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The purpose of this investigation was to explore the implications of self efficacy beliefs on the career planning process among emerging adults in the 17-20 age bracket who have had limited life experiences. An objective for the coursework in personal and career exploration was to expose students, new to the college experience, to methods for identifying and achieving successful academic and career goals. Throughout such courses, numerous tasks and exercises expect identification with self and future self-schemas. By improving the methodology of validating life experiences, the researchers are attempting to show that self efficacy can be positively influenced, leading to a boost in self efficacy that can contribute to improved goal setting and goal attainment. (JDM)

This paper describes what education students observed while studying adolescent development in a sophomore college class. The students became particularly interested in how a person's identity development interfaced with his or her ideas about the future. By using the instrument "Teens and the Future," they were able to survey adolescents about their perceptions of the future and ask about their personal plans, goals, and college interests. Survey results concurred with other research that concluded adolescents have unrealistic expectations and inconsistencies in their views for their future. Several challenges for teachers of adolescents became evident as the pre-service teachers examined the survey results. A major challenge is how to teach students to reconcile career goals and life goals when they conflict with each other. Some goals that lead to conflicting situations for adolescents include college versus marriage, living near home versus moving for jobs, and personality preferences versus taking jobs that are available. (Contains 17 references.) (JDM)

This paper describes an institutional research office's use of extensive senior survey data to examine indirectly the effectiveness of a career services early intervention program over a period of four years. The study compared responses on the senior survey by participants (N=200) in the sophomore career exploration seminar with responses of non-participants (N=4234). Analysis indicated that seminar participants were more likely than other students to be female, Asian, and liberal arts majors. All career service items listed on the senior questionnaire were utilized more heavily by the career seminar participants than by non-participants. This difference was most notable for participation in the individual career counseling services, walk-in hours, job search workshops, and use of internship listings. Additionally, seminar participants showed a higher level of satisfaction with these services than did the non-participant group. Participants were far more likely to give the services of the career center an "essential" rating compared to non-participants on an importance scale. Participants were more likely to have completed an internship than non-participants and also expressed higher ratings for their overall satisfaction with their undergraduate experience. (DB)

This study examined the effects of an introductory counseling course on retention rates of students at Western Kentucky University (WKU). Rates of graduation after 4, 5, and 6 years for 400 freshmen and 474 sophomores enrolled in an academic orientation and preparation course between 1990 and 1994 were compared with WKU and regional rates during the same time frame. It was found that of the 107 freshmen enrolled in the course in 1990, 41.1 percent graduated within 6 years of enrollment, and that of the 101 freshmen enrolled in the course in 1991, 38.6 percent graduated within 6 years. This compares with overall WKU 6-year graduation rates of 39.1 percent in 1990 and 38.8 percent in 1991. Graduation rates for the 32 regional universities in the Southern region, according to "U.S. News College Rankings" (1998), varied from 30 to 59 percent, with a mean of 43.5 percent and a median of 42 percent. Thus the 6-year graduation rates of the freshmen in the study did not differ significantly from university-wide rates, and did not surpass regional rates. Contains 16 references. (MDM)

This study investigated predictors of foreign language anxiety in 210 university students enrolled in French, Spanish, German, and Japanese language courses. Several instruments were used to gather information on student characteristics, study behaviors, attitudes, and language anxiety experience during the fourth week of the semester. Results revealed that 14 variables (gender, age, academic achievement, semester course load, prior history of visiting foreign countries, high school experience with foreign languages, expected grade for current language course, perceived intellectual ability, perceived scholastic competence, perceived appearance, perceived self-worth, cooperativeness, value placed on competitive learning, academic locus of control) contributed significantly to prediction of foreign language anxiety. Freshmen and sophomores reported the lowest levels of anxiety, and levels increased linearly as a function of year of study. Implications of the findings for understanding language anxiety and for classroom teaching and learning are discussed. Contains 13 references. (MSE)

The U.S. General Accounting Office surveyed 758 higher education institutions (of which 430 responded) to determine how much federal student financial aid is going towards payment for remedial courses courses needed by new college students to attain adequate proficiency in basic skills prior to taking college level courses. In addition, nine schools (three public 2-year schools; 3 private and 3 public 4-year schools) were chosen as case studies to examine how and why schools provide remedial education and to profile students taking these courses. The results indicated that of all financial aid awarded to underclassmen, approximately 13 percent went to freshmen and sophomores enrolled in at least one remedial course; that only 6 percent of freshmen and sophomores both received financial aid and were enrolled in remedial courses; and that approximately 4 percent of the financial aid granted to freshmen and sophomores paid for remedial courses. Most of the case study schools had formal programs for students in need of remedial education. Mandatory placement tests triggered placement in remedial programs in most instances. Generally, freshmen and racial minority students constituted a higher share of remedial course enrollments compared with their campus wide enrollments. Appendices provide additional detail on: (1) the questionnaire scope and methodology; and (2) all nine case study schools. (DM)

