Showing papers in "Research in Higher Education in 2012"

From Gatekeeping to Engagement: A Multicontextual, Mixed Method Study of Student Academic Engagement in Introductory STEM Courses

Abstract: The lack of academic engagement in introductory science courses is considered by some to be a primary reason why students switch out of science majors. This study employed a sequential, explanatory mixed methods approach to provide a richer understanding of the relationship between student engagement and introductory science instruction. Quantitative survey data were drawn from 2,873 students within 73 introductory science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses across 15 colleges and universities, and qualitative data were collected from 41 student focus groups at eight of these institutions. The findings indicate that students tended to be more engaged in courses where the instructor consistently signaled an openness to student questions and recognizes her/his role in helping students succeed. Likewise, students who reported feeling comfortable asking questions in class, seeking out tutoring, attending supplemental instruction sessions, and collaborating with other students in the course were also more likely to be engaged. Instructional implications for improving students' levels of academic engagement are discussed.

Institutional Characteristics and College Student Dropout Risks: A Multilevel Event History Analysis

Abstract: In the past two decades, although access to higher education for American students has improved, student persistence in 4-year institutions is far from assured. There have been a number of research studies on student persistence/dropout in higher education, but most have focused on the characteristics and behavior of students as illustrated by the “student-centered research tradition”. This study focuses on what institutional characteristics contribute to conditions that reduce student dropout risks. By analyzing longitudinal and hierarchical data, this research proposes and tests a multilevel event history model that identifies the major institutional attributes related to student dropout risk in a longitudinal process. Evidence indicates that institutional expenditure on student services is negatively associated with student dropout behavior. Implications of the results for institutional practices and future research are discussed.

Nonresponse and Online Student Evaluations of Teaching: Understanding the Influence of Salience, Fatigue, and Academic Environments

Abstract: Technological advances have enabled institutions of higher education to administer course evaluations online, forgoing the traditional paper-and-pencil methods. Consequently, many of these institutions suffer from low response rates, but little research is available on this topic. To increase understanding about course evaluation participation in the online environment, this study examined over 22,000 undergraduates to whom the university administered about 135,000 evaluations. Multilevel models were constructed to analyze the data, and several variables emerged as significant predictors of participation. The results were mostly consistent with previous research and aligned with theories of survey nonresponse. However, the integration of uncommon variables provided new perspectives about course evaluations in particular. Implications for research and practical applications for institutions are also addressed, including ways to combat survey fatigue, increase the salience of the survey, and increase participation in online course evaluations.

The College Application Gauntlet: A Systematic Analysis of the Steps to Four-Year College Enrollment

Abstract: Few studies have examined the steps to college enrollment between college aspiration and college enrollment and how these steps might present a barrier to four-year college enrollment. This study used data from the Education Longitudinal Study: 2002 and employed a multivariate random effects logistic framework to examine the completion of nine steps to enrollment based on student background characteristics and the completion of prior steps. Racial and family income gaps in step completion can be mostly accounted for by differences in academic preparation. Accounting for social and cultural capital reduced, but did not eliminate, remaining gaps. Finally, completion of early steps strongly predicts completion of later steps, though this momentum appeared much stronger for White students than Black or Hispanic ones. The findings suggest college coaching programs should target students early in their high school careers and work to foster college aspirations and provide information about steps to college enrollment.

Completing the Three Stages of Doctoral Education: An Event History Analysis

Abstract: Doctoral programs have high dropout rates of 43% representing the highest among all post-baccalaureate programs. Cross sectional studies of doctoral students’ retention have showed the importance of financial aid in predicting degree completion. These studies however, do not estimate the labor market’s effect on doctoral student retention and neglect the longitudinal nature of doctoral study and the multiple requirements that make doctoral education a three-stage process. This research study examines the effect of various factors, including financial aid and labor market conditions, on the likelihood that doctoral students will complete the three stages of doctoral education: transition, development, and research. The results show that although financial aid as a whole is important, the type of financial aid received is even more significant and has differential impacts on doctoral students’ retention at each stage. The study concludes that research assistantships have the highest likelihood of degree completion compared to students with other forms of financial support. Labor market conditions are also an important factor affecting doctoral student retention with higher expected earnings motivating doctoral students in the later part of their programs to complete their degrees.

