Using structural equation models with latent variables to study student growth and development

Calls for accountability, coupled with a desire to improve teaching and learning, have prompted many colleges and universities to consider ways of assessing the effects of postsecondary education on student growth and development. Despite widespread support for the concept of assessing student change, relatively few institutions have implemented this type of assessment, in part because of a concern about the best method of measuring change. This article describes the use of structural equation models with latent variables to assess the effects of education on change. Advantages of using structural equation models with latent variables include error-free measurement of change, direct tests of the assumptions underlying change research, along with the power and flexibility of maximum likelihood estimation. An analysis of data on freshman-to-senior gains provides evidence of the advantages of latent variable structural equation modeling and also suggests that the group differences identified by traditional analysis of variance and covariance techniques may be an artifact of measurement error.     

Genetic and environmental influences in adolescent peer socialization: evidence from two genetically sensitive designs

Harris argues that peer relationships are the chief determinants of personality development. Harris's thesis makes the behavioral genetic investigation of peer groups particularly timely. The present study examined genetic and environmental contribution to self-reported peer-group characteristics in two samples of adolescent siblings: 180 adoptive and nonadoptive sibling pairs from the Colorado Adoption Project, and 386 sibling pairs from the Nonshared Environment and Adolescent Development Study. Substantial genetic influence emerged for college orientation, with the remaining variance accounted for by nonshared environment. For delinquency, however, the majority of the variance was explained by nonshared environment. Although genetic influence was implicated for peer popularity in twin analyses, genetic factors were not important in explaining individual differences in nontwin siblings. These results suggest that although some dimensions of peers are somewhat mediated by genetic factors, nonshared environmental influence is substantial.     

Measuring Quality: A Comparison of U.S. News Rankings and NSSE Benchmarks

College rankings and guidebooks have become big business. The prominent role played by rankings and guidebooks is problematic because the criteria used to evaluate institutions have little to do with the quality of education students receive. Designed as an alternative to college rankings, NSSE assesses student engagement in activities that contribute to learning and success during college. This study compared the NSSE scores for 14 AAU public research universities with their rankings by U.S. News and World Report.     

Using Panel Data to Identify the Effects of Institutional Characteristics,Cohort Characteristics,and Institutional Actions on Graduation Rates

Research in Higher Education - Institutional graduation rates occupy a prominent place in institutional research and public policy. Graduation rates are used in the College Scorecard, state...     

Student Engagement and Student Learning: Examining the Convergent and Discriminant Validity of the Revised National Survey of Student Engagement

The present study examined the relationships between student engagement, represented by two versions of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and self-reported gains in learning. The study drew on institutional-level data from participating institutions in 2011 and 2013. The objective of the research was to compare evidence of convergence and discrimination for the two versions of NSSE using canonical correlation analysis. Results indicated that both versions of NSSE provided clear evidence of convergence in that student engagement measures were significantly and positively related to perceived gains in learning. However, only the most recent version of NSSE provided strong evidence of discrimination (i.e., differential relationships between engagement measures and self-reported learning outcomes). Thus, the revised NSSE appears to offer substantial advantages for institutions interested in more nuanced understandings of the relationships between student engagement and perceived learning outcomes. Implications for educators, with goals of enhancing student learning, and for researchers, who often compare complex sets of data, are included.     

The relationship between alumni satisfaction and work experiences

Although alumni surveys frequently include questions about work experiences, little information is available about the relationship between work experiences and alumni satisfaction with college. The results of the present research indicate that work experiences are significantly related to alumni ratings of their college experiences. Specifically, alumni who are satisfied with their jobs are more likely to report being satisfied with their education experiences. The results of this research also indicate that women are less satisfied with their pay than men. Compared to men, women are neither more dissatisfied with the types of work they are performing nor more likely to be looking for another job. Counter to expectation, dissatisfaction with pay has a more significant effect on ratings of college experiences for women than for men. Presented at the 1993 AIR Forum, Chicago, May 1993.     

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

This research examined the relationships among students?? academic majors, levels of engagement, and learning outcomes within the context of Holland??s person?Cenvironment 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.     

‘The Trees of Knowledge and Life Growing Together’ in the Educational Vision of C.S. Lewis: Why Medway and Stevens are Almost Right About Enlightenment and Romantic Values in English

Peter Medway’s paper ‘English and Enlightenment’ (Changing English, 2010) and David Stevens’ response to it, ‘Critically Enlightened Romantic Values and English Pedagogy: A Response to Peter Medway’ (Changing English, 2011), address the relative merits of the quest for truth and the place of aesthetic response in English. It is suggested here, however, that each paper contains the kernel of a counter-argument to the one being presented and that, taken together, both papers might be augmented by attention to The Abolition of Man – Reflections on education with special reference to the teaching of English in the upper forms of schools by C.S. Lewis. This article develops ideas introduced briefly in a previous issue of this journal and considers one important aim of English teaching in schools to be the fostering of ‘just sentiments’. It argues that educational values are necessary to augment Enlightenment and critically enlightened Romantic values if English teachers are to facilitate spiritual as well as moral development and do justice to the diversity of both the texts and the students they teach.