Annotated Bibliography

Andrew Clum

Adelman, C. (2006). The toolbox revisited: Paths to degree completion from high school through

college (pp. 1-223, Rep.). Washington, DC: Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

(ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED490195)

In this report, Adelman follows up on the 1999 report which used the National Education

Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88/2000) to examine key factors leading to the

attainment of a bachelor's degree. These two works represent a seminal paper in

education, serving as a strong nationwide study of academic rigor, college preparation,

college success, and degree attainment across a variety of demographics. In agreement

with his previous report, Adelman shows highest level of math attainment is a prominent

predictor of being college-bound, specifically, the completion of Algebra II. Overall, the

report follows a cohort of students, from across the nation. The study looks at students

transition from secondary to post-secondary education, and key factors in the completion

of a degree. Adelman suggested there to be a key curricular package, measured in

Carnegie Units (CUs) that can lead to the highest propensity of student persistence to a

bachelor’s degree, including participation in Advanced Placement courses. In-depth

analysis looks at the impact of remedial education, targeting English and Mathematics,

and how time elapsed between the conferring of a diploma and enrollment in post-

secondary education impacts degree attainment. This report applies to my work given its

nationwide generalization of collegiate preparation, persistence, and attainment. It can

 serve as a benchmark when establishing a baseline of best practices, and with this

information, it can be applied to my research.

An, B. P. (2013). The impact of dual enrollment on college degree attainment. Educational

Evaluation and Policy Analysis,35(1), 57-75. doi:10.3102/0162373712461933

In this study, the author aims to investigate the benefits or drawbacks of dual enrollment

courses for students with a low-socioeconomic background. Overall, An aims to assess

the ultimate impact on their propensity to complete a college (4 year) degree. This study

stands as one of the most recent national studies regarding the impact of dual enrollment

on degree attainment. The author begins by explaining the background of SES and

achievement gaps present in education. Factors such as parental education are introduced

as additional variables. The research questions posed aim to investigate how dual

enrollment influences degree attainment, if the benefit differs across SES status, and if

dual enrollment can help reduce the SES gaps present in degree attainment. The author

explores college completion as a whole, and as an issue of equity, stating that students

from the bottom and top quartiles of income distribution experience a 33% difference in

degree attainment. Using propensity score matching models, An builds a quantitative

study of the NELS:88 data. Results include a positive relation between dual enrollment

and degree attainment among first-generation students, whose parents did not attend

college, up 8% over students who did not participate. Results suggest first-generation

students benefits from dual enrollment over those whose parents did attend college.

Students who had college-educated parents showed no benefit from utilizing dual

enrollment. Supplemental analysis suggests that dual enrollment has weakened over time

by 34% from the NELS:88 data to the BPS:04/09 data. This study is relevant to my
 research due to the study incorporating nationwide investigations to the relation between

socioeconomic status and advanced academic achievement.

An, B., & Taylor, J. (2015). Are dual enrollment students college ready? Evidence from the

Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education. Education Policy Analysis

Archives,23(58), 1-30. doi:10.14507/epaa.v23.1781

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the association between dual enrolled students

displaying more college readiness than nonparticipants. An, a strong figure in the area of

advanced standing, academic preparation, and predictive validity, works to establish a

formal relationship between dual credit earners and college readiness through both

cognitive and noncognitive areas of college readiness. Building on a review of dual

enrollment programs, the impact of college readiness on college success, and the

relationship between dual enrollment and college readiness, the authors build a data set

from the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education (WNSLAE) which is a

longitudinal study of first-year, full-time undergraduate students entering 23

postsecondary institutions over 14 states, most of which fall into the Midwest and

Northeast census regions. The WNSLAE has a focused interest on the influence of liberal

arts colleges, and oversampled them, though overall 43% of WNSLAE participants are

from liberal arts institutions. The WNSLAE participants were issued the National Survey

of Student Engagement (NSSE) and a supplemental survey from WNSLAE, the Student

Experiences Survey (SES) to assess measures related to college success. The importance

of combining these data sets allowed the authors to explore the academic rigor.

