UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Starfish early progress reporting window for the fall 2022 semester will open Sept. 6 and close Sept. 14, giving instructors of full-semester undergraduate classes the opportunity to provide feedback and, if necessary, activate a larger support network for students.
Instructors can raise flags during early progress reporting if they believe a student is not on track to succeed in their course or has a major impediment to success, such as lack of access to technology. Because few grades are recorded so early in the semester, some of the observable student behaviors at this stage include timely submission of assignments, class attendance and overall engagement. Instructors can also issue kudos, which can be used to let students know they are on the right track.
Progress reporting can act as a simple but personal intervention. Instructors can quickly fill out progress reports by clicking a link, checking a few boxes and, if they wish, providing written feedback to students as well. Starfish administrators at Penn State report that across all campuses, 93% of people who open a progress survey go on to complete it.
Participating in progress surveys accomplishes more than just contacting a student or their adviser directly. Raising flags helps to activate a broader network of support services, known as the Starfish Success Network, such as the Morgan Academic Center, Multicultural Resource Center and Penn State Learning. This makes it easier for academic advisers, instructors and other members of a student’s Success Network to collaborate and better address the root causes of a student’s struggles.
Instructors benefit from academic advisers’ long-term relationships with students and knowledge of students’ overall academic performance. Academic advisers benefit from the specialized knowledge of instructors regarding what it takes to be successful in an academic domain.
Whenever possible, academic advisers are encouraged to “close the loop” with instructors to let them know the outcome of their outreach when they have addressed a flag with a student. Closing the loop with instructors lets them know that their concerns were taken seriously. When academic advisers record outcomes of their outreach to students in Starfish, even if the student doesn’t respond, it helps Penn State learn more about the interventions that make a difference for student success at Penn State over time.
“Progress reporting has the potential to break through student disengagement,” said David Smith, associate dean for advising and executive director of the Division of Undergraduate Studies at Penn State. “This is an opportunity to focus on the whole student, not just a grade, and allow others in a student’s support network to try and make a connection. Even when a student doesn't respond to outreach directly, we see them taking other kinds of actions, like reengaging in coursework or seeking out tutoring at one of Penn State’s many learning centers.”
Students are highly encouraged to act upon messages they receive in Starfish by contacting their instructors or academic advisers if they receive a flag or by reflecting on what has helped them to succeed so far if they receive a kudo. Data from Starfish shows that students who respond to an academic adviser’s outreach tend to have better outcomes than those who do not.
Students should not assume their instructors have no concerns about their progress just because they did not receive any flags in Starfish. It is always helpful for students to track their own progress in a course by checking in with both instructors and academic advisers.
The Division of Undergraduate Studies is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education.