I have been Director of Academic Support Programs at Eastern Michigan University since 2013.  In that time, we have supported thousands of students on their college journeys.  By and large, we have found that academic success is a function of organization and effort – putting in the time to complete readings and homework, study for quizzes and tests, and show up for class.  For students struggling in more difficult subjects, usually all we need to do is spend time with those students coaching them through some metacognitive exercises – helping them figure out how to make meaning out of what they are learning.  Once we help them understand that they need to look for connections between what they are learning and what they already know, course performance improves.

This winter, I was faced with a new challenge.  A student came into my office seeking help.  He was extremely frustrated with how badly he was struggling in his math and science classes.  He is a STEM major and has never struggled with this type of class before, but this year he just couldn’t seem to make things click.  In fact, things were so bad that he was at risk of being put on academic probation at the end of winter term if things did not improve.  When I started working with him, we discussed the importance of getting organized and actually using a planner.  He had never had to use a planner before, but agreed that being better organized could only help his case.  He started writing everything down and saw some mild improvements – slightly better grades on his homework and quiz grades.  However, we faced a huge setback when, after organizing his class materials and spending days studying for one of three major tests in one of his classes, he failed a chemistry test.  He was devastated.  We talked about what happened.  After explaining to me that he really did know the material on the test and talking through where he lost points, he determined that he must have severe test anxiety.  I began working with him on test prep strategies and referred him to someone I thought might be able to help him with any anxiety issues he was dealing with.  Things seemed to be going much better.  We adapted some of his study strategies and his confidence level seemed to improve.  On his next chemistry test, he earned a C.

Given what this student was sharing with me, I really had no idea why he wasn’t performing better in class.  I decided to tap into my connections for other ideas that might help this student and was introduced to the book “Make it Stick” by Brown, Roediger, and McDaniel.  I immediately purchased a copy and began reading.  The book was fantastic and talked about learning utilizing frameworks I was already familiar with – encouraging low stakes testing so that students get early and frequent feedback (something that doesn’t necessarily happen in large STEM courses), utilizing the text and class notes to create quiz questions to then answer later, and working through problems instead of re-reading which often confuses familiarity with mastery of course material.  The authors go well beyond these basic learning principle by explaining the importance of practicing retrieval and the utilization of interleaved, intermittent, and spacing which are more challenging for students but result in stronger long term learning gains.  One of the things I like best about this book is that it uses simple language and relatable examples throughout which make it a very easy read.  Additionally, there is a website:  makeitstick.net with practical tools that students and educators can utilize to improve learning.  I shared these resources with my student and I am happy to say that he ended the semester on a very strong note.  He may need to retake a class or two, but his learning seems to have really improved as his final exams scores were full letter grades higher than anything he had earned all semester.  This is a must read for all educators and learning professionals.   We’re already working on ways we can integrate these strategies into our services for fall.