National Research Agenda to Support Transformation National Learning Infrastructure Initiative Focus Session June, 2003 Copyright Jillian Kinzie, This work is the intellectual property of the author. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the author.

Objectives Stimulate your thinking about national research activity and its role in transformation Stimulate your thinking about national research activity and its role in transformation Introduce NSSE as one example of national research Introduce NSSE as one example of national research Share what we’re learning from NSSE and from institutions Share what we’re learning from NSSE and from institutions

Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education (Chickering & Gamson, 1987) Student-faculty contact Student-faculty contact Active learning Active learning Prompt feedback Prompt feedback Time on task Time on task High expectations High expectations Respect for diverse learning styles Respect for diverse learning styles Cooperation among students Cooperation among students

What Really Matters in College: Student Engagement “The research is unequivocal: students who are actively involved in both academic and out-of-class activities gain more from the college experience than those who are not so involved.” Ernest T. Pascarella & Patrick T. Terenzini, How College Affects Students

Lessons From The Research  What matters most to desired outcomes is what students do, not who they are  A key factor in student learning is the quality of effort students’ devote to educationally purposeful activities

Lessons From The Research  Educationally effective institutions channel student energy toward the right activities  Learning is reinforced through application.  The first year of undergraduate study is critical to student success.

“It's an embarrassment that we can tell people almost anything about education except how well students are learning.” Patrick M. Callan, National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education

Impetus for NSSE We know a lot about what is important to student learning We know a lot about what is important to student learning We ought to have better indicators of quality in undergraduate education We ought to have better indicators of quality in undergraduate education Institutions need data for accountability and improvement initiatives Institutions need data for accountability and improvement initiatives

NSSE Research Questions To what extent are students engaged in effective educational practices? To what extent are students engaged in effective educational practices? To what extent do institutions induce students to be involved in educationally purposeful activities? To what extent do institutions induce students to be involved in educationally purposeful activities?

National Survey of Student Engagement (pronounced “nessie”) Community College Survey of Student Engagement (pronounced “sessie”) College student surveys that assess the extent to which students engage in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development

Two Components of Student Engagement What students do -- time and energy devoted to educationally purposeful activities What students do -- time and energy devoted to educationally purposeful activities What institutions do -- using effective educational practices to induce students to do the right things What institutions do -- using effective educational practices to induce students to do the right things

NSSE and Research NSSE as national data system NSSE as national data system Institutional use of national findings Institutional use of national findings Institutional use of national instruments Institutional use of national instruments

NSSE Project Scope  265,000 students from 618 different schools  49 states  24 institutional consortia  52% of 4-yr undergraduate FTE

Survey Administration Paper or web Paper or web All students can fill out The Report on-line All students can fill out The Report on-line Indiana University Center for Survey Research administers Indiana University Center for Survey Research administers

The College Student Report Student Behaviors Institutional Actions & Requirements Reactions to College Student Background Information Student Learning & Development

Benchmarks of Effective Educational Practice Level of Academic Challenge Active & Collaborative Learning Enriching Educational Experiences SupportiveCampusEnvironment Student- Faculty Interaction

NSSE and National Research NSSE results are a snapshot of higher education “It’s not the Hubble, but it reveals a new dimension of quality.” - Russ Edgerton, Pew Forum

What have we learned so far from NSSE?

Who’s more engaged? Who’s more engaged?  Women  Fraternity and sorority members  Learning community students  Full-time students  Students who live on campus  Students with diversity experiences

What do we know about institutions? What do we know about institutions?  Liberal arts colleges score higher than all other types  Similar colleges vary in their performance  Colleges tend to be strong in particular areas rather than across the board (only 4 scored in the top 20% on all 5 benchmarks)

Disappointing Findings Disappointing Findings  Transfer students less engaged  Students study less than we expect  19% of first-year students never made a class presentation, and 46% never discussed readings or ideas with faculty member outside of class

Multiple Uses of NSSE Assessment and improvement Assessment and improvement General education reform General education reform Benchmarking Benchmarking Alumni outreach Alumni outreach Accountability Accountability Grant writing Grant writing

Institutional Use of Data Discover current levels of engagement (institution, major field, year in school) Discover current levels of engagement (institution, major field, year in school) Determine if current levels are satisfactory (criterion reference, normative or peer comparison) Determine if current levels are satisfactory (criterion reference, normative or peer comparison) Target areas for improvement Modify programs and policies accordingly Teach students what is required to “succeed” Monitor student and institutional performance

Institutional Use of Findings Generation of internal reports to lead to action Generation of internal reports to lead to actionExamples: Southwest Texas State University of the South George Mason University

Institutional Use of Findings Technology TechnologyExamples: The University of Utah results revealed low use of technology. Data shared with IT staff to assist in planning. Example: Aurora University discussed the role of computing in its general education requirements and the need for a more formalized curriculum. NSSE results help stimulate movement on both issues.

Institutional Use of Findings cont’d Technology Technology Framingham State College focused on faculty integration of technology in courses. Dual intent to expose students to technology and increase communication between students and faculty. NSSE is being used to assess changes resulting from initiative

Institutional Use of Findings cont’d George Mason University uses technology to enhance the learning environment through its Technology Across the Curriculum (TAC) program, which assists liberal arts students in achieving ten instructional technology goals. George Mason University uses technology to enhance the learning environment through its Technology Across the Curriculum (TAC) program, which assists liberal arts students in achieving ten instructional technology goals.

Coordinated Use of NSSE Data More than 250 institutions participated in 30 consortia: women’s colleges, urban universities, members of the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities, engineering colleges, and research universities More than 250 institutions participated in 30 consortia: women’s colleges, urban universities, members of the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities, engineering colleges, and research universities Institutions share results with a central office, or communicated directly with members of the group Institutions share results with a central office, or communicated directly with members of the group Schools in two consortia exchanged student- level records after removing individual student identification information Schools in two consortia exchanged student- level records after removing individual student identification information

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