Freshman Learning Communities in Agriculture: Observations and Assessment

Abstract

Students often encounter difficulties during the transition from high school to college, which, in turn, adversely affect student retention and success in college. In response, some college programshavedevelopedlearningcommunitiesasameanstofoster a greater sense of belonging, improve success among new freshmen,andreducethecostofstudentattrition.Theobjective ofthispaperistodescribeourexperienceswithfreshmanlearning communities within the Department of Agronomy at Iowa State University during fall 1998, and fall 1999 to spring 2000 terms. Our discussion is based upon comparisons of two learning community groups, one control group during 1998, and the general agronomy student population. Results show our learning communities made some small, albeit significant, impacts. Successesincludeimprovedacademicperformance,increasedretention rates, and a positive perception among faculty about the valueandusefulnessofthelearningcommunity.Whilethesefindings are valuable, they are somewhat less than the lofty predictionsonecanreadintheliterature. Ourlearningcommunityhas experienced some early, limited success, and we plan to continue the program.