AB ST RACE? A STUDY OF SOUE SELECTED FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO SUCCESS OR FAILURE IN FRESHMAN COHHUNICATIOH SKILLS by Frances K. McDermott This study was designed to examine selected be- havioral and environmental factors and their influence on the success or failure in freshman Communication Skills. The following factors were investigated: (1) size of high school from which the student graduated, (2) years of high school English taken, (3) language background in the home, (4) occupation of the father, (5) employment of the mother, (6) newspaper reading habits, (7) magazine reading habits, (8) book reading habits, (9) interests in and dislikes of school sub- jects, (lO) attitude toward college education, (11) time spent in classes and laboratories, (12) time spent in study, (13) time spent in sleep and at meals, (14) time spent in gainful employment, (15) time spent in scheduled activities, (16) time spent in non-sched— uled activities, (17) Survey of Study Habits and Atti- tudes, (18) class attendance, (19) class participation, and (ék class responsibility. Included in the study were 696 freshmen enrolled Frances M. NcDermott in three levels of Communication Skills classes made up of 460 men and 236 women. The three levels into which they were divided were: Remedial Group, 136 men and 28 women; Intermediate Group, 183 men and 77 women; and Upper Group, 1M1 men and 131 women. At the beginning of the fall quarter these students were given a ques— tionnaire to determine selected environmental factors together with the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. Near the close of the quarter a second questionnaire was administered to determine some behavioral factors. At the end of the quarter, evaluation of students was made by instructors including a final grade. The data were tabulated for each factor given above for success- ful and unsuccessful in each level of classes and by sex. The data were then analyzed for significance by the chi square method. The data indicated: (1) that the factors involv- ing students' backgrounds show no evidence above chance that they discriminated between the successful and un- successful in Communication Skills classes; (2) that the factors involving reading habits showed no signif- icant difference between the successful and unsuccess- ful in Communication Skills classes; (3) that the fac- tors involving the utilization of time show no evidence above chance that they discriminate between the success- ful and unsuccessful in Communication Skills classes; Frances K. KcDermott (4) that in most groups those who were absent from class more than three times per quarter did poorer than did those who were absent no more than three times per quar- ter; (5) that in all groups those who participated in class did better than did those who did not participate; and (6) that in all groups those who ranked high in class reSponsibility did better in freshman Communica- tion Skills classes than did those who ranked low in class reSponsibility. A STUDY OF SOIE SELECTED FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO SUCCESS OR FAILURE IN FRESHMAN COLEUNICATION SKILLS By Frances K. KcDermott Submitted to Kichigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION College of Education 1963 )1 'é‘ I c -J /.I‘//o//(}.Ef ACKEOULEDGKENTS A study of this type cannot be completed alone. Constant encouragement and help were given by several people. Grateful acknowledgment is eXpressed by the writer To Dr. Halter F. Johnson, chairman of her guid- ance committee and her major professor, whose patience and assistance were invaluable; to Dr. Hilbur B. Brookover, a member of the committee, for excellent suggestions; to the other members of the guidance committee, Dr. Willa Norris and Dr. Walker Hill, for their time and help; To Dr. donald G. Taylor and Dr. Donald L. Hecker of the Ferris Educational Counseling Center for their guidance in setting up the problem and its analysis; To Dr. James V. Farrell, Dean of the General Education Division, and to Dr. Ardwin J. Dolio, Vice President for Academic Affairs, who made time and facilities at Ferris Institute available for this research; to those of the Ferris Institute faculty who assisted in gathering the data; And to her husband, Leon, whose encouragement, persistence, and assistance provided the inspir— ation necessary for the completion of this study. 11 CHAPTER PAGE I o IE3: 13.013 .[JTC‘II I 01: o o o o o o o o o o o o o o r4 H The Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . Statement of the Problem . . . . . . Statement of the Hypothesis. . . . . Need for the Stud‘ . . . . . . . . . Scope of the Study . . . . . . . . . Limitations. . . . . . . . . . . . . Definition of Terms. . . . . . . . . \OOD'flCh-{E'WN Organization of the Study. . . . . . II. REVIEA OF RELATED LITERATUiE. . . . . . 11 Literature of Closely Related Investigations. . . . . . . . . . 11 Literature of Factors Involved in Success or Failure in Subject Ila-titer. o o o o o o o o o o o o o 15 Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 III. DESIGI‘I OF SFHE Sr1IJDY o o o o o o o o o o 30 Instruments. . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Selection of Sample. . . . . . . . . 36 Collection of the Data . . . . . . . 39 Treatment of the Data. . . . . . . . 40 Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 IV. AIALYSIS OF THE DATA. . . . . . . . . . 43 Size of High School. . . . . . . . . 43 iii Cl—IAPT Eli PAGE Years of High School English. . . . . . 45 Language Background of the Student. . . 46 Occupation of the Father. . . . . . . . 48 Mothers Employed or at Home . . . . . . 49 Newspaper Reading Habits. . . . . . . . 50 Lagazine Heading Habits . . . . . . . . 52 Book Reading Sabits . . . . . . . . . . 53 Interests in School Subjects. . . . . . 54 Attitude Toward College Education . . . 56 Time in Classes and Laboratories. . . . 57 Time Spent in Study . . . . . . . . . . 59 Time Spent in Sleep and at Heals. . . . 60 Time Spent in Employment. . . . . . . . 62 Time Spent in Scheduled Activities. . . 64 Time Spent in Eon—Scheduled Activities. 65 Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. . 67 Absence from Classes. . . . . . . . . . 69 Class Participation . . . . . . . . . . 71 Class Responsibility. . . . . . . . . . 72 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 V. INTER,EETATIOD AND DISCUSSION OF THE DATA. 80 Size of High School . . . . . . . . . . 80 Years of High School English. . . . . . 81 Language Background of the Student. . . 81 iv CHAPTER VI. SUI' Occupation of the Father. . . . . . Employment of the Hother. . . . . . . Reading Habits. . . . . . . . . . . . Students' Academic Interests. . . . . Need for College Education. . . . . . Distribution of Time. . . . . . . . . Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. Class Attitudes . . . . . . . . . . . summ8.ry O O O O O I O O O 0 O O O O 0 Findings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . Implications for Further Research . . BIBLIO}:1API{Y O O C O O O O O O O O ’ O C O C O . . APPEEDIX . 107 TABLE 3.1 4.1 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.61 4.62 LIST OF TABLES Division of Students Involved in the Study. 0 o o o o o o o o o o o o o I 0 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students from Class A and B High Schools Compared with Students from Class C and D High Schools . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Having 3 Years or Less of High School English and Those Having 3.5 Years or more of English. . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Having Bilingual or Honolingual Home Backgrounds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Whose Fathers Have Professional or Managerial Occupations Compared with Students Rhose Fathers Have Non- Professional Occupations . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Whose Mothers Work Outside the Home Compared with Students Whose Mothers Are Not Employed . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Read Newspapers Frequently Com— pared with Students Hho Read News- papers Infrequently. . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students who Read Chiefly Comics, Features, and Sports in Newspapers compared with Students Who Read Chiefly News Articles and Editorials . . . . . . . . . . . . vi 44 46 47 48 49 51 51 TABLE 4.7 4.91 4.92 4.10 4.11 4.12 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Read Hon-Fiction Magazines Com- pared with Students who jead Fiction Magazines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Head Technical Books Compared with Students Who Read Entertaining Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Hho State an Interest in Academic Subjects Compared with Students Who State an Interest in Vocational Subjects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Disliked Some Academic Subject Compared with Those who DislihniSome Hon-Academic Subject . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Rho Believe a College Education Necessary Compared with Those who Believe a College Education Not Necessary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Spent 26 Hours or Less per week in Classes and Laboratories Compared with Those who Spent 27 Hours or More per Week in Classes and Laboratories . . . Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Rho Spent 26 Hours or Less per Meek in Study Compared with Those Who Spent 27 Hours or More per Meek in Study. . . . 53 54 55 56 57 58 6O TABLE PAGE 4.13 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Spent 65 Hours or Less per Week in Sleep and at Heals Compared with Those Who Spent 66 Hours or More per week in Sleep and at Heals. . . . . . . . . . . 61 4.14 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Spent 8 Hours or Less per Week in Employment Compared with Those Who Spent 9 Hours or Kore per'Jeek. . . . . 63 4.15 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students who Spent 9 Hours or Less per week in Scheduled Activities Compared with Those who Spent 10 Hours or Hore per week in Scheduled Activities . . . . . 64 4.16 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students who Spent 50 Hours or Less per Week in Non-Scheduled Activities Compared With Those who Spent 51 Hours or More per Jeek in Non-Scheduled Activities. . 