1 N ational S urvey & F aculty S urvey of S tudent E ngagement (NSSE) & (FSSE) 2006 Wayne State University

2 Presentation Overview  What is NSSE and its FSSE Component?  Why is student engagement important?  What do you know about college student engagement?  NSSE Results  Wayne State University comparative peer and trend data  Statistical Analysis  Questions and discussion

3 What is NSSE? (pronounced “nessie”)  Evaluates the extent to which first-year and senior students engage in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development  Supported by grants from Lumina Foundation for Education and the Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts at Wabash College  Co-sponsored by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Pew Forum on Undergraduate Learning

4 NSSE Project Scope  Almost 1,100 different colleges and universities  50 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada  Data from more than 1,225,000 students  Institutions include Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges, and same gender colleges  National WSU Comparison groups: Urban Universities, and Carnegie Type, i.e., Doctoral Research Extensive (DRE) NSSE Year No. Institutions Urban DRE Urban DRE Urban DRE

5 Using NSSE Data  Discover current levels of engagement (institution, major field, year in school)  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 & institutional performance Areas of Effective Educational Practice Areas for Institutional Improvement

6 What Really Matters in College Student Engagement The research is unequivocal- Impact of college is largely determined by individual effort. Students are not passive recipients of institutional efforts to “educate” or “change” them. Important to focus on ways in which an institution can shape its academic, interpersonal, and extracurricular offerings to encourage student engagement. Pascarella & Terenzini. (2005). How college affects students: A third decade of research

7 What Do We Know About College Student Engagement? % of students doing community service or volunteer work: WSU, other Urban Univ., DRE Univ. First-Year 29% 31% 39% Senior 49% 48% 63%

8 What Do We Know about College Student Engagement? % of students that spent 5+ hours per week in co-curricular activities:  WSU, other Urban Univ., DRE Univ. First-Year More than 16% More than 14% More than 31% Senior More than 14% More than 26%

9 Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (FSSE) 2006  To date more than 75,000 faculty respondents from 382 four-year institutions have participated  Faculty perceptions of how often their students engage in different activities  The importance faculty place on various areas of learning and development  The nature and frequency of interactions faculty have with students  How faculty members organize class time.  Results intended as catalyst for discussions about quality of students' educational experience FSSE parallels NSSE's survey of undergraduate students and focuses on:

10 How Does NSSE Inform What We Know about Student Engagement? % of students spending 26+hours per week preparing for class: WSU, other Urban Univ., DRE Univ. First-YearSenior More than 7 % More than 6 % More than 11 % More than 7 % More than 11% More than 13%

11 How Does FSSE Inform What We Know about Student Engagement?  One-third (33%) of faculty expect students to spend greater than 6 hours preparing for each class in a week  Less than one-tenth (8%) actually think that students spend this amount of time  While slightly over one-tenth (11%) of students actually spend this amount of time

12 How Does FSSE Inform What We Know about Student Engagement?

13 What Does The College Student Report Cover? Student Behaviors in College Institutional Actions And Requirements Institutional Actions And Requirements  Student Reactions to College Student Background Information Student Background Information Student Learning & Development

14 NSSE 2006 Results Wayne State University

15 NSSE 2006 Institutions by the 2000 Carnegie Classification

16 WSU, Urban, DRE, NSSE 2004 Race and Ethnicity – 1 st Yr. Percentage of Respondents

17 WSU, Urban, DRE, NSSE 2004 Race and Ethnicity – Sr. Percentage of Respondents

18 NSSE 2006 Response Rates  WSU’s = 26%  NSSE overall = 35%  Urban Universities = 27%  DRE Universities = 31%  Response rates ranged from 10% to 81%

19 NSSE 2006 WSU’s Results  Thinking about your overall experience at this institution, how would you rate the quality of relationships with faculty and administrative personnel and offices?

20 NSSE 2004, 2005 & 2006 Wayne State Results  Thinking about your overall experience at this institution, to what extent does the college encourage contact between students from different economic, social, and racial or ethnic backgrounds?

21 NSSE 2006 Comparison Group Seniors (Sr.) with WSU Sr.  Have you done a culminating senior experience (e.g., senior comprehensive exam, capstone course, thesis or project)?

22 NSSE 2006 Promising Findings Senior Students  Most seniors (74%) would attend WSU if they could start over again and (75%) say they had a good or excellent educational experience

23 NSSE 2006 Comparable Findings  Only 26% of first year students and 13% of seniors said the University helped them “quite a bit,” or “very much” in coping with non-academic responsibilities (work, family, etc.)  WSU is similar to its comparison groups with respect to first year students and slightly behind with respect to seniors

24 NSSE 2006 Mixed Findings and Areas for Improvement  Many, (32%) of first- year students, “never” worked with their classmates outside of class to prepare class assignments, in contrast to only 15% of seniors giving the same response.  WSU is more similar to its urban counterparts than to its DRE peers.

25 NSSE 2006 Mixed Findings and Areas for Improvement  Discuss ideas from your readings or classes with faculty members outside of class.  WSU is more similar to its urban counterparts than to its DRE peers.

26 NSSE 2004 – 2006 WSU Comparative Data Wayne State University

27 Level of Academic Challenge Cluster Description  Challenging intellectual and creative work is central to student learning and collegiate quality.  Colleges and universities promote high levels of student achievement by emphasizing the importance of academic effort and setting high expectations for student performance.

28 Level of Academic Challenge

29 Active and Collaborative Learning Cluster Description  Students learn more when they are intensely involved in their education and asked to think about what they are learning in different settings.  Collaborating with others in solving problems or mastering difficult material prepares students for the messy, unscripted problems they will encounter daily during and after college.

30 Active and Collaborative Learning

31 Student - Faculty Interaction Cluster Description  Students learn firsthand how experts think about and solve practical problems by interacting with faculty members inside and outside the classroom.  As a result, their teachers become role models, mentors, and guides for continuous, life-long learning

32 Student – Faculty Interaction

33 Enriching Educational Experiences Cluster Description  Complementary learning opportunities in and out of class augment academic programs.  Diversity experiences teach students valuable things about themselves and others.  Technology facilitates collaboration between peers and instructors.  Internships, community service, and senior capstone courses provide opportunities to integrate and apply knowledge.

34 Enriching Educational Experiences Note: Response options for the “enriching” items were revised in 2004 and are not comparable with prior years.

35 Supportive Campus Environment Cluster Description Students perform better and are more satisfied at colleges that are committed to their success and cultivate positive the working and social relations among different groups on campus.

36 Supportive Campus Environment

37 How Do I Find Out More? NSSE Website Thomas J. Wilhelm, Director, Testing, Evaluation & Research (TE&R) Services