Study/Life Check in

Main idea

Outline

Study/Life Check in is 10 digital nudges during the bachelor students’ 1st semester at two faculties at University of Southern Denmark (approximately 2300 students in 2021). The digital intervention Study/Life Check in combines the digital landscape and interactivity with student guidance and knowledge on transitions, well-being and learning environments.

Each check in (digital nudge) consists of one quick question relating to student life, respond options and feedback. The feedback is text bits, short YouTube videos, gifs or similar. The check in themes are planned and timed in advance to target the students with a relevant theme/question in a certain time slot. A check in is published one at a time from September to January.

Study/life Check in has 3 main objectives

• To prompt first year students to talk to each other about being a university student in a supportive and positive way.
• To create proactive reflections on relevant factors of well-being at eye level and why it is worth prioritizing.
• To influence the language, the discourse and the learning culture among first year students in a direction that is conductive for well-being.

Framework
Inspired by both young people’s digital habits, as well as psychological research on wellbeing (e.g. PERMA Theory), learning approaches (e.g. Mindset Theory) and motivation (e.g. Self-determination Theory). Focusing on small and simple interventions are inspired by the work of Dweck, Yeager & Walton

The Student Guidance Service at The Faculty of Humanities is the only ones involved.

Study/Life Check in is embedded in an LMS system, and it is not a part of the curriculum.

Obstacles targetted:

• Cultural differences
• Educational difficulties
• Social obstacles

Inspiration and evidence

Study/Life Check in is inspired by the digital culture among the youth and how they experience and use media alone and in groups.
We have looked at other digital tools, e.g. Startthermometer, and LEMO from colleagues in Antwerp.

Try 3 x Study/Life Check in
Are you in the right place?: https://www.riddle.com/view/375033

Are you good at using chopsticks?: https://www.riddle.com/view/375041

Visiting family for Christmas: https://www.riddle.com/view/375047

Success criteria

The success criteria for Study/Life check in is the students’ participation.
The more clicks we get, the more we know that Study/Life Check in makes sense to the students. And the more students who uses Study/Life Check in, the bigger the chance is that the check ins will have a positive impact on the students’ well-being and the learning culture.

Even though it may not be all students that take Study/Life Check in, the check ins are designed to still have an impact because of the ripple effect.

Do you feel you can effectively provide the support that students require?

Would you recommend this to other institutions?

strongly agree

Evaluation

We evaluated Study/Life Check in in 2021 after we first ran it.

The evaluation is both quantitative and qualitative. We looked at the data concerning the students’ participation in Study/Life Check in (number of clicks/interactions on each check in) and we asked them to fill out a form with questions. We also interviewed some of the students from the Faculty of Humanities, that we knew had tried Study/Life Check in.

Communication

Study/Life Check in is introduced in the mandatory digital introduction course. Because the check ins are published in the students’ LMS, they get a notification when a new check in is available.

Timing

We believe the ideal timing is during the 1st semester.

Resources

Skills needed

• Target group knowledge
• Knowledge on research in transitions, well-being and mindset theory
• Insight in the construct of the 1st semester, e-learning team
• Designing digital products/material

Digital platform
A programme/resource/platform that allow you to create quizzes or questions with no correct answers. We have used a type of quiz called “personality test” just with one question per check in instead of multiple.
A suitable platform to publish the check ins. We used the LMS, but it could also be student mail, SMS, website or similar.

Extra information

• Presentation from EFYE 2022

Doe je voordeel met de Startthermometer! (n.d.). Retrieved April 30, 2020, from https://www.fontys.nl/actueel/doe-je-voordeel-met-de-startthermometer/

Joyce, D., & Weibelzahl, S. (2011). Student counseling services: Using text messaging to lower barriers to help seeking. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 48(3), 287–299.

Koponen, M. (n.d.). Five trials to increase student engagement through text messages – Behavioural Insights in Higher Education. Retrieved April 30, 2020, from https://blogs.kcl.ac.uk/behaviouralinsights/2017/07/20/five-trials-to-increase-student-engagement-through-text-messages/

Lemo & Leercoaching | AP Hogeschool. (n.d.). Retrieved April 30, 2020, from https://www.ap.be/project/lemo-leercoaching

Masten, A. S., Wright, M. O., & Narayan, A. J. (2013). Resilience Processes in Development: Four Waves of Research on Positive Adaptation in the Context of Adversity. In S. Goldstein & R. B. Brooks (Eds.), Handbook of Resilience in Children. New York: Springer Science + Business Media.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2018). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness. The Guilford Press.

Seligman, M. (2018). PERMA and the building blocks of well-being. Journal of Positive Psychology, 9760, 1–3.

Tinto, V. (2016). How to improve student persistence and completion (essay) | Inside Higher Ed. Inside Higher Ed.

Tinto, V. (2017). Reflections on Student Persistence. Student Success, 8(2), 1. https://doi.org/10.5204/ssj.v8i2.376

Yeager, D. S., & Dweck, C. S. (2012). Mindsets That Promote Resilience : When Students Believe That Personal Characteristics Can Be Developed. 47(4), 302–314. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2012.722805

Transferability

We think it is easily transferable to other contexts or groups.

The design can be used for many things – and students in a lot of other transitions than just the 1^st semester. E.g. students studying abroad or during periods with internships. The content would have to be adjusted, but the theoretical framework and some of the content would still be useful and relevant.

4 design considerations:

• Easy to use. So easy that you almost can’t help doing it.
• Pops up in the students’ LMS.
• Informal, light and focused. Fun and surprising.
• Valuable no matter if you spend 10 sec or 10 min on each check in.