The purpose of this study was to explore the engagement levels among entering
and returning Hispanic community college students. This study provides needed data
focused specifically on Hispanic student engagement. Limited data exist on the
persistence of community college students in general, and Hispanic students in particular.
The data were collected using the Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE).
SENSE was administered as a pilot test to students at volunteer community colleges
during the fourth and fifth weeks of the fall 2007 semester. These 22 colleges are located
in eight states.
This study consisted of two research questions: Are there significant differences
in the engagement levels of entering and returning Hispanic community college students?
Are there significant differences in engagement levels of entering Hispanic students when
analyzed in terms of the following breakout variables: enrollment status (full-time and
part-time); age (traditional and nontraditional; 18-19 years old and 20 years old and
older); first-generation and non-first-generation status; developmental education status (enrollment in developmental writing course; developmental reading course;
developmental math course); sex (male and female); academic goal aspiration (degree
seeking and non-degree seeking).
The results show that when there are significant differences in levels of
engagement between entering and returning Hispanic students, returning students are
consistently more engaged. This study also identifies the importance of collaborative
learning in Hispanic student engagement. Full-time students reported higher engagement
levels than part-time students. Nontraditional age students reported higher engagement
levels than traditional age students. Students 20 years and older reported higher
engagement levels than students 18-19 years old. First-generation students reported
higher engagement levels than non-first-generation. Students enrolled in developmental
reading reported higher engagement levels than students not enrolled in developmental
reading. Students enrolled in developmental writing reported higher engagement levels
than students not enrolled in developmental writing. Students enrolled in developmental
math reported higher engagement levels than students not enrolled in developmental
math in regards to use of skill labs. Females were more likely to report that they would
prepare at least one draft of an assignment before turning it in. Degree-seeking students
reported higher engagement levels than non-degree seeking students. / text
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTEXAS/oai:repositories.lib.utexas.edu:2152/7664 |
| Date | 02 June 2010 |
| Creators | Napoles, Gerald F. |
| Source Sets | University of Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | electronic |
| Rights | Copyright is held by the author. Presentation of this material on the Libraries' web site by University Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin was made possible under a limited license grant from the author who has retained all copyrights in the works. |
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