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Student Engagement: Comparing Community College Students in the US and Canada
Maureen Pettitt, Ph.D.Skagit Valley College, WA
Karen GrigoleitDouglas College, BC
Presentation Topics Overview of Survey Administration Institutional “Sketches” CCSSE Results: Similarities &
Differences Student CharacteristicsStudent Characteristics Use of ServicesUse of Services Student Engagement/EffortStudent Engagement/Effort College Contribution to Learning & College Contribution to Learning &
DevelopmentDevelopment Other Interesting StuffOther Interesting Stuff
CCSSE Overview
Emphasis on student engagement and student learning (e.g., Astin, Tinto, Pace)
Adapted from the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
Funding from Lumina Foundation for Education and Pew Charitable Trusts
Administered by Community College Leadership Program at UTA
Pilot test in 2001; field test in 2002
2003 Survey Administration
Nationally, 93 colleges participated
Northwest Consortium Douglas College in BC and five WA
community colleges 3,480 usable surveys for Consortium
Douglas College N=789 Skagit Valley College N=782
Skagit Valley College Established 1926 Predominantly rural, tri-county district
covering 2,118 square miles Mount Vernon & Whidbey Island Campuses;
Centers in So Whidbey & San Juan Island Closest metro areas ~ 60 miles (Seattle &
Vancouver, BC) Spring 2003 enrollment = 6,453 Academic/transfer & 30 prof/tech programs
Douglas College Established 1970 Two campuses—New Westminster and
Coquitlam—close enough so that students can commute between the two
Suburban location (500,000 area pop) Large immigrant population in last 10-20
years Winter 2003 enrollment = 9,847 Majority academic transfer & mix of
career/technical programs
“Above Benchmark” Performance Both Douglas College and Skagit
Valley College scored above the national benchmarks in the following areas:
Active & Collaborative Learning Student Effort Academic Challenge SVC also scored above the benchmark
in Student-Faculty Interaction
Reason for Attending
010203040506070
SVC Douglas
Transfer to 4-Yr
Obtain Job Skills
Note: Students could indicate “primary reason” in more than one category
First Generation Definition: student has no college
experience, and neither parent has earned a degree beyond a high school diploma National = 32% Northwest Consortium = 25% Douglas = 26% SVC = 27%
Similarities in Use of Services
0% 50% 100% 150%
Use ofComputer Lab
StudentOrganizations
Transfer CreditAssist
SVC
Douglas
Differences in Use of Services
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%
AcademicAdvising
CareerCounseling
Skills Labs
SVC
Douglas
Similarities & Differences Student Student
Engagement/ Engagement/ Effort—Effort— Active &
Collaborative Learning
Student-Faculty Interaction
Student-Student Interaction
Active & Collaborative Learning
The percentage of SVC students responding “often” or “very often” was significantly higher for the following items: Asked questions in class or contributed to class
discussions – 68% vs. 49% Prepared two or more drafts of a paper or
assignment before turning it in – 65% vs. 52% Worked with other students on projects during
class – 66% vs. 55% Differences may be due to SVC’s required
learning communities and English writing links
Student-Faculty Interaction SVC students indicated better
relationships with faculty and staff, and were more likely than Douglas students to: Discuss grades or assignment with an
instructor Talk about career plans with an
instructor or advisor Get feedback from an instructor about
his/her performance
Student-Student Interaction There were no differences between
the colleges on the quality of relationships with other students
However, Douglas respondents were more likely to have “Had serious conversations with students of a different race or ethnicity” than SVC respondents: 55% vs. 47% Probably due to the higher ethnic mix
at Douglas
Similarities & Differences
College College ContributioContribution to n to Student Student DevelopmeDevelopmentnt
Knowledge, Skills & Personal Development
No significant differences in these areas: acquiring a broad general education acquiring job or work-related skills critical thinking using computing & information
technology working effectively with others learning effectively on one’s own
Math & Numerical Skills Students who have taken a
remedial math course reported higher numerical skills development SVC = 76%, Douglas = 69%
Overall, SVC students reported greater gains in ability to solve numerical problems 56% vs. 33%
Possibly due to program mix or gender
Numerical Problem Solving
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%
Scienc
eBus
ines
sLi
bera
l Arts
Health
Child
& Fam
ily
Oth
er/U
nkno
wn
SVC
Douglas
Other Interesting Findings
Issues Likely Issues Likely to Cause to Cause WithdrawalWithdrawal
Distribution of Distribution of Grade Point Grade Point Average Average (GPA)(GPA)
Potential Reasons for Withdrawal
0%10%20%30%40%50%
Aca
dem
ical
lyun
prep
ared
Cha
nge
in e
dgo
als
Cha
nge
inca
reer
pla
ns
Mov
ing/
relo
cati
on
SVC
Douglas
GPA – Transfer
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
C- orlower
C B- toC+
B A- toB+
A
SVC
Douglas
Primary Reason for Attending: Transfer
GPA – Job Skill ObtainmentPrimary Reason for Attending: Job-Related Skills
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
C- orlower
C B- toC+
B A- toB+
A
SVC
Douglas
Overall Satisfaction Items
“Would you recommend this college to a friend or family member?” National 95% said “Yes” they would SVC 94% Douglas 93%
“How would you evaluate your entire educational experience at this college?” National 86% rated their experience
“Excellent” or “Good” SVC 84% Douglas 80%
Just the tip of the iceberg! The data gives us
some insight into student perceptions and behaviors…How can the college use this data to improve programs and services?