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Performance Based Micro-Scholarships: Rewarding Student Achievement in Real TimeAN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECTSCOTT MERKEL, UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO
School InformationFieldwork Site Facts
Traditional Public HS - Common Core
Total Student Population: 2,295
Demographics 75% White
17% Latino
6% Asian/Pacific Islander
85 Teachers
Four School Counselors
ConcernsScholarship
Needs Assessment
Designed to capture information
for ad hoc scholarships
opportunities
363 seniors provided
information
Assessment Results
Nearly 40% of all students expressed a specific financial
need
72% of the “need expressed” subset
had a > 3.0 GPA and desired attending a
4-year university
Targeted Financial Aid Curriculum
How can content be developed to
support students who fit this criterion?
How can the content reinforce
student achievement?
ContextThe economics of higher
education are not changing
The costs of obtaining a four-year degree continue to rise (National Department of
Education Statistics, 2013)
Inelastic demand for higher education is a major factor in
tuition pricing (Carter & Curry, 2011)
There is a fundamental problem with the financial aid
process within the U.S. education system
Students generally don’t receive financial aid information until after
they have been admitted(Heller, 2006)
Situation is compounded for students with low expected family
contributions (EFC)(Roderick, Coca, & Nagaoka, 2011)
College going decisions are being made without adequate
or accurate information
Inadequate resources to help support students in projecting
expected commitment of financial aid
(Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, 2008)
(Barnett & Das, 2013)
Pre College Result:
• Unable to enroll at desired higher education institution
Post College Result
• Poor financial aid packages lead to higher debt-to-income ratio
Action ResearchStudy & Plan Take Action Collect & Analyze
Evidence Reflect
Study & Plan Take Action Collect & Analyze Evidence Reflect
Action research is often exploratory (Stringer & Dwyer, 2005), and as one of the first studies of its kind, the micro-scholarship research was about discovering possibilities and reflecting on outcomes.
Raise.me
Social EntrepreneurshipRaise
• Online Platform• Real Time Application• Shortened Feedback Loop
• 50+ Participating Colleges and Universities
Purpose and Question
Purpose• To explore whether, and how,
performance based, micro-scholarships have an impact on students’ college-choice behavior and student motivation.
Question• What are the impacts of the
performance based micro-scholarship program on college choice awareness and motivation?
Methods
Qualitative
Survey Responses
Practitioner Reflection
Focus Group
Themes
Quantitative
Raise.me
Survey Scaling
Grade Point
Average
Nominal Scales
Selecting Participants
Participant Characteristics19%
42%
40%
Grade
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior7942%
32%
4%
22%
Ethnicity
WhiteLatinoAfrican AmericanOther79
11%
Free or Reduced Lunch
2.9
Average GPA
19%
First Gen
Research Timeline
Pre-Intervention Findings
No Yes No Yes No YesFreshman Junior Sophomore
$0.00
$10,000.00
$20,000.00
$30,000.00
$40,000.00
$50,000.00
$60,000.00
NoYes Major Pre-Intervention
Themes
“Financial aid will have a major impact on college choice”
“I do not know much about financial aid”
“I will look for the ‘right’ college, one
that I can also afford”
“Financial aid will help me in the
future”
“Financial aid won’t have an impact on
what I end up doing for college”
First Generation
Annu
al T
uitio
n Co
st
EFC
Cycle 1: Procedures• Goal: Earn Micro-Scholarship(s)
Technology Based Classroom Guidance Lessons
• Raise.me Platform Data• Participation and Usage (Engagement)
• Post Intervention Survey• Practitioner Reflections
Instruments
• 45 Minute Lessons• Duration: Two Weeks
Time
Cycle 1: Data AnalysisQualitative
Themes
Change in Financial Aid Awareness
Hard to gauge distinct themes
Wide range of interpretation
Academic Motivation
Behavior will change
(qualifier)
Behavior may change
Unknown or unclear
Behavior will not change
Quantitative
Raise.me
Data unavailable (limitation)
Post Intervention
Scales
Change in post secondary aspirations
Change in financial aid
plans
Continue to use Raise.me
3.15
2.91
3.45*Post Intervention Scales were from 1-5 (Not at all – A lot/Frequently)
Scale Average
A B
C D
Cycle 1: ReflectionsFebruary 3, 2015
• I am anxious and excited to begin.• It will be very interesting to see how the process of actually earning money will
be received.