Additionally, the data analyzes the engagement factors from the NSSE, and the academic

motivation and peer interaction from the SES. To assess college readiness metrics, the
 WNSLAE and SES data were realigned with Conley’s four dimensions of college

readiness. Dual enrollment and accelerated programs were segregated with credit-by-

examination, and dual credit earned through collegiate enrollment. Control variables were

designed to catch demographics and academic characteristics: race, gender, parental

education, disability, non-native speakers, and ACT (SAT converted to ACT if needed)

scores. Limitations of the study include the difficulty to generalize the WNSLAE data

given its regional biases. Additionally, measuring student success and readiness during a

student's first-year creates the inability to accurately capture any population of student

who may, or may not have, been ready, but chose to not attend a postsecondary

institution. Furthermore, the use of race as a binary indicator, rather than measuring

subgroups, contributes to the lack of generalization. Lastly, the factors used to assess

readiness are only one version (Conley's), and may not be universal in research practice.

Findings show that there are little differences in college readiness between exam-based

credit and dual enrollment participants. However, the study did show that both of these

populations are more college ready than those who did not participate in credit programs

(non-accelerators). The application of this study to my research is attributed to the scope

of the study itself, covering dual enrollment and exam-based credit, and the data set

having a strong representation of liberal arts students.

Bowman, N. A., Miller, A., Woosley, S., Maxwell, N. P., & Kolze, M. J. (2018). Understanding

the link between noncognitive attributes and college retention. Research in Higher

Education. doi:10.1007/s11162-018-9508-0

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the relationship, direct and indirect, between

noncognitive factors and second-year college retention. These factors include academic
self-efficacy, academic grit, self-discipline, and time management. This study is unique

in the way that is examines the interrelationships among these attributes. The authors

build a foundation upon the common research in the field, which examines

demographics, academic preparation, and the overall lack of noncognitive skills as

predictors. Previous research in the field is limited greatly by its inability to be

generalized, as they are conducted at single, or very small groups of, postsecondary

institutions. Additionally, previous studies employ cross-sectional methods, and do little

to analyze how these attributes operate. The authors present a thorough review of both K-

12 and higher education noncognitive factors, and constructed different variables to

investigate. The authors were able to reduce four separate noncognitive factors to a single

factor. The data for this study was provided by independent sources and represents 16

different institutions with N=10,622 students. When establishing results for predicting

intermediate outcomes, noncognitive attributes have a noticeable positive relationship

with social adjustment. This would imply they relate to helping a student adjust to college

socially. Additionally, there is a significant direct effect on institutional commitment and

indirect effect from high school performance. Moreover, results show that noncognitive

factors are positively and directly related to college GPA, even with prior achievement

accounted for. In terms of retention, noncognitive factors have a predictable positive

indirect effect due to its impact on college GPA. Not surprisingly, since noncognitive

attributes had direct impact on social adjustment and institutional commitment, they also

have strong, positive indirect effects on retention via those two variables. Surprisingly,

noncognitive attributes have a negative direct relationship with retention, despite very

large positive indirect relationships being present, with reasons unclear. The authors
 attempted to attribute this correlation with students being intensely motivated and

focused to the point of possibly directing attention elsewhere. Limitations of the study

include that the data, though broad, is difficult to relate to a national scale. This study

applies directly to my work as it helps to create a picture of first-year student success

with non-traditional factors.

Bowman, N. A., & Culver, K. (2018). Promoting equity and student learning: Rigor in

undergraduate academic experiences. New Directions for Higher Education,2018(181),

47-57. doi:10.1002/he.20270

In this article, the authors draw from Sanford's 1966 theory of challenge and support for

student development to form a foundation for academic rigor, which is discussed from

the perspective of underrepresented students in higher education. Bowman, a well-

researched advocate for equity in student learning, works with Culver to discuss the

different kinds of instructional approaches, and high impact factors on instructional

practices. Rigor is built with the framing of in-class pedagogy, assignments, assessment,

faculty-student interaction, and diversity coursework. The first topic focuses on higher-

order thinking and critical analysis in order to promote academic challenge, though

cognitive dissonance often has a negative impact on student satisfaction. The second

topic addresses student-faculty contact both inside the classroom, and in semi-formal

settings such as undergraduate research, office hours, or unstructured interactions. The

study reinforces the idea that positive faculty interactions can have a notable impact on

students. Moreover, these experiences increased the quality of the interactions over time,

wherein the student may target academic majors, research opportunities, or even career

prospects. Student-faculty interactions seem to have similar outcomes, regardless of

 student background. Lastly, diversity coursework presents a unique challenge for

students, especially those who may come from a privileged background, though the

outcomes of diversity courses are positive. The authors discuss the impact of other

coursework and programmatic changes from the institution such as first-year seminar

programs and honors programs, though they are to be cautiously designed. The

implications of this study to additional supplemental course development are also related

to my area of research.

