the registrar's computerized records does not take
much time. (We compiled six classes of standardized
test scores in less than an hour.)

@
Step 3; S = Supporting Students in Their Educational
Quest

“S” represents the support that students need in
their educational quest. Students need to know that
the instructor cares that they do well in a course and
that we will help them. Sometimes just an “I care”
gives students the motivation to try harder or improve
study skills. In addition, we suggest resources offered
by other departments on campus. Counseling offers
seminars in self-esteem, career goals, time manage-
ment, study habits, and many other areas of general
and personal interest. Many students benefit from
attending a selected number of these programs. Devel-
opmental Studies offers workshops, computerized
programs, tutors, courses, and videos on study skills
and test-taking. Sessions on test anxiety are available
through the Developmental Studies and Counseling
offices. Not only must the students attend the session,
but they must write a short report on the program’s
content, how the program's information relates to
them, and how they can use this information for
personal improvement. We offer incentives to students
for availing themselves of these resources by adding
two bonus points to the mid-term grade for each
session (up to one letter grade improvement in score).

Cs
Step 4: T = Teaching Good Study Skills

The last step in hitting students with a F.1.S.T. is to
teach good study skills. In our syllabus we include a
copy of the SQ3R method of study. When we review
the syllabus and discuss the required textbook, we
demonstrate how to read the text—using this method
of study. Before the first exam we discuss tips on
taking objective or short-answer tests: looking through
the test and answering the known questions; reading,
the questions, carefully noting key words; reading all
responses, beginning with the last choice and moving
toward the first; and so on. In addition, we provide
handouts offering other specific hints for successful
test-taking.

Conclusion %
Prompt intervention may mean the difference —

between success or failure. Early intervention has

proven to be very effective with students in academic

difficulty, in both lowering dropout rates and raising

final course grades. Hitting floundering students with

a F.L.S.T. merits the attention of instructors concerned

with students’ academic success.

 

Adrian Rapp, Instructor, Sociology
Lynda Dodgen, Instructor, Sociology
For further information, contact the authors at North

Harris County College, 2700 W.W. Thorne Drive,
Houston, TX 77073.

 

 

 

Suanne D. Roueche, Editor

March 3, 1989, Vol. XI, No. 8

‘The University of Texas at Austin, 1989
Further duplication is permitted by MEMBER
institutions for their own personnel.

 

Sf

tum members for $40 per year. Funding

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EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545. Subscriptions are available to nonconsor-
in part by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W. Richardson Foundation.
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