Relevancia e impacto del perfil formativo de los estudiantes de nuevo ingreso en los grados en ciencias sobre su progreso y continuidadun modelo predictivo

Resumen

The School of Sciences of the University of La Laguna launched, in the academic year 2016/17, a Plan for the detection and attention of training deficiencies in Biology, Physics, Geology, Mathematics and Chemistry for incoming freshmen. This initiative is motivated by the observation that among the various variables that condition the academic performance in the university, the one which correlates most significantly is the performance in the pre-university phase. In this work, a diagnosis is made of the situation in which the newly admitted students to the School of Sciences (degrees in Biology, Environmental Sciences, Physics, Mathematics and Chemistry) are, and of the effectiveness of some of the measures that have been developed so far to alleviate the learning deficits detected. Also, a predictive statistical model of student performance in the first semester of university based on their previous performance is proposed. The paper ends by suggesting a series of policies and actions that from the local level (center and department) to the institutional one (university) would have to be undertaken in order to effectively respond to the problems detected.