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The Freshman Year Experience: Helping Students Survive and Succeed in College
The Freshman Year Experience presents an authoritative, comprehensive guide to the policies, strategies, programs, and services designed to ensure student achievement in the first year of college--and so to facilitate student retention and academic success in subsequent years.
480 pages, Hardcover
First published May 19, 1989
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November 1, 2019
This is one of the early studies on freshman orientation. This work set off the authors' careers as specialists in the college experience. As such this book is more on pedagogy and less on action plans and oriented for administrators rather than faculty or students. The organization and writing are clear. Every chapter and section are well-written. The results of the book document the benefits and weaknesses of freshmen orientation programs.
Although Upcraft and Gardner are known primarily today for their expertise in freshman orientation programs, this initial study was about freshmen in general - who are they, what do they expect, what do they need? The basic layout is a collection of essays and case studies from across the country. Few of the essays are written by Upcraft or Gardner. It is a little frustrating to find so little directly written by these two gurus. That does not detract from the usefulness of this book published in 1989.
Key ideas are that freshmen expect college to be much more difficult than they expect. Upcraft and Gardner encourage schools to make college, and orientation challenging, not overbearing. To build on that concept, the orientation should be serious and require interaction, or at least engage participation. That is because the usefulness of the orientation is not so much in what freshmen learn from the course; but rather their interaction with a faculty member outside of the formal advising / academic structure. These relationships correlate to retention, not necessarily increased learning. Furthermore, the more involved freshmen are in these programs (their investment), the more committed they become to the college.
Nearly everything is written by contributors. There is not much directly from Upcraft and Gardner. Nevertheless, the editing was done so masterfully, that it is difficult to distinguish the writing style of the many contributors. Each chapter reads as though it is written by the same author. The focus is academic and more theoretical. In one of the few chapters written by Gardner, he demonstrates the steps to creating an orientation program. But what he offers readers is an outline and some annotations rather than an actual blueprint. That framework allows for individualization and implementation at the admin and faculty levels.
Overall, this dated book offers a fascinating glimpse into freshmen. The book contains many topics all relating to the first year experience. The scope is wide. The research and writing are strong. Much of the content remains relevant in the 2010s.
Although Upcraft and Gardner are known primarily today for their expertise in freshman orientation programs, this initial study was about freshmen in general - who are they, what do they expect, what do they need? The basic layout is a collection of essays and case studies from across the country. Few of the essays are written by Upcraft or Gardner. It is a little frustrating to find so little directly written by these two gurus. That does not detract from the usefulness of this book published in 1989.
Key ideas are that freshmen expect college to be much more difficult than they expect. Upcraft and Gardner encourage schools to make college, and orientation challenging, not overbearing. To build on that concept, the orientation should be serious and require interaction, or at least engage participation. That is because the usefulness of the orientation is not so much in what freshmen learn from the course; but rather their interaction with a faculty member outside of the formal advising / academic structure. These relationships correlate to retention, not necessarily increased learning. Furthermore, the more involved freshmen are in these programs (their investment), the more committed they become to the college.
Nearly everything is written by contributors. There is not much directly from Upcraft and Gardner. Nevertheless, the editing was done so masterfully, that it is difficult to distinguish the writing style of the many contributors. Each chapter reads as though it is written by the same author. The focus is academic and more theoretical. In one of the few chapters written by Gardner, he demonstrates the steps to creating an orientation program. But what he offers readers is an outline and some annotations rather than an actual blueprint. That framework allows for individualization and implementation at the admin and faculty levels.
Overall, this dated book offers a fascinating glimpse into freshmen. The book contains many topics all relating to the first year experience. The scope is wide. The research and writing are strong. Much of the content remains relevant in the 2010s.
Displaying 1 of 1 review