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Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition
Abstract
The dimensions and consequences of college student attrition and features of institutional action to deal with attrition are discussed. Patterns of student departure from individual colleges as opposed to permanent college withdrawal are addressed. After synthesizing the research on multiple causes of student leaving, a theory of student departure from college is presented based on the work of Emile Durkheim and Arnold Van Gennep. The theory proposes that student departure may serve as a barometer of the social and intellectual health of college life as much as of the students' experiences at the college. The quality of faculty-student interaction and the student's integration into the school are central factors in student attrition. Attention is directed to features of retention programs, including the time of college actions and variations in policy necessary for different types of students and colleges. It is suggested that effective retention lies in the college's commitment to students. The content, structure, and evaluation methods for assessment of student retention and departure are considered, along with the use of assessment information for developing effective retention programs. (SW)
... See Appendix A for a brief history of the two-tiered model and Appendix B for a discussion of the Vancouver model. and thus able to provide high-quality student-faculty engagement in and out of the classroom, students succeed at significantly higher rates (Astin, 1999;Burgess & Samuels, 2010;Ernst, 1997Ernst, , 2002Fain, 2014;Fichtenbaum, 2013;Fischer, 2005;Freeland, 1998;Gilbert, 2019;Heath et al., 2022;Jacoby, 2006;Pascarella & Terenzini, 1980;Pilati, 2006;Terenzini et al., 1982;Tinto, 1987Tinto, , 1989. ...
... High-quality, ongoing student-faculty engagement in and out of the classroom is the key ingredient for student success in college and beyond (Astin, 1999;Burgess & Samuels, 2010;Fain, 2014;Gilbert, 2019;Heath et al., 2022;Jacoby, 2006;Pascarella & Terenzini, 1980;Terenzini et al., 1982;Tinto, 1987). 8 ...
The California Community Colleges (CCC) system plays a pivotal role as an engine for economic and social mobility in California and as a driver for the fifth largest economy in the world. In the past two decades, the CCC system has undergone significant “reform,” narrowing students’ educational opportunities and shrinking the student body by over one million students. During this period, the CCC system’s student outcomes have declined, stagnated, or only slightly improved despite decades of “reform” efforts. This paper illustrates that transitioning from a two-tiered to a nontiered—unified faculty—model will better serve the students, colleges, and state of California. The concept of a unified faculty emphasizes the elimination of the two employment tiers—part-time and full-time faculty—to create a nontiered structure. This model is based on faculty and collegewide unity as opposed to the current structure that has produced a divided faculty, inequitable service to students, and stagnant or diminishing student outcomes. Presently, the K-12 system and Vancouver model are structured around a unified, nontiered faculty model. It is time for the California Community Colleges to address the hypocrisy at the heart of its institutions: decades of disinvestment from the faculty and thus, students. Investing in a nontiered, unified faculty model will remedy the CCC system that is currently struggling to bring back the millions of students who have been pushed out of their colleges.
... Além desta introdução, o artigo foi organizado em três partes. A primeira aborda aspectos conceituais sobre a evasão na educação superior e apresenta as contribuições do Modelo de Integração de Vicent Tinto (1975Tinto ( , 1993) para a compreensão do fenômeno. A segunda descreve os procedimentos metodológicos adotados para a realização da pesquisa. ...
... Sobre a integração dos estudantes, Tinto (1993) ...
This study focuses on the potential academic benefit of virtual international exchange for community colleges and the students they enroll through a comparison of virtual exchange and study abroad. Using data from two community colleges in the US Southeast, this study draws upon the notion of socioacademic integration. Specifically, this study theorizes that both virtual exchange and study abroad have a positive relationship with students’ academic outcomes given their potential to foster socioacademic integrative moments. However, given the scalability of virtual international exchange, it was expected that these programs are associated with a greater relationship to students’ academic outcomes in the aggregate. This study’s results generally confirm these expectations, although findings for virtual exchange are less positive compared to study abroad. Results have implications for the establishment and success of both approaches to international education programming at community colleges. The potential for virtual international exchange to reach a larger group of students compared to study abroad, thus having a greater aggregate impact on students’ success and outcomes, has key policy implications particularly for community colleges, for which service to the community is an integral component of institutional mission.
