Students enter college with a lot of expectations. Expectations about their classes, what they’ll learn, their social lives, the challenges they’ll face, and how they’ll succeed. All these expectations have one thing in common: they are grounded in students’ unique lived experiences and day-to-day – even moment-to-moment – interactions.
For decades, colleges and universities have strived to foster environments that understand and improve student engagement, and many do this by using research models and tools. While this mission-driven work has always been difficult, the last few years have brought these difficulties to unprecedented heights as engagement levels head in a downward trend. Enrollment numbers are decreasing at an alarming rate, and many students are struggling mentally, emotionally, and socially. Institutions need a new approach – one that goes beyond identifying what is happening to uncover why it’s happening.