66 4.17 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students who Ranked 34 or More on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes Compared with Those Who Ranked 33 or Less on the Survey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 4.18 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Were Absent from Class 3 Times or Less Compared with Those who were Absent 4 Times or More. . . . . . . . 70 4.19 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Rank in the Lowest Quarter, Middle Half, and Upper Quarter in Class Par— ticipation as Judged by Instructors. . 72 viii TABLE 4.20 Frequency and Chi Square Values of Successful and Unsuccessful Students Who Rank in the Lowest Quarter, Hiddle Half, and Upper Quarter in Class Responsibility as Judged by Instructors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 ix CHAPTER I INT RCDUCT I ON The Problem A problem which vexes all institutions of higher learning is that of identifying the factors which cause students to achieve at levels much different than would be eXpected from an examination of their high school achievement records and academic ability test results. Many students who appear to be qualified on the basis of high school achievement and academic ability do not suc- ceed in basic courses. On the other hand, some students who apparently have very little chance meet with success. At Ferris Institute this problem is intensified be- cause Ferris has a policy of accepting nearly all appli- cants; this policy increases the proportion of students having poor backgrounds and therefore little chance for success. In schools having a highly selective admission policy, all students presumably have a good chance to succeed, and the problem becomes one of identifying the factors which cause "good bets" to fail. Although numerous investigations have focused at- tention upon the prediction of academic success on a broad basis, little has been done in the investigation of factors which contribute to failure in achievement 1 2 in specific subjects. In the prediction of college achievement as a whole, the total grade point average is considered. The overall grade point average can be confusing since a student may be Specializing in a curriculum not suited to his abilities, or a grade point average may be a mean between such unlike subjects as physical education and higher mathematics. Therefore it would be more meaningful if specific predictions could be made for each individual course, with the over- all prediction being a weighted average of individual course predictions. This kind of individual course pre- diction would be especially useful in basic courses re- quired of all students. It is the purpose of this study to attempt to identify those factors which cause students in a Specific course to achieve at a level other than that which would be expected from their backgrounds. Statement of the Problem This study was designed to permit the examination of the relationship of selected factors to the success or failure of students enrolled in freshman Communica- tion Skills classes at Ferris Institute. The factors were suggested by the literature and by the experiences of the Counseling Center personnel at Ferris. The following variables will be studied in this in- vestigation to determine the difference, if any, between 3 the successful and the unsuccessful, divided according to sex, in each of three levels of Communication Skills: Size of high school Years of high school English Languages other than English in the home Occupation of father Mother employed or at home Newspaper reading habits Magazine reading habits Book reading habits Interests in school subjects Attitude toward college education Time in classes and laboratories Time in study Time in sleep and meals Time employed Time in scheduled activities Time in non-scheduled activities 1 Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes scores Absences from class Participation in class Responsibility in class (\J HI—‘HHHI—JI—‘Hl—‘l—‘AAAAAAAAA OWCDVQUIKWNHOOCDVOm-F—‘WNH VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVvVVV AAAAAAAAAAA Statement of the Hypotheses The difference between the successful and unsuc- cessful in this study can be stated in the following hypotheses: Research Hypothesis I: A questionnaire designed to explore environmental background and behavior of students can discriminate between the successful and unsuccessful students in Communication Skills classes. 1Brown-Holtzman, Survey_g£ Study Habits and Atti— tudes. New York: The Psychological Corporation, 1953. 4 Research Hypothesis II: The information on fac- tors obtained from a ques- tionnaire designed to ex- plore environmental and behavioral backgrounds of students will show a sig- nificant difference in performance between men and women in Communica- tion Skills classes. Need for the Study Since schools such as the one used in this investi- gation have an "open-door" policy, the problem of train- ing in Communication Skills becomes more and more acute. The college Bulletin2 explains the "open-door" policy as follows: No entrance examination is required for admission to Ferris Institute, nor are students denied admis- sion solely because of prior scholastic performance at other educational institutions. A mature atti- tude, a seriousness of educational purposes and native ability sufficient to profit from selected instruction are the prime consideration of entrance. Therefore it is important to find factors of a non- intellectual nature that may contribute to the success or failure of students in this field. 