Xueli Wang

Why Students Choose STEM Majors: Motivation, High School Learning, and Postsecondary Context of Support

This study draws upon social cognitive career theory and higher education literature to test a conceptual framework for understanding the entrance into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors by recent high school graduates attending 4-year institutions. Results suggest that choosing a STEM major is directly influenced by intent to major in STEM, high school math achievement, and initial postsecondary experiences, such as academic interaction and financial aid receipt. Exerting the largest impact on STEM entrance, intent to major in STEM is directly affected by 12th-grade math achievement, exposure to math and science courses, and math self-efficacy beliefs—all three subject to the influence of early achievement in and attitudes toward math. Multiple-group structural equation modeling analyses indicated heterogeneous effects of math achievement and exposure to math and science across racial groups, with their positive impact on STEM intent accruing most to White students and least to underrepresented minority students.

Focusing on the Sophomores: Characteristics Associated with the Academic and Social Involvement of Second-Year College Students.

Research has long suggested that an optimal level of involvement in academic and social activities positively affects student development and outcomes. However, many second-year students experience the “sophomore slump.” For this study, guided by both prior literature and theoretical perspectives, a survey instrument was developed to measure students’ participation and involvement in a range of academic and social activities. The dependent variables comprised of five scales representing various aspects of involvement. Independent variables included student background characteristics, environmental variables, and psychological measures. Results from regression analyses indicate that academic self-efficacy and institutional commitment were strong predictors of sophomore involvement. Student background characteristics illustrate differences in the degree to which students were involved. Living on campus was positively related to sophomore involvement. A discussion of implications for practice follows.

Stability of Educational Expectations Among Baccalaureate Aspirants Beginning at Community Colleges

Using data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, this study explored factors that predict stability of educational expectations among baccalaureate aspirants beginning at community colleges. Based on a nationally representative sample of baccalaureate-aspiring high school seniors of 2004 who entered community colleges as their first postsecondary institutions, this study tested a logistic regression model and found that among precollege characteristics, students’ SES and perceived importance of getting a good education were positively related to the likelihood of retaining baccalaureate expectations 2 years after high school graduation. Among postsecondary predictors, the likelihood of students’ persistence in baccalaureate expectations was positively influenced by interaction with faculty members outside of class and studying in school libraries, but was negatively associated with having reading remediation, receiving financial aid, and being married. These findings have implications for community colleges in providing effective educational practices to help students move forward toward their degree goals.

Fuel for Success: Academic Momentum as a Mediator between Dual Enrollment and Educational Outcomes of Two-Year Technical College Students.

Objective: Despite the fairly substantial body of literature devoted to understanding whether dual enrollment programs are related to academic success in college, less is known regarding how dual enrollment transmits its potentially positive influence, especially among two-year college students. In this study, we fill this gap by delving into the process of how dual enrollment is related to academic success among students attending two-year technical colleges. Specifically, we examine academic momentum as a potential mediator of the relationship between dual enrollment and educational outcomes. Methods: We draw on a sample of more than 15,000 first-time postsecondary students who entered Wisconsin’s two-year technical colleges in 2009 to 2010 after graduating from high school between 2007 and 2009. Using a path analysis, we investigate student transcript records, along with data from the National Student Clearinghouse. Results: Participation in dual enrollment is found to be related to more attempted credits, higher likelihood of college entry without delay, summer enrollment, as well as stronger academic performance. These early academic momentum indicators are then positively related to students’ college completion or retention, fully accounting for the positive relationship between dual enrollment participation and college outcomes. Contributions: Our study provides a finer look into two-year college students’ academic progress and success and how dual enrollment may fuel this process by promoting students’ academic momentum early during their college careers.

The Effect of Postsecondary Coenrollment on College Success Initial Evidence and Implications for Policy and Future Research

Drawing upon the latest data from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:04/09) and the Postsecondary Education Transcript Data (PETS:09), this study employed propensity score matching and postmatching logistic regression to estimate the extent to which postsecondary coenrollment affects persistence and attainment of students beginning at both community colleges and 4-year institutions. Coenrollment was defined as simultaneous enrollment at multiple postsecondary institutions during the same academic term. Findings suggest that coenrollment had a significant positive effect on educational attainment and postsecondary persistence for both student populations. This study has important implications for policy and future research surrounding coenrollment and complex pathways in postsecondary education.

