Perceptions of Discrimination Predict Retention of College Students of Color: Connections with School Belonging and Ethnic Identity

This longitudinal study examines (a) whether perceptions of ethnic discrimination during the first weeks of college predicted later school belonging among first-year college students of color ( N = 638) attending a predominantly White institution (PWI), (b) whether school belonging, in turn, predicted retention to the second year, and (c) whether ethnic identity centrality buffered the effects of discrimination on school belonging and academic retention. Participants completed measures of ethnic discrimination and identity near the beginning of the first semester and school belonging at the end of the semester. Academic data from the fall of the second year were obtained from school records. Tests of moderated mediation revealed that perceptions of discrimination at the beginning of college had an indirect effect on retention in the second year of college, as mediated by lowered school belonging, but only for students with low and moderate (but not high) ethnic identity centrality.

ACADEMIC RETENTION, RESEARCH CAPACITY, AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICAN UNIVERSITIES

There is a shift of interest towards the current pace of development in Africa especially with regard to science and technology. The rate at which advancements are being recorded in this and other sectors has not been encouraging, as evident from official records. Scholars and researchers in various disciplines have correlated development to education and identified close associations between the level of performance of any citizenry or manpower, and the quality of its education. Accordingly, the quality of life and experience on the African continent has, to an appreciable extent, been characterised as the output variable and the quality of education including that of the teachers, as the input variable. The antecedent variable, too, which in this context is the totality of experience that informs educational directions in Africa, is arguably a product of the input variable. Consequently, the tertiary educational level especially the university system, unlike both the primary and the secondary, may be more strongly associated with the quality of performance. This may be explained through the dominant thinking that the tertiary system is primarily concerned with the production of manpower for various sectors. While there is evidence of research into this question, there is insufficient evidence of research into the interplay of the academic retention system and research capacity development orientation in African universities. This paper is an attempt to investigate that hitherto underrepresented dimension. The study employs a combination of the historical method and analytic philosophy. Its significance lies in its potential to expose, with evidence, the association between the dominant academic retention system and research capacity development orientation in African universities, as well as the implication of such an association for sustainable development in Africa. The study ultimately offers an ameliorative proposal for revitalizing an outcome-oriented research capacity development system in African universities.

Determinants of retention strategies and sustainable performance of academic staff of government-owned universities in Nigeria

Background: Retention of academic staff is gaining the attention of various educational stakeholders in many developing countries like Nigeria. However, there is little extant literature on how various determinants and risk factors affect retention strategies and sustainable performance of academic staff of government owned universities in Nigeria. Consequently, this paper showed the direct relationships between retention strategies and sustainable performance. Methods: Copies of the designed questionnaire were distributed to members of the academic staff ranging from the Professors to Graduate Assistants of the selected state-owned Universities in Southern Nigeria. Statistical analysis for the study included descriptive measures, measurement and structural models. Results: The determinants of retention strategies had significant impacts on the sustainable performance of academic staff at r = 0.660 (p < 0.05) and r = 0.558 (p < 0.05), respectively. A direct relationship was also established between academic retention and sustainable performance of staff in the selected universities (r = 0.187, p < 0.05). This implies that the 48.3% variance in sustainable performance is explained by the level of determinants/risk factors and retention of academic staff in the selected universities. Conclusions: The study concludes that adequate funding provides Nigerian universities with the opportunity to meet the needs of the growing population and to match other top universities elsewhere in the development of vital highly skilled manpower, research and innovations, which are the tools for sustainable performance.