Using the Theory of Satisficing to Evaluate the Quality of Survey Data.

Abstract: Increasingly colleges and universities use survey results to make decisions, inform research, and shape public opinion. Given the large number of surveys distributed on campuses, can researchers reasonably expect that busy respondents will diligently answer each and every question? Less serious respondents may “satisfice,” i.e., take short-cuts to conserve effort, in a number of ways—choosing the same response every time, skipping items, rushing through the instrument, or quitting early. In this paper we apply this satisficing framework to demonstrate analytic options for assessing respondents’ conscientiousness in giving high fidelity survey answers. Specifically, we operationalize satisficing as a series of measurable behaviors and compute a satisficing index for each survey respondent. Using data from two surveys administered in university contexts, we find that the majority of respondents engaged in satisficing behaviors, that single-item results can be significantly impacted by satisficing, and that scale reliabilities and correlations can be altered by satisficing behaviors. We conclude with a discussion of the importance of identifying satisficers in routine survey analysis in order to verify data quality prior to using results for decision-making, research, or public dissemination of findings.

The Earnings Benefits of Majoring in STEM Fields Among High Achieving Minority Students

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to improve our understanding of the association between major field of study in college and early career earnings among a sample of academically accomplished minority students. Results demonstrate the economic benefits minority students experience from majoring in a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math field during college, and highlight the importance of gaining employment in a closely related field in order to secure those benefits. The results also illustrate the need to carefully account for self-selection when estimating the earnings premiums in relation to educational experiences during college. Implications for policy and research are discussed.

Self-Esteem, Locus of Control, College Adjustment, and GPA Among First- and Continuing-Generation Students: A Moderator Model of Generational Status

Abstract: The role of generational status (first-generation vs. continuing-generation college students) as a moderator of the relationship between psychological factors and college outcomes was tested to determine whether generational status acts as a risk factor or as a sensitizing factor. The sample consisted of 322 undergraduate students who completed online measures of self-esteem, locus of control, and academic adjustment and provided self-reports of GPA. Generational status significantly moderated the relationship between psychological factors and academic outcomes. Generally, it was found that the relationship between psychological factors and academic outcomes were strongest among first-generation students. Further, it was found that for the majority of the interactions with locus of control, first-generation status acted as a sensitizing factor that amplified both the positive and negative effects of locus of control. In contrast, for self-esteem, first generation status acted as a risk factor that only exacerbated the negative effects of low self-esteem. These results are interpreted as reflecting motivational differences between first- and continuing-generation students and are discussed with respect to the social/cultural capital hypothesis that is most frequently presented in the existing literature.

The Mediating Effects of Student Engagement on the Relationships between Academic Disciplines and Learning Outcomes: An Extension of Holland's Theory.

Abstract: This research examined the relationships among students’ academic majors, levels of engagement, and learning outcomes within the context of Holland’s person–environment theory of vocational and educational behavior. The study focused on the role of student engagement as a mediating agent in the relationships between academic majors and student learning. Drawing on data from a stratified random sample of 20,000 seniors who participated in the 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement, results revealed that students’ academic majors were significantly related to levels of engagement and learning outcomes. Student engagement was also significantly related to learning outcomes. Students’ academic majors generally were not indirectly related to learning outcomes through levels of engagement. An important exception to this result was found for students in Enterprising environments where indirect relationships among Enterprising disciplines and Enterprising learning outcomes were positive, statistically significant, and substantially larger than the direct relationship.

Are Student Evaluations of Teaching Effectiveness Valid for Measuring Student Learning Outcomes in Business Related Classes? A Neural Network and Bayesian Analyses

Abstract: In this study we investigate the underlying relational structure between student evaluations of teaching effectiveness (SETEs) and achievement of student learning outcomes in 116 business related courses. Utilizing traditional statistical techniques, a neural network analysis and a Bayesian data reduction and classification algorithm, we find little or no support for the validity of SETEs as a general indicator of teaching effectiveness or student learning. In fact, the underlying structure appears to be non-linear and possibly negatively bimodal where the most effective instructors are within the middle percentiles of student course ratings, while instructors receiving ratings in the top quintile or the bottom quintile are associated with significantly lower levels of student achievement.