A study tracked 3,192 University of Iowa freshmen through their first year and into their second year on campus. Logistic regression analyses using multiple data sources (admissions and registrar files, a standardized entrance test (the American College Testing Program Assessment) student profile section, an entering freshman survey) were conducted to determine models of student persistence at two points: freshman year spring re-enrollment and sophomore year fall re-enrollment. Two relatively successful models for predicting sophomore persistence were derived, although both models predicted correctly rather small percentages of non-persisters. A followup study on the reasons given for withdrawal by false-positives in the model is recommended. For this sample, it was found that modeling persistence was related to college-level academic indicators; the only non-academic factor to enter the prediction equation was students' perceived need for financial aid. (Contains 17 references.) (MSE)

This study was designed to assess the effects of a specific cooperative learning strategy in an introductory college business information systems course. The cooperative approach's impact on student achievement and on a number of personal and social attributes was examined. A total of 117 college sophomores and freshmen enrolled in 3 sections of an introductory business information systems course at a state university comprised the sample of 51 females and 76 males. All of the students completed three course examinations and a battery of eight measures focusing on personal characteristics. The groups differed in when cooperative learning was implemented--week 1, week 5, or week 10. The cooperative learning strategy required students to write a list of the 15 key points for each assigned chapter and consult with 3 other students who comprised their working groups followed by comparison with another group. A multivariate analysis of examination scores revealed that the cooperative learning strategy appeared to facilitate performance on course examinations. However, comparison of time of administering the personal characteristics measures and course section suggested that exposure to cooperative learning worked to discourage rather than encourage students to try to resolve controversies through thorough analysis of the disagreement. (Contains 11 references.) (CK)

The relationship between student persistence and types of financial aid at a Jesuit comprehensive university was studied. Three freshmen cohorts (134 for 1989, 171 for 1990, and 131 for 1991) of 436 students were tracked through fall 1994. Attention was focused on nine financial aid variables, five additional noncategorical and six categorical variables and their relationship to yearly persistence to graduation. Nine models were derived using logistic regression. Although loans were a significant discriminator between persisters and nonpersisters for white males and females during their freshmen year, academic ability of students may have influenced the results since the institutional financial aid award policy establishes an inverse relationship between the amount of loans that make up a student's financial aid package and their academic ability. As students progressed toward graduation, the amount of financial aid award and unmet need became more important discriminators than types of financial aid. College grade point average was found to be the strongest discriminator of all 20 variables in predicting persistence during the first 3 years. Ethnicity, gender, and year in school appeared to be important variables in studying different types of financial aid and other variables on persistence. (Contains 12 references.) (Author/SW)

This study investigated the ability of student inputs, student involvements, and college environments to predict seven groups of academic majors. The research was conducted using a sample of college sophomores extracted from High School and Beyond 1982 follow-up cohort, N=43,614 (weighted). Among the findings of the hierarchical discriminant function analysis was that the combined effects of the three blocks of variables appeared to be the most effective model. Implications of the results for practice, theory, and research are discussed. The study considered the following inputs: race, gender, high school course work, proposed field of study in college, highest degree expected, academic ability, family background, and personality factors. Involvement indicators were: type and degree of involvement in college activities; course work completed in college; importance of success, money, friends, work, and children; family orientation; and community orientation. Environments comprised: indexes of satisfaction with college facilities; faculty; curriculum; cultural and intellectual life; sports and recreation; social life; counseling and job placement; financial cost; prestige; and institution type, public vs. private. (Contains 20 references.) (MAH)

This study tested a causal model of influences on white students' perceptions of racism toward minority students on predominantly white college campuses. The study was part of the National Study of Student Learning and utilized a three-wave, longitudinal design. The institutional sample consisted of 11 traditional institutions in 9 states. The study surveyed students before starting their first year of college, after their first year, and after their second year. Of the original 2,137 students who participated in the first survey, 1,200 completed the final survey. Results suggested that white students' background, their attitudes toward diversity, the types of institutions they attended, and their behavior during college all affected their perceptions of racism toward minority students on campus. Students who were more open to diversity before college were more likely to make friends with students of other races and discussed social issues with greater frequency. Significant differences between men and women were found in openness to diversity before college, perhaps reflecting the less favorable attitudes toward diversity among "angry white men" in the broader society during the early 1990s. White students' perceptions were shaped directly and most significantly by their openness to diversity before starting college and by the undergraduate racial mix at the institution they attended. (Contains 45 references.) (JB)

