Compared the effect of study skills or adjustment workshops on college freshmen (N=304). Workshops were held the first week of the fall term, and students were evaluated at the end of the term. No enduring changes were found, but students who attended the adjustment skills workshop earned higher mathematics grades. (JAC)

Literature on faculty relationships with new students (freshmen and transfers) as it relates to orientation programs is reviewed, and an experimental Brigham Young freshman mentoring program and its outcomes are discussed. Short-range goals were achieved, students were positively influenced, and program continuance was supported. (MSE)

Discusses the special needs of commuter students and provides suggestions for improving student services and programs for them. Suggestions are incorporated into an improvement model based on four general categories: services, programs, advocacy, and research. (RC)

Reviews retention research and examines programs that use freshman orientation courses and student leadership development as components in aiding retention. Concludes that overall awareness of university and its resources and integration into academic and social aspects of college life seem to be key factors in student retention. (Author/ABL)

Orientation at the graduate level can serve many functions such as reducing anxiety, familiarizing students with new academic challenges, and orienting students' spouses. It can also improve student retention, satisfaction, and success. Guidelines for developing programs responsive to graduate students' diverse needs are offered. (Author/MSE)

Describes a national study of extended orientation courses. Finds them equally common at two- and four-year colleges but different in administrative structures and content emphases. Two-year college courses have larger class sizes, shorter durations, and less varied content and are less likely to be required or to introduce an academic discipline.…

Presents back-to-school activity suggestions from elementary school teachers around the country, noting how they extend a warm welcome, soothe first-day fears, and encourage students to get to know one another and the teacher. (SM)

Many minority students face problems when attending community colleges. Adjustment to college life requires skills and knowledge for understanding the higher education system that minority students often lack. Minority students could benefit by being involved in decisions affecting them; an orientation to higher education is essential. (JOW)

The transition from elementary school to middle school brings apprehension to both students and their parents. At one school, parents and teachers worked together to improve the transition process with visits to the middle school, an information packet, orientation programs, and a teacher-made video. (MLF)

Examines induction and admission practice for refugee school children into Britain's public schools, highlights the educational issues and concerns of newly-arrived refugee families, and discusses what schools can do to make their entry into the school system less problematic. The author explains how good admission and induction practices can…

Researchers say transition programs need to last longer than just the first few days of a new school year. Most transition programs consider only one thing helping students adjust to their new school. Schools need to go through a transition process of their own, paying serious attention to the research on transition, adjusting to the students, and…

Distance education programmes warrant the use of innovative intervention practices to enhance student learning experiences. Academic and social empathy by faculty has been shown to enhance student retention in programmes along with their critical thinking abilities. Using Holmberg's theory of teaching-learning conversations as the guiding…

This chapter describes how an action research framework facilitates using evaluation and assessment results to improve programs and demonstrate institutional effectiveness. (Contains 1 table.)

New 9th graders reflect on the worries they had as middle school students about moving into high school. They also suggest ways of easing the transition and providing support in 9th grade. Teens want teachers to connect middle school students regularly with high school students, give them more responsibility in middle school, and focus on…

A sample of 3,484 incoming first-year students at a large, mid-Atlantic University were surveyed to assess a variety of attitudinal and behavioral variables pertinent to the college experience. The current study focused on how student value system orientation, or the degree to which values are open or closed, related to key aspects of college…