The Use of Learner-Centered Assessment in US Colleges and Universities

Abstract: Over a decade ago, Barr and Tagg (Change Mag 27(6):12–25, 1995) declared that a shift had occurred in higher education from an instruction paradigm to a learning paradigm. A central element in this new paradigm is learner-centered assessment. While a growing body of literature suggests that this approach to assessment is a best practice in higher education pedagogy, it is still unclear whether faculty members have embraced it fully. Using data from the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty, this study examines the extent to which faculty members employed learner-centered assessments in postsecondary classrooms at two points in time, 1993 and 2004. Findings show similar to higher rates of use for some assessment techniques in 2004 compared to reports from 1993, as well as differences by faculty gender, age, discipline, and institution type. Implications for faculty members, student learning, and institutional policy are discussed.

Deconstructing Remediation in Community Colleges: Exploring Associations Between Course-Taking Patterns, Course Outcomes, and Attrition from the Remedial Math and Remedial Writing Sequences

Abstract: Each year, a sizeable percentage of community college students enroll in remedial coursework to address skill deficiencies in math, writing, and/or reading. Unfortunately, the majority of these students do not attain college-level competency in the subjects in which they require remedial assistance. Moreover, students whose point of entry into the remedial sequence is at the lower end of the hierarchy of skill suffer the lowest rates of attainment by far. Yet, to date, we do not understand fully why students who begin at the lower end of the remedial sequence are so much less likely than are students who begin at the higher end to attain college-level competency. The purpose of this study is to illuminate the junctures in the remedial sequences in math and writing at which meaningful attrition of students is occurring and, in particular, the junctures at which “low-skill” remedial students suffer differential attrition relative to “high-skill” remedial students. To accomplish this end, I use data that address students in California’s community colleges to examine three ways of characterizing and explaining the differential in college-level skill attainment between low- and high-skill remedial math students and, separately, between low- and high-skill remedial writing students. The three characterizations include nonspecific attrition, skill-specific attrition, and course-specific attrition. I find that each of these characterizations contributes to explaining the differential in college-level skill attainment between low- and high-skill remedial students.

The Ideal Worker or the Ideal Father: Organizational Structures and Culture in the Gendered University

Abstract: While literature has focused on the ways in which organizational structures exclude women from the workplace, this article suggests that the inverse is also true: organizational structures and culture prevent men from being involved in the home. Using theories of gendered organizations as a guide, this article draws on interviews with 70 faculty fathers at four research universities to explore the tension that many men feel navigating their responsibilities in the home while simultaneously aiming to fulfill the norms of the ideal worker, which holds that employees are always available to perform work and have few responsibilities in the home. Data suggest that institutions and those within them penalize men who appear too committed to their families. Some participants crafted identities for themselves that separated their roles as professor and father while others struggled to reconcile their two roles. In short, institutional structures and culture play a critical role in shaping faculty identity, both on and off-campus.

An Engagement-Based Student Typology and Its Relationship to College Outcomes.

Abstract: Using data from the 2006 cohort of the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education, we developed a student typology based on student responses to survey items on the National Survey of Student Engagement. We then examined the utility of this typology in understanding direct-assessment learning outcomes, self-reported gains, grade-point average, and persistence from the first to second year of college. Results from linear and logistic regression models indicated there were relationships between student types and the various outcomes, and that an engagement-based student typology could help deepen our understanding of the college student experience and college outcomes.

Faculty Organizational Commitment and Citizenship

Abstract: Building on a theoretical framework that links characteristics of individuals and their work settings to organizational commitment (OC) and citizenship behavior, this study considers why faculty may be disengaging from institutional service. Analyses of survey data collected from a state system of higher education suggest that job characteristics, exchanges and social learning are associated with faculty members’ OC. For instance, opportunities for advancement and research support, as well as responsiveness of administrators to faculty, contributed to the likelihood that faculty would accept a position at their institution again if given the chance. Commitment, however, did not significantly affect time spent on institutional service. Two job characteristics—time spent on research and time spent on teaching—were negatively associated with this behavior.

