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Bonds and bridges:The relative importance of relations
with peers and faculty for college student achievement
Sandra Dika, PhDAssistant Research Professor
Office of Institutional Research and PlanningUniversity of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
2008 Association for Institutional Research Forum, Seattle, WAMay 28, 2008
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Background and Framework
Influences on student achievement in college What students bring with them (background)
What students do while in college (effort and engagement)
Importance of relationships with institutional agents, especially faculty
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Relationships as Social Capital
Bonding social capital – relationships with people in similar situations or of similar status to build solidarity
Bridging social capital – looser relationships that provide access to external assets and information
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Research Questions
Are there differences in bonding and bridging social capital based on membership in different student groups: first year, senior, male, female, first generation, continuing generation?
What is the relative importance of bonding and bridging social capital for college student achievement, taking into account previous achievement factors and student study efforts, and does this differ by student group?
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez
Part of UPR system (11 campuses) Over 12,000 students Bilingual Hispanic Serving Institution STEM focused (60% of undergraduates) High female participation in STEM 71% receive financial aid 35% first generation
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Sample and Instrumentation
First year and senior UPRM students participating in the 2005 and 2007 administrations of the Spanish web-based NSSE (N=961) 61% women 62% first year 28% first generation
Little reliability and validity evidence for Spanish NSSE but assumed to be similar to English version; more research necessary
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
VariablesBackground Study Effort Social CapitalHigh school GPA Hours/wk preparing for
classAcademically focused interaction with peers
English achievement Quality of relationships with other students
Math achievement Interaction with faculty members
Spanish achievement Quality of academic advising
Parental education level
Quality of relationships with faculty members
Quality of relationships with administrative personnel/offices
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Dependent variable: college GPA
Data Analysis
Hierarchical multiple linear regression in three blocks Block 1: Five background variables Block 2: Study effort Block 3: Six social capital variables
All statistical tests evaluated at the α=.05 level
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Frequency and Quality of Bonding with Other StudentsBonding Social Capital
Highest Levels Lowest Levels
Academically focused interaction
• Seniors • First year students• First generation students
Quality of relationships
• Seniors • First year students• First generation students• Men
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Frequency and Quality of Bridging with Institutional AgentsBridging Social Capital
Highest Levels Lowest Levels
Interaction with faculty
• Seniors • First year students
Quality of relationships with faculty
• Women • Men
Quality of academic advising
• First year students • Seniors
Quality of relationships with admin
• First generation students • Continuing generation students
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results - Correlations
Social capital variables were positively correlated, particularly quality of relationships
Most variables positively correlated with college GPA, especially high school GPA
First generation students: Negligible correlation with parental education Quality of relationships with faculty members higher
than standardized test scores
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Three Models (N=961)
Model First year Senior Men WomenFirst
generationContinuing generation
Model 1 .27*** .36*** .32*** .25*** .19*** .30***
Model 2 .31*** .36*** .33*** .27*** .22*** .33***
Model 3 .36*** .41*** .37*** .34*** .31*** .38***
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Study effort predicts an additional 0 to 4 percent variance in college GPA; social capital variables predict an additional 4 to 9 percent variance
Results – First Year Students (R2=.36)
Six significant predictors: High school GPA (.31) Quality of relationships with faculty (.25) Hours per week preparing for class (.18) English achievement (.14) Math achievement (.10) Maximum parental education (.08)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Senior Students (R2=.41)
Five significant predictors: High school GPA (.34) Quality of relationships with faculty (.22) English achievement (.21) Math achievement (.14) Maximum parental education (.11)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Men (R2=.37)
Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.34) Quality of relationships with faculty (.17) English achievement (.15) Math achievement (.13) Hours per week preparing for class (.13) Interaction with faculty (.11) Academically focused interaction with peers (-.10) Maximum parental education (.09)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Women (R2=.34)
Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.28) Quality of relationships with faculty (.26) Hours per week preparing for class (.15) English achievement (.14) Math achievement (.13) Quality of academic advising (-.10) Interaction with faculty (.09) Maximum parental education (.08)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – First Generation Students (R2=.31)
Three significant predictors: Quality of relationships with faculty (.34) High school GPA (.29) Quality of academic advising (-.11)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Results – Continuing Generation Students (R2=.38)
Eight significant predictors: High school GPA (.33) Quality of relationships with faculty (.19) English achievement (.17) Hours per week preparing for class (.16) Math achievement (.12) Interaction with faculty (.12) Maximum parental education (.11) Academically focused peer interaction (-.09)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Discussion
Importance of high school GPA as an achievement predictor seen across all groups
Background variables explained notably less variance for first generation students (Hahs-Vaughn, 2004)
Pattern of predictive influence of standardized test performance is not straightforward English vs. Spanish achievement
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Discussion
Study effort predicted only 1-4% additional variance beyond background variables
Significant positive effect for first year, men, women, and continuing generation students in final model
Nature of measure may limit interpretation of these effects (5 hour spans of time, self-report)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Discussion
Student-faculty interaction as key social capital factor in predicting college GPA (Anaya & Cole, 2001; Kuh & Hu, 2001)
Quality vs. quantity of interaction with faculty (Lundberg & Schreiner, 2004; Sax, Bryant, & Harper, 2005)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Discussion
Negative coefficients for bonding social capital, quality of academic advising, and quality of relationships with administrative personnel contradict positive correlations
Multicollinearity apparently not an issue (VIF range 1.0-2.0)
Quality of academic advising – need to understand what is measured (who accesses academic advising more frequently?)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Conclusions
Student-faculty interaction is an important element in predicting student achievement, independent of class rank, gender, or first generation status As important as high school GPA for first generation
students Bonding social capital does not significantly predict
academic achievement May predict other forms of engagement and non-
cognitive outcomesDika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Limitations
Sample from a single institution Unexplained negative effects of certain variables
Academic advising Academically focused interaction with peers
Model not inclusive of all variables that may predict student achievement
Other dependent variables not considered (retention, graduation, learning gains)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Continuing Research
Look at individual interaction variables to determine which are more effective in predicting achievement and other outcomes (e.g., discussions outside of class, discussing career plans)
Test model with other dependent variables – retention, perceived learning and development (NSSE variables)
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges
Contact information:sandra.dika@gmail.comTel: 787-265-5465
Paper and presentation will be available for download at
http://oiip.uprm.edu/beams.html
Dika, 2008 AIR Forum - Bonds and Bridges