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Full-Text Articles in Education

Student Variables That Predict Retention: Recent Research And New Developments, Robert D. Reason Oct 2003

Student Variables That Predict Retention: Recent Research And New Developments, Robert D. Reason

Robert D Reason

This article reviews recent research related to the study of college student retention, specifically examining research related to individual student demographic characteristics. The increasing diversity of undergraduate college students requires a new, thorough examination of those student variables previously understood to predict retention. The retention literature focuses on research conducted after 1990 and emphasizes the changing demographics in higher education. Research related to a relatively new variable— the merit-index—also is reviewed, revealing potentially promising, but currently mixed results.


Assessment Of Introduction To Engineering And Problem-Solving Course, Joni E. Spurlin, Jerome P. Lavelle, Mary Clare Robbins, Sarah A. Rajala Jun 2003

Assessment Of Introduction To Engineering And Problem-Solving Course, Joni E. Spurlin, Jerome P. Lavelle, Mary Clare Robbins, Sarah A. Rajala

Sarah A. Rajala

At North Carolina State University, the freshmen’s first course in engineering is E101, Introduction to Engineering and Problem-Solving. It is offered each fall to over 1,100 first year engineering students. In an effort to continuously improve the course, we put into place a plan to assess the course's learning outcomes. Assessment data collected in fall 2001 and fall 2002 through surveys, rubrics, and class assignments were evaluated to determine how well students met learning outcomes related to communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. This paper presents the assessment methods used in this course and provides examples of how the assessment findings were …


Transformative Learning In Extension Staff Partnerships: Facilitating Personal, Joint, And Organizational Change, Nancy K. Franz Apr 2003

Transformative Learning In Extension Staff Partnerships: Facilitating Personal, Joint, And Organizational Change, Nancy K. Franz

Nancy K. Franz

Partnerships can enhance individual and organizational success through more effective problem solving and improved adaptation to change. Learning is often required for successful collaboration that may transform the partners. This article discusses a study that explored learning in Extension staff partnerships that transform the individual, the partnership, and the organization. Three types of learning and eight types of transformative learning are identified. Conditions that promoted transformative learning in successful partnerships included strong partner facilitation, critical reflection, critical events, partner difference bridged by common purpose, and independence with interdependence. Recommendations for nurturing transforming Extension staff partnerships are shared.


Critically Thinking About Harry Potter: A Framework For Discussing Controversial Works In The English Classroom, Joanne M. Marshall Jan 2003

Critically Thinking About Harry Potter: A Framework For Discussing Controversial Works In The English Classroom, Joanne M. Marshall

Joanne M. Marshall

Since ].K. Rowling's Harry Potter series was first published in 1997, parents, teachers, and readers of all ages have been fans of the boy wizard, enthusiastically standing in bookstore lines at midnight to purchase the next installment, or flocking to the movies, or rushing to buy the DVD. Previously reluctant readers, including young adult readers (MacRae), are suddenly enthralled with a book, and the adults who care for those readers are equally enthralled with its results. Magic, indeed.


K-12 And University Collaboration: A Vehicle To Improve Curriculum And Female Enrollment In Engineering And Technology, Janis P. Terpenny, Thomas Gralinski Jan 2003

K-12 And University Collaboration: A Vehicle To Improve Curriculum And Female Enrollment In Engineering And Technology, Janis P. Terpenny, Thomas Gralinski

Janis P. Terpenny

In 1993, the State of Massachusetts enacted the Educational Reform Act to improve student performance and to increase school accountability. One of the curriculum frameworks of this initiative is titled Science and Technology/Engineering. One of the strands within that framework, Technology/Engineering, outlines standards in seven curriculum areas to be assessed at the high school level on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). This framework is somewhat controversial but supported by numerous surveys focusing on national needs. The movement of traditional Industrial Arts programs to a Technology/Engineering approach in both delivery and content has created a new set of problems with …