Draeger, J., Hill, P. D., & Mahler, R. (2014). Developing a student conception of academic

rigor. Innovative Higher Education,40(3), 215-228. doi:10.1007/s10755-014-9308-1

The authors, faculty members from SUNY Buffalo State, utilize the student population at

their institution, an urban, public university in New York, to attempt to define academic

rigor from a student perspective. Basing the initial hypothesis off the NSSE 1998

benchmarks, and following a previous article published on academic rigor from a faculty

perspective, the authors aim to compare the views of the students with those of the NSSE

data, and the faculty. The authors used a small student sample of 4.4% of the student

body, comprised of predominately undergraduate females. They issued surveys and used

qualitative analysis through focus groups and individual interviews worked to build their

article. Their findings indicated academic rigor from the student perspective to be

contrary to that of the faculty, weighing actual workload and time on task against the

higher order thinking of the course. Students largely viewed the quality of a course as

dependent on the ability to meet faculty expectations, rather than material mastery,

though an argument could be made to suggest they are one in the same. In comparing
 their findings to the NSSE study, the authors suggest that the subscales of the NSSE

study did not encompass student ideas of academic rigor. This article creates contention

with the authors' previous work on identifying the central ideas of academic rigor. Within

a faculty perspective, and concludes the paper suggesting that institutions should consider

both points of view. With the content of this article serving the SUNY Buffalo State

campus, there are limitations in its ability to be reasonably applied elsewhere, as student

socioeconomic factors are excluded. Many participants were classified as upperclassmen,

which may suggest that students have a different concept of academic rigor than a

traditional first time student. This work is directly applicable to my study due to focus on

gaining understanding of the perception of academic rigor for students.

Gagnon, D. J., & Mattingly, M. J. (2016). Advanced Placement and rural schools. Journal of

Advanced Academics,27(4), 266-284. doi:10.1177/1932202x16656390

In this study, the authors aim to address the issues of accessibility and achievement for

Advanced Placement (AP) courses at rural high schools. The study incorporates data

from the 2011-2012 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), the 2012 Small Area Income

and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE), and data from the US Census supported by NCES,

combining 6765 districts to analyze, after eliminating districts without AP access.

Predictor variables include: urbanicity, rural remoteness, low student enrollment, school

poverty, and high-minority status. Analysis reveals that only a slight majority of rural

districts enroll AP students, which falls significantly below towns, suburban areas, and

urban areas. Additionally, even when rural districts can offer AP courses, there is still a

30% difference in enrollment between rural areas and towns than suburban and urban
 areas. High-minority status showed to have little impact on AP enrollment, while schools

with low student enrollment overall, showed a stronger likelihood for a student to enroll

in an AP course. As expected, suburban and urban areas showed significantly higher

enrollment and completion rates than rural areas and towns, with these outcomes

amplified by poverty. The authors close with remarks about alternatives to AP courses,

such as dual enrollment, distance learning, and district-developed curricula. My research,

focusing on advanced academic achievement and non-cognitive factors in student

success, can benefit from this study’s findings, due to its focus on accessibility and

completion of college credit.

Kettler, T., & Hurst, L. T. (2017). Advanced academic participation. Journal for the Education

of the Gifted, 40(1), 3-19. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0162353216686217

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the achievement gap in Advanced Placement

(AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) between White participants and Black and

Hispanic participants from 2001 and 2011. Though there has been an increase in the

number of students participating in AP and IB programs, the gap in achievement between

White and Black or Hispanic participants remains the same. Building on the foundation

that academic rigor is one of the strongest predictors in collegiate access and attainment,

research has shown that participation in AP and IB programs add rigor to a student’s

curriculum, thus improving their collegiate readiness. Specifically, this study focused on

ethnicity participation gaps in the AP and IB programs in suburban populations.