Longstanding disparities in four-year transfer rates for Black/African American and Latinx/Hispanic community college students, relative to their Asian and white peers, raise important equity questions about the vertical transfer function in the U.S. higher education system. Using data from one of the nation’s largest and most racially and ethnically diverse community college systems, we examined whether differences in early academic momentum (e.g., first-year cumulative GPA, summer enrollment, number of first-year credits attempted and earned) were a root cause of gaps in transfer outcomes between different racial and ethnic groups. Multi-group structural equation modeling (SEM) results revealed a strong relationship between early academic momentum and vertical transfer success for community college students. However, the results showed academic momentum did not operate in the same manner for all racial and ethnic groups and some indicators were particularly important for improving transfer outcomes for Black/African American and Latinx/Hispanic students. These results have important implications for community college research and practice pertinent to vertical transfer outcomes.
Using quantitative approach, this paper investigates whether parental involvement play any role in improving students’ academic performance at the tertiary levels in the Ghanaian context utilizing primary data and a standard statistical method known as ordinary least squares regression. A total sample of 613 students from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) was used for the analysis. With regard to the variable measurement, academic performance is measured using the students’ cumulative weighted average. Again, this paper uses three measures for parental involvement – parents visiting their wards on university campus, calling them to check up on them regularly and encouraging them to perform better in academics. The results reveal that there is a significant positive relationship between the measures of parental involvement and students’ academic performance. Specifically, parents visiting their wards regularly, encouraging them and calling to check up improve academic performance by 0.005, 0.061 and 0.046 respectively. A significant negative relationship between age and academic performance is also revealed. There is also a significant positive relationship between belonging to a group and academic performance. The implication of the findings is that parents should as a matter of importance pay attention to their role by visiting, calling and encouraging their wards while they are on university campus. Doing these has the potential to improve the academic performance of their wards as revealed in this paper.
The recent complexity of the university system, with diverse academic trajectories and varying socio-demographic characteristics of students, has led to increased access for historically underrepresented students. This has resulted in a rising number of adult learners, students with external responsibilities and individuals returning to education. However, despite this enhanced access, it remains unclear whether it has improved graduation. This uncertainty stems from the fact that students' social circumstances and external responsibilities differ significantly based on when they enter university. From a life course perspective, the aim of this paper is to explore the interactive effects of age at university entrance and employment status on the probability of graduating of an entire cohort of new students who entered the Catalan Higher Education System in 2012 (N = 29,463). The results show an interaction effect between age and employment status on the probability of graduation where working decreases the probability of graduation among students younger than 42 years old. Conversely, the negative impact of employment on university graduation diminishes among students entering university at an older age. This underscores the importance of adopting a life course perspective to comprehend students' educational experiences and outcomes within higher education.
Background
Sociocultural engagement of students refers to broadening viewpoints and providing awareness of, and respect for, diverse backgrounds and perspectives. However, there are no existing validated instruments in the literature for measuring sociocultural engagement of health professions education (HPE) students. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop and validate a questionnaire designed to assess sociocultural engagement among HPE students.
Methods
The study included undergraduate HPE students (n = 683) at Gulf Medical University. The initial version of the sociocultural engagement of students’ questionnaire (SESQ) was developed after extensive literature review and guided by the Global Learning Qualifications Framework. We then tested the content validity of the questionnaire by using focus group discussion with subject experts (n = 16) and pilot testing with students (n = 20). We distributed the content-validated version of the SESQ (16 items) to undergraduate students in six HPE colleges. To examine the construct validity and construct reliability of the questionnaire, we conducted exploratory factor analysis, followed by confirmatory factor analysis.