Toward a Holistic Theoretical Model of Momentum for Community College Student Success

In this chapter, I advance a new theoretical model of momentum for community college student success. I first offer a comprehensive review and critique of the academic momentum literature within the context of research on community college student outcomes, describing both conceptual perspectives and empirical studies in this vein, reviewing their strengths and limitations, and assessing their contributions to the knowledge base on community college student success. Based on this review, I argue that the notion of momentum from Newton’s classical mechanics holds great theoretical promise for further advancing the research on this important topic, but two key dimensions of momentum are missing from the current literature: teaching and learning within the community college classroom, as well as students’ motivational attributes and beliefs. The chapter culminates in a new holistic theoretical model of momentum for community college student success. By deeply situating students’ momentum within their course-taking trajectories and their experiences within courses, and by framing the cultivation of students’ attitudes and beliefs as a core part of building momentum, the new model accounts for a fuller and richer meaning of momentum and can be used to better inform research, policy, and practice aimed at fostering community college student success.

What’s Life Got to Do With It? The Role of Life Experiences in Shaping Female Community College Students’ Transfer Intent in STEM Fields of Study

ABSTRACT Transfer in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields from community colleges to 4-year institutions holds great policy significance in alleviating the female underrepresentation in the STEM pipeline, with proportionately more female students attending community colleges. Considering the knowledge gap on this often overlooked topic, we draw upon interview and survey data to explore how life experiences influence the intent to transfer among first-year community college women beginning in STEM. Integrating narrative inquiry to do so, this study paints a complex portrait of two female community college students and the multiple roles and experiences they must reconcile, negotiate, and renegotiate as they navigate toward or away from transfer in STEM. The narratives that emerged reveal the complexity of transfer intent, the importance of recognizing the impact of life experiences, and the ways in which to use such experiences as supports—rather than barriers—to enhance the educational pathways for these students. Further discussion of implications and concluding thoughts are included.

Turning Math Remediation into "Homeroom:" Contextualization as a Motivational Environment for Community College Students in Remedial Math

Kelly Wickersham is a doctoral student in the department of Educational Leadership and Policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on the complexity of community college student pathways through higher education and subsequent persistence and success. The Review of Higher Education Spring 2017, Volume 40, No. 3, pp. 427–464 Copyright

Math Requirement Fulfillment and Educational Success of Community College Students: A Matter of When

Objective: In community colleges, achieving competence in math is critical to students’ timely progression through coursework and eventual educational success; yet, it remains unclear when the optimal timing to complete required math courses is in order to maximize the chance of completing a credential on time. This study examines the timing of college-level math requirement fulfillment in relation to the longer term success of community college students. Method: Utilizing survey data and transcript records of 320 students from an urban community college, we performed a survival analysis to investigate how the precise academic terms in which students complete math requirements, taking into account other student behaviors, are related to credential completion. Results: Findings reveal that completing math requirements at earlier (e.g., first semester) or later (e.g., fourth or fifth semester) stages of college is related to a higher rate of credential completion. Students who engage in active learning, find academics challenging, and feel academically supported have a higher probability of completing a credential, whereas student-faculty interactions are negatively related to credential completion. Contributions: Our findings reveal that fulfilling college-level math requirements early on promises higher odds of credential completion. However, this momentum can be achieved by completing math requirements in Term 1, or it can also be delayed until Terms 4 or 5. It is thus imperative to find ways to more accurately assist community colleges and their students in planning the educational pathways, programs, and services that prevent students from stumbling over necessary math requirements and maximize overall success.

Interact for What? The Relationship between Interpersonal Interaction Based on Motivation and Educational Outcomes among Students in Manufacturing Programs at Two-Year Technical Colleges.

Objective: This study explored the relationship between different types of interpersonal interaction, characterized by their underlying motivations, and educational outcomes among students in manufacturing programs at two-year colleges. While there exist several ways to classify interaction, motivation as an inherent attribute that fuels behaviors has been largely neglected. In this study, we developed a nuanced approach to differentiating types of interaction based on students’ underlying motivation and further investigated how different forms of interaction are related to educational outcomes. Method: We analyzed the Community College Survey of Student Engagement data and administrative records of 242 students entering manufacturing programs during 2011-2012 at four public two-year technical colleges in Wisconsin. The outcome variables were students’ cumulative grade point average (GPA) and their retention/graduation status as of spring 2013. A multiple regression model and a logistic regression model were separately estimated. Results: We found that interaction can be grouped into three categories that represent different underlying motivations: interaction as a response to curricular demands, interaction for broader educational purposes, and interaction for diverse experiences. Interaction for broader educational purposes was positively associated with GPA, but interaction as a response to curricular demands had a negative relationship with GPA. Diversity-related interaction moderated the relationship between college under-preparedness and retention/graduation status. Contributions: This study provides an in-depth examination of interpersonal interaction that is based in the context of students’ underlying motivations. Our findings shed fresh and nuanced light on the relationship between motivation-driven interactions and college outcomes, and inform two-year college administrators and instructors as they strive to provide an enriching learning environment where students interact with faculty and peers to not only navigate course requirements but also engage in activities contributing to their broader educational and career goals.