One freshman academy's influence on student engagement in high school

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of one large suburban high school's ninth grade transition program, the freshman academy, on students' cognitive and affective engagement in high school. Participants of the study embodied tenth grade students who had completed their freshmen year in the academy and freshmen academy staff who also worked with tenth graders. Using a concurrent triangulated mixed-method research design, equally weighted qualitative and quantitative data were collected and analyzed through the lenses of cognitive-stage and social cognitive theories. Key findings revealed that students measured statistically, significantly higher on affective engagement than on cognitive engagement in high school. Convergence and divergence of data confirmed common practices of the freshman academy that influenced students' levels of engagement. Students' focus on socialization and teachers' focus on personalization supported the higher survey measures on affective engagement, while scheduling limitations and inconsistent instructional practices supported lower measures of cognitive engagement. Students' sense of irrelevancy in coursework and teachers' limited interdisciplinary, student-centered instructional practices led to a recommendation for professional development, supported with instructional coaching for staff. Ability group tracking emerged as a practice that contributed to problematic scheduling and classroom behaviors, suggesting investigation into heterogeneously mixed freshman academy classes.