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- All Subjects: Education Policy
- All Subjects: Professional Development
Description
Affirmative action is an education policy adopted by higher education institutions in the 1960s, where an applicant’s race is taken into account to some degree when being evaluated for admission to a college or university. The practice of affirmative action, or race conscious-admissions, has been repeatedly challenged in the legal system and remains a controversial and polarizing topic amongst the general public, campus leaders, and policy makers. Despite a vast amount of research on the effects of affirmative action policies on student and institutional behaviors and outcomes, such as college applications and enrollments, considerably less research has examined students’ attitudes towards race-conscious admissions policies. Even less research has focused on students in academic disciplines, especially STEM or engineering. Likewise, there is a paucity of research that explores students’ perceptions and knowledge of how affirmative action is implemented in practice. To address these gaps, this study investigates undergraduate engineering students’ knowledge of and attitudes towards affirmative action admissions policies in higher education. The Student Attitudes Towards Admissions Policies Survey (SATAPS) was designed to assess students’ knowledge of and attitudes regarding affirmative action practices in higher education admissions. This survey was administered to undergraduate engineering students and a comparison group of education students at 42 colleges/universities in the United States. Data were analyzed utilizing confirmatory factor analysis and hierarchical regression. Results demonstrated that students have low levels of knowledge about affirmative action, and have misconceptions about how the policy functions in practice. There was no difference in engineering and education students’ level of support for affirmative action; however, underrepresented minority students in engineering were more supportive of affirmative action. Results also indicated that students’ beliefs and values were the strongest predictors of attitude towards affirmative action, so much so that this negated the significance of demographic and personal characteristics, which was observed in the majority of previous studies. Results highlight a complicated relationship between demographic characteristics, personal variables, knowledge, institutional context, beliefs/values, and attitude towards affirmative action admissions policies in higher education.
ContributorsRoss, Lydia (Author) / Judson, Eugene (Thesis advisor) / Dorn, Sherman (Committee member) / Powers, Jeanne M. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Arizona State University's Sun Devil Fitness and Wellness department plays a vital role in enhancing the physical health and well-being of its student population. However, the demanding responsibilities placed on campus recreation professionals, combined with the high expectations for student engagement, have led to a concerning rise in employee turnover. To address this issue, a comprehensive series of professional development workshops was designed, aiming to empower campus recreation professionals in navigating their roles effectively and improving their overall experience. This mixed-methods action research study was conducted to address the challenge of employee retention among entry-level campus recreation professionals at Arizona State University. The research encompassed both quantitative and qualitative assessments, focusing on critical factors such as self-efficacy, career success, job satisfaction, sense of belonging, and motivation. The study aimed to determine whether significant differences existed in these variables before and after the intervention. Data collection involved surveys, open-ended questions, and interviews, offering a comprehensive understanding of the impact of the professional development workshops.
The results of this study indicate that the professional development workshops served as an effective intervention on various constructs. Quantitative data showed a positive change in career success, motivation, and job satisfaction among staff members, while qualitative data shed light on key factors influencing employee retention. These factors included the lack of professional development opportunities, unclear career advancement pathways, a strong desire for more substantial recognition, and the paramount importance of supportive leadership and a positive work environment.
ContributorsSealey, Joshua (Author) / Rillero, Peter (Thesis advisor) / Ross, Lydia (Committee member) / Spivak Smith, Courtney (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2024
Description
The problem of practice addressed in this mixed-methods research study is assessing whether participating in professional development workshops helped community college instructors improve their pedagogical practices, leading to improved student success and achievement rates. In this study, I explore the effects of an intervention I designed to help English 101 instructors teach a new, direct-placement composition class, which was created to comply with the mandates of AB-705, an educational reform bill in California. I used three guiding theories to undergird and evaluate the intervention: Darling-Hammond et al.'s Accountability Approach (2014), Freire's Critical Pedagogy (1970), and Kirkpatrick and Kayser-Kirkpatrick’s Model of Training Effectiveness (2009). To address the research questions of this study, I analyzed pre- and post-surveys, faculty interviews, and student success and retention data. The results from the data were mixed. While the quantitative survey data did not support the claim that the College of the Canyons (COC) SkillShare Workshops affected instructors’ attitudes about teaching and their teaching behaviors, the qualitative interview data showed that the workshops did improve instructors’ professional capacities and were a valuable professional development resource. Additionally, the quantitative institutional data demonstrated that workshop participation significantly increased instructors’ student success and retention rates.
ContributorsTerzian-Zeitounian, Alene (Author) / Judson, Eugene (Thesis advisor) / Ross, Lydia (Committee member) / Meuschke, Daylene (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022