The problem of this study was to investigate the relationships that exist among individual short-term counseling, academic achievement, personality factors, and college persistence of students on the junior college level.

The problem of the study is to investigate the effect of sex differences in the use of the California Achievement Tests and the California Test of Mental Maturity in predicting academic success in high school. The specific predictors which are analyzed for sex differences are verbal intelligence quotient from the California Test of Mental Maturity and reading vocabulary, reading comprehension, arithmetic achievement, and language achievement from the California Achievement Tests.

The problem of this study was to determine the relationship between certain non-intellectual variables and academic achievement.

This study was designed to develop a procedure for the identification of freshman students at risk in the academic and social integration process at Texas Christian University. The data for the study were collected from the Student Information Form (SIF) and student records system at Texas Christian University. The data included demographic, attitudinal, educational background and one-year persistence indicators (retain and drop) as well as one-year cumulative grade point averages for the fall 1990 entering freshman class.

The purposes of this study were to determine if a kindergartener's developmental stage correlates with subsequent scholastic achievement, to determine whether developmentally younger children who repeat kindergarten attain higher academic achievement than developmental 1y younger children who do not repeat kindergarten, and to investigate the relationship between head circumference, developmental age, and achievement. Ninety-seven kindergartners of various ethnicity and socio-economic status were administered the Gesell School Readiness Screening Test to determine developmental age and were followed academically for three years. Head circumference was noted periodically to measure brain growth. The hypotheses predicted significant positive correlations between developmental age in kindergarten and scores on later achievement tests. Further, it was predicted that children below 5.3 years in developmental age who delayed entrance to first grade would score significantly higher on first grade achievement tests than match-paired promoted students. It was hypothesized that there would be significant correlations between head circumference growth and (a) gains in achievement test scores and (b) developmental age at kindergarten. The first hypothesis, tested by Pearson Product Moment Correlations, established the existence of significant correlations between developmental ages of test subjects and their scores on four academic achievement tests. The results indicated that developmental age was a better predictor of achievement test scores than chronological age. Since only five children in this study were retained in kindergarten, hypothesis 2 was analyzed descriptively. Mean scores on first grade achievement tests were higher for the retainees than for the "at risk" non-retainees. Hypothesis 3 was tested by stepwise multiple regression. At the first step, the linear trend between the independent variable, CTBS score, and the dependent variable, I TBS score, was calculated and found to be significant at the .001 level. The addition of head circumference growth to the equation did not add significantly to the prediction of I TBS scores from CTBS scores. There was a significant negative correlation between developmental age in kindergarten and head growth.

The present study had three purposes. The first was to determine which of seven variables were significantly correlated with improvement in reading in a representative sample of elementary school children who had received remedial reading instruction. The second was to ascertain whether these variables could be used in developing an equation for predicting improvement that would be simple and quick enough to be of practical value in the remedial clinic. The final purpose was to determine whether the relationship between intelligence and reading improvement was the same over three different intelligence ranges.