Exploring Innovative Entrepreneurship and Its Ties to Higher Educational Experiences

Abstract: The purpose of this paper was to explore innovative entrepreneurship and to gain insight into the educational practices and experiences that increase the likelihood that a student would graduate with innovative entrepreneurial intentions. To this end, we administered a battery of assessments to 3,700 undergraduate seniors who matriculated in the spring of 2007; these students attended one of five institutions participating in this study. Results showed that, after controlling for a host of personality, demographic, educational, and political covariates, taking an entrepreneurial course and the assessments faculty use as pedagogical strategies for teaching course content were significantly related to innovation intentions. Implications for higher education stakeholders are discussed.

Leaving College: A Gender Comparison in Male and Female-Dominated Programs

Abstract: Women, on average, outnumber men and are more successful in higher education. A literature overview showed that these differences may be explained by gender differences in learner characteristics, by external factors and by institutional factors. This study aims to explain gender differences in higher education in more detail by focusing on one of the recent research findings in this area: the role of the numerical representation of men and women in course programs. What are gender differences in study success in male and female-dominated course programs, and what are gender differences in reasons for leaving these programs? The research questions were answered by analyzing Dutch census data and conducting a survey on students that have left college. Results showed that gender differences in retention scores and reasons for leaving were indeed related to the numerical representation of women and men in course programs. Leaving female-dominated programs seemed to be a different matter from leaving male-dominated programs.

Doctoral Student Satisfaction: An Examination of Disciplinary, Enrollment, and Institutional Differences

Abstract: Previous research suggests that it is the department, not the graduate school that bears the greatest responsibility for doctoral students’ progress and success (Ehrenberg et al., Doctoral education and the faculty of the future (pp. 15–34). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2009) dictating the need to examine and understand how doctoral students experience their education at the department level. In the present study, we analyzed the NAGPS’ 2000 National Doctoral Program Survey (NDPS) data in an effort to understand the differences in the satisfaction levels of doctoral students (current, recent graduates, and former) across various academic disciplines (e.g. social sciences, humanities, engineering) and different institutional types (e.g. research extensive and research intensive). Employing both traditional (ANOVA) and item-level (Rasch Rating Scale Model) analyses we found that although overall satisfaction with doctoral experiences appears to be equivalent/similar across multiple disciplines, student satisfaction within disciplines varied significantly and consistently with respect to specific academic experiences.

How do Revenue Variations Affect Expenditures Within U.S. Research Universities

Abstract: Using Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) figures on the 96 Research Extensive Institution in academic year 2007–2008, we employ panel data from academic year 1984–1985 to 2007–2008 to identify revenue-expenditure relationships. Although we consider a wide range of functional expenditure categories, we focus our analysis on instructional and research expenditures because these categories tie most closely to the core missions of research universities. Results suggest tight relationships between some revenue and expenditure categories for some institutions. For public universities, these relationships tend to follow expected paths. For example, a large proportion of tuition revenues tend to be spent in the functional category of instruction. Private universities evidence a somewhat different pattern, with revenues generally expended in the pursuit of merit aid and research. This suggests that private universities strategically deploy revenues from a wide variety of sources to secure particular students and to conduct research activities. However, the ways in which universities and IPEDS classify faculty work raises some questions about the transparency of various categories, and suggests that some current conceptions of how revenues are expended on research and instruction functions may be less than straightforward.

Tuition Discounting for Revenue Management.

Abstract: Over the past decade, institutionally-funded financial aid (or “tuition discounts”) have been the fastest-growing item within most public four-year college and university operating budgets. One explanation for this trend is due to the changing structure of public colleges’ revenue streams, as tuition and fees have replaced state appropriations as a viable and predictable source of funding. This analysis explores the extent to which expenditures on institutionally-funded financial aid generates additional revenue for public four-year colleges and universities. Using institutional data (n = 174) from 2002 to 2008, the analysis implements a generalized method of moments (GMM) technique and concludes that aid indeed can be leveraged for revenue generation. However, this relationship is only sustainable to a certain point. When unfunded tuition discount rates exceed approximately 13%, institutions may experience diminishing revenue returns to this financial aid investment.

