Improving Learning

As class sizes across the country continue to rise, many community college students struggle to connect with instructors. Students must strive to build positive working relationships with instructors to combat some of the potential issues of over-sized classes or to even further benefit from smaller classes.

Building positive student-instructor relationships allows students to gain more personal assistance, work through the course material more effectively, and ultimately perform better.

Benefits of Building Positive and Professional Relationships with Instructors

Improved Course Work

One of the primary benefits of building effective relationships with an instructor is a student’s ability to receive more specific feedback and instruction, whether they are taking prerequisite or elective courses. Students who establish positive professional relationships with instructors can obtain more insight into creating a particular course plan for increased progress.

As Jacobson suggests, students should meet with instructors after large assignments or tests are returned. A “mini-conference,” or meeting with an instructor, allows both parties to focus on the finished final assignment, essay, or test. With this idea, Jacobson also asserts, “this approach may seem time-consuming, it rarely becomes a daunting process […] Once some of (students) major […] problems have been identified and correction methods have been explained, most of the students begin to use the specific information they have received to self-monitor their (work).”

Additionally, according to Jacobson, the more students meet with instructors early in the course, the less time students will need to meet with an instructor later – as you

Many high school students go directly from high school to community colleges to begin their higher education. Many of these students still live with their parents for financial or other reasons. Many parents of these traditional students want to help their children transition from secondary school to college. This article discusses the instrumental role parents can play in encouraging a young student to move from high school into community college. The article contains tips for parents seeking to be supportive and suggests questions parents can ask to demonstrate their interest. Using these tips and suggestions, parents can support a child in community college without jeopardizing the child's new independence and responsibility as a college student.

Background

According to the latest statistics compiled by the American Association of Community Colleges, 43 percent of community college students are 21 or younger. Some are traditional students or students who proceeded directly from high school to college. Some traditional students attend community college to avoid the rising tuition costs at public and private four-year institutions. Some students are not ready to leave home and prefer to stay with or near their parents for the first two years of college. Unlike older students, traditional students may not have the maturity and savvy to enter a new environment.

Parents as "First Responders" When Community College Students Need Help

There is a well-founded concern about the low retention rate at community colleges. Students are likelier to drop out without interacting with other students, professors, and