Personal factors that influence deaf college students' academic success

Research tells us that academic preparation is key to deaf students' success at college. Yet, that is not the whole story. Many academically prepared students drop out during their first year. This study identified entering deaf college students' personal factors as assessed by their individual responses to both the Noel-Levitz College Student Inventory Form B and the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory, second edition (LASSI). Entering students in 3 successive cohorts (total n =437) participated in this study. Results show that in addition to entry measurements of reading and mathematic skills, personal factors contributed to the academic performance of students in their first quarter in college. The Noel-Levitz provided the comparatively better predictive value of academic performance: Motivation for Academic Study Scale (e.g., desire to finish college). The LASSI also showed statistically significant predictors, the Self-Regulation Component (e.g., time management) and Will Component (e.g., self-discipline), but accounted for relatively less variability in the students' initial grade point averages. For this group of underprepared students, results show that personal factors can play a significant role in academic success. Deaf students' personal factors are discussed as they relate to other first-year college students and to their subsequent academic performance and persistence.     

Measuring Determinants of Student Return VS. Dropout/Stopout VS. Transfer: A First-to-Second Year Analysis of New Freshmen

To reflect academic challenges and enrollment patterns of today’s freshmen, this study measures the impact of high school preparation, first-year academic performance, multi-institution enrollment, and financial aid support on second-year persistence. Using multi-year cohorts at a public research university, results confirm the importance of including first-year math experience, math intensity of the declared major, simultaneous enrollment at another college/university, and second-year financial aid offers when measuring freshmen retention. The positive impact of a large-scale, state-funded scholarship program in widening access to college must be balanced against findings that show academic performance and readiness to take on and pass first-year math to be more important than aid in explaining freshmen dropout and transfer-out during both first and second semesters. Middle-income students with greater levels of unmet need face an elevated departure risk, while academically well-prepared freshmen with unmet need are more likely to transfer to other institutions.     

Influences on students' internal locus of attribution for academic success in the first year of college

This study sought to determine the extent to which students' development of internal locus of attribution for academic success during the first year of college was influenced by institutional characteristics, students' academic experiences, and their social/nonacademic experiences. The sample was 2,392 first-year students attending 23 diverse two- and four-year institutions Iocated in 16 states throughout the country. Controlling for precollege internal attribution, academic ability, and other potentially confounding influences, a number of variables had significant, net, positive associations with end-of-first-year internal attribution. These included attending a two-year (versus a four-year) college, level of exposure to postsecondary education, work responsibilities, the extent of course organization, instructional clarity, and instructor support in the teaching received, and participation in intercollegiate athletics. Additional analyses indicated that many of the associations with internal attribution were conditional rather than general, differing in magnitude for different kinds of students.     

Early Integration and Other Outcomes for Community College Transfer Students

The purpose of this study was to explore academic and social integration and other outcomes for community college transfer students. The study used Tinto’s (Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition, 1993) Longitudinal Model of Institutional Departure and Deil-Amen’s (J Higher Educ, 82:54–91, 2011) concept of “socio-academic integrative moments” to inform the selection and organization of potential predictors. We developed regression models for relationships between demographic and background variables of interest and perceived academic and social integration following the first six weeks at the receiving university. We also included these perceived integration scores in regression models for six outcomes (first and second semester grade point average, first and second semester earned hours ratios, and second and third semester persistence). Academic and previous college background explained the greatest amount of variance in predicting early integration and academic outcomes.     

