Supplemental
Instruction (SI) Program Description and Procedure

SI is an
academic support program that utilizes peer-assisted study sessions. It is a
non-remedial, institution-wide approach to retention first developed by Deanna
C. Martin at the University of Missouri at Kansas
City in 1973. SI targets historically difficult
academic courses and offers to all enrolled students regularly scheduled,
out-of-class, review sessions.  SI
study sessions are informal seminars in which students compare notes, discuss
readings, develop organizational tools and predict test items. Students learn
how to integrate course content and reasoning skills. The SI sessions are
directed by “SI leaders,” usually students who have previously and
successfully taken the “high-risk” course and then sit through the
course again.

Distinguishing
Characteristics

There are
several key elements of SI that differentiate it from group tutoring and other
forms of remedial and developmental education:

·
SI
identifies high-risk courses instead of high-risk students;

·
SI
provides a vehicle for developing essential academic skills in regular credit
bearing courses;

·
Participation
in the SI program is voluntary and open to all students in the courses;

·
The
SI leader attends all the lectures for the targeted course;

·
The
SI leader is trained in specific teaching/learning theory techniques;

·
The
SI program is supervised by a trained professional staff member;

·
The
SI program is offered only in classed in which the faculty member invites and
supports SI;

·
Assistance
begins during the first week of the term before students encounter academic
problems;

·
The
SI leader facilitates and encourages the group to process the material rather
than acting as an authority figure who lectures to participants.

SI Leaders

The SI leaders
are the key people in the program. They are presented as model “students
of the subject.” As such, they present an appropriate model of thinking,
organization and mastery of the discipline. All SI leaders take part in an
intensive two day training session before the beginning of the academic term. This
training covers such topics as how students learn as well as instructional
strategies aimed at strengthening student academic performance. SI leaders
attend all class sessions, take notes, read all assigned material, and conduct
two or more 1-hour SI sessions each week.

SI Sessions

The SI session
integrates how-to-learn with what-to-learn. Students who attend the SI session
discover appropriate application of study strategies as they review content
material, e.g., note taking, graphic organization, questioning techniques,
vocabulary acquisition, and test preparation.  Students have the opportunity to become
actively involved in the course material as the SI leaders use the text,
supplementary readings, and lecture notes as vehicles for learning skill instruction.
SI sessions normally occur in or near the S405 classroom. SI sessions are
attended on a voluntary basis and no effort is made to segregate students based
on academic ability. Since SI is introduced on the first day of classes and is
open to all students in the class, SI in not viewed as remedial.

SI Supervisor

The SI
supervisor, an on-site professional staff person, implements and supervises the
SI program and SI leaders. This person is responsible for identifying the
targeted courses, gaining faculty support, selecting and training SI leaders,
monitoring the quality of the SI session, evaluating the program and reporting
results to campus administrators.

SI Results

SI students
earn higher course grades and withdraw less often than non-SI participants. Also,
data demonstrate higher re-enrollment and graduation rates. Faculty and staff
from nearly 500 institutions in the U.S. and abroad have been trained
to implement SI programs from the field and report similar results.

Nationally,
high student attrition among first year college students continues to be a
trend (American College Testing Program, 1996). The problem is particularly
acute at UHD, where only about 50-60% of first-time-in-college freshmen are
retained after the first year. V. Tinto, regarded by many as the expert in
student retention in post-secondary education, has identified four significant
factors in the dropout of students (1989, p.47). Many students feel socially
isolated on campus. Students have difficulty adjusting to the new environment. Students
suffer form incongruence (i.e., they are not able to link the knowledge
received from class lectures to what they already understood). The final factor
is that students have difficulty in the college environment. The SI program can
be a part of a broad institutional response to help address these four
problems. The SI review sessions provide a safe environment for students to
discuss and process the course material. Students in SI become acquainted with
each other as they interact. The SI leader facilitates the discussion so that
students can make adjustments, discuss what they do not understand, and
discover strategies for mastering difficult material.

The SI leader
is a facilitator, a preceptor. The role of the leader is to provide structure
to the study session, not re-lecture or introduce new material. The SI leader
is a “model student” who assists students in thinking about and
processing the course content. Collaborative learning is an important strategy
since it helps students to empower themselves rather than remaining dependent
as they might in traditional tutoring.
Research suggests those tutoring relationships do not promote transfer
of needed academic skills (Demon, 1988, Martin, et.al, 1991b, 1990, 1983, 1982,
1981).

SI focuses on
both process and content. Therefore, learning/study strategies (e.g., note
taking, organization, and test preparation) are integrated into the course
content during SI sessions. SI sessions provide immediate practice and
reinforcement of these acquired skills. SI collaborative sessions capitalize on
the use of the “teachable moment” to apply the learning strategies
to course material.

Learner Activities

At least two
or more hours of SI are available each week per course.  During the SI session, the SI leader
models application of study strategies such as note taking, graphic
organization, questioning techniques, vocabulary acquisition, and test
prediction and preparation.
Students learn to trust each other to verbalize what they do understand
and clarify what they don’t understand.