Advanced coursework yields benefit, not just through academic rigor for the student, but

also in academic preparation of the instructor, with 75.9% of AP course teachers held a

master’s degree, compared to the average of 48.1% of teachers overall. Data is drawn
 from 117 suburban high schools in Texas, from 79 districts classified as suburban by the

NCES, based on population density and proximity to urban centers. Data was collected

from the state education agency and included demographic and performance data from

2001 and 2011. Results showed an increase in advanced academic participation for all

students of 8.80%. Additionally, an 8.45% mean difference for Black students and 8.54%

mean difference in Hispanic students was present, with a 10.5% mean difference in

participation for White students. Among the participating schools, only 7.88% of the

Black students participated in AP/IB testing, and 11.87% for Hispanic students; however,

the achievement gap is still present with White participation of 18.79%. Notably, 15

schools from this study showed a contradictory achievement gap to that of the study,

wherein Black and Hispanic students were more likely to enroll in AP/IB courses.

Limitations include the lack of socioeconomic factors, parent education, and the ability to

generalize the research due to its unique population demographics. This study is relevant

to my research due to highlighting the achievement gap in ethnicity and its combination

of AP and IB students.

Klasik, D., & Strayhorn, T. (2018). The complexity of college readiness: Differences by race and

college selectivity. Educational Researcher, 47(6), 334-351.

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the relationship between college readiness

and selectivity and the differences by race, using national data. The authors begin by

discussing the shortcomings of the traditional idea of college readiness by pointing out

the idea of measuring the “average student”. They assert its insensitivity to race, and the

tradeoff between measuring practical usability and “common-sense understandings of

college readiness”. Using standard measures of high school performance, and accounting
for race and college selectivity, the authors aim to add to the discussion of college

readiness with two key research questions. First, determining different levels of high

school performance predict college readiness, by race, at institutions of varying

selectiveness. Second, based on race and institutional selectivity, what percentage of

students enrolled in postsecondary education are college ready. Selectivity levels are

defined as: most/highly competitive, very competitive, competitive, less/noncompetitive.

Ethnic populations of this study are limited to Black, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic,

and White. The authors used the Educational Longitudinal Study (ELS) and data

including SAT/ACT scores, GPA, and units of Advanced Placement and/or International

Baccalaureate. Merging this data with Barron’s Admissions Competitiveness Index

(excluding specialty schools, or those with nonstandard admissions criteria) the sample

reduces to 8,920 student observations (29.6% minority, 40.7% two-year school enrollees,

59.3% four-year enrollees). Results include that for all student populations, 28.4% of

students have a 65% chance of needing no remedial coursework, yet when race and

selectivity are factored in, the population increases to 32.3%. Additionally, results discuss

that there is a nonmarginal variation in the predications of college readiness for students

from different backgrounds attending differently selective colleges. Limitations include

the sample from ELS only measuring college readiness for students who enrolled in

postsecondary education, and the self-reporting of remedial coursework. Additionally, the

study is limited to those students who enrolled in postsecondary institutions within 2

years of high school completion. This study is directly related to my research given its

analysis of race-ready relationships, especially with the large Hispanic population of

incoming students to SOU, with our institution being less selective.

Koch, B., Slate, J. R., & Moore, G. W. (2016). Advanced Placement English exam

scores. Education and Urban Society,48(7), 685-716. doi:10.1177/0013124514541676

In this article, the authors draw a comparison of AP Literature and Composition and AP

Language and Composition for Hispanic students. Students were from California, Texas,

and Arizona and the data from the College Board archival data spanning 1997-2012. The

authors aim to address the implications of academic deficits for Hispanic students as they

related to access of AP coursework, and call attention to the growing gap of participation

of ethnic minorities in AP courses. Data from College Board was analyzed with Pearson's

Chi-square model in order to determine the presence of statistical significance in AP

exam score distribution among the three states. In order to assess association between the

variables, Cramer's V is used, though uncorrected for bias. Results indicated that the

number of students earning a passing (college credit-worthy) grade of the AP Language

and Composition and the AP Literature and Composition, at best, 34% in both (Arizona)

over the period of the study, and, at worst, 24% and 27% (Texas) respectively. The

results of the study showed a critical lack of preparedness for Hispanic students in these

states regarding AP coursework. Which implied a lack of access to college-ready

curriculum. Limitations of the study include a lack of college-curriculum analysis for the

high schools being referenced, and the higher completion rate showing for Arizona is

skewed by dramatically less participants when compared to California and Texas. With

the high Hispanic population in the Rogue Valley, and a focus on AP credit, this study is

directly applicable to the populations of my study.

