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transcript
Adding the Non‐Cognitive Dimension to Your Student Success Agenda
August 7, 2014
Adding the Non-Cognitive Dimension to Your Student Success Agenda
Dr. Rigoberto Rincones | rrincone@broward.eduand Ms. Pauline Anderson | panderso@broward.edu
Objectives of the Study
Define student groups that institutions can target through the right and well tailored initiatives, that will ultimately help improve persistence and graduation rates among students otherwise at greater risk of stopping‐out/dropping‐out
Segment students using variables that are actionable, not just descriptive (i.e., clear how you would support students if you knew what segment they were in)
Inform how institutions can more effectively deliver customized student experiences, programs and supports based on the distinctive needs of prioritized segments
Dimensions by which Students were Segmented Identifying segment to be actionable, students must be grouped by
their motivations, needs, and completion barriers that can and should be addressed by postsecondary institutions to improve persistence and graduation rates
Existing student segmentation schemes typically rely on demographics or other observable characteristics to group students – which are not necessarily reliable indicators of students’ motivators and needs
By contrast, the segments created through this initiative were defined by differences in students’ Internal Perspectives and External Barriers
The objective was not to identify what would make students ‘happier’, but rather what would help drive student success; to accomplish this, it was critical to derive and validate which Internal Perspectives and External Barriers inhibit success
Segmentation Dimensions: Definition and Rationale
Students’ Internal Perspectives1: What they are: beliefs about themselves, their goals in school, their feelings
of social belonging, and their self‐regulatory skills Rationale for inclusion: these factors—beyond content knowledge and
academic skills – have been shown to have an impact on student performance
• Note: underpinning this approach is a belief grounded in research that Internal Perspectives can be changed (i.e. they are not fixed)
Students’ External Barriers: What they are: external pressures and challenges that inhibit a student’s
ability to succeed in school (e.g. financial constraints) Rationale for inclusion: while better understood, these barriers also
contribute to non‐completion – and have not typically been examined in the context of segmentation (i.e. groups of students with different barriers)
1. often referred to by academics as ‘non‐cognitive factors’ because they are not measured by commonly administered cognitive tests such as IQ tests or academic examinations
What the Segmentation Is and Is Not Intended to do
Segmentation IS intended to…
Provide a new lens for institutions to better understand their student population
Help institutions make resource allocation decisions more strategically based on the needs of their unique student populations
Inform how institutions might customize their offer (supports, student services, curriculum, learning models, etc.) in direct response to the motivations, needs and preferences
Segmentation is NOT intended to…
Predict how students will fare in their academic experience
Be used as a selection criteria for college admission
What this Study Brings to the Field
The new value this study brings to the field is a more comprehensive and actionable approach to student segmentation, focusing on the fundamental non‐observable factors that contribute to non‐completion
Our hope is that the segmentation solution will ultimately help define which models are best positioned to serve distinct student populations and will inform decisions on how individual institutions can more effectively serve the unique needs of current and prospective students
This will contribute to making college more personalized, flexible, transparent, valuable, and affordable to students, which in turn should help more students earn a postsecondary credential that is of value in the labor market
Participating InstitutionsThe diverse set of institutions included will help demonstrate the value of this approach across a
range of school types and starting points
Summary of Approach
Phase 1: Planning Grant (May-Nov)
Segment Students
1AIdentify
key issues and set within
institutional context
1B
Set leading indicators and
tracking design
3
Monitor and track student
success
4
Analyze and refine
5
Codify best practices for managing to segments6
Design tailored initiatives for each school
1C
Literature review
2AInstitutional
Logic modeling
2B
Phase 1 Deliverable: Business case and high level implementation plan to launch tailored initiatives designed to increase persistence and graduation rates with at-risk student segments
Current Students
Non-Completers
Considered a Break
Tooka Break
GPA1
below 3.0Took
Dev Ed5% 25% 80% 34% 48% 22%
63% 19% 37% 22%
This perspective…
ROI Skeptic – Segment Overview
Defining Characteristics
InhibitsSuccess
EnablesSuccess
• Don’t feel getting a degree is worth the money or time
• Not confident that content/skills learned are useful, nor that a degree will help secure employment
“Getting a degree isn’t worth the money” “The content and skills I’m learning don’t seem useful or relevant” “Even with a degree I might not be able to find a job”
Description
ROI skeptics are less convinced of the value proposition associated with getting a degree
It is not surprising that they question if it is ‘worth it’ given they are already working, and are now stretched with school responsibilities as well– Most likely to be working 26-40 hours a week
to fund education– Least likely to get financial support from home
They are most likely to consider and take a break
They are less self-motivated and more likely to attend school because parents wanted them to
This perspective leads to below average academic performance and is the strongest predictor of non-completion of all Internal Perspectives
Note: ROI stands for “Return on Investment”; 1. Self-reported GPA
Students in this segment…
Overall Avg:
Represent x% of:
This perspective…
Lacks Family Support & College Knowledge – Segment Overview
Defining Characteristics
InhibitsSuccess
EnablesSuccess
• Lacks family / community support before and after deciding to go to college
• Lacks skills to navigate school – e.g., seeking help, declaring major, etc.
