Supporting First-Year Students in their Educational Journey

Do you remember your first year as a college student? Were you nervous, scared, excited, lonely, happy, sad? Maybe you felt all of these emotions, which is a lot for anyone to take on. Add to that figuring out your class schedule, where things are on your campus, the dialogue of instructors using words you’ve never heard before. Today, we’re going to focus on how you can continue to support first-year students in their educational journey. We’ll talk about being purposeful in your course design from studying habits to evaluations, and then we’ll talk about discussion board labs for first-year students to help them engage in discussion and increase their confidence in their abilities. Lastly, we encourage you to ask your students: What’s working well and what do we need to change? What do we need to improve upon? How can we continue to better meet what you need? These questions and tactics can help your first-year students become more successful and confident.Recommended resources:20-Minute Mentor: How Do I Create a Class that Supports First-Year Students?20-Minute Mentor: How Can I Use the Discussion Board to Stimulate Engagement and Build Confidence for First-Year Students?Magna Seminar: Practical Ways to Support First-Generation College Students in the College Classroom