Students’ Expectations And Faculty Approaches To Instructional Activities: Are Faculty Meeting The Needs Of This Generation?

Students who engage academically and socially with others on campus are more likely to stay at their institution and graduate, and the continued success of higher education institutions depends on the persistence of those students. An extensive body of literature for student retention and faculty teaching practices exists, but the present study focused on how student persistence may be affected by the interactions between students and faculty, especially when students and faculty were members of different generational cohorts. Investigating those interactions revealed there is a significant difference between students’ expectations and faculty approaches to instructional activities inside and outside the classroom. The study used a cross-sectional survey research design that focused on Millennial characteristics, pedagogical characteristics, and faculty/student interaction, and collected the responses of students (n = 1,261) and faculty (n = 131). The findings demonstrated that, inside the classroom, faculty and students differed in their responses to whether students could still follow along in class while texting or surfing the internet, if students should get a C just for attending class, if students should be able to pass a class without the required textbooks or course materials, whether faculty should only cover the material for exams, whether exams should count for the majority of the class grade, and student input into classroom decisions. Outside the classroom, faculty and students differed in their responses to whether students used instructor feedback from assignments to prepare future assignments, whether students contacted instructors outside of class about class-related issues, whether it was important for faculty to get to know students and show an interest in them, and whether students contacted instructors outside of class about nonclass-related issues. While a single study cannot provide a sound basis for the practice of good teaching methods, this study and other studies with similar findings about Millennials would suggest there are strategies that faculty can use to improve their teaching methods and strategies that administrators can use to encourage collaboration and an institutional culture that advances student success