“My family and closest friends do not support my decision to go to college”“College is not valued by my family or community”
Description
Students who Lack Family Support and College Knowledge feel alone, and not supported by their family during college
In some cases, parents do not have the context or understanding to support their children (most likely to have 1st generation students)….
….in other cases, supporting the family in the near term is valued over investing 2+ years in education
These students appear to lack the knowledge to navigate school– Lowest % to have declared a major – Don’t seek help (do they know they should?) – Don’t believe teachers want them to succeed
They are more likely to attend school to learn job skills and less likely to recognize their degree as an important achievement in itself
Current Students
Non-Completers
Considered a Break
Tooka Break
GPA1
below 3.0Took
Dev Ed18% 19% 76% 22% 42% 31%
63% 19% 37% 22%
Students in this segment…
Overall Avg:
Represent x% of:
Note: 1. Self-reported GPA
This perspective…
Well‐Supported from Home and Sense of Belonging
InhibitsSuccess
EnablesSuccess
• Always knew they’d go to college, supported by community
• Have friends at college and feel like they belong
Description
Current Students
Non-Completers
Considered a Break
Tooka Break
GPA1
below 3.0Took
Dev Ed17% 7% 46% 8% 24% 12%
63% 19% 37% 22%
Students in this segment…
Overall Avg:
Represent x% of:
Note: 1. Self-reported GPA
Defining Characteristics
“I always knew I’d go to college and felt prepared for it”“I have family, community, and financial support here”
Well-Supported from Home and Sense of Belonging come from a home environment that prepares them to be successful in college– Highest income families– Most educated parents– Strongest financial support from home– (they are also least ethnically diverse)
These students almost exclusively attend full-time and live on campus
They view college as a natural progression from high school and are most confident that they will graduate
Given the support they receive and the enabling Internal Perspectives they display, it is unsurprising that these students are high performers and are much less likely to drop out of college
Customized Supports: ROI Skeptic
ROI Skeptics need a tighter linkage between their education and potential careers; Institutions must demonstrate the education is 'worth it' (the “business case” for these students)
Lever Classification & Examples / Description
Strategic alliances with employers – Employer input to curriculum, co-branded courses, integrated internship programs with local employers
Alumni mentor network – Mentoring program linking current students with alumni in their field, alumni networking sessions on campus
Career contextualized instruction – Real-world examples in classes, instructors with experience in my career field, learning objectives described in career, career oriented skill development built-in to coursework (e.g., software programs)
Return on educational investment calculator – Tool providing a cost / benefit analysis of a college education
Integrated career planning – Integrated career counseling in first weeks, guidance on which courses to choose based on career interest (Note: this must be integrated because these students are unlikely to seek out this support)
Expectancy-value theory– Writing and brainstorming activities that help students orient the value they expect to gain from an experience, such as describing how the content they’re learning in class could be applied to their lives outside of school
Curriculum Design
Support Services
Strategic Leadership
Financial Administration
Non-Cognitive Interventions
Customized Supports: Persevering Independent
To support Persevering Independents, colleges should leverage opportunities to increaseconnectedness through curriculum design, support services and technology1
Lever Classification & Examples / Description
Digital community applications – Linking students to campus programs, jobs, performances, online registration, online tuition pay, etc.
