As part of the university-wide Navigate U student success project aimed at improving student success outcomes, the Martha Bradley Evans Center for Teaching Excellence (MBECTE) is working with college, school and department administrators to identify courses with high failure, withdrawal and incompletion rates (grades of D, E, W, and I) that impact large numbers of students at the U. Many of these “high-DEWI” courses are introductory-level and are taught across several sections by various instructors each semester. Thus, the actual content, organization and format varies widely across sections.

“Our approach is to analyze patterns of grades, Canvas usage, structure and activity, as well as student feedback across multiple sections and semesters to identify issues that could be negatively impacting student success,” explained MBECTE Director Anne Cook. “We then work with instructors to create a master Canvas template that addresses these issues, with the intention that instructors will implement these adjustments across sections within their departments. And finally, we review the data after implementation to assess how things are working and make any necessary revisions. We view this as an ongoing, interactive partnership between MBECTE and departments.”

“Addressing issues in courses with high DEWI rates is crucial for improving student success outcomes,” added Vice Provost for Student Success T. Chase Hagood. “By identifying and addressing these challenges, we can create a more supportive and effective learning environment and ensure every student at the U can have an exceptional educational experience. We know faculty success is critical for student success, and we will continue to invest, share and promote this good work.”

MBECTE began these engagements in the summer of 2024, and they are already working on over 20 high-DEWI courses across the university. One example is MATH 1050, a course taken by over 7000 students in the last five years—25% of whom earned grades of a D, E, W or I. MBECTE consultant Audra Carlisle met with MATH 1050 instructors Dalyanna Guerra and Rebecca Noonan-Heale during the Fall 2024 Semester to review the data and discuss potential areas for improvement. Together, they developed and implemented a Canvas template for the course that could be utilized across sections.

Guerra commented, “The Canvas page is well-organized and efficient. So far, the feedback I’ve received from instructors is that they appreciate the organizational design of the page. As we all know, effective communication of materials to students is crucial in the structure of a course, and this Canvas page has improved the user experience for both students and instructors.”

Noonan-Heale added, “It’s been really eye-opening to work with Audra. She has a deep understanding of the power of how Canvas is put together. What has been good about the design is that it’s simple to understand and maintain. What I had before was clunky and required more work. Some teachers opted out of using it—so their students had fewer resources—and some teachers used it, but didn’t keep it updated, which led to confusion. This semester, everyone has been positive about the website and is using it.”

Like Guerra and Noonan-Heale, MATH 1030 instructor Darren Kraushar is appreciative of the work being done to refine courses based on teaching best practices. He described how prior to working with the MBECTE, “I was unintentionally putting up barriers that I couldn’t see based on my own experience. Working with MBECTE to rethink MATH 1030 has helped me to remove those barriers so I could [teach] in a more accessible way.”

The redesign of the new MATH 1050 Canvas template has been so successful that it’s also been adapted and implemented in sections of MATH 1030 and 1090, with wider implementation planned for the Fall 2025 Semester.

“Our hope with this and other high-DEWI course projects,” stated Cook, “is that instructors will start to see us as a resource not only for their own teaching but also as a means of helping their students achieve greater success.”

Departments interested in assessing and addressing their high-DEWI courses can schedule a consultation with MBECTE to get started.