Marshall University Marshall Digital Scholar Theses, Dissertations and Capstones 2020 First-Year Seminar Delivery Method Effect on Student Success at an Appalachian Open-Enrollment Institution Anthony Michael Underwood anthony.com Follow this and additional works at: https://mds.edu/etd Part of the Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Educational Methods Commons, and the Higher Education Commons Recommended Citation Underwood, Anthony Michael, "First-Year Seminar Delivery Method Effect on Student Success at an Appalachian Open-Enrollment Institution" (2020). Theses, Dissertations and Capstones.edu/etd/1281 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Marshall Digital Scholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses, Dissertations and Capstones by an authorized administrator of Marshall Digital Scholar. For more information, please contact zhangj@marshall.edu, beachgr@marshall.
FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR DELIVERY METHOD EFFECT ON STUDENT SUCCESS AT AN APPALACHIAN OPEN-ENROLLMENT INSTITUTION A dissertation submitted to the Graduate College of Marshall University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education In Leadership Studies by Anthony Michael Underwood Approved by Dr. Barbara Nicholson, Committee Chairperson Dr. Charles Bethel Dr. Robert Rubenstein Marshall University May 2020 ii © 2020 Anthony Michael Underwood ALL RIGHTS RESERVED iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS No accomplishment that requires so much study, self-improvement and commitment can be achieved without the support of those who understand the value of your goals, and how selfless that support must be.
I could ask for no greater partner, supporter, cheerleader, motivator or inspiration than my spouse, Victoria Underwood. Her good humor and brilliance were and are foundational. I thank my parents, Jennifer and Michael Underwood for a lifetime of positive influence and unconditional love. I thank my son, Alexander Underwood, for being a good and patient young man who inspires my confidence in the future.
I thank my committee and especially my chair, Dr. Barbara Nicholson, for her unflagging advice and mentorship. Finally, I thank my friends, colleagues, peers and supervisors for their endless encouragement and flexibility. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables.
ix List of Figures .6 Statement of the Problem .7 Purpose of the Study .8 Significance of the Study .9 Definition of Terms. 11 Chapter 2: Review of the Literature.14 Defining the First-Year Seminar and Key Practices .14 An Overview of First-Generation and Low-Income Students in Appalachia .20 Enrollment and Funding Disparities in Community Colleges .22 Defining and Committing to Student Success .23 Lack of Retention and Graduation Success in Community Colleges .25 Challenges of Bringing FYS to Appalachian, Open Enrollment Institutions .26 v Appalachian Cultural Barriers to Post-Secondary Student Success .27 Adverse Childhood Experience and Educational Success .33 Case Study: Intervention in an Appalachian Community .35 High Impact Practices for Student Success .37 Factors in College Success for Appalachian Students .39 Conflicting Tensions Between Home Culture and Student Success .42 Assisting Students to Mitigate Conflicting Tensions .45 Validation from Other Environments .47 Success of First-Year Seminar Programs .57 Population and Sample .57 Design and Data Collection .64 Chapter Four: Results .70 Research Question One .71 Finding: first-year seminars modest effect on first semester GPA.72 vi FYS redesign and improvement.75 Finding: first-year seminars had a significant effect on following semester course load for first to second semester.79 Effect of FYS on following semester course load, Fall 2017.79 Finding: first-year seminars had a significant effect on persistence for first to second semester .83 Effects of FYS on persistence for Fall 2017.84 Research Question Two .88 Finding: increased inclusion of high impact practices for first-year seminars correlates with increased first semester GPA .88 Research Question Three.96 Finding: effect of inclusion of Appalachian success factors was inconclusive .97 Research Question Four .100 Finding: effect of expected family contribution on first semester GPA was inconclusive for this population .100 Summary of Findings.101 FYS Course Type Effect on Grade Point Average .101 FYS course type effect on course load .102 FYS course type effect on persistence .103 High-impact practices for FYS .103 Appalachian success factors .104 vii Relationship between first semester GPA and expected family contribution .104 Chapter Five: Conclusions and Recommendations .105 Purpose of the Study .106 Summary of Findings.107 Effectiveness of FYS on Student Success Measures .107 Effectiveness of FYS PPDL and Standalone Courses.109 High Impact Practices. 110 Appalachian Success Factors. 110 Expected Family Contribution and First Semester GPA.
111 Recommendations for Further Research. 112 Effects of FYS Courses on Student Success Factors in Multiple Following Semesters. 112 Faculty Perceptions of FYS Effectiveness Compared to Actual Effectiveness. 113 A longitudinal study of Appalachian cultural factors in FYS design.
