FDについて

On February 12, 2025, the debriefing session, "Learning Assistance in American Universities and its Applicability in Japanese Universities," was held at the Shinshu University's Central Library (& Online). In this session, Shinji Matsumiya, Lecturer at the Research Center for Higher Education, and Tsubasa Furuhata, Assistant Professor at the Institutional Research (IR) Office for Educational Administration, reported on their field trip to the U.S. last year to observe learning assistance at universities in the U.S. They visited California State University, Chico (Chico State) and California State University, Sacramento (Sac State) from November 20 to 23, 2024, and conducted interviews with their staffs and students and observed sessions, focusing mainly on Supplemental Instruction (SI).

SI is a learning assistance program developed in the U.S. to improve student performance and retention, focusing on challenging college courses in which "SI Leaders" (students who have already mastered the courses) conduct sessions (kind of remedial classes) outside of class. In addition, Subject Tutoring, Writing Center, Embedded Tutoring, and various student tutors are involved in learning assistance both inside and outside of class. By tutors (students) supporting other students, they create a comfortable learning community for users. Supervisors and coordinators (university staff) are also involved in tutors' recruitment, training, and evaluation.

*Subject Tutoring: A program that allows students to be tutored by a faculty-recommended peer tutor for a couple of hours each week.

*Writing Center: Tutors provide individual guidance on writing reports and essays, with the motto, "We give hints, but we don't answer."

*Embedded Tutoring: Work with faculty to help students understand course content. Holding workshops outside of class is also permitted.

In improving learning assistance in Japan concerning the case studies in the U.S., it is necessary to take into account the following different contexts in Japan and the U.S.: the focus on "high risk" (in Japan, the "high risk" of learning has been focused on the student rather than the class); the motivation of students to earn good grades; the impression of remedial education (students who take remedial courses are considered "dedicated students" in the U.S., while in Japan they can be seen as "students at risk"). The difference in infrastructure, such as the incentive to become an SI leader (contributing to future career) and the existence of professionals (e.g., supervisors and coordinators), is another advanced point in the U.S. On the other hand, in Japan, it is necessary to promote the benefits of participating in SI (or other learning assistance) because the image that "students with good grades participate in student support" is not shared among stakeholders. The situation may promote the fostering of evidence-based learning assistance using Institutional Research.

The debriefing was conducted in person and streamed in real-time via Zoom. It was attended by about 30 faculty, staff, and students from each campus. A discussion period was held at the end of the session, and participants asked the following questions:

• ・How many staff and students are involved in learning assistance?

• ・How and from where is the budget for the learning assistance center secured?

• ・A comment was made: "In Japan, we tend to focus on 'high-risk students,' while in the. U.S., 'high-risk classes' are mainly focused on."Then, how are "high-risk students" considered in the U.S.?

Finally, we would like to thank the staff and students of the Student Learning Center at Chico State and of the Peer and Academic Resource Center at Sac State for hosting our site visit and the staff at the Central Library of Shinshu University for supporting this report meeting.

Author: Tsubasa Furuhata

(Assistant Professor [University Education Administrator], Institutional Research (IR) Office for Educational Administration)