This study assessed gender differences in student satisfaction with college to further understand what contributes to student persistence and student outcomes. The study gathered data from 494 first and second year honors students (1,000 were originally surveyed) at a large midwestern research university. Of these, 175 were male and 319 were female. The analysis found that contact with advisors, having friends, and living on campus were significantly related to satisfaction for females but not for males. However, faculty contact, expected to be an important form of social interaction, was not significant to either group. Encouragement of parents, father's educational level, and choice of major and occupational certainty were significantly related to satisfaction for men but not women. Choice of major and occupational certainty were the most significant factors identified but only for men. Confidence in being a student and having attractive courses were important for both genders. Includes three tables. (Contains 38 references.) (JB)

This study explores the factors that affect Latino college student experiences in the first year of college and adjustment in the second year of study when many minority students dropout. The study examined data from five primary sources and focused on Latino college students who were semifinalists for a national scholarship award. The National Survey of Hispanic Students, a comprehensive longitudinal survey of college student experiences, was sent to students in the cohort in summer 1991. Fifty-nine percent responded. A follow-up survey and the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ) was sent in early 1993 and netted a 57 percent response. Other sources included the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, "The College Handbook," precollege surveys, and institutional files at the Higher Education Research Institute (University of California, Los Angeles). Results included: (1) Chicanos were significantly less likely than other Hispanic ethnic groups to score high on social adjustment in the second year of college; (2) no other student background characteristics including high school grade point average, were significantly related to college adjustment; (3) students attending large institutions reported high social adjustment and attachment; (4) students attending private colleges tended to score higher on SACQ measures; and (5) perceptions of a student-centered faculty and administration were associated with better academic adjustment. Five tables display data. (Contains 32 references.) (JB)

A study involving 108 freshmen and 109 sophomores enrolled in business communication classes at Portsmouth Polytechnic Institute in England examined the following questions: (1) Will there be significant differences between the means of freshmen and sophomores from England in rating trait-CA (communication apprehension), context-CA, and state-CA variables? (2) Will there be significant differences between the mean of biological gender groups and among the means of psychological gender groups, or interaction effects between the independent variables in rating context-CA variables, trait-CA variables, and state-CA variables?; and (3) What are the relationships among trait-CA, context-CA and state-CA variables for freshman students and sophomore students? Results indicated that significant differences occurred between freshman and sophomore groups for two context variables--dyadic and small group. Significant differences also occurred for the trait-CA variables. An examination of the means revealed that sophomores experience dyadic, small group, and trait-CA significantly more frequently than freshmen. No significant differences occurred between year groups on Form State scores. An interpretation of the results seems to indicate that sophomore students are significantly more apprehensive on the variables. (Contains six tables of data and 10 references.) (TB)

Although the use of hypertext systems for learning complex knowledge has been attracting recent attention, there have been few discussions in the hypertext literature on issues related to the cognitive prerequisites for learning conceptually demanding material. A study was conducted to investigate a theory-based hypertext learning environment that provided instruction in a complex and ill-structured domain. Subjects were 34 first- and second-year university students who were paid for their participation in the study. The experimental treatment incorporated several features derived from recent cognitive learning theory, in particular a hypertext procedure that presented the instructional material in multiple contexts to highlight different facets of the knowledge. The main results of the study revealed that although the control treatment led to higher performance on the measures of "memory" for factual knowledge, the more hypertext-like treatment promoted superior knowledge "transfer." Overall, these findings suggest that hypertext learning environments that present the instructed knowledge by explicitly demonstrating critical interrelationships between abstract and case-specific knowledge components in multiple contexts would be better at preparing students to use knowledge in new ways and in new situations. (Five figures and seven tables are include; a list of 59 references is attached.) (Author/SR)