2 Bulletin, 1262-63. Ferris Institute, Big Rapids, Michigan, 1962, p. 7. 5 The importance of success in this area has been emphasized through studies and statements of persons in the field of education. ICcGrath3 states: Great strides have been made in the elimination of illiteracy....As part of this movement the colleges have been examining their instruction in the fields of communication in the hope of making it more fun— ctional in the day-by-day life of the average person. The importance of this subject to the student in his succeeding years in college is also emphasized by Gregory.)4 He stresses the importance of basic commun- ication skills for those entering the professions. Since it is the expectation of most of the collegiate students at Ferris to enter the professions, their success in Communication Skills courses is essential. In addition to providing data regarding the basic problem, this investigation may supply information per- taining to the validity of a liberal admission policy. The information may be of some assistance to teachers working with students; guidance and counseling personnel could use such data in working more effectively with failing students and possible drop-outs. The results of the study may also contribute information relevant to 3 Earl J. HcGrath (ed.), Communication 3g General Education. Dubuque, Iowa: 3. H. Brown Co., 1949, p. vi. 4 John N. Gregory, "Approach to Functional English in a Four-year Junior College," Junior College Journal, 29:203-05; December, 1959. 6 the influence of sociological factors in background that may contribute to success or to failure. It is also honed that from the results of this study factors (other than previous achievement and particularly non-intellectual, motivationally-related factors) which affect success in these three courses can be identified. Scope of the Study The selection of the sample will be made as follows: 1. The sample to be used will consist of students to be enrolled at Ferris Institute as entering college freshmen in the fall quarter of 1959. Students with pre- vious college experience will be excluded. 2. The specific course to be studied is that of Communication Skills. It is to be used because a course in basic English is required in nearly all colleges. In addition, relatively few students expect to specialize in this area; consequently, the influence of the voca- tional interest factor is negligible. 3. All entering students take the Cooperative Eng- llfih Test, Form Z, Part A--Hechanics of Expression.5 The placement of each student into one of three classi- fications of Communication Skills is based on his score on this test. The three classifications are as follows: 5 Janet Afflerbach g; al., Cooperative English Test, orm g. Princeton, New Jersey: Educational Testing Ser- vice, 1953. uj 7 Communication Skills lOO -- a non-credit, remedial course meeting three days per week. A student is placed in this group if his raw score is 34 or below. There were approximately 700 entering freshmen in collegiate level programs at Ferris Institute in the fall quarter of 1959 and of that number 164, or about 23.5 per cent, were classified in this group. These students would normally be considered to have no chance to succeed in a college level English course but should have a good chance to succeed in a remedial course. Communication Skills 1013 -— a three-credit, first- term course meeting four days per week. A student is classified in this group if his raw score is between 35 and 44, inclusive. A total of 260 students, or 37 per cent, were classified in this group. These students con- stitute a marginal group, some of whom would succeed in a regular college course, but most of whom would not. Communication Skills 101 -- a three-credit, first- term course meeting three days per week. All students scoring 45 and above are included. This group numbered 272, or 39.5 per cent, and they were enrolled in some section of Communication Skills 101. Most of these stu- dents should be expected to succeed in an average college freshman English course. Limitations The following limitations of the study are recognized: 8 l. The results of the study will be limited to students who enrolled at Ferris, although it may be assumed that certain similarities would probably exist with such students who enter other colleges. 2. The sample is limited to entering freshmen in the fall quarter of 1959. This policy of class place- ment has been continued to the present. 3. The study does not include those students who attended the college after being unsuccessful at other institutions of higher learning. 