Investigating impact: Exploring the effect of ‘open’ support on student success
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.v0i16.540Keywords:
academic development, intervention, impact, open, regression, attainment, undergraduateAbstract
Traditional investigations into the impact of skills support on student success tend to focus on embedded or curriculum linked modes of delivery. The subject of this investigation concerns a study of the impact of ‘open’ support delivered through the University of Manchester library’s My Learning Essentials skills programme (MLE). MLE is a blended service providing both face-to-face and online support through two dominant pathways: one which is embedded in the curriculum and one which is ‘open to all’ regardless of degree programme or level of study. The ‘open’ nature of this type of support and the variety amongst the student population who engage with it means that measuring the impact on areas such as attainment has always been difficult. This article will present the results of a small study that investigated a specific cohort of undergraduate students in order to assess whether connections could be drawn between attendance at MLE ‘open’ workshops and degree classification. Although the cohort investigated was quite small, there is evidence of significant positive impact on student attainment as a result of engagement with the MLE programme. The data was run through a regression analysis that controlled for factors that could influence attainment and compared attendees of MLE open workshops with those who did not attend. Beyond the results of the regression analysis the study reveals interesting data around student uptake of MLE as a service and presents the methodology used, the results gained, and the lessons learned throughout the process.Downloads
Published
17-12-2019
How to Cite
Blake, J. R. S., Grayson, N. and Karamalla-Gaiballa, S. (2019) “Investigating impact: Exploring the effect of ‘open’ support on student success”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (16). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.v0i16.540.
Issue
Section
Papers
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).