This report examines experience of Moorhead State University (Minnesota) in attracting and retaining nontraditional, high-risk students through an alternative program called The New Center for Multidisciplinary Studies. The program's two-tier admission system represents an open-access concept offering an alternative way to begin college for students who do not meet full university admission requirements. Enrollment is limited both numerically and geographically. Program participants take standard and career-centered courses that explore problems or themes that cross subject lines, linking knowledge and insights from a variety of fields. Refresher courses are also available. Experience shows that the 30 to 35 percent attrition of program participants is slightly above the university as a whole over the past several years. A key ingredient of the program is the mentor/advisor component that guides students through the learning process, thus fostering a learning community atmosphere of students, faculty, and staff. It is felt that the Center's success resides in: (1) its attention to the subject in achieving academic success within a liberal arts atmosphere that develops contemporary skills and knowledge, and (2) the overall commitment of its faculty (all of which are tenured and hold rank in the university). Despite the persistent problem of having to justify itself, the Center continues to renew its curriculum, renew its faculty and its students. Contains five references. (GLR)

An evaluation was done of the first year of the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), which is designed not only to teach students about research and/or certain academic topics, but also to facilitate the identification of minority students with the university. This second aim is based on the current thinking that retention of minority students is significantly influenced by the social factors of identification with the university community. Failure to achieve identification with the institution may particularly plague minority students. The UROP pairs students with faculty advisors on the basis of mutual interests. The students then serve as research assistants to their faculty advisors throughout the course of the academic year, participating in laboratory groups, research discussions, and team meetings. The evaluation surveyed sophomores after their freshman year in the program and used an experimental condition (120 under-represented minority students), a primary control condition (60 African American UROP applicants), and a secondary control condition (146 white dorm residents). Results reveal that sophomores in the UROP were taking significantly more upper level credits than were either their minority student counterparts or the majority control students. Students also showed positive motivational and behavioral changes. Ten figures are included. (JB)

A study was done of transfer students entering the University of California (Davis) from Fall 1976 through Spring 1991. "Transfers" are students who enter with at least sophomore standing (more than 40 transfer units), are identified by undergraduate admissions as advanced standing, or whose source school is not a high school. Study of transfer students' enrollment patterns found that: (1) of new undergraduates to Davis 38 percent were transfers; (2) of all Black, American Indian, Chicano and Latino students at Davis from 1976 to 1990, 36 percent were transfers; (3) transfer patterns differed only slightly by gender; (4) among 1990 transfers, 70 percent entered as juniors; (5) among transfers who enrolled from 1980 through 1990, 66 percent came from community colleges; and (6) in 1990, 728 students entered with Transfer Admission Agreements. Over all the proportion of transfer students has declined. The proportion of non-White transfer students has grown slowly. For graduation rates the study found that almost three-quarters of transfer students earn degrees at Davis; Asian and White students have the highest graduation rates, and those transferring as juniors graduate at rates higher than those who enter as freshmen or sophomores. The type of institution attended before transferring to Davis did not appear to influence educational outcomes. Transfer students were found, as were all undergraduates, to take more time to complete degrees than in earlier years. Included are eight displays, and seven tables. (JB)

This project examined the long term effects of the Experimental College Program at the University of California, Berkeley, in the 1960s through interviews with 40 of the 200 students who completed the program and a questionnaire sent to program participants and similar nonparticipants (n=104). A team of 6 faculty taught 150 students, admitted randomly from applications among all 1965 and 1967 entering freshmen. A series of lectures, small seminars, and tutorials took the place of the usual freshman-sophomore unconnected set of courses, exams, and grades, and was intended to give students an integrated understanding and appreciation of great themes in Western civilization. Analysis of the interviews revealed a highly successful program. Thirty-seven of the 40 program participants interviewed would repeat the program again; only one respondent had any regrets about having participated. Many respondents reported that the program had taught them how to think, write, speak, and integrate these skills. Others noted the emphasis on educational values, ethics, the value of belonging to an integrated community within the large university, and the value of small seminars. Four papers are appended: (1) "The Experimental College in Retrospect: An Exploratory Study" (Katherine Trow); (2) "The Experimental College Program at Berkeley: Long Term Effects of an Experiment in Undergraduate Education" (Katherine Trow); (3) "The Experimental College Program at Berkeley: Long Term Effects and Implications for Educational Practice" (Katherine Trow); and (4) "A Venture in Educational Reform: A Partial View" (Joseph Tussman). Other appendices include the interview schedule, the questionnaire, and a report on college attitudes. (DB)

