Developing the Academic Performance-Commitment Matrix: How Measures of Objective Academic Performance can do more than Predict College Success

Anthony Bourne; Nathan W. Klingbeil; Frank W. Ciarallo

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Conference: 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Publication Date: June 15, 2014
Start Date: June 15, 2014
End Date: June 18, 2014
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Student Beliefs, Motivation and Self Efficacy
Tagged Division: Educational Research and Methods
Page Count: 16
Page Numbers: 24.405.1 - 24.405.16
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--20296
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/20296
Download Count: 628

Paper Authors

biography

Anthony Bourne Wright State University

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Within his role of the director of enrollment management at Wright State University, Tony works toward the Dean’s vision of Wright State becoming the preeminent open-enrollment college of engineering in the country. A Wright State alumnus, he recognizes that the college has a unique opportunity to impact the lives of students that fit well at Wright State and to help them achieve goals that they might not have elsewhere. His goal is to “find ways to help them toward success while managing resources available to the college.”

Tony holds a B.A. in economics from Wright State, an M.P.A. from Walden University, and is now pursuing a Ph.D. in engineering with a focus on human factors. His current graduate research at Wright State focuses on interventions that increase student retention in open-enrollment schools like Wright State. Tony worked several years in workforce development and education outside Wright State starting there in 2007, when he was hired as an enrollment adviser for the department of electrical engineering and later served as the assistant to the chair. He then transitioned to the dean’s office and served as the data analyst and co-op coordinator for the college. Tony is on track to defend his doctoral dissertation in the spring of 2014.

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Nathan W. Klingbeil Wright State University

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Nathan Klingbeil is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at Wright State University. He is the lead PI for Wright State’s National Model for Engineering Mathematics Education, which has been supported by both NSF STEP Type 1 and CCLI Phase 3 awards. He has received numerous awards for his work in engineering education, and was named the 2005 Ohio Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

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Frank W. Ciarallo Wright State University

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Frank W. Ciarallo is an associate professor at Wright State University. He applies engineering and analytical tools to better understand systems and operational problems.

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Abstract

Defining Unique Student Populations: How measures of objective academic performance (MOAPs) can do more than predict college success.It is standard admission process at selective colleges and universities to consider applicants’ highschool GPAs and standardized test scores for admissions and financial aid decisions. Studentsacross the country try to perform on the ACT and SAT tests to improve their chances ofacceptance, and spend years keeping their grades up with hopes of getting in to their choice ofcollege or increasing their scholarship award. For open access institutions, however, admissionis based on exceeding minimum academic criteria. Students of every academic level have a placeon these schools campuses and this brings a complex educational environment to these schools.It is well understood that students across the continuum of academic aptitude have differentneeds, but understanding of these needs has been elusive. Popular opinion is that the better thestudent’s GPA and test scores, the more likely the student is to persist in college. This is why thecompetition for top students is so fierce. Recent studies have shown that a mathematicintervention at an open access institution has had a dramatic impact on student graduation rates;however, mitigating the correlation between standardized test scores and graduation rates. Studyof this intervention revealed a set of unique student groups based on classifying individualstudent ACT and GPA score combinations into four quadrants. These measures of objectiveacademic performance (MOAPs) are categorized in bin combinations of above and below theinstitutional average. This study utilized the ACT Engage survey and a new measure of studentmathematics efficacy to investigate these four groups and ascertain any differences in traits foreach group.Results of this study show that each population has a distinct reaction to the college process andto the curricular intervention studied. Unexpected results are revealed and conclusions aboutcurricular interventions, student success and potential further study are discussed. The findingsof this study may impact the development of first year programs and augment the admissions andrecruitment process of a wide range of institutions. Further impacts on minority populations, atrisk groups and diverse socioeconomic backgrounds may be extended.

Citation
Format

Bourne, A., & Klingbeil, N. W., & Ciarallo, F. W. (2014, June), Developing the Academic Performance-Commitment Matrix: How Measures of Objective Academic Performance can do more than Predict College Success Paper presented at 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Indianapolis, Indiana. 10.18260/1-2--20296

TY - CPAPER
AB - Defining Unique Student Populations: How measures of objective academic performance (MOAPs) can do more than predict college success.It is standard admission process at selective colleges and universities to consider applicants’ highschool GPAs and standardized test scores for admissions and financial aid decisions. Studentsacross the country try to perform on the ACT and SAT tests to improve their chances ofacceptance, and spend years keeping their grades up with hopes of getting in to their choice ofcollege or increasing their scholarship award. For open access institutions, however, admissionis based on exceeding minimum academic criteria. Students of every academic level have a placeon these schools campuses and this brings a complex educational environment to these schools.It is well understood that students across the continuum of academic aptitude have differentneeds, but understanding of these needs has been elusive. Popular opinion is that the better thestudent’s GPA and test scores, the more likely the student is to persist in college. This is why thecompetition for top students is so fierce. Recent studies have shown that a mathematicintervention at an open access institution has had a dramatic impact on student graduation rates;however, mitigating the correlation between standardized test scores and graduation rates. Studyof this intervention revealed a set of unique student groups based on classifying individualstudent ACT and GPA score combinations into four quadrants. These measures of objectiveacademic performance (MOAPs) are categorized in bin combinations of above and below theinstitutional average. This study utilized the ACT Engage survey and a new measure of studentmathematics efficacy to investigate these four groups and ascertain any differences in traits foreach group.Results of this study show that each population has a distinct reaction to the college process andto the curricular intervention studied. Unexpected results are revealed and conclusions aboutcurricular interventions, student success and potential further study are discussed. The findingsof this study may impact the development of first year programs and augment the admissions andrecruitment process of a wide range of institutions. Further impacts on minority populations, atrisk groups and diverse socioeconomic backgrounds may be extended.
AU - Anthony Bourne
AU - Nathan W. Klingbeil
AU - Frank W. Ciarallo
CY - Indianapolis, Indiana
DA - 2014/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Developing the Academic Performance-Commitment Matrix: How Measures of Objective Academic Performance can do more than Predict College Success
UR - https://peer.asee.org/20296
DO - 10.18260/1-2--20296
ER -