A Study on the Interaction Between Initial Student Attitudes and Retention Effect in Formal Adult High School Completion Classes.
Donaldson, John William
1980
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to identify the effect of initial student attitudes toward the classroom environment on the retention rate of students in an adult high school completion program. The adult high school completion questionnaire, developed by the researcher, was administered to students in an adult high school completion program in a suburban setting. The questionnaire elicited information on eight control variables--ethnicity, sex, age, marital status, occupation, subject selected, school location and diploma status. It also contained a series of semantic differential scales to measure student attitudes toward the classroom environment. Data was collected on three semantic concept indexes: Subject, Instructor, and Myself. The questionnaire was initially administered to all students in attendance in three different locations on the second class session of the term. A second administration of the questionnaire occurred at mid-term point and was completed by all students still in attendance. A follow-up questionnaire was mailed to all students who had left the program by the mid-term point. Data analysis was conducted only for students with complete data sets on the first and second administration of the questionnaire. Of the students with complete data sets, two hundred fifty-one were still in the program and were classified as retained. Thirty-five students with complete data sets had left the program and were classified as nonretained. Findings. Of the eight control variables tested, only marital status was significantly related to retention of students in the adult high school completion program with the widowed, separated, and divorced category showing higher mean scores than the single or married. An analysis of initial student attitude toward the classroom environment produced no statistically significant differences (p > .05) between the retained and nonretained students on semantic concepts: Subject, Instructor, and Myself. Student responses to the first and second administration of the questionnaire were tested through profile analysis and t-Tests. The results show a significant change in attitudes through time. Nonretained students became significantly more negative on all three semantic concepts, while the retained students became more negative on the semantic concept Subject. Conclusions. (1) The Adult High School Completion Questionnaire did not serve as a clear predictor of student retention in an adult high school completion program. The instrument did, however, identify differences in how students perceive different aspects of the classroom environment. (2) Mean scores for the retained students on the semantic concept scales were always higher than mean scores for the nonretained students. It would appear that nonretained students had a less positive attitude about all aspects of the classroom environment than did the retained students. These differences were, however, not statistically significant. (3) Student attitudes did change after attending an adult high school completion classroom, with nonretained students becoming more negative toward the classroom environment than the retained students. (4) The adult high school completion study showed that marital status was the only demographic variable which did have an influence on retention.Types
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