Examining the Effects of Stress and Campus Climate on the Persistence of Students of Color and White Students: An Application of Bean and Eaton’s Psychological Model of Retention

The current study examined the effects of stress and campus climate perceptions on the persistence decisions of students of color and White students using Bean and Eaton’s (2000) Psychological Model of College Student Retention. A sample of first-year students (N = 1,491) at a predominantly White research university were survey enduring their second semester and their enrollment status was subsequently tracked after 2 years. Path analysis was conducted on the sample of students of color (n = 548) and White students (n = 943). Results indicated models that explained 27 % of the variance for students of color and 44 % of the variance for White students in persistence after 2 years of college. Among the initial 37 variables included in the models, 17 had significant direct and indirect effects on students’ of color persistence including observing racism on campus, having comfortable academic interactions, stress related to the academic environment, and feelings about the campus environment. For White students, 13 variables had significant direct and indirect effects on persistence, including having opportunities for diverse peer interactions and comfortable academic interactions, stress related to the social environment on campus, and feelings about the campus environment. The discussion highlights the usefulness of the Bean and Eaton model for examining retention for students of color and White students.     

Prediction of College Major Persistence Based on Vocational Interests, Academic Preparation, and First-Year Academic Performance

We hypothesized that college major persistence would be predicted by first-year academic performance and an interest-major composite score that is derived from a student’s entering major and two work task scores. Using a large data set representing 25 four-year institutions and nearly 50,000 students, we randomly split the sample into an estimation sample and a validation sample. Using the estimation sample, we found major-specific coefficients corresponding to the two work task scores that optimized the prediction of major persistence. Then, we applied the estimated coefficients to the validation sample to form an interest-major composite score representing the likelihood of persisting in entering major. Using the validation sample, we then tested a theoretical model for major persistence that incorporated academic preparation, the interest-major composite score, and first-year academic performance. The results suggest that (1) interest-major fit and first-year academic performance work to independently predict whether a student will stay in their entering major and (2) the relative importance of two work task scores in predicting major persistence depends on the entering major. The results support Holland’s theory of person-environment fit and suggest that academic performance and interest-major fit are key constructs for understanding major persistence behavior.     

The Mediating Effects of Approaches to Learning on the Academic Success of First-Year College Students

Students’ personal predictors of academic success are particularly relevant for first-year college students, given the specific challenges that these students face when entering higher education (HE). Academic success in HE has been related to multiple factors, including the students’ approaches to learning (SAL), satisfaction (linked to commitment and persistence), study time (effort), and prior academic achievement. This study analyzes the combined effect of these predictors on perceived academic success. Data from 247 students was collected using the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students and other specific measures to assess presage and process variables of academic success. Although academic success is multidimensional and difficult to explain, factors such as prior academic achievement, satisfaction with the course, SAL, and study time contribute to explain perceived academic success in first-year college students.     

A three-phase examination of academic comparative optimism and perceived academic control

Early academic perceptions are critical to undergraduate students' success in college. This 3-phase study examined stability of and links between academic comparative optimism (ACO; positive expectations about future performance) and perceived academic control (PAC; sense of influence over academic outcomes) among 68 undergraduate students. ACO and PAC were assessed at the start, midway through, and at the end of a semester and a cross-lagged panel analysis tested which academic perception better predicted the other. We also examined early ACO and PAC as predictors of later achievement. Students' ACO and PAC were fairly stable throughout the semester. Regression analyses (controlling for course load, prior achievement, and prior ACO or PAC) indicated ACO predicted PAC more so than the reverse, suggesting students may boost their PAC via optimistic social comparisons. Early ACO predicted later performance. Implications for enhancing ACO and PAC early in the academic year are discussed.     

A comparison of white and black student academic success using noncognitive variables: A LISREL analysis

The structural relation of the seven noncognitive dimensions proposed by Sedlacek and Brooks in 1976 and traditional definitions of academic ability, as indicated by Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores, to first semester grade-point average (GPA) and persistence after three and five semesters was examined in this study. Random samples of entrants at one predominantly white state university were administered the Non-cognitive Questionnaire (NCQ) during summer orientation in 1979 and 1980. The NCQ results and the SAT scores were used to derive structural models (using LISREL) or early academic success for both black and white students. The structural models for the black and white students were found to be very different. For black students, traditional academic ability was related to first semester GPA, but neither GPA nor academic ability was related to persistence. Only the noncognitive dimensions were predictive of black student persistence. For white students, academic ability was the best predictor of first semester grades, and these grades were the major predictor of subsequent persistence. The noncognitive dimensions were not important in white student academic success, whereas they were crucial in black student academic success.     

