Ms Meera Gopalkrishna1, Mr Patrick Hoppe1, Mr Bruce Williams1
1Monash College, Melbourne, Australia
The journey of a Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) student officially begins when they enrol in our Melbourne City Campus, but the transition does not stop there. In fact, it has only just begun. International students often face challenges in navigating not only their new environment but also an unfamiliar academic culture. Students find themselves juggling varying expectations across subjects and coming to terms with new academic terminology. The weekly Home Group programme was thus developed to help students ease into Foundation Year smoothly, and has been designed to increase student engagement and transition to Monash University. This year, the Unit Leaders introduced Goal Setting as a Home Group activity to help students track and monitor their progress towards a destination degree at Monash University. During Home Groups, students are introduced to the concept of goal setting and are encouraged to review their long-term and short-term academic goals throughout the semester. Based on feedback from students, the Goal Setting component of the program appears to be very valuable. In this presentation, we will discuss some of the challenges faced by International Students in terms of academic expectations in Foundation Year, and also how the Home Group program, together with the Goal Setting process, helps address these challenges whilst keeping students connected to Monash College as they transition to University.
Biography:
Meera Gopalkrishna is an English teacher and Unit Leader at Monash University Foundation Year. The role of the Unit Leader is to improve student academic performance and transition rates to Monash University through the management of student engagement and well-being programs and the provision of academic support to students. Meera and her team are also responsible for the development, improvement and review of the weekly Home Group program and other initiatives designed to enhance student experience and engagement.