EFFECT OF IMPROVISED INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS ON CHEMISTRY STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC RETENTION IN SECONDARY SCHOOL

This study investigated the effect of improvised instructional materials on chemistry students’ academic retention in secondary school. It covered the topics; acids, bases and acid- base reactions. Two research questions and two hypotheses were used to guide the study, relevant literatures were also reviewed. The study was carried out in Awka education zone in Anambra State. The population of the study consists of 8,583 SS1 chemistry students in the zone. The sample size for the study comprised of 192 SS1 chemistry students. The study adopted quasi-experimental design. Four purposively selected co-educational schools were used for the study of which students of chemistry in two schools were assigned to experimental group which received treatment of involvement in teaching chemistry using improvised instructional materials and the other two schools were assigned to control group which were taught using standard instructional materials. Twenty- five (25) Chemistry retention test (CRT) was used as the instrument. The instrument was validated by expert in science education department and educational foundation. CRT reliability was established using Kudar Richardson 20 (KR-20) which yielded reliability coefficient of 0.81. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed that, students taught chemistry with improvised instructional materials significantly achieved more than those taught with standard instructional materials. Also, there was high knowledge retention on the experimental group than the control group. There was no interaction effect of gender and type of instructional materials on students’ retention in chemistry. It was recommended that teachers in the teaching field should be trained on the skills of the use of improvised instructional materials. Based on the findings of the study, it was concluded that the use of improvised instructional materials in teaching of chemistry improve the academic retention of students in chemistry.

To pass or not to pass: A qualitative inquiry on students’ views on the academic retention policy

Retention policy is an important guiding principle implemented by academic institution to promote students’ development, yet evidence is unable to disentangle how the effect of retention policy varies by the outcome in student’s intellect and morality. This study gathered the views and perspectives of students in relation to the retention policy of the college. This study used the qualitative-phenomenological method. Seven participants who gained the lowest general percentage average were purposively selected. In-depth interviews were conducted to obtain the pertinent information. Results revealed that retention policy was a source of encouragement for students to perform well and it was a necessity to develop and enhance students’ cognition. However, few students mentioned that the retention policy was a source of stress because they needed to comply with the standard requirements imposed by the college. They reiterated that the policy discriminated against slow-learners. The findings implicate that concrete actions may be done to address the misconception on the retention policy. Strong academic support and resources may be offered to address students’ needs especially to those who were at-risk. Retention policy will remain a challenge to all students if the academic institution is not fully equipped to respond to the needs of the students.

Risk Factors and Effectiveness of Implemented Academic Interventions on Student Retention at a Hispanic-Serving Institution

We examined three large freshman cohorts from Texas State University, a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), to identify risk factors that might affect academic retention. Risk factors supported by empirical studies such as first-generation, ethnicity, gender, financial aid need, high school performance, and living off campus were examined. We also determined the effectiveness of four academic interventions in achieving retention of students that were on academic probation for two consecutive semesters. Statistical analyses demonstrated that being a first-generation college student and receiving financial aid were significant risks for attrition in all cohorts. Living off-campus and being an URM student were not. Retention in two cohorts was dependent on the combinations of three peer mentoring, two academic coaching, and two to three academic advising sessions. A probation predictive model was developed. Finally, we discussed the importance of examining risk factors and interventions that are tailored to each academic institution.

The Effect of Multimedia Instructional Strategy In Enhancing The Students’ Academic Retention Ability: A Case Study Of Technical Colleges In Ondo State, Nigeria

