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Enhancing Belongingness

Enhancing Belongingness. Among students at the two-year college Dr . Lauren Lunk, West Georgia Technical College Lauren.lunk@westgatech.edu. Assumptions about the two-year student. Non-Traditionally aged

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Enhancing Belongingness

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  1. Enhancing Belongingness Among students at the two-year college Dr. Lauren Lunk, West Georgia Technical College Lauren.lunk@westgatech.edu

  2. Assumptions about the two-year student • Non-Traditionally aged • More than half of all BS/BA’s awarded are to students who first attended a community college. • Average age of attendance is 29, but serving an increasing number of traditionally aged students and high school students. • Just want to come to school part-time and go home/work, they don’t have time • Nationally 41% of community college students are Full-time, 59% part-time • Not interested in the “fluff” stuff of college (EX: activities, programming, etc) • Are we assuming this or do we have data to support it at our own institution? American Association of Community College – Trends and Statistics (more in references)

  3. What is Belongingness • Abraham Maslow (1943) • Hierarchy of Human Needs that drive Motivation • Physiological Needs • Safety Needs • Love and Belonging • Esteem • Self-actualization

  4. Cont’d • Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary (1995) • “the need to belong is a fundamental human motivation…more precisely, the belongingness hypothesis is that human beings have a pervasive drive to form and maintain at least minimum quantity of lasting, positive, and significant interpersonal relationships” (Baumeister and Leary, P. 497, 1995). • Creating and maintaining positive relationship is a fundamental motivation until they have reached at least a minimum level of social contact and relatedness with others

  5. Why Belongingness in College? • Solidifying social bonds should produce a positive outcome for most individuals • Retention • Graduation • Student Development • Higher GPA • Breaking social bonds or not creating bonds should cause negative outcomes. • Isolation • Disconnectedness

  6. How do we do “Belongingness” • Students’ engagement with other students and faculty outside of the classroom is crucial to student development, retention and academic success (Astin, 1999; Baker, 2008; Carini, Kuh, & Klein, 2006; Fischer, 2007; Flowers, 2004; Foubert & Grainger, 2006; Kuh, 1995). • Student’s having formal academic ties and relationships is positively related to a student’s GPA. (Fischer, 2007). We must provide students the opportunity and desire to connect with faculty, staff, and students in an academic environment!

  7. Creating Belongingness • What opportunities do students at your school have to connect outside of the classroom? • Campus Activities (all campus/college events) • Interest Groups and Organizations (drama, music, art, etc) • Academically focused clubs and organizations (advised by faculty) • Service Learning • Athletics • Leadership Programming

  8. Campus Activities and Interest Groups • Spirit Events designed to promote college pride (homecoming, welcome events, spring fling, pep rally, etc). • Student Government Association • Awareness Events • Educating students on topics and issues important to the college community • Wellness Events • Programs and opportunities supporting students physical and mental wellness. • Art Shows for students to compete and display their work • Theater productions

  9. Leadership Development • How do you teach your students to be leaders? • How do we develop our students into leaders? • “Leadership [program] participants showed growth in civic responsibility, leadership skills, multicultural awareness, understanding of leadership theories and personal and societal values" (Cress, Astin, Zimmerman-Oster, & Burkhardt, 2001, p.15)

  10. Academically Focused Clubs and Organizations • According to a 1995 study by Kuh, the out-of-class experience is considered by many students to be an opportunity to learn in the “real world” rather than just in a classroom (Kuh, 1995, p. 145) • Phi Beta Lambda • DECA • SADHA • SNA • Literary Arts Magazine • WGTC’s “Team Up” program • Collaborative effort allowing academic programs to promote their program while providing learning events for other students on campus.

  11. Other ways a college can provide opportunities for belongingness • Peer Mentors, Faculty/Staff Mentors (Bernier, Larose, Soucy, 2005; Cuseo, 2005; Kuh, Kinzie, Schuh & Whitt, 2010) • Supplemental Instruction (Kuh,, Kinzie, Schuh & Whitt, 2010; Tinto, 1993) • Learning Communities provide more opportunities for all students including commuter students to connect with one another academically and socially (Kuh, Kinzie, Buckley, Bridges, & Hayek, 2011)

  12. Moving Forward: Think about the connections – College provides various ways for students to meet others and engage with the faculty and staff. Student choose to participate in activities that are meaningful to them. Students who participate feel a sense of belongingness Students who feel belongingness are more likely to persist towards graduation.

  13. References Astin, A. W. (1999). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Development, 40(5), 518-529. Retrieved from http://www.myacpa.org/pub/JCSD/journaldata.cfm?CFID=16989&CFTOKEN=41977560 Baker, C. N. (2008). Under-represented college students and extracurricular involvement: The effects of various student organizations on academic performance. Social Psychology of Education: An International Journal, 11(3), 273-298. doi: 10.1007/s11218-007-9050-y Bernier, Annie, Simon Larose, and Nathalie Soucy. "Academic mentoring in college: The interactive role of student’s and mentor’s interpersonal dispositions." Research in Higher Education 46.1 (2005): 29-51. Carini, R. M., Kuh, G. D., & Klein, S. P. (2006). Student engagement and student learning: Testing the linkages. Research in Higher Education, 47(1), 1-32. doi: 10.007/s11162-005-8150-9 Cress, C. M., Astin, H. S., Zimmerman-Oster, K., & Burkhardt, J. C. (2001). Developmental outcomes of college students' involvement in leadership activities. Journal of College Student Development, 42(1), 15-27. Cuseo, J. (2005). The case for faculty and staff mentoring programs for college students. Fischer, M. J. (2007). Settling into campus life: Differences by Race/Ethnicity in college involvement and outcomes. The Journal of Higher Education, 78(2), pp. 125-161. doi:10.1353/jhe.2007.0009 Flowers, L. A. (2004). Examining the effects of student involvement on africanamerican college student development Journal of College Student Development, 45(6), 633-654. doi:10.1353/csd.2004.0067 Foubert, J. D., & Grainger, L. U. (2006). Effects of involvement in clubs and organizations on the psychosocial development of first-year and senior college students. NASPA Journal, 43(1), 166-182.

  14. References Cont’d Kezar, A., & Moriarty, D. (2000). Expanding our understanding of student leadership development: A study exploring gender and ethnic identity. Journal of College Student Development, 41(1), 55-69. Kuh, G. D. (1995). The other curriculum: Out-of-class experiences associated with student learning and personal development. The Journal of Higher Education, 66(2), 123-155. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2943909 Kuh, G. D., Hu, S., & Vesper, N. (2000). "They shall be known by what they do": An activities-based typology of college students. Journal of College Student Development, 41(2), 228-44. Kuh, G. D., Kinzie, J., Schuh, J. H., & Whitt, E. J. (2010). Student success in college: Creating conditions that matter. John Wiley & Sons. Kuh, G. D., Kinzie, J., Buckley, J. A., Bridges, B. K., & Hayek, J. C. (2011). Piecing Together the Student Success Puzzle: Research, Propositions, and Recommendations: ASHE Higher Education Report (Vol. 116). John Wiley & Sons. Maslow, A. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50, p. 370-396. National Center for Education Statistics. (2004). Integrated postsecondary education data system (IPEDS) fall enrollment survey [Data file]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics. (2004). Beginning postsecondary students longitudinal study: Second follow-up (BPS:96/01) (NCES 2003-163). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. Available from the Data Analysis System Web site, http://www.nces.ed.gov/das National Center for Education Statistics. (2005). National postsecondary student aid study: 2003-2004. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. Available from the Data Analysis System Web site, http://www.nces.ed.gov/das

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