Results
Confirmatory factor analysis supported the two-factor structure which consists of 13 items with good fitness indices (χ² = 214.35, df = 61, χ ²/df = 3.51, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMR = 0.025, and AIC = 208.00). The two factors were sociocultural interactions (8 items) and sociocultural adaptation (5 items). The construct reliability of the total questionnaire is 0.97 and the two factors were 0.93 and 0.92 for sociocultural interactions and sociocultural adaptation, respectively. In addition, there were significant weak correlations between both factors of sociocultural engagement scores and student satisfaction with the university experience (r = .19 for each, P = .01).
Conclusions
The sociocultural engagement of students’ questionnaire exhibits good evidence of construct validity and reliability. Further studies will be required to test the validity of this questionnaire in other contexts.
Enrollment in online higher education (OHE) programs has witnessed a substantial increase, owing to the benefits and added value it offers students. However, one of the main challenges in this educational modality is attrition. While research on attrition in online settings is plentiful, studies on student satisfaction with higher education institutions (HEIs) in these settings are still nascent. Therefore, this article aimed to assess the impact of student satisfaction with HEIs on their intention to drop out in the OHE environment, seeking to identify specific constructs that influence student satisfaction in this educational modality. To achieve this, a partial least squares structural equation modeling was employed to examine the relationship between satisfaction with the institution and the intention to drop out. The model was parameterized using data from a sample of 524 participants across the 32 departments of Colombia. The study revealed that satisfaction with various aspects of OHE variably affects overall satisfaction with the HEI and the intention to drop out. Despite significant effect sizes, the lack of statistical significance in certain areas suggests further research. These findings are crucial for developing strategies to improve the educational experience and reduce attrition in OHE.
Objective
This study aimed to understand the key determinants for poor academic performance of students completing a Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm), Bachelor of Pharmacy and Management (BPharmMgmt), or Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) degree.
Methods
Data were collected on pharmacy students who had not met academic progression requirements between 2008 and 2018 at The University of Sydney, Australia. This included: age at the start of pharmacy degree; gender; whether they transferred from another university; whether they were a domestic or international student; Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank upon entry, previous studies in biology, chemistry, or mathematics; show cause triggers (units of study failed); number of show causes; students’ written show cause responses; weighted average mark at last show cause or graduation; whether they graduated and were a registered pharmacist; and, the number of years they spent studying the degree. Descriptive studies were used to analyse student characteristics using SPSS software, and student self-reported reasons for poor performance were analysed reflexively using thematic analysis procedures using NVivo.
Results
This study included 164 pharmacy students enrolled in a BPharm (79.3%, n = 130), BPharmMgmt (1.2%, n = 2), or MPharm (19.5%, n = 32). Of the students, 54% (n = 88) were men, 81% (n = 133) were domestic students, 15% (n = 24) transferred from another degree program, and 38% (n = 62) graduated from the course. Show cause students were less likely to graduate if they transferred from another degree program (P = 0.0002) or failed more than three units of study (UoS; P < 0.0001). The most commonly failed UoS were related to organic or pharmaceutical chemistry, and the top student self-reported reasons for poor performance was stress/anxiety, physical health, and depression.
Conclusion
Pharmacy schools should aim to address student foundational knowledge in chemistry, identify at-risk students early using pre-subject testing, and provide better services to address student mental health.
Electromagnetics education has changed dramatically in the past two decades. Innovations in wireless communication and other consumer applications have fueled strong interest in the field. New tools including visualizations, videos and simulations, and lower-cost equipment enabling hands-on design labs make teaching and learning electromagnetics much more engaging. Engineering careers today are broad, global, varied, and collaborative. Students need skills in communication and public outreach and experience working in diverse, multidisciplinary teams. New student-centered teaching methods––including active learning, flipped, hybrid, and hyflex classrooms, and problem-based learning––provide opportunities to more deeply understand the spatiotemporal characteristics of electromagnetics fields. COVID-19 brought these new teaching approaches into the mainstream, providing numerous opportunities for experiential learning that can help students gain a deeper understanding of how electromagnetic fields behave, and how we can control them to design functional devices. But with these opportunities come significant expectations for use of technology in the classroom, flexibility and student-centered learning, and preparation for a rapidly changing work environment, A review of the past and the present of electromagnetics education and education research informs any discussion of future developments of what we teach (i.e., the changing electromagnetics curriculum), how we teach (i.e., new advances in pedagogy), and whom we teach (i.e., the opportunities and challenges of diversity).
