Re: [Phys-l] Retention: tail wags dog

["Quist, Oren" <Oren.Quist@SDSTATE.EDU>]

This is the "business model" of education.  A department is not rated on how much students learn, or how well profs teach, or how important the material may be, they are rated simply on how many customers (students) complete the course or program.

Sadly, this business model drives much of higher ed today!

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From: phys-l-bounces@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu [phys-l-bounces@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu] On Behalf Of John Denker [jsd@av8n.com]
Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 4:30 PM
To: Forum for Physics Educators
Subject: Re: [Phys-l] Retention: tail wags dog

On 07/20/2011 12:47 PM, trappe@physics.utexas.edu wrote:
> I recently received an "Instructor Responsibilities" list as part of a
> teaching contract at a "For Profit" College.
>
> I invite your comments on this particular item:
> "You understand that 87% retention is the minimum student retention
> expectation and will be included as part of your yearly evaluation."
>
> In particular, does anyone have hard data on typical (college) student
> retention numbers in Physics (also interested in college algebra).
>
> While we would all like to have that many students commited to doing
> what it takes for their retention in our classes, the subject often
> lends itself to self-removal. I have heard numbers closer to 50% in
> some classes.
>
> Since this is a "for profit" notion, and since there is a prevailing
> wind that the "business model" of education is what we ALL should be
> practicing, I get the foreboding that this tail will soon be wagging
> everybody's dog.  Already, legislatures are pushing for greater
> retention ind increased graduation rates in public colleges.
>
> But 87% minumum retention is pushing the envelope, especially as an
> indicator for faculty dismissal. Have any of you observed this
> phenomenon in your teaching?

Hmmm ... 87 percent of what?  Measured when?  Measured by
whom?  Measured how?  In particular, after some lapse of
time long enough to be relevant to real retention, who
is going to track down the former students and measure
the retention?  How much will alumni be paid for sitting
through the measurement?

Uncle Al said an education is what remains when you have
forgotten everything you learned in school ... so in some
sense he was contemplating a long-term retention of zero.

I figure at least 14% of the students are going to give up
and retain nothing, so if you take the ensemble average,
you cannot possibly achieve 87% ... unless some of them
"retain" more than 100%.

That last clause sounds like a joke, and it abuses the term
"retention" ... but in fact I am perfectly serious.  The main
thing I want my students to retain is the love of learning,
and the main idea I want to get across is the idea of holding
oneself to high standards.  As a consequence, a year from now
I expect they will know *more* than they know now ... not 15%
less, not 50% less ... but more.  Lots more!

So: Depending on how it is measured, the goal of 87% retention
is either a factor of two above what is reasonable, or a factor
of two below.

Does the teacher get paid extra if the retention is above
100%?  Above 150%?  (As if they had any clue how to measure
that....)

Fundamentally it is a ludicrous evaluation scheme.
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