Community College Student Dropouts from Higher Education: Toward a Comprehensive Conceptual Model

ABSTRACT

Historically, higher education research has focused on traditional students (i.e., recent high school graduates at a residential, 4-year institutions), but community college students are quickly becoming the new traditional student (Jenkins, 2012). In the fall of 2011, more than one third (36%) of all students enrolled in postsecondary education and almost half (46.7%) of all students enrolled in a public postsecondary institution were enrolled at a community college (Knapp, Kelly-Reid, & Ginder, 2012). However, community colleges have struggled to match the persistence rates at other institutional types. The 2011 2-year public community college national 3-year persistence-to-degree rate was 26.9% (American College Testing [ACT], 2011). The purpose of this paper is to review the literature regarding the most prominent theoretical frameworks for community college student persistence and suggest a new theoretical construct. The resultant framework is termed the Collective Affiliation Model because it views the student’s sense of belonging with the college as only one of many senses of belonging in the student’s life (e.g., family, work). The Collective Affiliation Model does not view student dropout as the student’s inability to integrate into the life of the institution; rather, it views it as the institution’s inability to collectively affiliate with the student. This model’s strength is that it does not work from a student deficit model. Instead, it provides a new framework for researchers and practitioners to better understand and address student drop-out at community colleges.     

Qualitative research and making meaning from adventure: A case study of boys' experiences of outdoor education at school

Abstract

This article details the process and analysis of a case study, conducted over a six week period, involving an outdoor education class in an all-boys Catholic, New Zealand secondary school. The questions explored by the case study were the subjective meanings of adventure experiences in outdoor education and the benefits of qualitative research for assessing the value of outdoor education. The methodological techniques used were observation, involving some researcher participation, and in-depth interviewing. Subsequent data analysis was based upon theories of experiential education and adventure education, and concepts of leisure and human agency. The results of the study suggest that the meanings participants make of their experiences, and the value they derive from them, exceed those that may conventionally be sought and measured as an improvement in self-concept. These findings suggest that learning through adventure is potentially valuable as a holistic and life-long form of activity that enhances the capacity to enjoy and engage in living. This is an important extension beyond its often limited and compartmentalised applications, which are rationalised by specific outcome based objectives. A qualitative methodology was indispensable to an inquiry of this kind and warrants further attention in the process of understanding the meanings of adventure and learning.     

FOURTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR JEWISH EDUCATION

Successful career development involves balancing the values and expectations held by oneself and by others regarding one's position and the roles played as part of the position. Due to the nature of their work, rabbis face special challenges with regard to balancing professional roles and expectations. Results from a study of Conservative rabbis are reported here, including the variety of roles played by rabbis, the value and expectations placed by rabbis regarding each of these roles, and his or her perception of the value and expectations placed by lay leaders on these roles. Implications related to rabbinic identity and education are discussed.     

Mindfulness for Teachers: A Pilot Study to Assess Effects on Stress,Burnout, and Teaching Efficacy

Despite the crucial role of teachers in fostering children's academic learning and social–emotional well‐being, addressing teacher stress in the classroom remains a significant challenge in education. This study reports results from a randomized controlled pilot trial of a modified Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction course (mMBSR) adapted specifically for teachers. Results suggest that the course may be a promising intervention, with participants showing significant reductions in psychological symptoms and burnout, improvements in observer‐rated classroom organization and performance on a computer task of affective attentional bias, and increases in self‐compassion. In contrast, control group participants showed declines in cortisol functioning over time and marginally significant increases in burnout. Furthermore, changes in mindfulness were correlated in the expected direction with changes across several outcomes (psychological symptoms, burnout, and sustained attention) in the intervention group. Implications of these findings for the training and support of teachers are discussed.     

What happens when brands tell the truth? Exploring the effects of transparency signaling on corporate reputation for agribusiness

This study focused on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) within agribusiness – an industry confronted with particularly high expectations from its societal environment. This study examined the effects of transparency signaling and its interaction with the nature of CSR on publics’ evaluation of an agribusiness company with regards to perceived integrity, perceived competence, and company reputation. Our findings showed that high transparency signaling led to higher perceived integrity, but there were no significant effects on perceived competence and company reputation. Moreover, the effects of transparency signaling were moderated by the nature of CSR on company reputation. The study also revealed that perceived integrity influenced the relationship between transparency and company reputation, while perceived competence was not influenced by transparency signaling. Researchers discuss the implications of these findings for communication professionals sharing CSR information, especially for high involvement industries like food and agriculture.     

Electronic Reserve on a Regional Campus: The Evolution of the Service

Since the introduction of university regional campuses in Ohio, providing library services has been challenging. Because of new technologies, restricted budgets, and fewer staff, even recently implemented methods and procedures must be reexamined and revised. This article provides an overview of one regional campus library's evolving relationship with the main campus during the implementation and evolution of an electronic reserve system. The history and current use of a course management system is discussed along with the challenges faced by staff in the evolution of reserve services.     

1. CBQ Review Essay: Tintin As An Unproductive Journalist,But A Wholesome Hero

TIME PASSAGES: COLLECTIVE MEMORY AND AMERICAN POPULAR CULTURE by George Lipsitz (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1990—$14.95, paper, ISBN 0-8166-1806-2)

THE VOICE OF THE CITY: VAUDEVILLE AND POPULAR CULTURE IN NEW YORK by Robert W. Snyder (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989—$19.95, ISBN 0-19-505285-4)

IN THE NINETIES by John Stokes (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1989—$29.95, ISBN 0-226-77538-0) is complementary to Snyder's study (or vice-versa)

LITERACY AND POPULAR CULTURE: ENGLAND 1750-1914 by David Vincent (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1989—price not given, ISBN 0-521-33466-7)

APPALACHIAN IMAGES IN FOLK AND POPULAR CULTURE edited by W.K. McNeil (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1989—$44.95, ISBN 0-8357-1972-3)

POPULAR CULTURE by Albert Goldbarch (Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1990—price not given, paper, ISBN 0-8142-0499-6)

POPULAR CULTURE: SCHOOLING AND EVERYDAY LIFE by Henry A. Giroux and Roger I. Simon (New York: Bergin &; Garvey, 1989—price not given, paper, ISBN 0-89789-186-4)

NO RESPECT: INTELLECTUALS AND POPULAR CULTURE by Andrew Ross (New York: Routledge, 1989-$13.95, paper, ISBN 0-415-90037-9)

BECOMING FEMININE: THE POLITICS OF POPULAR CULTURE edited by Leslie G. Roman and Linda K. Charistian-Smith (London: Falmer Press, 1988—$18,00, paper, ISBN 1-85000-329-7)

WARRIOR WOMEN AND POPULAR BALLADRY, 1650-1850 by Dianne Dugaw (London: Cambridge University Press, 1989—price not given, ISBN 0-521-37254-2)