Increasing Persistence

Increasing Persistence

Author: Wesley R. Habley

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2012-09-04

Total Pages: 513

ISBN-13: 0470888431

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INCREASING PERSISTENCE "Of all the books addressing the puzzle of student success and persistence, I found this one to be the most helpful and believe it will be extremely useful to faculty and staff attempting to promote student success. The authors solidly ground their work in empirical research, and do a brilliant job providing both an overview of the relevant literature as well as research-based recommendations for intervention." GAIL HACKETT, PH.D., provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs; professor, counseling and educational psychology, University of Missouri, Kansas City Research indicates that approximately forty percent of all college students never earn a degree anywhere, any time in their lives. This fact has not changed since the middle of the 20th century. Written for practitioners and those who lead retention and persistence initiatives at both the institutional and public policy levels, Increasing Persistence offers a compendium on college student persistence that integrates concept, theory, and research with successful practice. It is anchored by the ACT's What Works in Student Retention (WWISR) survey of 1,100 colleges and universities, an important resource that contains insights on the causes of attrition and identifies retention interventions that are most likely to enhance student persistence.?? The authors focus on three essential conditions for student success: students must learn; students must be motivated, committed, engaged, and self-regulating; and students must connect with educational programs consistent with their interests and abilities. The authors offer a detailed discussion of the four interventions that research shows are the most effective for helping students persist and succeed: assessment and course placement, developmental education initiatives, academic advising, and student transition programming. Finally, they urge broadening the current retention construct, providing guidance to policy makers, campus leaders, and individuals on the contributions they can make to student success.


Predicting Persistence Of First-Time Freshmen At A Large-City Community College

Predicting Persistence Of First-Time Freshmen At A Large-City Community College

Author: William Laurance King III

Publisher:

Published: 2015

Total Pages:

ISBN-13:

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The lack of student persistence is a burgeoning issue and over the last 40 years has become a national concern among researchers, administrators, policymakers and practitioners. Given the low persistence rates of first-year students at America's community colleges, leaders are searching for useful and successful strategies that will aid in closing the gap in student attrition. Successful completion of a degree or certificate is often considered the great economic equalizer in today's society from a public and cultural perspective. The purpose of this research study was to empirically investigate the odds ratio associated with predicting persistence that exists between first-time freshmen students who lived in campus housing and those who live off-campus at a large-city community college referred to as LCCC. Specifically, the focus of this study was to determine whether living in on-campus housing, receiving needs-based federal financial aid (Pell Grant), ethnicity, gender and enrolling in one or more developmental education courses are predictors of persistence. This study was predicated on the collection of quantitative data from a large-city community college's student information system from the years 2010 through 2013. The researcher has concluded based on the data analysis of this research study the results were statistically insignificant for those students living on-campus when compared to those students living off-campus. An analysis of Ethnicity as a predictor of persistence revealed that in the short-term African-American students actually persisted at higher rates than their counterparts. However, in three of the last four semesters analyzed, African-Americans persisted at significantly lower rates than White students. Lastly, an analysis of the students who were enrolled in Developmental Education (Remedial) courses suggested that the odds are significantly lower concerning persistence versus their counterparts. However, it must be noted that both Hispanic students and those receiving needs-based financial aid (Pell) attrition was no worse than their counterparts. Based on the complex nature of both the community college student and the unique opportunity for them to live on-campus, additional data is required in order to measure and evaluate whether housing status promotes improved academic persistence. The reported research studies pertaining to community colleges and living on-campus are meager at best. The electronic version of this dissertation is accessible from http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/155442


A Mixed Methods Study of College Self-efficacy and Persistence Among First-time Full-time Community College Students Enrolled in a Guided Pathway Program and Students Not Enrolled in a Guided Pathway Program

A Mixed Methods Study of College Self-efficacy and Persistence Among First-time Full-time Community College Students Enrolled in a Guided Pathway Program and Students Not Enrolled in a Guided Pathway Program

Author: Roseanne R. Bensley

Publisher:

Published: 2018

Total Pages: 374

ISBN-13:

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Perhaps if we had a better understanding between the relationships among indicators of success in college, college student self-efficacy and participation in programs that help students succeed in college, we could improve success rates and persistence in post-secondary education. This mixed methods study sheds light on the relationship among interventions such as the Aggie Pathway program and the College Self-Efficacy Inventory, and persistence of students with a high school GPA of 2.749 or less. E-interview data was used to augment findings from the survey data. The statistical model of point-biserial correlation coefficient was used to estimate the relationship between the independent continuous variables of college self-efficacy scores and the dichotomous dependent variable of persistence. A chi-square test of homogeneity was used to determine the proportion of students who persisted from the fall 2016 semester to the spring 2017 semester using the independent variable participation in the Aggie Pathway program and the dichotomous dependent variable of persistence to the next semester at p


The Influence of Participating in a Mandatory Mixed-format Student Success Seminar on Persistence in an Urban Community College

The Influence of Participating in a Mandatory Mixed-format Student Success Seminar on Persistence in an Urban Community College

Author: James A. Mendoza

Publisher:

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13:

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Over the past twenty years, the national three-year graduation rate for community college students has ranged from 44% to roughly 31% in 2013 (NCES, 2013). As a way to address such low graduation rates, colleges have implemented a myriad of services and programs (i.e., tutoring, mentoring, etc.). Another intervention is the student success seminar. Student success seminars are courses that teach basic college success skills, transitioning to college, and campus resources. The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of participating in a student success seminar on academic performance, persistence, and graduation rates in a community college. Factors considered in this research include: (a) age, (b) gender, (c) ethnicity, (d) enrollment status, (e) degree intent, (f) high school performance, (g) grade point average, (h) credit hour completions, (i) persistence, and (j) graduation rates. The population of students used for this research was all first-time in college students who were assessed into developmental English. The students were divided into two groups based on participating in student success seminar or non-participation in the seminar during their first term of college. Both unpaired t-test and chi-square analyses were used to evaluate the existence and strength of the relationships between each of the independent variables and the dependent variables. Findings from this study indicate that participating in student success seminar had a statistically significant positive relationship to persistence to the third year of college. Additionally, findings reveal a statistically significant positive relationship for participants graduating in two years. The study examined the differential impact of student success seminar participation for subgroups of students. Some differences were revealed; however, results were inconsistent across terms of the study.


Student Success

Student Success

Author: Judy Kronenberger

Publisher:

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13:

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Many first-year seminar courses focus on helping students adjust academically and socially to college life with the intent of increasing persistence and ultimately degree completion. While there is evidence in the literature that these courses positively affect persistence and academic success at universities, research is limited in documenting the effectiveness of these courses at community colleges. This research addressed the deficiency in the literature by examining the effects of a first-year seminar or course at one urban community college. Students who were in college for the first time and took an FY course at Midwest Community College between fall 2006 and spring 2008 were randomly selected for this study. These students were matched to first-time students who did not take the course on variables known to impact persistence and academic success and included age, gender, ethnicity, enrollment status, federal aid eligibility, and pre-enrollment academic ability. Chi square analyses revealed no differences in persistence to the next academic term, however there was a statistically significant difference in yearly persistence for all students, especially part-time and underprepared students. Independent samples t tests showed that although mean cumulative GPA's were higher for students who took the FY course, the differences were not statistically significant. Partial correlation holding academic preparedness and enrollment status constant also revealed no statistically significant differences in final grades in specific gatekeeper courses, English Composition and elementary mathematics.