An analysis of differences in noncognitive factors of college readiness of students before and after participation in a university summer bridge program
- UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Holly Ann Shepherd (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
- Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
- Advisor
- Laura Gonzalez
Abstract: The complexity of college readiness has made it difficult to define and measure. Despite the use of standardized testing as the most convenient predictor of college readiness (Farrington et al., 2012), research encompassing a more comprehensive understanding of college readiness is gaining momentum, particularly through a college access lens (Conley, 2007; Sedlacek, 2010). Noncognitive factors, including academic behaviors, academic perseverance, academic mindsets, social skills, and learning strategies, are crucial to student performance and are shaped by a variety of factors related to internal and external environmental influences (Farrington et al., 2012). Considering ways in which students interact with an educational context can provide insights into effective interventions that enhance students’ overall college readiness beyond cognitive factors (Barsalou, 2010; Conley, 2007; Nagaoka et al., 2013). Summer bridge programs are one type of pipeline intervention that aims to enhance students’ college readiness (Gándara, 2002; Sablan, 2014) to aid in a student’s transition to a postsecondary educational environment (Conley, 2008) and typically target underrepresented student populations (Kallison & Stader, 2012). The purpose of this study was to determine differences in noncognitive factors of college readiness of students before and after participation in a summer bridge program. In addition to analyzing the program’s outcome, this research analyzed differences of noncognitive factors of college readiness between summer bridge program participants and incoming first-year students who were admitted to the researcher’s host institution but did not participate in the summer bridge program. The participants were 57 high school graduates who applied to attend the institution hosting the summer bridge program. Participants completed the Becoming Effective Student Learners Survey (BELS) (Farrington, 2018), which is a survey that includes items addressing academic behaviors, academic perseverance, academic mindsets, learning strategies, and additional factors. Findings indicated that there were statistically significant differences in academic mindsets of students before and after participation in the summer bridge program (t(9) =3.69, p < .01). No significant differences were found for other noncognitive factors. Additionally, no significant differences were found between summer bridge program participants and incoming first-year students who did not participate in the intervention. Academic mindsets are important to consider when addressing college readiness because they can impact a student’s level of motivation and performance related to coursework (Wilson, 2006). Due to the context-dependent nature of academic mindsets, short-term interventions have the potential to develop positive mindsets through increased levels of academic and social support (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 2000; Credé & Kuncel, 2008; Farrington et al., 2012; Schlossberg, Waters, & Goodman, 1995), which underrepresented student populations often lack access to at the secondary education level (Attewell & Domina, 2008; Kazis, 2006; Reardon, 2011). This research study is contributing to the awareness that traditional measures of college readiness do not fully address all facets of college readiness (Sedlacek, 2010) and K-12 and postsecondary educators can be intentional in interventions and admissions criteria when addressing college readiness (Wu, 2014).
An analysis of differences in noncognitive factors of college readiness of students before and after participation in a university summer bridge program
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Created on 12/1/2018
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Dissertation
- Language: English
- Date: 2018
- Keywords
- Academic mindset, College readiness, Noncognitive, Summer bridge program
- Subjects
- College preparation programs
- Educational psychology
- Academic achievement