Retention of College Students in Private Schools - Coursework Example

Annotated Bibliography: Retention of College in Private Schools Educational Research Methods Cohen, L., Manion, L., and Morrison, K. (2007) Research Methods in Education. (6th ed). New York and Oxford: Routledge. This book starts with a very good explanation of the ideological basis for research in education, and it provides an all-round understanding of how research has been seen differently through the ages. It questions a simplistic belief in “the scientific method” and gives different theoretical paradigms for exploratory work in the social sciences. There is a lot of discussion about ethics, both in terms of how research is conducted with human subjects, but also in terms of how a researcher must go about interpreting data in a fair and honorable way. Concepts such as validity and reliability are explored and this is a crucial area for the topic of private school research, where many opposing views can be heard. The tone is very readable and yet the content is serious and thorough and so this would be a good general handbook and guide. Wiersma, W. and Jurs, (1999) S. J. Research Methods in Education: An Introduction. (7th ed). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. This is a very thorough introduction to the steps and processes required in writing an extensive study on an education related topic. There are comprehensive notes and references attached to each chapter, and the book could also be used as a textbook in class, since there are exercises too. One useful feature is the “Key Concepts” section which recaps the most important themes, and provides definitions that can be used in any dissertation. Chapters 4 and 5 on “Research Design in Quantitative Research” and “Experimental Research” give a lot of good information on how to set up data gathering procedures and how to evaluate the results. Methods such as surveys, interviewing and videotaping are also discussed with some very practical guidelines on how to avoid common mistakes. It is written in a complex and academic tone, but the effort of reading it is rewarded by many insights. Retention in General Henderson, D. and Henderson, J. (2002) The Retention of Entering and Returning Freshment enrolled at Florida A&M University’s School of General Studies during the Fall Semesters 1997-2001. Education 123 (1), 210-212. This short paper looks at the importance of the first year in the retention of students at a college with mainly African-American students. It collated figures on students who attended for the first time, and students who had switched their major and made recommendation for strategies to enhance student retention based on these figures. Some issues were clearly concluded, such as the importance of developmental courses, interdisciplinary classes, advisement on demand and an attitudinal shift by the faculty and staff, but the article did not find ways to deal with variables like financial or family difficulties which may have affected the results. This was not a very far reaching study, but it was valuable in showing a specific targeted research topic, a good definition of the problem and some clear outcomes. It might provide a contrast to some private school contexts and studies. Dennis, M. J. (1998) A Practical Guide to Enrollment and Retention Management in Higher Education. Westport, CT: Bergin and Garvey. This is a very business-like book, and it looks at retention from many angles, including financial and administrative factors. Because it seems driven by financial considerations, it often reads like a sales pitch, since retention is directly linked with the funding of a college, and therefore ultimately with its survival. This is perhaps not the angle that I would choose to take in my own study, but the book is a useful reminder of the hard financial realities which colleges, and especially private colleges, have to operate with. There is an emphasis on computer systems to gather information, and also on careful evaluation of the results, and continuous improvement of “retention management systems” because the landscape outside colleges is changing all the time. This is not a very well argued book, but it contains some good ideas and examples from several universities and colleges of strategies that have been implemented. Johnes, J. (1997) Inter-varsity variations in undergraduate non-completion rates: a statistical analysis by subject of study. Journal of Applied Statistics 24 (3) 343-361. This study looks at British university students and compares completion rates at degree level across different subjects. It concludes, like many American studies, that starting academic level is the surest indicator of success, but factors like the length of the degree course, and the staff student ratio are also important. There appears to be no correlation between gender and completion rates or between student age and completion rates. There are some complicated statistical methods used like least squared and weighted logit analysis, but they do not add much to the general points being made. . Private versus Public School Retention Hermanowicz, J. C. (2003) College Attrition at American Research Universities: Comparative Case Studies. New York: Agathon Press. This book concentrates on the very elite universities and colleges in the US, and takes the subject from the rather negative angle of “attrition” which suggests that the author sees attendance at college as an endurance test rather than a positive experience. The value of the book for the study of retention in private schools is that it appreciates an ethos of excellence, and tries to square the attainment of high standards with the retention of as many students possible. Admissions selectivity is the single most important variable in this context. Four case studies were chosen, three of them private and one of them public. The public school has the highest attrition rate (=lowest retention rate) but nevertheless it is a very high rate when compared to other public schools rather than the three private ones in this sample. Some hypotheses were made –eg that private schools retain more students because there is a loss of prestige if they leave, or that private schools have higher retention rates because more of their students chose this institution as a first choice etc. There were interesting conclusions in terms of gender (men and woman have equal attrition rates) and race (Black and Hispanic students have higher attrition rates). This is an extremely relevant study and will certainly be referred to in terms of method and content. Scott, M., Bailey, T. and Kienzl, G. (2006) Relative Success? Determinants of College Graduation Rates in Public and Private Colleges in the US. Research in Higher Education 47 (3), 249-279. This article is very complex and uses a lot of statistical tables and analysis methods to work out differences between Public and Private College retention and achievement levels. It uses regression analysis to take account of variables and concludes that public universities work more cost effectively. There is a very helpful discussion on the good points and the limitations of raw graduation data, and this will be a good study to refer to for nationwide comparisons. There is less information here on individual student variations and aspects of school life which go beyond purely economic and academic starting points. The article is almost entirely quantitative, and while this gives some good information, it is not an adequate method on its own to explore the real retention issues and challenges in private schools. Retention of Students in Private Schools Kirby, E., White, S. and Arugete, M. (2007) Predictors of White and Minority Student Success at a Private Women’s College. College Student Journal 41 (2), 460 ff. This article looked at a sample of 299 former students at a private Midwestern women’s college. Academic and socio-economic factors were analysed, and measured against the college achievements of the students. There was a hypothesis that high grade point average was a predictor of higher achievement, and that higher socio-economic status was also a predictor of higher achievement. The first hypothese was found to be true, and the second was not, and in fact the opposite was true. There were differences in the achievement levels of ethnic minorities (all lumped together into one category!) and white students but this seems to be less clearly explained. It was suggested, but not proven, that factors like how many hours a student spends working may in fact be a better indicator of success than simple socio-economic status measures. Read More