Third-year College Retention and Transfer: Effects of Academic Performance, Motivation, and Social Connectedness

We studied the effects of academic performance, motivation, and social connectedness on third-year retention, transfer, and dropout behavior. To accommodate the three outcome categories and nesting of data within institutions, we fit a hierarchical multinomial logistic regression path model with first-year academic performance as a mediating effect. Our sample included 6,872 students representing 23 four-year universities and colleges. This work expands the current state of persistence research by (1) considering the effects of motivation and social connectedness on college persistence beyond the first year of college, (2) testing whether the effects of motivation and social connectedness on third-year retention and transfer are direct, indirect, or both, and (3) testing whether the effects of academic performance, motivation, and social connectedness are different for retention and transfer. We found that academic performance has large effects on likelihood of retention and transfer; academic self-discipline, pre-college academic performance, and pre-college educational development have indirect effects on retention and transfer; and college commitment and social connectedness have direct effects on retention. Academic self-discipline led to greater first-year academic performance, which suppressed its effect on retention and transfer. Practical and theoretical implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed. A previous version of this paper was presented at the 2nd Annual National Symposium on Student Retention, Albuquerque, New Mexico, October 2006.     

Is differential exposure to college linked to the development of critical thinking?

This study investigated the influence on critical thinking of differential exposure to postsecondary education. The sample was 2,076 first-year students attending 13 four-year and 4 two-year institutions from around the country. First-year students attending college full-time developed a higher level of critical thinking skills than those attending part-time. In the presence of controls for precollege critical thinking and academic motivation, the average critical thinking of first-year students at the institution attended, gender, race, age, and kinds of courses taken, the number of semester hours for which the student was enrolled had modest but significant positive effects on end-of-first-year critical thinking for both the two- and four-year college samples. In the two-year, but not the four-year, sample the relationship between semester hours and critical thinking deviated significantly from linearity. Students attending a two-year college full-time still derived the largest critical thinking benefits. However, the lowest levels of critical thinking accrued to those enrolled between 7 and 20 semester hours. Students enrolled for 6 or less hours actually had somewhat higher end-of-first-year critical thinking.     

English proficiency,course patterns,and academic achievements of limited-English-proficient community college students

Over the past decade minority students' access to and achievements in higher education have been of substantial interest to educators and researchers. Students who are of limited English proficiency (LEP) may also be considered disadvantaged, although few studies focus on them as a minority group. This research was conducted at a community college to examine the independent and interactive effects of several key demographic and academic variables on academic achievements (persistence, credits earned, and GPA). The primary independent variable, labeled GROUP, combined students' placement test results (English as a second language, regular remedial English, or no test results) and course-taking patterns (registered or did not register for ESL courses). Logit and other multivariate statistical techniques were employed. Results indicate some differences in achievement by GROUP category in concert with age, sex, or ethnicity, but no consistent pattern was found. LEP students did not differ significantly in academic achievement from the total student population. It is suggested that LEP students comprise an eclectic population with diverse educational goals and competencies, who use the community college for a variety of reasons. As institutions struggle to balance access and open enrollment, placement testing and registration requirements, and available resources, the efficacy of treating all LEP students alike must be examined.     

An expert performance approach to the study of individual differences in self-regulated learning activities in upper-level college students

One of the hallmarks of adolescent and adult development of expert performance is its self regulation. This paper reviews different approaches to assessing the use of self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies in high-school and college students and their ability to predict academic performance. The current study assesses the use of SRL strategies with interviews and diaries and their relation to grade point average (GPA) in sixty upper-level college students majoring in science. Their diaries revealed that students with high, average, and low GPAs (assessed before the start of the semester) differed in overall use of SRL strategies and in the use of particular strategies during specific weeks. Methods of assessing and understanding differences in adult self-regulation and subsequent academic performance are evaluated and discussed.     

