Campus Experiences Research Articles

Breaching the "Cultural Contract:" Committing to Cultural Sensitivity and Cultural Inclusion for Native American College Students

A culturally responsive, respectful, and inclusive academic environment is a must for Native Americanstudents. Educational institutions must work to accommodate and allow Native American culturaltraditions to become an integral part of the classroom, of teaching and learning procedures andprocesses, and of the student experience in general (Burk, 2007). At the colleges and universities oftoday, Native American students often face challenges beyond that of students from the dominant,typically White, non-Hispanic culture; these challenges are reflected in low retention and collegedropout rates of Native American and Alaskan Native students nationwide (Campbell, 2007).Research has indicated that these students face challenges that can include unsupportive faculty(Jackson, 2002), a feeling of a lack of understanding and a lack of desire to understand NativeAmerican culture and the cultures of underrepresented students in general (Hornet, 1989),helplessness in connecting campus experiences to cultural and family experiences, a lack of elderrepresentation and mentors on campus (Perry, 2002; Tierney, 1992), and academic responses thatreflect attitudes that are discriminatory, culturally insensitive and/or reflective of institutionalized racism(Jackson, 2002).

Establishing a space of dialogue and possibilities: Students\' experience and meaning at the University of the Witwatersrand

The article explores student responses to institutional changes to accommodate increasingly diverse students into a cohesive community. It deals with student perceptions of current campus practices, social interaction, their interpretations of these, and how these relate to their experiences. It argues that, while the university has excelled in implementing strategies to improve student satisfaction, and while many students have responded positively to these, a sense of discontent persists for a large sector. This discontent has less to do with the degree of institutional change than with the different ways in which students experience these changes and the meanings they attach to them. It suggests that changes in campus life go beyond policies and structural changes to include mediation strategies that facilitate negotiation of shared spaces and meanings about campus experiences.

How College Students' Engagement Affects Personal and Social Learning Outcomes

Recent calls for accountability in higher education underscore the need for evidence of the “value added” effect of college attendance. One of the espoused goals of higher education is to prepare individuals personally and socially for effective and civil participation in society. Increasingly, student affairs administrators are expected to demonstrate how campus programs and experiences serve these broader goals, but many college educators find assessment overwhelming and intimidating. Drawing on Astin’s I-E-O model and a new tool for administrators, I conduct several analyses to measure the influence of “good practice” experiences on 8,000 students’ personal/social learning. Results suggest that peer interactions, faculty-student interactions, and active learning experiences explain 24% of the variance in development. Findings hold promise in terms of future practice, policy, and research.

Investment in the Future: Improving Education Research at Four Leading Schools of Education: Campus Experiences of the Spencer Foundation's Research Training Grant Program

Investment in the Future: Improving Education Research at Four Leading Schools of Education: Campus Experiences of the Spencer Foundation's Research Training Grant Program

Changes in Students' Motivation to Learn during the First Year of College

This study looks at changes in first-year college students' motivational orientation and whether these changes relate systematically to campus and classroom experiences. 130 college students (M age = 18 yr., 75% women) completed measures of learning orientation, grade orientation, and work avoidance from the LOGO II at the beginning and end of their first year. The year-end assessment also included questions regarding characteristics of students' classes and the amount of time they spent in campus activities. Students became more grade-oriented and work-avoidant and less learning-oriented over time. Changes in learning orientation and work avoidance were associated with classroom and campus experiences. Results are discussed in terms of the need for additional research on changes in college students' motivation and factors predicting this change.

Campus Safety: Perceptions and Experiences of Women Students

The purpose of this research was to examine the campus experiences of undergraduate and graduate women students at a research university. Although it has been more than 20 years since the term "chilly campus climate" was described in Hall and Sandler's (1984) seminal work, this study found such a climate, in terms of campus safety, still exists for women students. Across race, university classification, and level of involvement, the women students in this study reported a chilly campus climate that served to further perpetuate a culture of fear women students felt for their campus safety.

