The first 100 days of a programme are formative. This is when students (often subconsciously) decide how they want to engage and how high they want to set the bar. What does that ask of you as a lecturer within your own teaching? How do you steer, from the very beginning, towards connection, safety and clear expectations at curriculum level? Educational experts Kerstin Hämmerling and Lucho Rubio Repáraz share their tips.
What happens in those first 100 days?
“Students enter a new academic culture. A new city, new social contacts, a new way of studying. For many, it’s quite overwhelming,” Kerstin explains. “They’re not only adjusting to the content, but also to what it means to be a student.” And in the meantime, they look to you as a lecturer. To how you teach, how you respond to questions, how you set norms. “Academic development begins at course level. But at programme level, you can create the framework that makes this possible.”
The three ‘V’s’ in practice
1. Connection (in Dutch: ‘Verbinding’)
“Students are less likely to drop out when they feel seen,” says Lucho. “Connection already starts at the course level in the way you design your teaching. At the programme level, it’s about creating space in the timetable to foster connection among students and between students and lecturers during those first 100 days.”
This often comes down to deliberate choices at the start:
- Explicitly acknowledge the different perspectives present in your lecture hall.
- Make group work an integral part of the programme from the beginning, so students meet each other across different courses.
- Create a sense of community within your programme, for example through shared activities.
2. Safety (in Dutch: ‘Veiligheid’)
Safety is not only about social safety within the course or programme. It also means students feel able to speak up, ask questions and make mistakes. “A safe learning environment is a precondition for academic growth,” says Kerstin. “Without safety, there is no critical thinking.”
At programme level, you can set the framework for a safe learning environment:
- Be clear about the principles that guide collaboration within your programme.
- Ensure accessible guidance within the programme, for example through a buddy system or (peer) mentoring.
3. Expectations (in Dutch: ‘Verwachtingen’)
Perhaps the most challenging V. “Many lecturers are afraid to set the bar high,” Lucho explains. “But students actually grow when expectations are clear and ambitious.” Be explicit and link these expectations to programme objectives and intended learning outcomes:
- What do you expect in terms of preparation and engagement in the programme?
- What does academic practice mean in your discipline?
“High expectations, clearly communicated, strengthen academic skills and motivation,” says Lucho.