Academic retention ability of students for concepts taught in school has been of great concern to all stakeholders in education, especially as it is likely to have corresponding impact on both retention of students in high school grades, as well asin facilitating the capacity of educational institutions to retain the students in schools. These phenomena which constitute socio-economic problems worldwide apply also to students and educational situations in Nigeria. Thus these researchers set out to explore if a modern student-centred teaching method, like the multimedia instructional strategy could enhance students’ academic retention ability. In this study one research question guided the study and one hypothesis was tested at 0.05 alpha level of significance. The study adopted quasi-experimented design in which the pre-test, post-test, delayed post (Retention) design involved two unequal intact (experimental & control) groups. A total of 123 mechanical trade (year II) students from technical colleges in Ondo State, Nigeria, formed the population. By purposive sampling technique, the two intact groups of students (43 and 41) located in two local Governments Areas apart from each other, were selected to form a sample of 84. There were three data collection instruments namely the lesson plan for the control group, the lesson plan for the experimental group, and the Mechanical Trade Achievement Test (MTAT).These were validated by two mechanical technology lecturers from the Department of Technology and Vocational Education and one lecturer from Measurement Evaluation Unit, all from the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria. Using the Kuder-Richardson formula 21 (KR-21) techniques, the MTAT was subjected to the reliability test to yield the reliability coefficient of 0.82. Thereafter, the experimental and the control groups were pre-tested, and then subjected to treatment (teaching) for five weeks and later post-tested. They were further tested (delay post test or retention test) after two weeks of no activity. The MTAT was used for all the tests, expect that each time, the content were reshuffled, and the colour of the paper changed. The resulting data were collected and analyzed with the mean for the research question and the analysis of the covariance (ANCOVA) at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of this study revealed that teaching with multimedia instructional strategy really enhanced student’s academic retention ability as shown from the mechanical trade students. It was therefore concluded that multimedia technology is more effective in improving students’ academic retention ability. Consequently it was recommended that teachers should adopt using multimedia technology in teaching.

Determinants of retention strategies and sustainable performance of academic staff of government-owned universities in Nigeria

Background: Retention of academic staff is gaining the attention of various educational stakeholders in many developing countries like Nigeria. However, there is little extant literature on how various determinants and risk factors affect retention strategies and sustainable performance of academic staff of government owned universities in Nigeria. Consequently, this paper showed the direct relationships between retention strategies and sustainable performance. Methods: Copies of the designed questionnaire were distributed to members of the academic staff ranging from the Professors to Graduate Assistants of the selected state-owned Universities in Southern Nigeria. Statistical analysis for the study included descriptive measures, measurement and structural models. Results: The determinants of retention strategies had significant impacts on the sustainable performance of academic staff at r = 0.660 (p < 0.05) and r = 0.558 (p < 0.05), respectively. A direct relationship was also established between academic retention and sustainable performance of staff in the selected universities (r = 0.187, p < 0.05). This implies that the 48.3% variance in sustainable performance is explained by the level of determinants/risk factors and retention of academic staff in the selected universities. Conclusions: The study concludes that adequate funding provides Nigerian universities with the opportunity to meet the needs of the growing population and to match other top universities elsewhere in the development of vital highly skilled manpower, research and innovations, which are the tools for sustainable performance.

Predicting key educational outcomes in academic trajectories: a machine-learning approach

Predicting and understanding different key outcomes in a student’s academic trajectory such as grade point average, academic retention, and degree completion would allow targeted intervention programs in higher education. Most of the predictive models developed for those key outcomes have been based on traditional methodological approaches. However, these models assume linear relationships between variables and do not always yield accurate predictive classifications. On the other hand, the use of machine-learning approaches such as artificial neural networks has been very effective in the classification of various educational outcomes, overcoming the limitations of traditional methodological approaches. In this study, multilayer perceptron artificial neural network models, with a backpropagation algorithm, were developed to classify levels of grade point average, academic retention, and degree completion outcomes in a sample of 655 students from a private university. Findings showed a high level of accuracy for all the classifications. Among the predictors, learning strategies had the greatest contribution for the prediction of grade point average. Coping strategies were the best predictors for degree completion, and background information had the largest predictive weight for the identification of students who will drop out or not from the university programs.

Influential Factors in Academic Retention in the Licensee Undergraduate Courses in Natural Sciences of a Brazilian Public University

The objective of this study was to identify the students' perception regarding the factors related to academic retention in two licensee courses in Nature Sciences. The subjects were academics who had already failed or blocked their enrollments in at least one component. The data collection was done through a questionnaire with questions and affirmations which were evaluated through a five-level agreement scale. From the obtained data were made descriptive analyzes, which were discussed from the Model for Study of Factors Associated with the Retention Process described in the area literature. The results indicate that the factors: secondary education, lack of student support programs, and the need to work while attending the course influence in academic retention in the context investigated. Given this, it is possible to list some actions that can minimize the high rate of retention in these courses.