Predicting predictability: The influence of student and institutional characteristics on the prediction of grades

This study examined the statistical and institutional influences on the prediction of first-year college grades, using data from College Board validity studies and the College Handbook. The criterion was the size of the multiple correlation between academic predictors and first-year college grades. The independent variables were the statistical data of the validity study and college characteristics. In general, the extent of the variation of the academic ability of the students was positively related to the size of the multiple correlation, and the heterogeneity of the programs and experience of college negatively related. Further analyses investigated the characteristics that were associated with the greater or lesser efficiency of the predictors (SAT Verbal and Mathematical and high school grades.)     

How Do Transfers Survive after “Transfer Shock”? A Longitudinal Study of Transfer Student Departure at a Four-Year Institution

Prompted by the notion of “Transfer Shock”, numerous studies examined academic performance of transfer students at senior institutions. However, few studies are found that examine how the varying nature of semester GPAs impact subsequent persistence behavior of transfer students after the initial drop in their college GPAs. Using an institutional data set, this study longitudinally investigated departure behavior of transfer students at a senior institution. Particular attention was given to how entry at different times and semester GPAs affected transfer student departure. Results indicate that during their first semester, sophomore and junior transfer students were 73% less likely to depart than freshman transfer students. After controlling for explanatory variables, higher semester GPAs were positively associated with higher persistence rates throughout the observation period.

Noncognitive predictors of achievement in introductory college chemistry

The purpose of this study was to investigate the predictive relationship between initial student attitudes, admissions test scores, years of high school math taken, and subsequent achievement in introductory college chemistry. Included in this study was a sample of 179 students who began as new freshmen during the same fall semester and took an introductory chemistry course during their first year of college. The results of this study indicated that noncognitive variables were significant predictors of student performance. These findings also indicated that, for some types of academic outcomes, noncognitive variables may be better predictors of achievement than traditional measures such as admissions test scores.     

Career decision-making self-efficacy and institutional integration of underprepared college students

This investigation applied, as the theoretical base, a model of student persistence and departure (Tinto, 1987) to explore the nature of the relationship between career decision-making self-efficacy and integration. Career decision-making self-efficacy identifies students' perceived confidence (self-efficacy) in their ability to plan and execute vocationally relevant tasks in the educational environment. The sample comprised 418 underprepared students. Data were analyzed using correlation, analysis of variance, and multiple regression. There is an interrelationship between perceived career decision-making self-efficacy and integration (overall, social, and academic) for underprepared college students. The variance in students' integration can be explained by their career decision-making self-efficacy and by their initial goals and commitments. Career decision-making self-efficacy surpassed all other variables in explaining the variance in overall and academic integration. Based on these research results, career decision-making self-efficacy should be considered as a variable in future studies of integration, a longitudinal study should be conducted to determine the direct relationship of career decision-making self-efficacy to persistence and attrition, and if a relationship to persistence is found, then the rationale exists for the design and experimental testing of interventions aimed at increasing career decision-making self-efficacy.     

Sense of Belonging as a Predictor of Intentions to Persist Among African American and White First-Year College Students

This study investigates the role of students’ sense of belonging to their university in college student retention. Using individual growth curve modeling, we examined (a) whether sense of belonging predicts intentions to persist, and (b) the effects of an intervention designed to enhance students’ sense of belonging. African American and white first-year students completed surveys three times throughout the academic year. Students were randomly assigned to a group that received an intervention to enhance students’ sense of belonging or to one of two control groups. Sense of belonging was found to predict intentions to persist, controlling for background variables and other predictors of persistence. Overall, sense of belonging and intentions to persist declined over the academic year. However, the decline in sense of belonging was smaller for students in the intervention group. Implications for the development of college retention programs and for existing models of student persistence are discussed.