Abstract:

When students fail to achieve the standard required to pass a course component, they are often offered the opportunity to 'resit' it. In order to successfully progress on their course, it is essential that students optimize this chance, to allow them to 'pass' the second time around. Students who are required to resit a course component may lack academic confidence and be unsure how to turn failure into success. Similarly, students who interrupt their courses, may lack academic confidence as they have been away from the academic environment and may have components they need to catch up on. Resits and interruption are a significant problem and barrier to continuation, often affecting more than 10% of students.

Universities have a responsibility to help support and engage students during resit periods and following interruption. In addition, students can help themselves by learning about self-efficacy strategies (Zimmerman, 2000), which have been related to self-confidence (belief they can do it) and a positive emotional state (that helps engagement). This presentation outlines work from a series of focus groups that have been conducted as part of an Institute of Teaching and Learning Fellowship awarded to Karen Lander. Focus group attendees were asked to evaluate strategies already used by the University of Manchester, UK to support students (for example, focused revision sessions, one to one mentoring etc) and to outline any new additional strategies they would like were not already been listed. Notes taken during the focus groups were analysed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) and three main themes emerged regarding support during resits and following interruption. These themes were labelled as 'contact' (remaining in contact with someone at University who can provide support), 'content' (covering content of course that student needs to resit) and 'confidence' (building confidence in students). We consider differences across students studying different courses and outline specific mechanisms that are currently working well, providing students with genuine gains in learning effectiveness and support. Finally we outline suggestions for best practice about how Universities can best support students effectively during resit periods and following interruption.

Keywords:

Resits, interruption, student support.