Myers, C. B., & Myers, S. M. (2017). Dual enrollment policies and undergraduate rates in the

united states: An institutional and cohert approach using the 2006-2014 IPEDS. Research

& Practice in Assessment, 12, 5-17. Retrieved from

https://login.glacier.sou.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2013523969?

accountid=26242

In this article, the authors aim to investigate the policies and practices of institutions

across the nation with respect to dual enrollment credits. Focusing on college completion

rates, NCES data shows that in 2016 male and female college completion rates have

stagnated around 55% and 61% respectively, with noticeably lower completion rates

being evident in underrepresented populations. Following the federal accountability

policies built into the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act, colleges and

universities have been moved to placing extra emphasis on college completion, especially

since recent national trends show many postsecondary institutions shifting to a

completion model for funding. Dual enrollment, and accelerated programs such as

Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and College Level

Equivalency Program (CLEP), have been shown to have a positive impact on college

readiness, especially in underrepresented populations. The focus of this study is to look

into policies involving dual credit, defined as college credit earned through high school

programs. Specifically, areas to be addressed include: if institutions that accept dual

enrollment credits have higher completion rates, and if dual enrollment policies are

related to selectivity (Barron’s Selectivity Score). As more postsecondary institutions

partner with high schools to offer dual credit programs, it is necessary to analyze the

relationship between the dual enrollment programs and institutional selectivity. Data is
 acquired from the 2006-2009 and 2012-2014 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data

System (IPEDS) to track the 6-year graduation rates of the 2006, 2007, and 2008 cohorts

of first-year students. After narrowing the scope of the data set, the authors derived a set

of 1,370 institutions with 4,110 institution observations. Findings show that, in this data

set, 82% of institutions have a policy regarding dual enrollment. There was a negative

significant correlation between dual enrollment acceptance and institutions which were

competitive or very competitive, in terms of graduation rates. Conversely, there was a

positive correlation between dual enrollment and the less selective institutions. 16% of

incoming college freshman have completed dual enrollment credit, and students who

have these credits have a 7% higher graduation rate over students who do not have dual

enrollment credits. Limitations of the study include the fact that there may be institutional

characteristics which could have an impact on dual enrollment students. Moreover, due to

the requirements of the federal regulations, students in this study were tracked for their 6-

year graduate rate, presuming they stayed at the same institution during the entirety of

their education. These factors do create some limits on generalization, but the study

yields significance. This study is relevant due to the investigation of dual enrollment,

especially as Southern Oregon University continually strives to improve its Advanced

Southern Credit program. Additionally, SOU is generally regarded as a less selective

institution.

Newell, M. (2014). What's a degree got to do with it? The civic engagement of associate's and

bachelor's degree holders. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement,

18(2), 67-90. Retrieved

from http://openjournals.libs.uga.edu/index.php/jheoe/article/view/1235/763
In this study, the author explores the relationship of civic engagement to degree

obtainment, specifically, high school graduates, associate degree holders, and bachelor’s

degree holders. Previous studies have established well-defined relationships between

civic engagement and bachelor’s degree holds. However, this study demonstrates that as

education progresses, so too does civic engagement, but with more discrete data. Service-

learning is an area which has shown a positive relationship with student outcomes,

allowing it to be deemed a high-impact activity, linked to higher order learning and

academic gains as demonstrated in the NSSE. There are noticeable differences in the

participation of civic engagement between underrepresented students and majority

students, though the former population benefits the most from service-learning programs.

This study incorporates the use of the Current Population Survey (CPS) and its Volunteer

Supplement survey for 2008 (N=151,000). Using variables from a 2012 study by Keeter

et al., a comprehensive model of civic engagement is aligned with the data to compute

civic, political, and cognitive behavior. Methodology includes descriptive statistics to

observe the differences in civic engagement between 2-year and 4-year degree holders,

ordinary least squares regression analyses to observe the influence of educational

attainment on community-based engagement, and multiple regression modeling to

investigate background influence on the indicators. Results, as anticipated, showed a

gradual increase in the civic engagement of an individual as degree obtained increased.

Limitations of the study include the lack of additional factors that play into degree

attainment, such as socioeconomic status and parental education. With the connection of

service-learning to positive student outcomes at the 4-year level, this study has direct

implications in my current study.

