Preventive model to minimize students at academic risk for first-year college courses

Abstract

The risk indicators of a student who is just starting his university
studies are relevant to avoid a possible desertion and abandonment in a short term. A preventive model is presented that minimizes the percentage of students
at academic risk in the first year of university studies, in the subject of Initial Programming. This work develops an empirical-analytical research methodolo-
gy with a longitudinal and quantitative approach. The data used are the final grades of 360 students of nine courses of Initial Programming during three consecutive periods, from October 2021 to March 2022, from April to September 2022, and from October 2022 to March 2023, who used a preventive model for the academic support of first year students in the Engineering Careers of the Salesian Polytechnic University in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador. The percentage of approved students reached 85% in the third period, an improvement of 8%. It is evident that a structural integration of teachers and students in relation to an
ecosystem of digital didactic resources achieves the expected learning results and minimizes the percentage of students at academic risk.