The study sought to develop predictive models of persistence and success in baccalaureate engineering at the end of the sophomore year by analyzing 11 intellective and 9 non-intellective variables. A total of 1,043 students in the 1984 entering freshman class in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University served as the population. Three models were developed to predict sophomore persistence and success at different points in time: pre-enrollment, freshman year, and sophomore year. For the pre-enrollment model, the variables best predicting success were high-school grade point average, algebra score, gender, non-science points, chemistry score, and reason for engineering choice. For the freshman year model, best predictors included grades in Physics I, Calculus I, and Chemistry I. In the sophomore year model, the variables of grades in Calculus II, Physics II, and Physics I were the best predictors. Thus, it was found that the variables which are predictive depend on the student's point of progress through the first 2 years of an engineering program. Includes four references. (JDD)

Studies of teacher use of tests suggest that classroom tests are widely used and standardized test results are rarely used. Previous comparisons of preservice and inservice teachers' attitudes toward assessment suggest few differences. Differences in opinions about the use of classroom and standardized tests were assessed via surveys of three groups: 84 college sophomores beginning a teacher education program; 152 college seniors completing a teacher education program, but without student teaching experience; and 553 inservice teachers in a western state. Significant differences in opinions were found, with inservice teachers having more favorable attitudes than teacher education students toward classroom testing and less favorable attitudes toward standardized testing. This difference may reflect current realities of test use in teachers' and students' lives. Two data tables and a 25-item list of references are included. (SLD)

This study developed predictive models on persistence and success in engineering at the end of the sophomore year by examining 11 intellective and 9 non-intellective variables. The project's long-term purpose was to contribute to the improvement of academic advising for students considering engineering majors and thus improve student retention. Usable data were gathered on 1,043 entering freshmen in the College of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University. Three models were developed to predict sophomore persistence and success at different points in time: pre-enrollment, freshman year, and sophomore year. For the pre-enrollment model, the variables best predicting success were high school grade point average, algebra score, gender, non-science points, chemistry score, and reason for engineering choice. For the freshman year model, best predictors included grades in Physics I, Calculus I, and Chemistry I. In the sophomore year model, the variables of grades in Calculus II, Physics II, and Physics I were the best predictors. Thus, it was found that the variables which are predictive depend on the student's point of progress through the first 2 years of an engineering program. (JDD)

This paper addresses the measurement of classroom environment and proposes an alternative approach to assessing classroom environment that allows subjects greater spontaneity and provides greater descriptive flexibility. A study asked 31 college professors at Midwestern State University of Wichita Falls, Texas, to generate lists of adjectives describing their large freshman and sophomore lecture classes. Interclassroom similarities were measured using adjective overlap. These similarities were subsequently analyzed using cluster analysis to classify classroom climate into three categories: "scholarly,""socially responsive," and "laid back." Out of 31 classroom environment descriptions, 19.4% were classified as "scholarly," 38.7% as "socially responsive" and 22.6% were classified as "laid back." (Six--19.4%--of the 31 fell outside these categories.) It was concluded that free description yields unconstrained data that can be meaningfully analyzed; however, the methodology is not being offered as an indictment of standardized measures of the classroom environment. Other applications of this methodology are suggested. Contains 16 references. (GLR)

This paper examines a model of supervision/field experience proposed for teacher candidates in the sophomore professional experience of a teacher preparation program. The approach envisions the sophomore experience as a dialogic process in which students and teachers construct knowledge and nurture dispositions needed for development of personal and professional identities. The model of reflective supervision involves integration of research literature and of theory-in-practice; framing and reframing of the activity; reflection (journaling, dialogue, and inquiry); self-regulation; and construction of knowledge. The sophomore experience group included 24 teacher candidates who participated in weekly college-based instruction. Reflection, dialogue, inquiry, and use of collaborative teams were introduced into the course. The supervisory team included one university faculty member, an ethnographer, and the classroom teacher. Four teacher candidates (two dyads) who were placed in two kindergarten classrooms were the study participants. Participants completed the five steps of the model. Data sources included their semester's journals, classroom discussions, dialogues, communications, and debriefing sessions among teacher candidates, faculty, and cooperating teachers. Results found that teamwork benefited the faculty, teachers, teacher candidates, and pupils. (Contains 11 references.) (SM)

Ninety preservice teachers completed the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI), a diagnostic inventory of 10 scales, before and after an educational psychology course that included learning strategies instruction. By course completion, student LASSI mean scores improved on six scales but continued to show a need for remediation. Scores were related to student grade point average and course grade. (SV)

A study of adjustment of Latino college freshmen and sophomores used data from a longitudinal survey and a questionnaire on student adaptation to college. Results show that dimensions of the campus climate and common transitional experiences affect all forms of student adjustment in the first year. Implications are found for further college programming and student monitoring in the sophomore year. (MSE)