Silva, M. R., Kleinert, W. L., Sheppard, A. V., Cantrell, K. A., Freeman-Coppadge, D. J., Tsoy,

E., . . . Pearrow, M. (2015). The relationship between food security, housing stability, and

school performance among college students in an urban university. Journal of College

Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice,19(3), 284-299.

doi:10.1177/1521025115621918

In this study, the authors attempt to assess the relationship between food insecurity (FI)

and housing insecurity (HI), and the ability to perform and attend courses. The study

included an urban university, University of Massachusetts-Boston. Collecting data

through surveys administered to willing instructors of randomly selected courses yielded

sample of about 390 students, or between 2-3% of the student body. Descriptive statistics

including t-tests reveal strong relationships between independent and dependent variables

being discussed. Selected findings indicate a statistical significance of the impact of HI

and FI on student scholastic ability. The results showed students with HI were 13 times

more likely to fail a course, and 11 times more likely to withdraw or stop-out. Students

with FI were 15 times more likely to fail a course, and 6 times more likely to withdraw or

stop-out. Discussions point out the distinct lack or resources for collegiate HI and FI

when compared to programs for secondary and primary education. Limitations of the

study are the use of a single university, the willingness of instructors to allow students to

participate, and students having apprehension about sharing insecurities. The study is

likely too small to make generalizations from. The research questions proposed and

subsequent analysis draw attention to an important topic in student experience and

retention. Though the study was limited, the inclusion of housing insecurity and food
 insecurity is directly relatable to some of the issues which our students face, and this my

research.

Warne, R. T., Larsen, R., Anderson, B., & Odasso, A. J. (2015). The impact of participation in

the Advanced Placement program on students college admissions test scores. The Journal

of Educational Research,108(5), 400-416. doi:10.1080/00220671.2014.917253

In this article, the authors, apart from Larsen, reside at Utah Valley University, where

data from the Utah State Office of Education is provided for a 2010 and 2011 cohort of

high school students who are participating in Advanced Placement (AP) courses. The

student populations differed slightly in composition, with minor differences in low

socioeconomic status (SES) students. In this study, the authors aim to revisit the validity

of the hypothesis suggesting that AP courses have positive impact on student

performance on the ACT exam. The authors indicate previous studies in this area did not

control for confounding variables, which is factored into the content of this article. As

with any data set, assessing and controlling missing data is noticed by the authors who

utilize 20 imputations for the 2010 cohort, though an allowable 6% loss of power was

present. Using SPSS with Missing Values add-on, and MMW-S analysis, the cohort data

was discussed. The authors used the AP English and AP Calculus test to search for

measurable changes in student performance on the ACT categories and composite scores.

Findings from their analyses indicated a stronger positive outcome from the AP English

exam over AP Calculus, though both showed positive performance outcomes. Limitations

of the studies include the difficulty in assessing multiple-AP-subject learners and the

potential for confounding based on the intersection of passing and non-passing scores.
 Moreover, though AP Calculus is an excellent indicator of mathematical proficiency, the

ACT exam does not have material inside of the Math, or Science, categories wherein

students who enrolled AP Calculus could show material mastery, passing the exam or

not. This study, like other AP studies, draws attention to the mathematics preparation of

students. This test was identified as a strong predictor in college success, and an area of

struggle for many SOU students, and is related to my research.

Wibrowski, C. R., Matthews, W. K., & Kitsantas, A. (2016). The role of a skills learning support

program on first-generation college students’ self-regulation, motivation, and academic

achievement: A longitudinal study. Journal of College Student Retention: Research,

Theory & Practice,19(3), 317-332. doi:10.1177/1521025116629152

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the benefits of a Skills Learning Support

Program (SLSP) on first-generation students from a diverse cultural background.

Additionally, they investigated if these benefits help students close the achievement gap

in degree attainment. The study (N=876) includes two primary populations, 137 SLSP

students, and 739 regularly admitted students who did not complete or participate in a

program similar to SLSP. The study includes a review of other interventions used to

enhance college student success such as summer bridge programs, learning communities,

sense of belonging, and first-year courses focused on self-regulation. Data was collected

via personal data questionnaires (MSLQ and PALS) to gather information on motivation,

self-efficacy, performance, avoidance, and goal orientation. Once this data was collected

the SLSP was provided to support students from educationally and economically

disadvantaged backgrounds, and participants received a special advisor until 30 credits

had been completed. The SLSP begins with a 6-week intensive summer academic
 program centered around orienting the students with academic and social demands of

college, meeting 7 hours per day, 5 days per week earning 3 credits upon completion.

