1 / 34

Enhancing Student Experiences and Retention through Multicultural Learning Communities

Enhancing Student Experiences and Retention through Multicultural Learning Communities. Melissa A. Dyehouse Natalie A. Rausch Matthew D. Pistilli Purdue University February 27, 2006. I. Welcome and Introductions II. Why is diversity awareness important?

papina
Download Presentation

Enhancing Student Experiences and Retention through Multicultural Learning Communities

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Enhancing Student Experiences and Retention through Multicultural Learning Communities Melissa A. Dyehouse Natalie A. Rausch Matthew D. Pistilli Purdue University February 27, 2006

  2. I. Welcome and Introductions II. Why is diversity awareness important? III. Overview of Multicultural Learning Communities (MLCs) IV. Retention outcomes for MLCs V. MLC assessment plan and results VI. Questions and Discussion Overview and Agenda

  3. Why is diversity important in a university setting? Increased satisfaction Higher achievement Greater retention Strategies that have been used to increase diversity awareness and acceptance on campus Classes, learning communities, cultural awareness workshops Diversity

  4. At Purdue, a Learning Community is one of three things: A group of 20-30 first-year students coenrolled in 2-3 courses; A group of 30-130 first-year students with a common academic interest/major living in the same residence hall; or, First-year students who do both of these activities. Learning Communities

  5. Extension of Learning Communities Designed to emphasize increasing awareness and understanding among students of different ethnicities. Target population of minority students. Includes a residential component, shared courses, service learning and programming. Multicultural Learning Communities

  6. Spring 2002 – Invitation from Lumina Foundation for Education Build off past successes Open to all students Targeted recruitment for underrepresented groups Outcome: Multicultural Learning Communities (MLCs) Multicultural Learning Communities

  7. Twenty-to-thirty first-year students per college Students from four of Purdue’s Colleges Enrollment Target – Half of the participants to come from one of four federally impacted minority groups Half to be Caucasian and/or International “Critical Mass” Target Population

  8. Residential component for each MLC Two to three courses in each MLC course cluster Math linked with MLC on placement Supplemental Instruction Service Learning as part of coursework Curriculum development and support Organizing Principles and Strategies

  9. MLC Themes

  10. The goal of the Multicultural Learning Communities (MLC) project is to enhance levels of learning and satisfaction and, as a result, increase retention rates for all MLC participants. Goal of MLCs

  11. MLC participants will display/have: Higher levels of satisfaction with the college learning experience as measured by the results of the National Survey of Living/Learning Programs or a modified survey based thereon; Greater appreciation and respect for different perspectives and cultures as measured by the results of the National Survey of Living/Learning Programs or a modified survey based thereon (Diversity Perceptions Scale); Higher levels of academic and social integration in the Purdue community as measured by a modified version of Pascarella and Terenzini’s Integration Scale or comparable instrument; Higher semester and cumulative indexes; and, Higher retention and graduation rates. Measurable Objectives

  12. 71 participants in the 3 MLCs 43.66% (31/71) come from minority populations 9 (29.03%) are African American 12 (38.71%) are Asian American 7 (22.58%) are Hispanic/Latino 3 (9.68%) are Native Americans Total minority enrollment in the participating colleges is 13.16% Total minority enrollment in an MLC is 43.66% Demographic Differences for Fall 2005-06

  13. Multicultural Learning Community 2005-06 Demographic Information by Race

  14. Colleges Fall 2005-06 Demographic Information by Race

  15. 86 participants in the 4 MLCs 40.7% (35/86) come from one of the four federally impacted minority populations 16 (45.7%) are African American. 13 (37.1%) are Asian Americans 6 (17.2%) are Hispanic/Latino Americans Asian Americans typically seen as over-represented at Purdue Not the case in 2004-05 MLCs 46.3% of the participating Colleges 15.1% of the total MLC population African Americans are over-represented in the MLC participant group 26.7% of the minority first-year enrollment in 2004-05 45.7% of the MLC minority population in 2004-05 Demographic Differences for Fall 2004-05

  16. Fall 2004-05 Demographic Breakout for Minority First-Year Students in Purdue University’s Multicultural Learning Communities (MLC) MLC (School) Total MLC Enrollment African American MLC Enrollment Asian American MLC Enrollment Hispanic/ Latino MLC Enrollment Native American MLC Enrollment Total Minority MLC Enrollment Bonding (Science) 19 0 4 (20.5%) 2 (10.5%) 0 6 (31.5%) Coming-of-Age in America (Liberal Arts) 20 9 (45.0%) 2 (10.0%) 0 0 11 (55.0%) IDEAS (Engineering Education) 22 4 (18.2%) 5 (22.7%) 2 (9.1%) 0 11 (50.0%) Marketplace 2020 (Consumer and Family Sciences) 25 3 (12.0%) 2 (8.0%) 2 (8.0%) 0 7 (28.0%) TOTAL 86 16 (18.6%) 13 (15.1%) 6 (7.0%) 0 35 (38.4%)