How Resource Inequalities Among High Schools Reproduce Class Advantages in College Destinations

Abstract: Previous studies argued that high school resources play a modest role in students’ postsecondary destinations, but they ignored schools’ programmatic resources, which provide opportunities for marks of distinction, such as Advanced Placement courses, and they focused on older cohorts of high school students who entered colleges before competition over admission to selective colleges intensified in the 1980s. Analyses of data on a cohort of students who entered college in the mid-2000s suggest that programmatic and non-programmatic resources found in high schools influence postsecondary destinations and mediates the effect of family socioeconomic status on choices among 4-year colleges.

Effect Sizes and Statistical Methods for Meta-Analysis in Higher Education

Abstract: Quantitative meta-analysis is a very useful, yet underutilized, technique for synthesizing research findings in higher education. Meta-analytic inquiry can be more challenging in higher education than in other fields of study as a result of (a) concerns about the use of regression coefficients as a metric for comparing the magnitude of effects across studies, and (b) the non-independence of observations that occurs when a single study contains multiple effect sizes. This methodological note discusses these two important issues and provides concrete suggestions for addressing them. First, meta-analysis scholars have concluded that standardized regression coefficients, which are often provided in higher education manuscripts, constitute an appropriate metric of effect size. Second, hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analyses provide an effective method for conducting meta-analytic research while accounting for the non-independence of observations, and HLM is generally superior to other proposed methods that attempt to remedy this same problem. A discussion of how to implement these techniques appropriately is provided.

Student Evaluation of Instruction: In the New Paradigm of Distance Education

Abstract: Distance education has experienced soaring development over the last decade. With millions of students in higher education enrolling in distance education, it becomes critically important to understand student learning and experiences with online education. Based on a large sample of 11,351 students taught by 1,522 instructors from 29 colleges and universities, this study investigates the factors that impact student evaluation of instruction in distance education, using a two-level hierarchical model. Key findings reveal that in a distance education setting, gender and class size are no longer significant predictors of quality of instruction. However, factors such as reasons for taking the course, student class status and instructor’s academic rank have a significant impact on student evaluation of learning and instruction. Findings from this study offer important implications for institutional administrators on utilizing the evaluation results and on developing strategies to help faculty become effective online instructors.

The Privilege of Ease: Social Class and Campus Life at Highly Selective, Private Universities

Abstract: Active involvement in college activities is linked to a host of student development outcomes, including personal growth, achievement and satisfaction. Yet, to date there has been too little attention to how social class shapes campus involvement. Through an analysis of survey data of students attending a single elite university and a national sample of students at highly selective, private universities, I consider how class background is associated with participation in college activities and satisfaction with campus social life. Reflecting a history of class-based exclusion, the typical elite university student enters college from an affluent household, although distinct class fractions help conceal significant gaps and differences across the college years. Dominant class students devote considerable time to social and recreational activities, while middle and subordinate class students are more likely to have a part-time job to pay for college expenses. This pattern of campus involvement explains middle and subordinate class students’ lower levels of satisfaction upon graduation.

Measuring Teaching Effectiveness: Correspondence Between Students’ Evaluations of Teaching and Different Measures of Student Learning

Abstract: Relating students’ evaluations of teaching (SETs) to student learning as an approach to validate SETs has produced inconsistent results. The present study tested the hypothesis that the strength of association of SETs and student learning varies with the criteria used to indicate student learning. A multisection validity approach was employed to investigate the association of SETs and two different criteria of student learning, a multiple-choice test and a practical examination. Participants were N = 883 medical students, enrolled in k = 32 sections of the same course. As expected, results showed a strong positive association between SETs and the practical examination but no significant correlation between SETs and multiple-choice test scores. Furthermore, students’ subjective perception of learning significantly correlated with the practical examination score whereas no relation was found for subjective learning and the multiple choice test. It is discussed whether these results might be due to different measures of student learning varying in the degree to which they reflect teaching effectiveness.