February 4, 2015• The first intervention group seemed a bit more engaged than the second.• The second intervention group was displaced from the controlled lab
environment to a cafeteria style session.
February 5, 2015• The third group (all juniors) was very engaged and asked a number of pertinent
questions.• It was clear that the juniors connected more to the activity and many seemed
excited about the opportunities on Raise.
Cycle Transition ModificationsWhat Does the Data Say?
Limited quantitative
data
Qualitative data
requires additional
context
Context: Parent EngagementAccess to
perceptions and ideas about financial aid
Parent relationship to
student participation
GoalGain insights to how parents fit
into this processOpen ended qualitative questions
& scaling questions
Cycle 2: Procedures• E-mail to Parents• Planned Engagement Session
Parent Engagement
• Binary E-mail Tracking• Engagement Session Themes & Feedback Cards
Instruments
• Duration: Two Weeks
Time
Cycle 2: Data AnalysisParent Engagement
Information Letter to Parents
Planned Parent Lesson and Q&A
Session
One ParentProvided an RSVP to Session
Session CancelledLack of Response
51 Parents Received Electronic Letter
Cycle 2: Reflections
March 9, 2015
• After being in contact with Raise Labs, I am hoping to get the platform data. It has a week since my request and I am concerned that I may not have that data to go on.
• I have begun Cycle 2 - a simple step of providing parents information with the intent of collecting feedback, in addition to holding a parent engagement session. Five days have passed, and I have not heard anything specific from parents.
March 12, 2015• Still no information from parents at the end of this week. Due to timing
and scheduling issues, I have to move on. • I have pulled student grade data and am planning Cycle 3 focus groups to
collect more qualitative data.
Cycle Transition ModificationsWhat Does the Data Say?
Nothing gained in Cycle 2
Context: Focus Groups
Access to perceptions
and ideas about financial
aid
GoalTo flush out different perspectives and points of view for different
Intervention Groups and different populations
Cycle 3• Participants from All Intervention Groups
Focus Groups
• Qualitative Data and Themes• Practitioner Reflections
Instruments
• 30 Minute Sessions• Duration: One Week
Time
Cycle 3: Focus Group Participants
Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior1 2 3
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
WhiteOtherLatinoFilipinoAfrican American
Intervention Group
Cycle 3: Data AnalysisIntervention Group
1
Feelings on Rising Costs of College
Work harder
Scholarships
Can I even go?
How am I going to pay?
Feeling After Participating in Raise.me Group
Felt rich
Grades matter
More informed
Chance to go to college
One Word on Raise.me
Money
Cool
Motivation
Informative
Chance
Intervention Group 2
Feeling on Rising Costs of College
Can’t go to ideal college
Student loans
How do I find other ways to go?
Feelings After Participating in Raise.me Group
It didn’t have what I was looking for
Only good for random schools
One Word on Raise.me
Optimistic
Potential
Interesting
Intervention Group 3
Feelings on Rising Costs of College
Nervous
Worried
Stressed
Cost Impacts Decision
Feelings After Participating in Raise.me Group
Hopeful
Relieved
Look hard for money
One Word on Raise.me
Helpful
Opportunity
Hopeful
Grateful
Motivational
BeneficialMajor Themes: Hope, Opportunity, Motivation
Cycle 3: Reflections
April 22, 2015
• The first two focus groups had some different reactions to how they perceived the costs of attending college and how they evaluated the experience using Raise.me.
• There may be cultural expectations involved as Intervention Group 1 was comprised of all Latino students, while Intervention Group 2 was comprised of all White students.
