Student Retention & Success Flashcards
7 cards from real CPI practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Student Retention & Success flashcards as text
Which statement best describes the relationship between student engagement and retention in postsecondary education?
Answer: Higher engagement in and out of class correlates strongly with higher retention rates
Research consistently shows that both academic and social engagement are positively correlated with student persistence.
A student discloses housing insecurity to an instructor during office hours. The most appropriate instructor response is to:
Answer: Listen empathetically and connect the student with campus basic needs resources
Connecting students experiencing basic needs insecurity to campus resources addresses root barriers to persistence.
Which type of feedback is most likely to promote a growth mindset and increase student persistence after failure?
Answer: Process-focused feedback that identifies specific strategies to improve
Carol Dweck's research shows process feedback encourages students to see failure as a learning opportunity rather than a fixed trait.
When designing a supplemental instruction (SI) program to boost retention, the most critical design feature is:
Answer: Scheduling SI sessions outside of class time led by trained peer leaders
Effective SI uses trained peer leaders in voluntary sessions to facilitate collaborative review, not repetitive lecture.
A college wants to improve retention for online learners. Which intervention has the strongest evidence base?
Answer: Mandatory synchronous check-ins combined with proactive instructor communication
Regular instructor outreach and synchronous touchpoints combat isolation, the leading cause of online student dropout.
Which of the following is a leading cause of 'summer melt' in postsecondary education?
Answer: Students who intend to enroll fail to complete registration steps without sustained outreach
Summer melt occurs when admitted students who plan to enroll fail to take final steps (FAFSA, registration) without proactive institutional follow-up.
An institution's data show that students who use tutoring services in the first four weeks earn higher final grades. This finding is best interpreted as:
Answer: Correlation that warrants further study before attributing the gain solely to tutoring
Observational institutional data can show correlation but cannot establish causation without controlling for selection bias and other variables.