As community colleges have gained more recognition as a viable pathway for students to enter higher education, they have faced greater accountability that has prompted both practitioners and policy makers to attempt to find solutions and tools, such as National Survey of Student Engagement, Community College Survey of Student Engagement, and Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE), to aid in improving student success outcomes. This study addressed the validity and reliability of the SENSE instrument using a three-pronged approach via student data collected over 3 years of SENSE administrations at a large urban community college (n = 4,958). The instrument was first factor analyzed against the SENSE benchmarks for effective educational practice through generalized least squares and principal component exploratory factor analysis. Although the instrument did not deliver a chi-square factored fit for the six benchmark categories, consistent loadings were observed. Second, construct reliability was tested for each benchmark category, and the survey as a whole using Cronbach’s alpha. All categories did not yield sufficient coefficient scores for establishing construct reliability. However, the overall survey produced a Cronbach’s alpha of .85, clearly indicating construct reliability for all items combined. Third, correlations between SENSE perception scores and community college students’ grade point averages, fall to fall retention, semester credit hours, course completion for developmental and college gateway courses, and degree and certificate completion were calculated. Although no strong correlations were observed, the SENSE may be useful to community colleges seeking to increase completion rates.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if traditional indicators of college readiness were better predictors of students’ first semester college GPA and persistence to the second year of coursework compared to non-traditional indicators of college readiness. Specifically, this study analyzed the predictive validity of high school class rank and ACT/SAT scores compared to that of the psychosocial skills measured by the ACT Engage on students’ first semester college GPA and their likelihood of enrollment in the second year of college coursework. Methodology: Linear and logistic regression models were used to examine the effect of gender, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, high school rank, Texas Success Initiative college readiness scores, SAT or ACT scores, and the ten themes of the ACT Engage Inventory (dependent variables), on students’ first semester college GPA and rate of persistence to the second year (independent variables). A sample of 4,379 first semester college freshmen participated in this study. Findings: Results indicated that high school rank, ACT/SAT scores and psychosocial skills measured by the ACT Engage theme academic discipline were accurate predictors of college performance. Results regarding the predictive power of traditional academic and non-traditional psychosocial predictors of persistence were less definitive. Students qualifying for federal financial assistance and female students showed the greatest likelihood of not returning for the second year of college. Research Limitations: One limitation of this study occurred because separate ethnicities were not evaluated as independent variables. Additionally, further research should occur regarding the relationship between the independent variables of gender and socioeconomic status and the dependent variable persistence. Practical Implications: Due to the predictive power of high school class rank, college entrance exam scores, and the psychosocial skill of academic discipline, educators and policy makers should design targeted preparation and support initiatives around improving students’ skills in these areas. Recommendations for such initiatives were provided. Value of Paper: This paper is valuable to educators at the secondary school and university levels because results can be used to design preparation and support programs in order to improve students’ performance and persistence at the college level.

Using Tinto's longitudinal model of institutional departure as the theoretical basis for this research, the purpose was to determine what extent selected motivational factors measured by the College Student Inventory (CSI) predict academic success and persistence of at-risk students at the University of North Texas (UNT). The study focused on United States citizens and permanent residents entering UNT as at-risk first-time freshmen admitted via individual approval for the fall 1994 semester. The 409 subjects were enrolled in a developmental course titled Personal and Academic Effectiveness where the CSI was administered during the first 2 weeks of class. Selected predictor variables were tested in relation to the separate criterion variables of grade point average and enrolled status during the 2nd and 4th years of the study. Grade point averages and enrollment data for the 1995-96 and 1997-98 academic years were extracted from the student information management system. The research design employed appropriate multiple regressions, multiple correlations, multiple discriminant analyses, and bivariate correlations. Findings confirmed the ability of five CSI factors to predict grade point average (p < .05) of at-risk students over the time frames used in this study. Nine factors predicting enrolled status were also significant at the .05 level; however, results were not meaningful in the 2nd year as factors classified 95% of all subjects as persisters. By the end of the 4th year, the factors were able to predict correct classification of both persisters and nonpersisters approximately 24% better than chance. This research provides support for Tinto's institutional departure model, particularly associated with pre-entry attributes and goals/commitments over time. The CSI is a viable instrument for use with at-risk first-time freshmen at a metropolitan university; however, required enrollment in a developmental course likely confounded the ability of selected variables to meaningfully predict enrolled status during the 2nd year.

This study was undertaken to investigate the predictive value of certain tests in relationship to first grade reading success. The following predictor tests were administered to seventy first grade students during the first two weeks of school: Metropolitan Readiness Test, Naming Letters Test, Light Response Test and Matching Symbol Test. The Teacher's Reading Readiness Rating Scale was filled out by each of the seven teachers at the end of the sixth week. The Wechsler Intelignce Scale for Children was administered to each child during the fall. The seventh predictor test was computed by finding the difference in individual scores of the Light Response Test and the Matching Symbol Test.