113 Comparative study of FYS programs with and without credit-hour limitations. 116 Appendix A: IRB Approval Letter .129 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Comparison, Median Household Income, WVUP Service Area to State and Nation .18 Table 2 Comparison, Educational Attainment, WVUP Service Area to State and Nation .19 Table 3 Degree Attainment Rate for 150% of Normal Time at WVUP for student beginning Fall 2009 .22 Table 4 Participants in Study During Spring Semesters .59 Table 5 Participants in Study During Fall Semesters .60 Table 6 Population Size for Non-FYS Students .68 Table 7 Population Size for Childhood Development (CDEV) 105 Students .68 Table 8 Population Size for Education 100 Students .69 Table 9 Population Size for General Business (GBUS) 101 .69 Table 10 Anova: Single Factor, First Semester GPA, Spring 2017 .73 Table 11 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, COLL 101 v.73 Table 12 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Non-FYS vs.74 Table 13 Average First Semester GPA - Spring 2017 Compared to Previous Semesters .75 Table 14 Average First Semester GPA - Fall 2017 Compared to Previous Semesters .76 Table 15 Anova: Single Factor, First Semester GPA, Spring 2017 .77 Table 16 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Non-FYS v.78 ix Table 17 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Non-FYS v.78 Table 18 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Non-FYS v.78 Table 19 First Semester Course Load - Fall 2017 .80 Table 20 Anova: Single Factor, Following Semester Course Load, Fall 2017.80 Table 21 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, CDEV v.81 Table 22 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Following Semester Course Load, CDEV v.81 Table 23 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Following Semester Course Load, CDEV v.82 Table 24 Persistence - Spring 2017 Compared to Previous Semesters.83 Table 25 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, Non-FYS v.84 Table 26 Persistence - Fall 2017 vs.84 Table 27 Anova: Single Factor, Semester to Semester Persistence, Fall 2017 .85 Table 28 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, Non-FYS v.85 Table 29 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, CDEV v.85 Table 30 t-Test: two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, CDEV v.86 x Table 31 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, CDEV v.86 Table 32 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, Non-FYS v.87 Table 33 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, Non-FYS v.87 Table 34 t-Test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances, Persistence, Non-FYS v.87 Table 35 Average Occurrence of High-Impact Practices per FYS Syllabi, Spring 2017 .89 Table 36 Average Occurrence of High-Impact Practices per FYS Syllabi, Fall 2017 .90 Table 37 Comparison of High-Impact Practices, PPDL vs. Standalone Courses, Spring 2017.91 Table 38 Comparison of High-Impact Practices, PPDL vs. Standalone Courses, Fall 2017 .92 Table 39 t-Test p values for increase in High impact practices and increase in student success indicators, Spring 2017 to Fall 2017 .96 Table 40 Occurrence of Appalachian Success Factor Assignments in FYS Courses, Spring 2017.97 Table 41 Occurrence of Appalachian Success Factor Assignments in FYS Courses, Comparing PPDL and Standalone Courses, Spring 2017 .98 Table 42 Occurrence of Appalachian Success Factor Assignments in FYS Courses, Fall 2017.99 xi Table 43 Occurrence of Appalachian Success Factor Assignments in FYS Courses, Comparing PPDL and Standalone Courses, Fall 2017 .99 xii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Average First Semester GPA, Spring 2017 v.
Fall 2017, FYS Courses .93 Figure 2 Average Following Semester Course Load, Spring 2017 v. Fall 2017, FYS Courses .94 Figure 3 Average Semester to Semester Persistence, Spring 2017 to Fall 2017, Compared between FYS Courses .95 xiii ABSTRACT First-year seminars (FYS) have been identified as one of the most effective high impact practices in supporting student success as measured in this study by GPA, semester-to-semester persistence, and second semester student course load. However, those students who would most need this support, students at public open-enrollment institutions in the Appalachian region, have often either not been required to participate or have not been given the chance to do so due to limits on academic program length or a perceived lack of resources at such institutions. This research measured the effectiveness of an FYS program in the above defined environment where the institution studied gave programs the option of a standalone FYS course, or a pre- professional, discipline linked (PPDL) course where FYS content was delivered within pre- existing 100-level content specific introductory courses.
The course was mandated for all first- time freshmen or transfers with 30 or fewer transferable credit hours. The data demonstrated that the less resource intense PPDL method was just as effective as the standalone course. xiv CHAPTER ONE First-year seminar (FYS) courses, “small enrollment courses that help beginning students with their academic and social transition” have been long cited as a foundational element regarding increasing the first-year success of college students (Koch and Gardner, 2014, and Goodman & Pascarella, 2006). It is a practice long used by traditional liberal arts and large land grant institutions, but remains an issue of debate among community, technical and other open enrollment institutions in terms of effective delivery of FYS content in the face of politically- driven credit hour limits and in consideration of large, non-traditional student population segments.
Rural Appalachia, as represented by WVU Parkersburg, an institution of the West Virginia Community and Technical College System, offered a unique population of low higher- education attainment, with a cultural antipathy toward higher education, in a political climate that demanded fewer resources directed to non-degree required courses, with declining financial support for higher education (Johnson, et al. WVU Parkersburg was a public, non-residential, open enrollment institution with a designated seven-county service area that directly bordered Marietta, OH. The Parkersburg- Marietta-Vienna metropolitan area contained 161,118 residents, according to the U. WVU Parkersburg was classified as a “four-year and above” institution by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.
It was independently, regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and, despite its name, logo and iconography, has been independently governed as a separate institution from West Virginia University since an act of the state legislature in 2008. In variance from its Carnegie Classification, WVU Parkersburg was governed as part of the West Virginia Community and Technical College System and was 1 required to follow that system’s policies and rules, while only its bachelor’s degree programs were governed by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission. At a time when student-success research all but demanded more resources for non- academic student support through an FYS structure, is there a way to balance the objective needs for FYS and the financial and political demands of the culture? Background College administrators and their systems were under political, consumer and competitive pressure to reduce cost to taxpayers, control tuition costs, and reduce time to degree while increasing student performance dramatically. In 2012, Complete College America conducted a national survey regarding the typical requirements for associate and bachelor’s degrees.
Nationally, most four-year degree granting institutions have restricted their bachelor’s degree programs to 120 credit hours, though a significant minority of programs in the humanities and social sciences still require 125 credit hours or more. Associate degree institutions demonstrated a much higher degree of variance, with only transfer degrees being typically restricted to 60 credit hours. Career and technical courses of study usually require more than 60 credit hours. There appeared to be no clearly defined dividing line of perceived quality of institutional reputation as it relates to credit hour total for degree, other than the minimum of 60 hours for an Associate degree and 120 for the bachelor’s degree.