April 2009: Insights into your child's first year

First-year success through “Foundations For Learning”

Many first-year college students are ambitious and invigorated, but they are overwhelmed by the pace and volume of coursework. For example, the average Bryant student is assigned 600 pages of reading each week! This is one of the many realities that mark the pointed differences between high school and college.

To help ease the successful transition to higher education, Bryant designed the Foundations For Learning (FFL) course for first-year students. The theme of the course is “claiming your education,” a premise that encourages students to explore their own reactions to learning and take responsibility for academic success.

FFL is a one-credit course required of all full-time freshman and transfer students. By linking critical and creative thinking with writing and discussion, students develop their own perspectives on learning and success. Through readings, lectures, guest speakers, and participation in co-curricular activities, students become engaged members of the Bryant University community and cultivate habits for lifelong achievement.

FFL is taught by 50 instructors including tenured and tenure-track faculty, as well as administrators such as Bryant President Ronald K. Machtley and his wife, Kati Machtley. Each brings an interesting and unique perspective to the classroom. Typically, the class size is kept to 20 students per instructor.

Throughout the course, students are challenged to be introspective and evaluate their current attitudes and habits, and to be open-minded about finding more efficient and effective ways to accomplish their individual academic goals. 

The Foundations for Learning textbook, co-written by Laurie Hazard, director of the Academic Center for Excellence and the Writing Center, confronts students with the following questions:

• What are your current attitudes toward learning?
• What are your study habits?
• What kind of relationship do you want to have with Bryant?
• How will you manage your time?
• What commitments will you make to your Bryant education?

Professor Hazard is also the FFL curriculum coordinator and has won numerous national awards for her commitment to first-year student education. She brings an abundance of energy and excitement to her position, as well as an exceptional background of research and experience in the areas of psychology and teaching.

According to Professor Hazard, “The question isn’t ‘Do you know how to manage your time?’ but ‘Are you doing it?’ That’s what this class is all about. You have to take stock of yourself and figure out why it is that you are, or aren’t, doing what you need to do to be successful.”