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Pan-Canadian Study of First Year College Students - Report 1 Student Characteristics and the College Experience - August 2007

11. Skills Self-assessment and Academic Behaviour at the End of First Term

The results of the End of Term survey provide a clearer understanding of college/institute students' perceptions on their skills and academic behaviour over the first term. Students were asked to evaluate their skills, just as they were asked to do on the College Entry Survey. The survey looked at students' academic behaviour by asking students to report on homework practices as well as attitudes on engaging in campus life at colleges and institutes.

11.1 Skills Self-Assessment of College/Institute Students at the End of First Term

Respondents' self-assessments of their proficiency in skill areas typically seen as associated with academic success showed that relatively low percentages of first-year college/institute students, even toward the end of the first semester, saw themselves as very proficient. While one-half perceived themselves to be 'very good' in comprehending the language of instruction, less than one-half felt the same about their ability level in writing (35 percent), reading (45 percent) and math (27 percent). In particular, less than one in five (18 percent) thought they were very good in study skills. As shown in Table 10, these results are consistent with those from the College Entry Survey and confirm that students perceived that they were particularly weak in study and time management skills.

At the end of the first term, students continued to feel they had weak study and time management skills.

11.2 Dropping College/ Institute Courses

One measure of academic integration as defined by Tinto and Astin is whether a student has dropped one or more courses. Those who do are considered to be less integrated. At the end of the first term, the vast majority, up to 88 percent had not dropped a course, almost ten percent had, and another small group (two percent) said they probably would. The major reasons given for dropping a course were reported as poor marks and a lack of fit with the course. Course drop is a traditional strategy used by students to deal with weak academic performance, so the above results are not surprising. However, this activity is often an indication of the percentage of students who are struggling with their studies. The results cited above suggest this is the case for approximately one in ten first semester students at colleges and institutes.

Table 10. Self-Reported Skills Proficiency of Students at Entry and End of First Term, 2005
	Self-Reported Proficiency Rating (%)
	Poor		Fair		Good		Very Good
Skill Area	Entry	End of Term	Entry	End of Term	Entry	End of Term	Entry	End of Term
Comprehend language of instruction	1	1	6	8	40	39	53	53
Writing ability	2	2	16	15	49	49	33	35
Reading ability	1	1	11	11	44	44	44	45
Mathematical ability	8	8	28	26	39	39	25	27
Time management	4	6	25	27	48	46	24	21
Note / test taking	3	3	19	18	52	50	26	29
Study skills	5	5	29	27	50	50	16	18
Source: College Entry Survey and End of Term Survey, 2005

Table 11. Academic Behaviour of Students at Entry and End of Term, 2005
Hours / Week of Study			Homework On Time			Skipping Class
	Expected Entry	End		Entry*	End		Entry*	End
<=3 hours	5%	12%	Never	0.6%	0.2%	>= 1/ wk	17%	10%
4-7 hours	23	32	Rarely	4	0.7	2-3/month	19	18
8-14 hours	36	31	Sometimes	10	3	1/month	13	11
15-20 hours	22	15	Usually	44	25	Almost never	32	31
>20 hours	13	10	Always	42	71	Never	19	30
At Entry, this is homework completion and skipping class in high school. Source:* College Entry Survey and End of Term Survey, 2005

11.3 Self-Reported Grades during the First Term

While the percentage grade that defines a 'pass' can vary between colleges and institutes, examining student grades is one way of determining what percentage of students were in trouble academically in the first semester. Since collecting this information directly from colleges was not possible during the period of the second survey, students were asked to self-report their overall average.

Almost one-half chose not to do so by either skipping the question or responding 'don't know'. It is unclear where the truth lies. In any case, very few respondents, less than two percent, reported an average of less than 60 percent, a common pass/fail criterion. Almost half the respondents (46 percent) reported their average to be between 80 — 89 percent and somewhat more than one third held a B average. It is possible that some inflation occurred in the self reported averages or that students who chose to report their grades were doing remarkably well indeed.

11.4 Academic Behaviour during the First Term

Academic behaviours such as attending class, studying and doing homework have long been associated with overall academic performance (Tinto, 1987). Table 11 compares students' responses at college entry and at the end of the first term, in terms of expected hours of study per week and actual time spent studying during the first term for their college/institute program, as well as how frequently students reported they submitted homework on time and skipped class in high school compared to at the end of first term in college.

11.4.1 Hours Spent Studying

In terms of the hours of study, at college entry the largest percentage of respondents (38 percent) indicated that they studied four to seven hours per week in secondary school, whereas the largest percentage (36 percent) said they expected to spend eight to 14 hours per week preparing for class in college. This confirmed that students were expecting that their college/institute program would require more study time than high school.

At the end of the term, the largest percentage of respondents (32 percent) were studying four to seven hours per week, and almost equal number (31 percent) were spending eight to 14 hours per week studying. Although 22 percent of respondents at college entry indicated they expected to spend 15 to 20 hours per week studying, at the end of first term only 15 percent reported this many hours of study.

The end of term questionnaire also asked students whether they had or intended to change their study habits. The vast majority (66 percent) confirmed they have increased the time spent studying and doing homework in college. Both the entry and end of term surveys confirmed that overall, students at colleges and institutes were studying more hours than they were in high school, but what levels are associated with success and failure remain to be determined. This is one goal of the 'Determinants of First Year Outcomes' report to be published as the third part of this series.

11.4.2 Homework Completion

Table 11 also provides the percentage of respondents reporting homework completion in high school compared to at the end of the first term in college. Overall, by the end of first term, students at colleges and institutes appeared to be quite rigorous in the area of homework completion as almost three-quarters said they 'always' completed their assignments on time. While the research literature provides ample evidence that these behaviours influence academic success and persistence (Tinto, 1987) it is less clear what influences them. The third report in this series will provide more information on this topic.

11.4.3 Skipping Class

The frequency of class absenteeism was widely distributed in the sample. At the end of the first term, one in ten respondents was skipping once a week or more while up to 61 percent were almost never or never skipping class. As shown in Table 11, fewer students reported skipping class in college than in high school.

11.5 Orientation to College

Many institutions assist students in making the transition and adjusting to college studies by offering 'college preparation' workshops, programs or courses of varying duration. Almost two thirds of respondents confirmed that they had not participated in type of activity. For one-quarter of those who had, the experience lasted five hours or less. Only a small percentage (four percent) had spent more than ten hours participating in such a program.

11.6 Academic and Social Integration during the First Term

Other research (Dietsche, 1990) has indicated that student perceptions of their program and college studies can exert a considerable influence on student academic behaviour. The results of the end of term survey provide some understanding on the degree to which students felt integrated into the academic and social spheres of college life. Overall, the results suggest that the majority of first term students were well integrated in both spheres. For example, on the academic side, a very small percentage of respondents (four percent) indicated they 'did as little work as possible' and the majority (86 percent) reported being 'interested in what they were learning in class'.

In the social arena, once again, more than nine in ten reported they 'got along well with faculty/instructors' and only a very small percentage (five percent) indicated they routinely 'felt like an outsider or left out of things'.

The results showed that the majority of respondents were interested in their studies and got along well with faculty. It is worth noting however, that approximately one-fifth reported they did as little work as possible and one-sixth was not interested in what they were learning. These students would certainly be deemed 'high risk' of failure and/or departure.

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Date Modified:: 2007-08-29

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