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Thesis/Dissertation Information
- Degree Disciplines:
- Education
Notes
- Abstract:
- This study was designed to provide data on certain predictors of college success. Research has focused on two areas: the importance of initial, or first-year success, and the construct of student engagement. A student’s first semester freshman college grade point average (FR-GPA) has been linked with positive overall college outcomes. Student engagement has been linked with positive first-semester grades. The purpose of this study was to determine the predictive value of high school student engagement, high school grade point average (HS-GPA), and college entrance exam score, on first-semester freshman college grade point average among rural Florida students. The college entrance exam score exclusively used was the formerly named American College Test (ACT). The theoretical framework for this study was student engagement theory. This study used a self-report questionnaire that requested respondent gender, overall high school GPA, highest composite ACT exam score, and first semester freshman college GPA, in addition to a score on a high school student engagement questionnaire. Multiple regression analysis was used to measure the strength of the correlation between the criterion variable of first semester freshman college GPA and each of the three predictor variables. The major finding was that the three predictors had a significant positive correlation with first semester freshman college GPA. However, only one individual predictor, the high school student engagement score was significant (p < .01). The study also depicted positive correlations between the two independent variables of HS-GPA and ACT exam score. The significant positive correlation between high school student engagement questionnaire scores and FR-GPA indicates that higher scores on the high school student engagement questionnaire are associated with higher FR-GPAs. This study lends further support to existing research about the predictive value of student engagement on student grade point average. The study also provides additional evidence that the more engaged a student is, the more successful he or she will be in terms of grade point. The analysis indicated that the high school student engagement questionnaire scores were significantly positively correlated with freshman college GPA values, r (55) = .48, p < .01, indicating that higher scores on the high school student engagement questionnaire can be associated with higher first semester freshman college GPAs.
- Thesis:
- Thesis (Ph.D.)--Barry University, 2011.
- Bibliography:
- Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-100).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Barry University
- Holding Location:
- Barry University Archives and Special Collections
- Rights Management:
- Copyright Peter Preston. Permission granted to Barry University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
- Resource Identifier:
- LB1131.P74 2011_PrestonPeter
- Classification:
- LB1131.P74 2011 ( lcc )
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