April 23, 2015• This group was awesome! The juniors in Intervention Group 3 were very
engaged and provided some great feedback. • It is clear that their proximity to attending college has them thinking differently
than the freshman and sophomores that made up the first two focus groups.
Proximal Outcomes: Academic Behavior
Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior1 2 3
-8
-6
-4
-2
0
2
4
6
8
10
ABCD
Change in Academic Performance
Intervention Group
Proximal Outcomes: Academic Behavior
No Yes
-6
-4
-2
0
2
4
6
FreshmanJuniorSophomore
Change in Academic Performance
Expected Family Contribution
Findings: By the Numbers$280,529
Aggregate Scholarship Money Earned
74Number of Scholarship Earners
$3,551 Average Scholarship Total Earned
91%Highest Percentage of Tuition Earned
20%Participants Who Earned Over $5,000
Potential Significance
Local Actors Produce Local
Knowledge
CaliforniaCali-Centric
Transferability
Project Legitimacy and LimitationsPROJECT LEGITIMACYTrustworthiness (Graig, 2009)• Intentional human action linked to knowledge and growth• Socially and contextually situated project• Staging experience to engage self and others to interrogate
aspects of learning and teaching• Commitment toward the construction of meaningful
knowledge
Triangulation• Numerous data points and perspectives addressed
Validity• Democratic• Catalytic• Dialogic
LIMITATIONS
Time• Duration and outcomes
Parent Involvement• A key piece to the financial aid puzzle
Access to Quantitative Data• Reliance on third party
Instrument Construction• Survey content developed by graduate researcher
Evidence Based PracticeEvidence Based
Practice
Action Research
Knowledge Creation
Epistemology
New Knowledge
Micro-scholarships
Hope and Opportunity
College Choice
Motivation
School Counselor
ResourceAdvocateChampion
Final ReflectionsProcess
• Invaluable experience to attempt to run a program and deal with numerous challenges along the way: from getting displaced during a lesson, to losing participants, to having to cancel a parent session.
• I am comfortable with the fact that all my steps had a purpose and they were in the best interest of the students I was serving.
Micro-Scholarships
• What an unbelievable opportunity. Although things did not pan out exactly as I had anticipated, there is something to this micro-scholarship idea that is potentially profound.
• The possibilities of how robust programming in this area could impact students of need is incredible to think about.
Next Steps
• This was a ‘surface scratcher’, an exploration into the possibilities of micro-scholarship programming with diverse student populations. There are dozens of ways that the process could have been altered to provide students with more ways to connect and earn – something that I hope to explore further in the near future.
ReferencesAdvisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance (ACSFA). 2008. Early & often: Designing a comprehensive system of financial aid information. Washington DC. Retrieved November 30, 2014, from https://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/acsfa/earlyoftenreport.pdf.
Barnett, N., & Das D. (2013). Unlocking the potential of the Internet to improve college choice:a comparative case study of college-access Web tools. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 23(1), 113 –134.
Dimmitt, C., Carey, J. C., & Hatch, T. (Eds.). (2007). Evidence-based school counseling: Making a difference with data-driven practices. Corwin Press.
Graig, C. J. (2009). Trustworthiness in self-study research In Lassonde, CA, Galman, S., and Kosnik, C. Methodologies for teacher educators, 20-34.
Heller, D. (2006). Early commitment of financial aid eligibility. American Behavioral Scientist 49(12): 1719–1738.
Roderick, M., Coca, V., & Nagaoka J. (2011). Potholes on the road to college: High school effects in shaping urban students’ participation in college application, four-year college enrollment, and college match. Sociology of Education, 84(3), 178-211.
Stringer, E., & Dwyer R. (2005). Action research in human services. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Pearson Education Inc.
The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. (2013). Reimagining financial aid to improve student access and outcomes. Retrieved November 20, 2014, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED543364.pdf.
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2013). Digest of Education Statistics, 2012 (NCES 2014-015).
