The promotion of 'character' and its relationship to retention in higher education

With transition to university a strong focus across most higher education institutions, undergraduate teacher education programs have been increasingly scrutinised regarding their (in)ability to adequately prepare students for the challenging social contexts that they will meet. As a result, there has been a burgeoning of approaches which initiate beginning students. In the Education Faculty of a regional Australian university, the FYI (First Year Infusion/For Your Information) Program attempts to build capacity among pre-service students in a supportive learning community. In an intentionally created context, the program provides a Learning Circle approach to student support. Through consciously infusing the value of “character” into the transition program, there is evidence of tangible impacts upon students’ interactions in the learning process and their commitment to course completion. Data are presented that suggest that students’ high quality interactions with peers and academic staff in an informal context are vital to academic success, and that staff also benefit from this program. It would suggest that the development of effective partnerships between all stakeholders is paramount in helping to build capacity.