UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Mid-semester progress reporting begins in Week Seven of classes, with surveys opening on Oct. 3 and closing on Oct. 12 for the fall 2022 semester. Progress surveys, which instructors complete through Starfish, provide critical feedback to undergraduates on their performance in specific courses, and more importantly, alert the student’s wider network to the need for support.
Instructors of full-semester undergraduate courses receive emails prompting them to complete progress report surveys. The surveys also can be accessed through Starfish by logging in and clicking the link for “Outstanding Progress Surveys.”
Progress reporting shows strong participation
Starfish data show that more and more instructors are using progress reports to provide feedback to students, with a 43% completion rate University-wide during the early progress reporting period in fall 2022. A total of 20,012 flags and 115,356 kudos were raised. Though numbers were not as high as fall 2021’s record participation, instructors provided significantly more feedback through kudos and flags than in spring 2022. Starfish progress reporting overall has increased significantly since 2019.
“We know that instructors have a lot on their plates and hope that they are seeing the benefits of progress reporting for both themselves and their students,” said David Smith, associate dean for advising and executive director of the Division of Undergraduate Studies, which oversees Starfish along with advising at Penn State. “Ultimately, this process is meant to make instructors’ lives easier and students more successful by providing a simple way to both nudge students toward different behaviors and enlist students’ wider support networks in reinforcing the need for changes and celebrating achievements.”
Recent instructor feedback to the Division of Undergraduate Studies suggests students may be responding more favorably to flags than outreach through email. David J. Vandenbergh, professor of biobehavioral health at Penn State University Park, said, "I realized I was getting more students to ask to meet to discuss better study mechanisms when I asked through Starfish than by sending an individualized email through Canvas.”
When students aren’t responding to other forms of outreach, progress reporting can be a way to break through.
Mid-semester progress reports come at crucial time
The mid-semester progress reporting window comes at a crucial time for giving students feedback on their performance, allowing them to plan for courses in the future and ideally improve their performance in their current classes. The survey occurs at a critical part of the semester when many students take midterm exams. It also precedes the course registration window for spring 2023, which opens on Oct. 12 for undergraduates, and the late-drop deadline of Nov. 11.
The timing of progress reports also allows for smooth collaboration between instructors and advisers, a key benefit of progress reporting. Although they may not normally work closely together, progress reports allow instructors and advisers to leverage each other’s expertise. Instructors benefit from academic advisers’ knowledge of broader academic requirements and their long-term relationships with students.
Unlike with contacting a student or even their adviser through email or Canvas, raising a flag in Starfish helps to activate a broad network of services, known as the Starfish Success Network. The Starfish Success Network includes University resources such as the Morgan Academic Center, the Multicultural Resource Center and Penn State Learning. Collaboration within this network makes it easier for academic advisers, instructors and other members of a student’s support team to address the root causes of a student’s struggles.
Submitting a “kudo” for a student has similar benefits, not only letting the student know they are on the right track but also identifying strengths that their support team can then build on in the student’s academic plan.
Technical resources for instructors and academic advisers
Instructors can find the answers to most questions in an FAQ section on progress reporting on the Starfish website.
When an instructor submits a flag or kudo through Starfish, this feedback generates a message template that is sent to the student’s email. A flag also will generate a message to the student’s academic adviser and select members of a student’s personalized Starfish Success Network. See a video for instructors on how to complete a progress survey.
Academic advisers can find detailed instructions on how to manage flags in this Knowledge Base article. Academic advisers also should see the FAQ section on clearing flags if they have further questions.
Resources for students
Students can learn more about Starfish by watching a video tutorial on using the student dashboard and viewing their Starfish Success Network. Students also can watch a video tutorial on how to make an appointment about the feedback they receive through Starfish, as well as appointments for other services related to their Success Network.
The Division of Undergraduate Studies is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education.