Perceptions of Campus Experiences by African-American Pharmacy Students Based on Institutional Type

Objectives. This study compared perceptions of campus experiences between African American students at historically black colleges of pharmacy (HBCPs) and those at predominantly white colleges of pharmacy (PWCPs). Methods. A written survey instrument was administered to a convenience sample of minority pharmacy students who attended a national meeting of the Student National Pharmaceutical Association. Results. Responses were received from students who attended all 5 HBCPs (n = 16) and 24 PWCPs (n = 59) in the US. Contrary to the general college impact literature, these findings revealed no significant differences in the perceptions of campus experiences between African American students at HBCPs and those at PWCPs with regards to academic advising, campus climate, campus life, campus support services, instructional effectiveness, and student centeredness. Students at HBCPs showed higher satisfaction scores for a survey item on campus responsiveness to diverse populations. Conclusions. Results should help extend knowledge about African American pharmacy students’ college experiences and guide programmatic initiatives that foster increased retention and recruitment.

Comparing Student Performance and Growth in 2- and 4-Year Institutions

This study examines the organizational characteristics of 51 higher education institutions in relationship to student performance and growth. The study first finds that organizational measures of mission, size, wealth, complexity, and selectivity are statistically represented by the 2-year versus 4-year college mission. Findings indicate that 2-year and 4-year campuses indeed do exert significantly different influences on undergraduate GPA and self-reported intellectual growth. Next, the study uses both OLS regression and HLM to examine these influences. High school percentile rank and college classroom experiences are better predictors of Cum GPA at 4-year institutions, while student effort is a better predictor of GPA at 2-year institutions. Whereas the most important predictors of Cum GPA include precollege measures such as high school percentile rank and SAT score, the most influential predictors of student intellectual growth are campus experiences including classroom vitality, peer support, student effort, commitment, and involvement. Controlling for all other variables, students at 2-year institutions receive higher grades, and students at 4-year campuses experience more growth.

Listening to our Students: Understanding the factors that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students' academic success

While the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in higher education in Australia has doubled in recent years, the gap between their attainment and the attainment of other Australians has remained consistent. It is essential to elucidate the factors that promote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students' academic success, not in order to justify the exclusion of these students from tertiary education, but to refine and develop curriculum and management strategies which promote their academic success. This study focuses on Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander students' experiences in a diploma program offered in block mode, in order to better understand the ‘on-’ and ‘off-’ campus experiences which are related to academic success and the factors which challenge or enhance students' study. The research yields important findings related to students' motivations to enrol and their definitions of academic success; the challenges they experience in making the transition to tertiary study; the vulnerability of our students' determination to succeed; the effects of being in a program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students; and the ways in which minor challenges, if unresolved, can accumulate to interfere with students' study.

Modality of thought, campus experiences, and the development of values.

This study measured values with scales composed of items worded in normative, preferential, and self-descriptive modes. Values, background variables, academic majors, and campus experiences were examined in a panel study conducted with university students

Modality of thought, campus experiences, and the development of values.

Modality of thought, campus experiences, and the development of values.

Norms, Preferences, Identities and Retention Decisions

Social psychologists have differed concerning the modes of thought that presumably generate decisions, and independent traditions of research have appeared concerning the effects of three separate thought modes: norms, preferences and self-referent identity labels. In prior research the authors have shown that these modes have independent effects on decisions and that the relative strengths of modal effects vary depending on the context studied. The study now being reported applies this model to retention decisions by undergraduates at a major university. Findings confirm that each thought mode has effects on retention intentions and reenrollment behaviors, that norms have stronger effects for these decisions, and that the effects generated are substantial and independent of those associated with students' backgrounds, achievements, social influences, campus experiences and grades earned. In addition, findings confirm that the decisions to transfer to another campus or to drop out of higher education are predicted differentially by students' thoughts concerning three distinct retention issues.

Impacts of campus experiences and parental socialization on undergraduates' career choices

Impacts of campus experiences and parental socialization on undergraduates' career choices

Educational and Career Confidence and Motivation Among Female and Male Undergraduates

Changes in six measures of achievement-related motivation and confidence were tested in a longitudinal study of 138 women and 96 men during their first year at a mid-sized, midwestern public university. An interaction was found between gender and level of course enrollment during the year (p < .05). Full-time college enrollment was advantageous for the men but disadvantageous for the women as measured by the motivation and confidence variables. This interaction could not be explained by initial differences in the confidence and motivation variables or by differences in 18 other noncampus variables tested. An interaction was also found between acceptance of campus advisement and gender (p < .03). Both findings suggest that the men’s achievement-related motivation and confidence increased with greater assimilation into the campus environment, but that the women showed more positive changes when they were less well assimilated. Implications for differences in the campus experiences of men and women are discussed.