What’s Past is Prologue: How Precollege Exposure to Racial Diversity Shapes the Impact of College Interracial Interactions

Abstract: The educational and societal benefits of promoting meaningful interracial interactions during college are well-established. While most previous studies have examined the relationship between interracial interactions and college student outcomes among all students, much less is known about the extent to which these effects depend upon student characteristics and, more specifically, their precollege experiences. Drawing upon Gurin et al.’s (Harv Educ Rev 72:330–366, 2002) theoretical framework, this paper explores whether and how the impact of college interracial interactions might vary depending upon students’ precollege exposure to diversity. Hierarchical linear modeling analyses were conducted on a 4-year longitudinal sample of 3,098 undergraduates from 28 colleges and universities. Regardless of the type of outcome and type of precollege diversity measure, the relationship between college interracial interactions and various outcomes (college satisfaction, emotional well-being, and race-related perceptions) were stronger among students who had had greater precollege exposure to racial/ethnic diversity. Implications for higher education research and practice are discussed.

Student Flow Between Community Colleges: Investigating Lateral Transfer

Abstract: The traditional unidirectional (“linear”) postsecondary path from high school to a community college to a 4-year institution into the workforce represents accurately a decreasing proportion of the pathways actually taken by students through higher education. Instead, students increasingly exhibit patterns of enrollment that take them through multiple postsecondary institutions, both within levels of the higher education system (e.g., multiple community colleges, multiple 4-year institutions) and across levels (e.g., movement back and forth between community colleges and 4-year institutions). These “swirling” patterns of enrollment are widely recognized by scholars of higher education, but they remain poorly understood. In this study, I employ data that address 89,057 first-time students in the California community college system to answer a number of key questions concerning lateral transfer between community colleges, which, according to prior research, constitutes one sizeable component of student “swirl”. Building on the very limited work on this topic, I examine whether the reported high prevalence of lateral transfer holds true under a more stringent operational framework than that employed in prior work. I explore whether lateral transfer is primarily an artifact of students enrolling simultaneously in multiple community colleges, sometimes called “double-dipping”. I investigate the timing of lateral transfer from several different perspectives to determine how lateral transfer fits in students’ progress and development. Finally, I probe the relationship between students’ level of academic investment in their current community college and the risk of lateral transfer.

Exploring the relationship between state financial aid policy and postsecondary enrollment choices: a focus on income and race differences

Abstract: This study explores the relationship between state financial aid policies and postsecondary enrollment for high school graduates (or equivalent diploma holders). Utilizing an event history modeling for a nationally representative sample from the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS:88/2000) in addition to state-level policy variables, this study examined how state aid policies differentially affect students’ postsecondary enrollment choices depending on their family income and race/ethnicity between the years 1992 through 2000. The findings demonstrate that there is a clear and consistent gap in college enrollment for students who are from different income and race/ethnic groups, and that changes in state financial aid policy are significantly related with the type of institutions a student attends across income and racial groups. The study findings have important implications for state aid policy as well as future research on the role of public financial aid policy in college choice of students from different income and racial/ethnic backgrounds.

Going Deep into Mechanisms for Moral Reasoning Growth: How Deep Learning Approaches Affect Moral Reasoning Development for First-year Students

Abstract: The purpose of this paper was to determine the effects of deep approaches to learning on the moral reasoning development of 1,457 first-year students across 19 institutions. Results showed a modest positive relationship between our measures of deep approaches to learning and moral reasoning at the end of the first year of college even after controlling for precollege moral reasoning. After accounting for a host of demographic and relevant student characteristics and for the natural clustering of students, we found that the integrative learning subscale, which captures students’ participation in activities designed to integrate information from varied sources and diverse perspectives, positively affected moral reasoning among first-year students. Implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.

Disciplinary Categories, Majors, and Undergraduate Academic Experiences: Rethinking Bok’s “Underachieving Colleges” Thesis

Abstract: Using data from the 2008 University of California Undergraduate Experience Survey, we show that study time and academic conscientiousness were lower among students in humanities and social science majors than among students in science and engineering majors. Analytical and critical thinking experiences were no more evident among humanities and social sciences majors than among science and engineering majors. All three academically beneficial experiences were, however, strongly related to participation in class and interaction with instructors, and participation was more common among humanities and social sciences students than among science and engineering students. Bok’s (Our underachieving colleges: A candid look at how much students learn and why they should be learning more. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2006) influential discussion of “underachievement’ in undergraduate education focused on institutional performance. Our findings indicate that future discussions should take into account differences among disciplinary categories and majors as well.