Archive | 2019
WHAT RESEARCH AND EVALUATION METHODS HAVE BEEN USED TO STUDY COGNITIVE AND NON-COGNITIVE FACTORS IN STUDENT TRANSITION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND FIRST YEAR POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION?
Abstract
Students undergoing post-secondary transition are impacted by cognitive and non-cognitive factors. This paper will review available literature on the factors, which affect students during the post-secondary transition and perform a comparative analysis to compare and summarize what research and evaluation methods are used in these studies. The research methodologies described in each study are scrutinized, and details in the methodology used are tabulated and compared. Noncognitive studies generally prefer medium-sized (N=100 to 500) samples, assessed with numerically-scored preestablished questionnaires, whereas cognitive studies do not show a specific sample size or assessment preferences. However, cognitive studies are shown to employ a wide range of data analysis techniques, whereas non-cognitive studies heavily prefer statistical analysis only. A proposed framework is extracted to describe the preferred research methodologies for investigations into cognitive and noncognitive factors.