Preventing the Sophomore-Slump: Strategies for …...biology and chemistry courses. Preventing the...
Transcript of Preventing the Sophomore-Slump: Strategies for …...biology and chemistry courses. Preventing the...
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• Develop strategies to prioritize and balance the
demands of second year courses, study requirements
and school activities.
• Participate in activities and content designed to
reinforce the application of key concepts learned in
year 1 in preparation for year 2 courses.
• Improve self-efficacy with respect to second-year
biology and chemistry courses.
Preventing the Sophomore-Slump: Strategies for Keeping Biology Majors on Track in Their Second Year
Paulina Cano McCutcheon & Lisa Oakes – St. Mary’s University
References
Student Objectives
Program Information & Assessment Plan
Introduction
St. Mary’s University, founded in 1852, is the first institution
of higher learning in San Antonio and the oldest Catholic
university in Texas and the Southwest. Undergraduate
enrollment consists of 2,300 students of which, 70% are
Hispanic and come from Texas. 80% of all first time
freshmen live on campus and over 50% receive financial
assistance. Close to 40% of undergraduates are pursuing a
STEM degree and 37% of them are enrolled in a biology
program.
In order to support the retention of second year biology
majors, FANGS (Finding the Antidote to Negativity and
Promoting Growth Mindset for Sophomores) was designed to
provide experiences to prepare students for the second year
of their biology major. Throughout the program, particular
emphasis was placed on students’ feelings of self-efficacy in
their biology and chemistry courses. Through engaging
discussions, small group interactions, and competitive team
activities, students actively explored relevant biology and
chemistry topics aimed at increasing their preparedness for
rigorous course content.
Best Practices
Attendance & DemographicsActivities
Future Work
Data collected at the end of the Fall 2018
semester will be analyzed and reported.
Focus groups will be held with FANGS
participants near the end of the Fall semester
to capture more informative student
perspectives. Collectively, these data will be
provided to the biology faculty for use in
planning for next year’s program. Students’
final grades will also be examined at the end
of the Fall 2018 semester.
Program Information
• 3 day program (first week of the Fall 2018 semester)
• 3 hours each day
• 3 Biology labs and 2 classrooms were utilized
• 5 biology faculty members and 6 student tutors
• Program was part of the lab requirements for:
Cell and Molecular Biology
Cell Biology
Genetic Principles
Organic Chemistry
.
Day 1: DNA Modeling Challenge:
Students built a DNA molecule
out of candy, described important
components and explained the rules
of base pairing and how DNA
sequences relate to the final protein
product
Day 2: Quantitative Challenge:
Students used lentils and measurement
instrumentation to solve a number of
quantitative problems related to those
commonly applied in biological and
chemical contexts.
Day 3: Peer and Faculty Panels:
Students discussed the importance of
self-efficacy, strategies for success in
2nd year biology and chemistry
courses discussed and received tips
on how to study for each course.
Assessments
• Self-efficacy in biology courses
• Self-efficacy in chemistry courses
• Content assessment
• Demographics
Administration Schedule
• Start of Day 1 - Pre
• End of Day 3 - Intermediate Post
• End of Fall 2018 semester - Post
• Incentivize attendance to prevent program attrition
• Emphasize self-efficacy to promote confidence in 2nd year
biology and chemistry courses
• Relate activities to relevant content to see an improvement
in student retention of relevant subject matter
• Include both faculty and student peers to support
participating students
Results Summary
Start of FANGS: Day 1
• N = 76 Students
• N = 54 Biology Majors
• N = 61 Second Year
End of FANGS: Day 3
• N = 54 Students
• N = 45 Biology Majors
• N = 48 Second Year
Students with Pre and Intermediate Post Data:
• N = 44 Students
• N = 36 Biology Majors
• N = 41 Second Year
Pattern across majors (similar for biology majors alone):
• Increased self-efficacy in biology (1 = Extremely – 5 = Not at all) (p < .001)
• Increased self-efficacy in chemistry (1 = Extremely – 5 = Not at all) (p = .002)
• On average, students got about 1.5 more content items correct (p < .05)
• 35 Students had more correct at the end of FANGS
• On average, students attempted 0.66 more content items (p < .05)
• 16 students attempted more items at the end of FANGS
• On average, students attained about a 10 point increase in the percentage of correct content items (p < .001)
53.6963.73
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20.00
40.00
60.00
80.00
100.00
Start of FANGS End of FANGS
Pe
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f 11
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Average Content Score
2.40 2.16
1
2
3
4
5
Start of FANGS End of FANGS
Ave
rag
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atin
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Self-Efficacy in Biology
2.57 2.31
1
2
3
4
5
Start of FANGS End of FANGS
Ave
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Self-Efficacy in Chemistry