August 7, 2023
Academic pass rates for Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) students enrolled in class sections that participate in the College’s Supplemental Instruction (SI) program were on average higher—86% compared to 70%— than pass rates for class sections that did not participate in the program according to Fall 2022 data from the BMCC Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Analytics.
BMCC academic course sections that utilize the SI program also report higher grade point averages (GPA) as well as fewer class withdrawals than matching non-SI sections.
Ninety percent of BMCC’s SI course sections have fewer withdrawals than non SI course sections. In fall 2022, the DFWI rate—the percentage of students who finish a course with a D grade, an F grade, a (W)ithdrawal, or an (I)ncomplete—for students attending SI sessions was 23% compared to a DFWI rate of 41% for students who did not attend SI in the same courses.
SI is a free academic assistance program that utilizes out-of-class, peer-facilitated review sessions. Faculty members train students who completed a particular course and did exceptionally well to be peer mentors and group facilitators called SI Leaders. Professors and SI leaders work collaboratively both in and out of the classroom and across social media platforms.
SI leaders take notes, run group study groups, provide one-on-one tutoring and support and act as a liaison between the professor and students who may need help with a range of things including course concepts or time management skills. SI leaders serve as student advocates. They get paid an hourly wage for their work which takes place during 15 weeks of any given semester.
There are ongoing efforts to replicate the program’s success across BMCC’s curriculum. Already, the College’s SI program has expanded from 78 course sections in Fall 2021 to 189 course sections in Spring 2023. BMCC is also working to expand the SI program into gateway course sections—required first credit-bearing courses in a program of study.
“We want to help our students the moment they walk through the door of a classroom, and SI is a proven method of providing that help where the students are” said Janice Zummo, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for Academic Support Services who oversees the BMCC program.
Since its genesis in 1974 at the University of Missouri-Kansas City by Deanna C. Martin, SI has been implemented in two-and-four-year institutions of higher learning across the world. SI practices have been studied and evaluated for their effectiveness across a variety of disciplines and institutional levels.
Researchers from across the United States have concluded that SI is an effective program to develop academic skills and yield increased retention according to a number of studies.
In addition to Dean Zummo, the BMCC program is overseen by Nandrani Algu, Tutorial Manager in the Learning Resource Center, and an advisory board that consists of participating faculty, administrators and students. Media Arts and Technology (MAT) Professor Susan Stratton serves as chair of the board and Teacher Education Professor Jennifer Longley serves as co-chair.
Professor Stratton says the intensive, collaborative relationship between the professor and the SI leader is A key ingredient in the secret sauce that makes the program successful.
“The introduction of an SI Leader into the classroom creates an entirely new model of learning,” said Professor Stratton. “The SI Leaders take the anxiety of performing well in the course away from the student. That’s because the student has someone, a peer, an advocate they can talk to about their problems or struggles in the course, as they go along.”
A window into how SI can work
Before each session of her Introduction to Contemporary Media Writing Intensive class, Professor Stratton meets with Video Arts and Technology major Kejuan Johnson, the SI Leader for the course section.
On this particular day, they discuss a student who has fallen critically behind on her assignments
At the time of the meeting, the student, who works five days a week at a local restaurant, has only completed two out of eight required writing assignments, despite being already nine weeks into the class. What’s more, the two written papers she has completed aren’t the correct length and need work, according to SI leader Johnson.
When the student joins the meeting, she nervously tells Professor Stratton and Johnson that she understood how far she’d fallen behind and for that, she was very sorry. She asks if she can complete all the assignments she’s missed and then send them to Professor Stratton. The professor agrees to accept the student’s work, but with a stipulation.
“I’d like you to work with Kejuan,” said Professor Stratton. “Although I think your super smart, clever and creative, there seems to be an issue with time-management. A lot of people have this issue, it has nothing to do with creativity or intelligence, it’s just getting things done on time and we need to work on that.”
The student is instructed to meet with Johnson individually on a weekly basis to make certain she starts and completes each assignment which will then be turned in to the professor. Professor Stratton says she will work with the student on any necessary revisions to her work.
“I’ll meet with you twice a week, usually around 15 to 30 minutes, just to make sure you’re completing assignments on time and that you’re on track and I’m able to help you iron out any issues you’re having with your writing,” Johnson tells the student. “It’s good that you finished the first two assignments, but before you submit them, we should meet so I can look over them. We want to help you do the best possible work.”
The student commits to Wednesdays and Thursdays but she also takes a moment to thank Professor Stratton and Johnson for their efforts. As it turns out, the previous semester, she had taken the same course with a different professor who was not part of the SI program and had ended up withdrawing from the class.
“You have two of us on your side now, “Professor Stratton tells the student. “You’re just going to have to do the work, but we’ll be there to support you.”
SI student Leader shares insight into why SI works so well
A few months after, during a June 2023 orientation session for incoming SI Leaders, Johnson shared insight on how he approaches his role.
He said when he’s in the classroom with other students where he’s the SI Leader, he picks up on the different ways they would like to be able to talk with their teacher.
“When students talk with their professors, there’s a sense of respectfulness, it’s more formal,” said Johnson. “They don’t see me as the professor. I’m a liaison, a peer, so they tend to be more comfortable asking questions that might clarify what the professor is saying.”
A self-described outgoing person, Johnson said he sees a lot of himself in the students he works with.
“Sometimes, even I need that extra nudge or someone to just hold my hand for a few minutes,” said Johnson.
If he sees someone who is struggling in the class, and they don’t reach out to him first, he emails them or finds them on social media.
“I’ll reach out and say hey, we should probably set up a meeting and have a conversation,” said Johnson. “I’ve been that person who has struggled and I want us to take some steps to get you on a more successful path.”
Professor encourages faculty to explore the benefits of SI
Professor Jennifer Longley concurs with Johnson, saying there are multiple reasons for SI’s success, including the sense of community created in classrooms that have SI leaders.
“Students see the SI leader as a peer mentor,” said Longley. “They not only ask for information about the course, they also ask questions about how to navigate life as a student and I think that sense of community really helps to facilitate success.”
She says at the beginning of each semester, she and her SI leader set up protocols whereby they reach out to students. SI leaders invite students to SI group meetings. SI leaders utilize social media, including What’s App groups where they make certain they are connecting with all students in a class.
“I’m also constantly reminding students about SI group sessions,” said Longley.
She says she sends emails, posts on Blackboard as well as Open Lab and reminds students that her classes have an SI leader and they should take advantage of it.
“I believe SI works well,” said Professor Longley. “I would encourage faculty to learn more about SI and see if it fits their model of teaching and their values and see if it can support students in their class.”
“It’s not often we have a problem and come up with a viable solution,” said Dean Zummo. “SI is just that. Some courses are historically challenging and semester after semester a large percentage of students don’t pass the course. The percentage of students who use SI pass the course at rates between 10% to 30% higher than students who don’t use SI. We just need to get the message out to students and faculty. SI works.”
Faculty members interested in incorporating Supplemental Instruction into their classroom should contact Nandrani Algu, nalgu@bmcc.cuny.edu.
For more faculty, student insight into BMCC’s growing SI program, visit the SI commons page.
Expanding BMCC’s successful Supplemental Instruction program relates to the College’s Strategic Goal 4: Improve Completion and Transfer Rates through Integrated Support Services.
- Supplemental Instruction is a free academic assistance program that utilizes out-of-class, peer-facilitated review sessions
- Supplemental Instruction course sections have more than doubled at BMCC over past three years
- Supplemental Instruction is a free academic support program
