip learners with the tools they need to complete their studies. A brief overview of each follows.
On the Road to Success logo
The On the Road to Success web site: Your passport to the future
This web site offers a multitude of concrete resources that help the student to overcome certain difficulties, such as a lack of self-discipline and poor time management – two important factors that lead to failing a course, or even dropping out. The web site has an introduction, four blocks of content and a tools section. Each of the blocks includes an introduction to the basic concepts, a video clip that further details the concept and its importance, diagnostic tools for self-evaluation, and additional resources for further exploration. The themes of the blocks are as follows:
- Know yourself (Ed: Know yourself as a learner)
- Know your needs and motivations
- Get organized
- Manage your stress
On the Road to Success on TV!
Cégep@distance tries to reach its clientele wherever they may be, and we have partnered with Canal Savoir to produce a television program which premiered in English on Sunday, April 19th, 2009. With plenty of food for thought, the program encourages students to engage in some self-analysis before committing to a program at a college or a university. On the Road to Success also suggests various tools for students that will help maintain their motivation and ultimately succeed in their studies once they have made the commitment.
Did you miss an airing of On the Road to Success and you would like your students to benefit from the show’s tricks and tips? You will have plenty of opportunities to watch the show, as Canal Savoir will rebroadcast the program several times between now and June. The On the Road to Success companion web site also has clips from the show that you can view at any time.
The Road to AQPC
Cégep@distance will “bring it all home” in a laboratory for the upcoming AQPC Conference. In a lab entitled Learner Type Identification and Study Strategies: The Road to Success, we will demonstrate the most useful information and tools that educators can immediately integrate into their practices. The English version of the lab will be presented on Wednesday, June 3rd at 3:45pm (AQPC#316). Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about learning and share with college representatives from across Quebec!
We certainly hope that this article leaves you curious enough to watch On the Road to Success on Canal Savoir and/or to visit the companion web site. Why not encourage your students and Student Success coordinators to check it out? Some of the on-line diagnostic tests (self-evaluation) are particularly revealing and beneficial.
The authors of this article are always looking for ways to improve our Student Success resources and would be particularly grateful if you use the comments section to let us know about the tools that you find helpful for your students. Please add a link or ten!