Intimate and inclusive learning environments – Cohort learning communities, diversity/global learning instruction, smaller seminar courses in first year
Pro‐active counselor outreach– Student services personnel seek out students instead of waiting for students to come to them demonstrates that the school cares about their place in the college community and success at school
Belonging promotion exercises – Reading, writing, and speaking activities that alleviate fears about not fitting in at school, both socially and academically
Curriculum Design
Support Services
Technology
Non-Cognitive Interventions
1. And avoid forced social interaction
Diagnostic Student Matrix: Average 2‐Year School vs. Broward
External Barriers Minimal Barriers
Inhibiting Internal Perspectives
Enabling Internal Perspectives
External Barriers Minimal Barriers
Inhibiting Internal Perspectives
Enabling Internal Perspectives
43%
25%
44%
24%
18%
14%
20%
12%
2-ye
ar p
ublic
Bro
war
d
Segmentation Results
All 2-year Public1
Age 18-24
All Broward StudentsN = 6,133
ROI Skeptic 8% 17%
Lacks Sense of Belonging 9% 7%
Questions Academic Ability 7% 7%
Lacks Family Support & College Knowledge 23% 18%
Persevering Independent 18% 15%
Strong Belonging, but Financial Worries 13% 11%
Positive Perspective Overall 14% 18%
Support from Home and Belonging 8% 7%
All 2-year Public1
Age 18-24
All Broward StudentsN = 6,133
No Clear Path to Degree 18% 5%
Financial Barriers 26% 46%
Juggling Responsibilities 19% 8%
Challenged byCoursework 9% 9%
Socializing Gets in the Way 8% 7%
Difficulty Getting Classes 13% 19%
Perceived Juggling 7% 6%
ROI Skeptics and Financial Barriers are opportunity areas for Broward as they are the inhibiting perspectives and barriers where Broward over-indexes the most
External BarriersInternal Perspectives
Note: Green and red shading indicates statistically significant over or under-indexing relative to the national average
Issue Identification
All 2-yr Public
Age 18-24
All Broward StudentsN = 6,133
HispanicN = 1,336
WhiteN = 1,257
BlackN = 2,239
FemaleN = 2,117
Part-TimeN = 2,441
First GenN = 1,684
TransferN = 531
Dev EdN = 2,157
ROI Skeptic 8% 17% 18% 18% 16% 16% 18% 17% 17% 18%
Lacks Sense of Belonging 9% 7% 7% 8% 7% 7% 8% 7% 6% 8%
Questions Academic Ability 7% 7% 5% 6% 8% 8% 7% 6% 7% 8%
Lacks Family Support & College Knowledge 23% 18% 17% 22% 16% 16% 18% 21% 15% 21%
Persevering Independent 18% 15% 15% 11% 16% 16% 14% 13% 16% 13%
Strong Belonging, but Financial Worries 13% 11% 13% 10% 10% 12% 11% 10% 13% 10%
Positive Perspective Overall 14% 18% 16% 16% 20% 18% 17% 18% 19% 18%
Support from Home and Belonging 8% 7% 7% 9% 6% 7% 7% 7% 7% 5%
Inhibiting Perspectives
Enabling Perspectives
The ROI Skeptic segment cuts across all observable student groups; there is, therefore, a universal opportunity to improve the perception of the value of a degree
Broward ROI Skeptics: What they believe
23
For the Broward ROI Skeptic, the more prevalent mindset (70% of the segment) is a near term view that earning money now is more important than staying in school at this time
50%
70%
Getting a degree is (not)
worththe money
Mindsets of the Broward ROI Skeptic
Earning money now is more
important than pursuing
my education
ROI Skeptic – Segment Overview“Getting a degree isn’t worth the money”, “The content and skills I’m learning don’t seem
useful or relevant”, “Even with a degree I might not be able to find a job”
ROI Defining Characteristics (Marakon) Broward College’s Student Characteristics
ROI skeptics are less convinced of the value proposition associated with getting a degree
ROI skeptics were convinced of the value proposition associated with getting a degree, but were concerned with money/time spent (i.e., “wasted”) on unnecessary curriculum requirements
They are most likely to consider and take a break
They are most likely to consider and take a break not because of personal preference but to save for finance their education
They are less self‐motivated and more likely to attend school because parents wanted them to
They were self‐motivated, fully aware of the costs of pursuing a degree (most students were caregivers)
This perspective leads to below average academic performance and is the strongest predictor of non‐completion of all Internal Perspectives
They had an average GPA of 3.2 and expressed agreement on the long‐term benefits of pursuing a degree outweighing the short‐term costs
ROI Skeptic – Segment Overview
“Getting a degree isn’t worth the money” The content and skills I’m learning don’t seem useful or relevant” “Even with a degree I might not be able to find a job”
ROI Defining Characteristics (Marakon)
Broward College’s Student Characteristics
Quotes: “The content and skills I’m learning
don’t seem useful or relevant”
Findings: They are not convinced of the
applicability of course material to the skills and knowledge in the real labor market
“Even with a degree I might not be able to find a job”
They were fearful that a degree would not lead to a job
Context for Designing Initiatives
Well-tailored initiatives that will be most effective at Broward should be informed by two critical inputs…
Context on the BrowardROI Skeptic
Broward SpecificInstitutional Context+
Designing Tailored Initiatives
Three main initiatives – each with specific tactics below them – have emerged to address the Broward ROI Skeptic
Integrated Career Pathways Advising
Faculty Professional DevelopmentHigh School Outreach
Two-tier advising model: FTIC advisors, career path advisors
Program sheets AA specializations Partnerships with
workforce board Career and advising
center re-branding effort
Ideas to embed ‘value of degree’ education into curriculum
Career contextualized lessons as part of syllabus
Toolkit / skill set to better connect with students
Training on mentoring / advising
Embed content on value of degree in high school outreach initiatives
Tailored leave behind materials for high school students (and their parents)
“Catch them early” “Provide a clear path” “Frequent reinforcement”