  17. Fall 2004-05 Demographic Breakout for Minority Students in Purdue University’s Colleges of Consumer and Family Sciences, Engineering Education, Liberal Arts, and Science School Total First-Year Enrollment African American First-Year Enrollment Asian American First-Year Enrollment Hispanic/ Latino First-Year Enrollment Native American First-Year Enrollment Total Minority First-Year Enrollment Consumer and Family Sciences 224 5 (2.2%) 9 (4.0%) 6 (2.7%) 2 (0.9%) 22 (9.8%) Engineering Education 1,548 34 (2.2%) 135 (8.7%) 45 (2.9%) 10 (0.7%) 224 (14.5%) Liberal Arts 1,127 78 (6.9%) 51 (4.5%) 51 (4.5%) 11 (1.0%) 191 (16.9%) Science 907 36 (4.0%) 71 (7.8%) 25 (2.8%) 5 (0.6%) 137 (15.1%) TOTALS 3,806 153 (4.0%) 266 (7.0%) 127 (3.3%) 28 (.8%) 574 (15.1%)

  18. Overall Retention Outcomes2003-04

  19. Retention Outcomes by Gender2003-04

  20. Retention Outcomes by Ethnicity2003-04

  21. National Survey of Living Learning Programs (NSLLP) Diversity Perceptions Scale – an adaptation of the broader NSLLP Modified versions of Pascarella and Terenzini’s Motivation and Integration Scales Tracking of grades and semester GPAs Tracking of retention and graduation Assessment Measures

  22. National Survey of Living/Learning Programs (NSLLP; Kurotsuchi Inkelas, 2002) Based on Astin’s (1993) Inputs-Environments-Outcomes (I-E-O) college impact model The DPS uses 37 diversity-themed items from the NSLLP Factor analysis and item analysis to create subscales Creation of the Diversity Perceptions Scale (DPS)

  23. Four factors found (α = .87 for the entire measure) Factor 1 – Social interactions among students with different racial/ethnic backgrounds (α = .90) Factor 2 – Perspectives on values, viewpoints, race & ethnicity (α = .83) Factor 3 – Multicultural relationships (α = .77) Factor 4 – Negative perceptions about campus diversity issues (α = .69) Diversity Perceptions Scale (DPS)

  24. Factor 1 - Social interactions Attended social events together Shared personal feelings/problems My relationships with students from different racial/ ethnic backgrounds during college have been positive Factor 2 - Perspectives on values, viewpoints, etc. Learning about cultures different from my own Discussed my views about about multiculturalism and diversity Talked about different lifestyles/customs DPS – Select Factor Items

  25. Factor 3 - Multicultural relationships Interactions between students of color and white students Dating between students of color and white students Respect by white professors for students of color Factor 4 - Negative perceptions Racial conflict on campus Inter-racial tension in the residence halls My campus’ commitment to diversity fosters more division among racial/ethnic groups than inter-group understanding DPS – Select Factor Items

  26. Differences between MLC students and students in Learning Communities MLC students have Higher levels of Social Interactions among Students with Different Racial/Ethnic Backgrounds Higher levels of Perspectives on Values, Viewpoints, Race & Ethnicity Results

  27. Differences between MLC students and students not in any Learning Community MLC students have Higher levels of Social Interactions among Students with Different Racial/Ethnic Backgrounds Higher levels of Perspectives on Values, Viewpoints, Race & Ethnicity Lower levels of Negative Perceptions about Campus Diversity Issues Results

  28. Results *p < .05. ***p < .001.

  29. Significance of initial study MLC students show differences in regards to diversity awareness, appreciation, and quality of interactions Future directions Refine measure Retention outcomes will soon be available for 2004-05 The 2005-06 MLC assessment analysis is underway Conclusions

  30. Questions and Discussion

  31. Melissa A. Dyehouse Graduate Assistant for Assessment mdyehous@purdue.edu 765-496-3619 Natalie A. Rausch Senior Assistant Director narausch@purdue.edu 765-494-0969 Matthew D. Pistilli Assistant Director and Coordinator of Databases and Statistics mdpistilli@purdue.edu 765-496-3754 www.purdue.edu/learningcommunities learningcommunities@purdue.edu Contact Information

More Related