Do you have students who obtain their high school equivalency diploma, have intentions to go to college but never apply or get accepted and never enroll?
This seems to be an issue in the high school world as well. Here is an excerpt from a recent Higher Ed article:
".....drawing on longitudinal data from various urban school districts throughout the U.S. as well as from a nationally representative survey, we document summer attrition rates ranging from 10% to 40% among high school graduates who had been accepted to college and who had indicated their intentions to enroll in college as of graduation. Summer melt is particularly pronounced among students from disadvantaged backgrounds and could explain a sizable portion of the gap in college entry by socioeconomic status among students who are college-qualified."
The article then goes on to talk about a possible solution:
"....Encouragingly, though, much lower-touch outreach and support efforts during the summer months can positively affect students’ enrollment. For example, we find that an intervention as simple as sending students 10 text messages with personalized reminders of important tasks to complete at their intended college can have a sizable impact on whether they realize their postsecondary aspirations.
There are several reasons why text messaging is a promising approach to improve students’ access to high-quality, accurate college information and to connect them to professional support when they need assistance. ....... it is straightforward to automate and personalize text-message content to provide students with consolidated and timely information about the tasks required by their intended institution. Finally, personalized messaging may effectively turn one of adolescents’ greatest liabilities—their impulsiveness—into an asset: By providing simplified and timely information, text messages can prompt students to complete required steps in the moment, before their attention is diverted elsewhere."
Do you use texting to reach out to your students or keep in touch with them? Can texting be used as a way to build aspiration before and during college...
Looking forward to the responses.
~ Priyanka Sharma
National College Transition Network