This chapter provides students with background information about academic persistence and associated factors that have been shown to present barriers to student success in an online course or program. When a student decides to pursue a college or university degree, they need to also examine their ability to persist from semester to semester and, to degree completion. The literature on academic persistence is primarily directed at faculty and college or university leadership. However, students who enroll in an online course or degree program need to also develop an understanding of factors that are within their control that may impact their persistence. Hence, academic persistence is critical to short-term and long-term student success, regardless of the course or program modality. In this chapter, theoretical frameworks are used to define and explain academic persistence, especially in the context of a higher education online learning environment. This chapter also explains other terms that an online student may encounter in higher education, such as attrition and retention, and how these terms differentiate from persistence. This chapter concludes with recommended strategies to help students identify and address any factors that are within their control which may impact their ability to persist in an online course or program. Furthermore, additional strategies are incorporated to guide students in navigating factors that are beyond their control.
Postgraduate education has become increasingly crucial for nations in recent years, contributing to scientific, technological, and social progress. However, high dropout rates may undermine the benefits of postgraduate education. This study aims to identify which individual, academic, socio-economic, and institutional variables influence student attrition at the postgraduate level (master’s and doctoral) through a scoping review. Using the PRISMA-ScR method, we analyzed 40 research articles for bibliometric insights and specifically examined explanatory variables for postgraduate dropout. Within the individual determinant, explanatory variables include nationality, gender, age, marital status, family support, family and work obligations, and motivation levels. Socio-economic variables encompass the student’s income, employment status, and the national macroeconomic environment. In the academic context, key variables comprise prior knowledge, academic performance, student satisfaction, autonomy, self-efficacy, and research interest. Lastly, variables such as insufficient financial resources, institutional policies, teacher-student interaction, student support, academic infrastructure, and curriculum design play pivotal roles in the institutional realm. In conclusion, this study enhances our understanding of postgraduate dropout, offering valuable insights for the academic community and States to develop strategies that improve retention rates and reduce dropout levels in postgraduate education.
This study delves into the multifaceted relationship between student satisfaction and academic performance in undergraduate economics. While prior research often overlooks the complex interplay of these factors with cognitive potential, prior knowledge, and gender, this investigation sheds light on their combined influence on student success. Data collected from 115 economics students at the University of Rwanda were analyzed using an econometric approach [both maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) and ordinary least squares (OLS)] and t-test. The findings reveal interesting gender differences: female students reported higher satisfaction, suggesting stronger self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation, while male students showed superior academic performance. Additionally, factors like level of study and personal laptop access impacted satisfaction, while higher cognitive abilities, deeper engagement with the field, and prior math background positively predicted academic achievement. Intriguingly, the study found that female students performed lower despite higher satisfaction levels, prompting further research into potential explanations. Additionally, older students exhibited lower performance, highlighting the need for understanding age-related factors influencing academic success. These findings advocate for a multifaceted approach to supporting student success in economics. By prioritizing student satisfaction, fostering individual cognitive potential, and delivering tailored support based on diverse needs (including gender and age), educational institutions can create the optimal conditions for all economics students to flourish.
When working with international students from collectivist cultures or
backgrounds, it is important for academic advisors and career counselors to consider the influence their families have on their academic
and career trajectories. The authors synthesize research on international student’s perceptions of their institution experiences in the United
States. Additionally, the shared experiences of academic advisors and
career counselors that work with international students are incorporated. Relational Cultural Theory (RCT) is offered as a framework conceptualizing international students and for recommendations.