Upon completion, and beginning of the fall term, students were enrolled in an additional

student success course, to continue to focus on collegiate transition. Results showed,

upon re-assessment of former questionnaires, students who participated in SLSP showed

uniform positive increases in areas of motivation, resource management, and learning

strategies. Additionally, SLSP students out performed non-SLSP students over 8

semesters, each semester, in academic achievement, and ultimately led to a nearly equal

graduation rate between both samples. Results also showed an increase in anxiety and

performance-avoidance goal orientation in SLSP students. Limitations include the

inability to factor in other positive or negative factors of performance, such as high

school preparation, social influence, and extracurricular responsibilities of the students.

This study relates to my research as it incorporates support for the non-cognitive factors

in student success, and how supplemental education, advising, and intervention can create

a positive effect on student outcomes.

Wilson, J. L., Slate, J. R., Moore, G. W., & Barnes, W. (2014). Advanced Placement scores for

Black male students from Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, and

Texas. Education Research International,2014, 1-14. doi:10.1155/2014/659212

In this study, the authors draw comparison between CT, FL, MD, MA, and TX using data

from College Board for Black males attempting Advanced Placement (AP) courses in the

following topics: English-Language and Composition, Calculus AB, Biology, and United

States History. The scope of the study is to analyze performance differences between
 states and seek statistical significance. This study considered college-credit worthy scores

to be 3 and above, though they note the trend of institutions using scores of 4 and 5 to

award college credit. With the exception of TX, the other four states recognized by the

study are from College Board's top 10 states wherein the number of students earning a 3

or higher on AP exams are highest: Texas is selected based on size of student population

and expansion of AP access for students. Exam subjects were chosen to represent a

sample of secondary curriculum.

A standard Pearson's Chi-square method is utilized, along with Cramer's V for correlation

between samples. Comparisons of same student population are carried out by academic

subject and academic year. Results indicated that students from MA consistently out-

performed students from other states, leading 3 of the 5 AP exams in number of students

passing the exam, with the highest percentage of students earning a score of 4 or 5.

Texas, in agreement with other studies, was shown to be the lowest performing state with

respect to the number of students earning a passing score (3 and above). Findings in this

study suggest that significant increases in student achievement via AP scores for all

students does not extend to the Black male population followed in this study noting that

65% of all Black males from this study did not earn college credit from AP exams.

Xu, D., Solanki, S., McPartlan, P., & Sato, B. (2018). EASEing students into college: The

impact of multidimensional support for underprepared students. Educational Researcher,

47(7), 435–450. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X18778559

In this study, the authors aim to investigate the impact of learning communities on both

cognitive and noncognitive success factors in the first year of STEM students at

University of California – Irvine (UCI). In the context of this study, a learning

community is defined as a group of students in sharing learning activities academically.

Furthermore, learning communities provided an emotional connection, most commonly

demonstrated by a cohort of students in a shared curriculum, with a mentor serving in a

supportive role. This study builds upon the many studies attempting to link learning

communities to positive outcomes, although a qualitative relationship was well

established, there was no standing quantitative validation of the positive relationship. The

Enhanced Academic Success Experience (EASE) was designed for this study, looking at

its second year of implementation. The EASE program allows students to be broken into

cohorts of 30, with a shared biological science curriculum, and a senior student as a

mentor for weekly one hour meetings. Using SAT Math scores at the criteria for

participation, of a sample of 907 students, 388 students participated in the EASE

program. Demographics of the sample included: 55% underrepresented students, 63%

first-generation, 55% low-income, and 78% female. Dependent variables include both

academic (Bio 93 & 94 grades, overall GPA, and retention) and social-psychological

factors (belonging, academic and social concerns [ASC], academic integration [AI], and

interest in biology). Noncognitive factors are assessed with Cronbach’s alpha, with a

regression discontinuity model used to analyze the data. Findings include notable,

positive correlation to academic outcomes, yielding higher performance in courses,

higher cumulative GPA, and a 13% higher retention rate for EASE participants, over

nonparticipants. Additionally, social-psychological outcomes show a positive association

with all four variables, and participation in EASE. This would provide the first causal

outcomes between learning communities and student outcomes. Limitations include that

a small sample size, relative to institutional size, creates difficulty in generalization;

however, the results are very relevant. Moreover, positive outcomes are limited

predominately to students within + 100 points of the SAT Math score of 600. The study

doesn’t include data beyond the first year, to measure if EASE has a noticeable impact on

student attainment, especially among minority populations. This study is directly relevant

to my research due to it being the first study to seek casual relationships in learning

communities and student outcomes.