The Role of Academic Administrators in Promoting Student Learning

March 2011

Preston VanLoon, Ed.D.

“Learning is something students do, NOT

something done to students.”

…Alfie Kohn

1. Administrators promote student learning by being learners.

“I don't think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.” 

Abraham Lincoln

“A time when I learned something extremely

well was ….”

2. Administrators promote student learning by

valuing diversity.

“It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”

Maya Angelou

“NWC's many qualities that advance student learning — from high quality personal instruction, to residential living on a beautiful campus, and more — are imbedded in our mission documents…”

Paul B. Prestwich, Ph.D.NWC President

Learning at Northwest College

MissionThrough exceptional, dynamic living and learning environments, Northwest College dedicates itself to individual student achievement, diversity, global citizenship, and community vitality.

Enduring Values: Purposeful learning“We dedicate ourselves to self improvement and the support of others as they progress toward their goals. We promote education that fosters satisfying work, creative interests, and continued learning. We are committed to the development of the whole person—mind, body, and spirit.”

3. Administrators promote student learning

by responding to change and student

needs in meaningful ways.

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”

Alvin Toffler

In the past two decades, education has

experienced a paradigm shift.

Traditional Education:

Research and Teaching

Learning Colleges:

1. Places learning first.

2. Provide educational experiences any way,

any time, and any place.

Impetus for the Shift:

1. Numerous studies including “A Nation At Risk.”

2. Change imperatives:

A. Economic pressures

B. Technological and Competitive pressures

--business and industry.

C. Demographic pressures

--the next generation of students

--returning older students.

4. Administrators promote student learning

by supporting innovation and creativity in

education.

“Higher education is in business to serve others, not to perpetuate itself or make self-interested choices.”

…A Model for the Reinvented Higher Education System: State Policy and College Learning.

Limitations of traditional higher education:

Time bound • Class hours• Semester course• School year

Mastery of a task needs to replace time spent

on a task.

Place bound• Campus• Classroom • Library

The boundaries of learning must expand

beyond the traditional limits.

Efficiency or bureaucracy bound• Linear/sequential• Credit• Grade

The emphasis needs to be on the student and

learning, and less on outdated practices.

Role bound• Expert• Sole Judge• Lecture

The teacher’s role needs to be redefined

to focus on their abilities on the learner.

Some innovations for a Learning College might

include:• service learning• learning communities• portfolio assessment • experiential learning• distance learning • technology to enhance services• resource allocation for project-based learning• learning outcomes assessment• new models of decision making (i.e., shared

governance).

“The Learning College is a new concept, but it is built on long-established values in the community college, values that place a premium on quality teaching for the purpose of helping students make passionate connections to learning.”

…Terry O’Banion

A Learning College for the 21st Century

5. Administrators promote student learning by

focusing on the learner so that learning is

centered on the student.

“Teaching … is essentially a transformational activity, which aims to get students to take charge of their learning and to make deeply informed judgments about the world.”

Richard F. Elmore

Paradigm Shift in Community Colleges

Change from an instructional model to a learning

or learner-centered model.

Instruction needs to be differentiated to focus on the learner.

The Assumption:Educational experiences are designed for the convenience of the learners rather than the institution and their staff.

Learning is the mission!

(Handout Teaching Centered vs Learning Centered Institutions)

What are some of the ways learning

happens through Northwest College?

6. Administrators promote student learning by

involving all stakeholders.

“None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.”

Mother Teresa

Student learning involves a collaborative team

effort that involves stakeholders:

Internally: students, professors, advisors, staff, administrators, and institutional researchers.

Externally: employers, community leaders, parents, accreditation, and political officials.

The Role of the Teacher in Learning Colleges

The teacher plays a crucial role to the success of the learning experience. The teacher is the designer, the instructor, the guide, the advisor, the motivator, the taskmaster, and evaluator.

(Handout of Teacher Characteristics)

Characteristics of Learning-Centered Teachers:• Have relevant educational, employment-related,

technical and other expertise in designing and creating learning options that meet the needs of learners

• Clearly articulate learning outcomes for students• Demonstrate well-developed interpersonal skills in

their mutually respectful relationships with learners• Create supportive, collaborative environments for

learning.

Characteristics of Learning-CenteredTeachers (cont.):• Guide, coach, and mentor learners throughout the

learning process• Understand learning theories and use innovative

practices when designing learning options, activities, and methodologies

• Maintain and continuously update the relevancy of their content/discipline expertise.

• Participate in continuous self-assessment based on feedback from students and colleagues.

As a stakeholder, administrators promote

student learning by:

Leading and providing vision as part of the team

Establishing and building partnerships

Academic support services

Retention planning and advising training

Negotiating and nurturing relationships

Evaluating and assessing programs and staff

Recruiting, hiring, and training faculty

Serving, supporting, and supervising

In a Learning College, Administrators may ask:• Does this budget improve and expand student

learning? • Does the purchase of these five new computers

improve and expand student learning? • Does the employment of these three new part-time

faculty improve and expand student learning? • Does the refurbishing of this biology laboratory

expand and improve student learning? • Does this series of workshops for our staff

development program improve and expand student learning?

• Does this new registration process improve and expand student learning?

• Does the planting of three sycamores on the south end of the campus improve and expand student learning?

7. Administrators promote student learning by focusing their efforts on:

• Student Support Services • Evaluation/Assessment• Budget Administration and Financial Planning• Public Relations• Course Management and Scheduling• Innovative Trends and Methods in Higher

Education• Professional Development for Faculty• Recruitment and Enrollment of Students• Compliance with Federal/State/Local Laws and

Regulations

“Interdependent people combine their own efforts with the efforts of others to achieve their greatest success.”

Stephen Covey

Pair/small group activity:

What might be some of the more specific interests or

issues an administrator might consider addressing to

promote student learning at Northwest College based

on your experience?

(Handout – Administrator concerns)

Six Principles of a Learning College (O’Banion)

1. Creates substantive change in individual

learners.

Learning results in new ways of seeing, thinking, and engaging in the world.

i.e. My experience

2. Engages learners as full partners in the

learning process, requiring them to assume

primary responsibility for their own choices.

i.e. Zoe’s experience

3. Creates and offers as many options for

learning as possible.

i.e. learning styles, multiple intelligences, differentiated instruction

4. Assists learners to form and participate in

collaborative learning activities with:

Staff: form and organize cohorts

Process Facilitators: groups or community of learners

Resource Specialists: Needed resources

Learning Facilitators: Design learning experiences

Assessment Specialists: Authentic assessments for learning outcomes

i.e. Vygotsky and Bandura

5. Defines the roles of learning facilitators by

the needs of the learners.

Everyone helps facilitate learning

i.e. Specialists, experts

“Scratching where students itch”

6. Succeeds when its learning facilitators can document improved and expanded learning for students.

i.e. Outcomes are documented:• What does the learner know?• What can the learner do (performance

outcomes)?

Discussion and Ideas:

What are some possible strategies Northwest College might consider to promote student learning?

(Handout: Six Principles…)

Thank you!