Keywords: international students; familial influences; academic advising; student affairs; career counseling Relational cultural theory
Doctoral programmes worldwide are facing numerous challenges. Among these challenges is the diversification of the student body in aspects such as age, socioeconomic background, motivation, and career aspirations. However, these programmes often struggle to respond adequately and promptly to these changes. In this article, we employ the concept of a ‘departmental climate’ to investigate how doctoral students at Russian universities perceive their environment. The data collected at nine Russian universities (n = 1097) were utilised. Our findings reveal that students whose job is related to doctoral study and those whose job is driven by academic career goals generally perceive the departmental climate more positively. We assume that Russian doctoral programmes are more oriented towards these students and provide them with more support than other students. Our results underscore the need for doctoral programmes to evolve to accommodate a diverse range of student needs, ultimately enhancing the effectiveness and inclusivity of doctoral education.
Free eprint: https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/JWHGPSEH8J9GWT4VDGFF/full?target=10.1080/07294360.2023.2293191
The purpose of this article was to explore, from the perspective of students and graduates with disabilities, the skills that are necessary to be self-determined at university, why these are important, and how they can be developed to remain in university and graduate successfully. A systematic review, including 16 qualitative studies with a total of 303 participants, was carried out. The results provide information on: essential skills to facilitate self-determination and successful completion of university studies (problem-solving skills, learning about oneself, goal setting, self-management, self-advocacy) and attributes (autonomy, resilience, and empowerment); the reasons for being self-determined at university (achieving academic goals, overcoming barriers, demonstrating abilities, self-confidence, and academic success); and how self-determination can be learned at university (trial and error; family, faculty and peers; disability services; peers; specific programmes; and information technology communication). The conclusions are encouraging and show that self-determination can be learned in universities with the necessary supports. ARTICLE HISTORY
School disengagement is one of the pressing topics for educational equity in many countries worldwide, which will lead to school dropout. Dropping out of school has adverse consequences, including negative effects on employment, lifetime earnings, and physical health. Several attempts have been made to solve engagement issues, for example, the development of an intelligent tutoring system (ITS), which is useful to know when a student has disengaged from a task and might benefit from a particular intervention. However, predicting disengagement on a trial-by-trial basis is a challenging problem, particularly in complex cognitive domains. This paper emphasizes the MyBuddy mobile application developed as a smart classifier to identify the level of school disengagement risk among at-risk students in secondary schools. The working engine of MyBuddy is translated from a computational model that comprises fourteen predictors of four main entities: student, family, school, and surroundings. This application employs advanced mathematical models to analyze the data and generate risk scores indicating the dropout likelihood. This empowers counselors to proactively intervene and provide targeted support to the students who require it the most. MyBuddy offers a centralized platform to access and analyze aggregated data from multiple schools. This functionality allows them to smartly identify patterns, trends, and systemic challenges contributing to dropout rates. With comprehensive data-driven insights, district and state officers can design effective interventions and allocate resources strategically to mitigate dropout risks. Utilizing MyBuddy to revolutionize dropout prevention and foster a more inclusive and equitable education system in Kedah, Malaysia, aligns with the fourth Sustainable Development Goal, which aims to provide quality education for everyone.
This paper reports the findings of a critical qualitative study on trauma-informed teaching of English as a second language (ESL) at Australian universities. Post-traumatic stress affects verbal learning, yet most ESL teachers do not receive training in trauma-informed teaching. The field has suffered from a dearth of empirical studies and absence of student voice. This study used a validated tool to measure the post-traumatic stress of 39 participants, including international students and former refugees. Twenty of these completed semi-structured interviews about the ESL learning environment, based on a framework of trauma-informed principles. Data were analysed using critical, qualitative methods through a trauma-informed lens. A major theme in the findings was the importance of ESL teachers' understanding of students. Within this theme, four sub-themes are explored: personal engagement and attention, acceptance and understanding of the learner role, understanding the lives of students outside the classroom and an understanding of students' cultures.
Despite continued efforts to further the participation of women in Computer Science (CS), progress has been limited during the past decades. Recent efforts have been focused on recruitment and retention, with a notable gap in exploring the impact of admissions processes on diversity and inclusion. Through an extensive literature review, contextual analysis of public admissions data from 40 universities across four regions around the world, and qualitative and quantitative analysis on surveys and interviews, we explored the role of admissions in enhancing diversity and inclusion in CS undergraduate programs. Our findings highlight the role of financials, the possible positive effects of explicit advocacy for diversity and inclusion, and the imperative to cultivate a more welcoming and inclusive culture in CS programs.
