Academic Progress Reports
Purdue University Northwest uses the academic progress report as a tool to allow you to easily communicate feedback and identify students who are having academic challenges.
This process has been refined based upon your willingness to assist with this important initiative and the retention goals identified by PNW. It is our hope by using this tool, we will:
- Actively assist students in becoming academically successful
- Demonstrate care, support, and encouragement to our students
Academic progress reports should also be submitted for strong academic performance and are valuable in offering additional encouragement to our students.
Progress Reports Are Important
There are many reasons why progress reports are critical and invaluable to advising and support.
- Many students are new and/or averse to asking for help. Specific feedback on their academic performance is extremely useful in cultivating help-seeking behaviors and can be critical for them to know if and when they’ve crossed the line from performing well to being academically deficient.
- Progress reports are distributed to multiple parties from a centralized source, including academic advisors. The more information the academic advisors have, the more helpful they can be in providing potential strategies and/or solutions to the student.
- With increasing focus for clear and transparent communication with students, progress reports serve a valuable role in helping us document and track trends in poor performance, allowing for more efficient outreach to students.
A student should be identified as a concern to pass your class if he/she is not doing well in your course and has a possibility of failing the class. This could be due to a number of factors, which should be noted when choosing the “Alert Reason.” Below are definitions to consider when selecting the “Alert Reason.”
- Assignments/Grades – Inconsistent class participation and performance, resulting in below satisfactory grade.
- Missing/Late Assignments – Student submits assignments after deadline has passed or has failed to complete assignments all together.
- Noticeable Change in Academic Performance – Student seems to be struggling in class and would benefit from seeking extra help.
- Exam Grade – Student has not performed well on exam, resulting in a below satisfactory grade.
- Repeated Absences – Student has not been attending class regularly, resulting in inconsistent class participation.
Recognizing students who are demonstrating academic achievement in your class is recommended and encouraged. Research suggests that engagement from faculty is critical to a student’s success in the classroom. Below are the definitions to consider when selecting a “Positive Alert.”
- Demonstrates High Level of Performance in the Course – Student actively engages and participates in all course material and receives above average grades on all coursework.
- Earns High Grades on Assignments – As stated.
- Displays Deep Engagement with Course Content – Student participates in all discussions (in the classroom or online) and provides meaningful interaction with others enrolled in the course.
- Select all appropriate “Alert Reasons” in the progress report. Doing so will facilitate an email notifying the student of your concern or positive feedback. Communication to students who are of concern to fail the class will include university resources to assist the student, as well as personalized outreach.
- It is recommended that you use the “Comments” section to (1) identify your concerns, and (2) provide recommendations for suggested actions and/or behavior changes the student can make to improve the chances of successful class outcome.