The dramatic expansion of online learning programs for adult degree-seeking professionals has opened significant access and opportunity for institutions of higher education, as well as for the adult learners they serve. However, this recent dramatic increase in online graduate degree offerings has posed challenges to educators and students. One of the most significant challenges is building and maintaining strong connections, and a sense of community, among the participants within the online setting. Social climate theory provides a useful lens for a reconsideration of the social climate of an online learning environment (synchronous and asynchronous) as embodying a “personality” that iteratively shapes the learning community and the experience of participants, and is shaped in return. This chapter presents an in-depth analysis of how educators can strategically enhance online classroom communities for adult degree-seeking professionals through the application of social climate theory principles and a proposed conceptual framework.
College freshmen often face difficulties adjusting to the new academic and social environment of university life. It is critical to help them adapt to academic and personal life, while also improving their sense of belonging and engagement with the university. In this paper, we focus on the context of an international joint venture university, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU), and present a participatory design approach to identify potential solutions collaboratively. We conducted three participatory design workshops with freshmen in undergraduate and postgraduate studies, where we discovered specific challenges, developed serious game content and design alternatives, and delivered a board game that supports academic and social integration at XJTLU. To evaluate the effectiveness of the board game, we collected both quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative analysis revealed that the board game is effective in improving freshmen’s knowledge acquisition of academic affairs, increasing their familiarity with the environment and resources, and enhancing their ability to access information and resources. The board game also received high scores in system usability and user experience. The qualitative analysis indicated that the board game was engaging, interesting, and well-received by students. They found the board game helpful in their academic and social integration and expressed a desire to play it again in the future. Our participatory design approach and the resulting board game provide a promising avenue for universities to support freshmen’s transition to university life.
This case study examines the transition of a residential professional graduate degree program in educational leadership at a major research university to an online learning model. The case incorporates the observations and field notes of the program director and the inaugural online course instructor, along with survey data collected from students, investigating the opportunities and challenges of converting an established, community-rich, in-person professional degree program to an online model, with a focus on maintaining a strong sense of community. The theoretical framework and relevant scholarship are initially considered, followed by the case. Specific instructional strategies for building a sense of community and the affiliated evidence of the case are also discussed. The chapter concludes with key recommendations for how instructors and university program administrators can partner to design effective environments that foster engagement and meaningful learning experiences for online professional graduate students, contributing to long-term benefits for the institution.
The recent years have seen a sharp increase in the stress among higher institution students. This chapter investigates the multidimensional nature of stressors, from financial obligations and academic expectations to social and emotional difficulties. Students' mental and physical health, academic performance, and overall quality of life are all negatively impacted by the prevalence of stress. It is essential for institutions to comprehend these stressors in order to put in place efficient support systems and initiatives that foster student resilience and wellbeing. Since it ultimately affects the future success and mental health of the younger generation, addressing student pressures is a joint responsibility of educators, legislators, and society at large.
Peer mentoring has shown beneficial effects in facilitating academic and social integration among first-year students in higher education. Previous research is, however, limited by the exclusion of a comparison group, to examine whether the integration process still occurs among non-mentored students, independently of peer mentoring. By using Tinto ´s theoretical framework, we examine the effects of a formal peer mentoring program, comparing these effects on integration with non-mentored students. Data was gathered from focus group interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. Our findings show that peer mentoring supports the integration process among first-year students, although the results suggest that it is not a necessary condition to ensure that integration occurs. Future studies should further extend the research to also include an evaluation of other activities taking place at the institution, to expand the knowledge of which measures facilitates the integration process.
Due to the COVID pandemic and lockdown, usage of social platforms increased for academic and non-academic purposes. As a result, students are at significant risk of developing social media addiction, so techniques to control social media addiction throughout society are required. There are several positive and negative ways in which social media affects the academic performance of a student. Most of the mathematical models exclude the past of an individual, which is critical for controlling social media consumption. Hence, this study offers a fractional-order mathematical model to analyze the impact of social media on academics. There are two equilibrium points for the proposed model: social web-free and endemic equilibrium. Based on an evaluation of the threshold value, the social web-free equilibrium point is globally asymptotically stable whenever the threshold value is less than one. Endemic equilibrium points exist when the threshold value is greater than 1. Additionally, numerical simulations have been performed to examine changes in population dynamics and validate analytical outcomes. In summary, the findings of this research reveal that social media addiction decreases as the order of the derivative decreases, demonstrating the high efficiency of a fractional-order model over an integer-order model.
Microaggression experienced by LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and having other sexual orientations and gender identities) persons have been exhaustively studied over the last decade. However, there is a dearth of psychological research examining the prevalence, forms, and consequences of LGBTQ microaggression in educational institutions. The current study systematically reviews the existing literature that deals with LGBTQ microaggression on campus. The PRISMA model has been used to systematically identify, screen, and review fifty-nine articles published between 2010 and 2022. The results identified multiple forms of microaggression, i.e. environmental (secondhand witnessing of homophobia and heterosexism on campus), and interpersonal (through peer/faculty/staff interaction). LGBTQ microaggression negatively impacts the academic outcomes (absenteeism, attrition, and productivity) and mental health of the students. Intersectionality accelerates the vulnerability to experiencing microaggression.
This chapter introduces the main argument of this edited volume, which is to position students at the heart of higher education. The chapter highlights the concepts of agency and self-formation to do so. The chapter includes a historical overview of higher learning, starting from the medieval university, which constitutes the roots of higher education today. The historical overview highlights that students in higher learning have never been as narrowly defined as they tend to be in the last decades. The narrow definitions of the last decades include reducing students to consumers, income maximizers, or passive information receivers. The chapter also includes an overview of the relevant literature. The review of research on student experiences discusses how agency and self-formation are implied in the extensive theories and concepts of student development in higher education. Then, the emerging line of literature that engages with the agency and self-formation concepts more explicitly is introduced. The chapter concludes by introducing the chapters in the edited volume, which include diverse perspectives on agency and self-formation in higher education.
Students experience development and growth during their higher education journey, but the exact mechanisms behind this process remain relatively unknown. This chapter seeks to shed light on how students develop, grow, and attain empowerment in higher education by focusing on the interactions between individuals and their surroundings (referred to as I-world interactions). Employing a multicultural and multidisciplinary approach, the chapter begins by examining various cultural and philosophical perspectives on I-world interactions, such as the German idealistic, Chinese Confucian, and Islamic Sunni philosophies. Subsequently, it delves into the implications of these interactions for individual development and growth in higher education, drawing from research in psychology, sociology, and education. The chapter argues that three fundamental elements underlie I-world interactions in all three philosophical approaches: the acknowledgement of agency, exercise of agency and enhancement of agency. Higher education allows students to exhibit agency, as supported by sociological theories and psychological evidence of human functioning. Students actively exercise their agency, especially when engaging with environmental factors both within and outside the university setting. If universities effectively structure and implement this process, they can contribute to the enhancement of students’ agency. The three shared elements among the examined cultural philosophies and the empirical evidence in educational, psychological, and sociological studies together form foundations for understanding how students become empowered in higher education and for positioning the enhancement of students’ agency at the centre of higher education across contexts.
A sense of belonging to one's educational institution has been linked to many positive benefits and could be utilised as a tool to close gaps in academic completion rates. In elite international schools, not all students fare the same. One explanation for this gap is a lack of a ‘sense of belonging'. The current study addresses the research question of ‘How do students from non-elite backgrounds experience belonging at an elite international school?' Semi-structured interviews with ten Grade 11 students from non-elite backgrounds who attended an elite international school in a major Asian city were conducted. The data was analysed using a descriptive qualitative approach. The results suggest relationships and school culture most affected students' sense of belonging. These findings suggest there are many complexities to the belonging experienced by students from non-elite backgrounds studying in international schools. This study concludes with advice to educators in international schools and the wider sector.
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