4. Such factors as nervousness, personal health, or problems that may have undue influence on a student at the time of completing questionnaires or tests were not explored. Definition of Terms Communication Skills 100 (C. S. 100). This is a non-credit, remedial course meeting three days per week and hereinafter referred to as the Remedial Group (30). A student is placed in this group if his raw score on the Cooperative English Test, Form Z, Part A--Mechanics of Expression (CET) is 34 or below at the time of his entrance. Communication Skills 1013 (C. S. 1013). This is a three-credit, first—term course meeting four days per week and hereinafter referred to as the Intermediate Group (IG). A student is classified in this group if 9 his raw score is between 35 and QM, inclusive. Communication Skills 101 (C. S. 101). This is a three-credit, first-term course meeting three days per week and hereinafter referred to as the Upper Group (UG). All students scoring 45 and above at the time of entrance are included. Successful as used hereinafter refers to the attain- ment of an honor point average of at least 2.0 or a grade of C. Unsuccessful refers to an honor point average of less than 2.0 or a grade of D or less. This was se- lected since a grade of D is not transferrable, in most instances, to other institutions of higher learning, and many students who attend Ferris for one or two years ex- pect to transfer to other colleges or to universities. Organization of the Study The study will be divided into six chapters as follows: Chapter I will include an introduction to the study, the statement of the problem, the general hypoth- eses, the need, the sc0pe, the limitations, and the def- inition of terms; Chapter II will review the research done in this and closely related areas; Chapter III will describe the design of the study including a description of the instruments used, sample selection methods, and analytical procedures employed; Chapter IV will give an 10 analysis of the data; Chapter V will be devoted to the interpretation of the data given in Chapter IV; and Chapter VI will consist of the summary and recommenda- tions. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELAWED LITERATURE Literature of Closely Related Investigations Since the determination of factors which influence success and failure in college are of vital interest to administrators in both secondary and higher education as well as to guidance and counseling personnel at both levels, much investigation has been done in the field of prediction. However, many of these predictive studies have been based on entrance tests. A few of these which appear to be related to this study show that prediction based on a certain battery of tests is not equally good 1-4 in all types of curricula. Not all educators are in 1 Wimburn L. Wallace, "Differential Predictive Value of the ACE Psychological Examination," School and Societv, 70:23-25; July 9, 1949. 2 , "The Prediction of Grades in Specific College Courses," Journal 9: Educational Research, 44: 587-97; April. 1951. 3 Arthur E. Traxler, "Some Comments on 'The Pre- diction of Differential Achievement in Technological College,'" Journal 9: Applied Psychology, 27:176-79; April, 1943. 4 George A. Pierson and Frank B. Jex, "Using the Cooperative General Achievement Tests to Predict Suc- cess in Engineering," Educational and Psychological Measurement, 11:397-402; Autumn, 1951. ll «\L 12 agreement with the objectives of these tests. Dr. Wilbur Brookover5 feels that "intelligence" rating is indefen- sible and that the I. Q. tests cannot discriminate be- tween those who have creativity and those who do not. Other investigators have found that English usage and reading competence measure the level of college stu- dents, and hence their chance to succeed in other courses, better than does any other Specific factor. Halfter and 6 Douglas found that certain types of reading are involved in success in commerce, while Robertson and Harrison7 discovered that a good reading background contributed to success in mathematics, science, and social science. Jensen and Clark8 state that in most studies made at Brigham Young University a substantial coefficient of correlation was found between scores on the COOperative English Test, Lower Level, Form Z, and college grades. 5 Wilbur B. Brookover, Report of Speech given at Continuing Education Conference at Michigan State Uni- versity. Michigan Education Journal, 40:398; January, 1963. 6 Irma T. Halfter and Frances M. Douglas, "Measure- ment of College Level Reading Competence in Content Area," Journal 2: Educational Research, 53:223-30; Feb- ruary, 1950. 7 Malcolm H. Robertson and Mildred M. Harrison, "Reading Skill as a Predictor of College Achievement," Journal 9; Educational Research, 53:258—62; March, 1960. 8 Vern H. Jensen and Monroe H. Clark, "Prediction Study of COOperative English Test Scores," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 3 :635-36; May, 1958. ‘IV. ‘uuli 5.1+ 13 Pierson and Jex9 also found this to be true at the Uni— 10 at the University of Iversity of Utah as did wallace Michigan and Traxler11 at North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering. They claimed that the two most efficient predictors of first-year grades proved to be the mechanics of eXpression and the total English scores. At Illinois Institute of Technology, Krathwohl12 found that vocabulary accounts for the great- er part of variance in achievement in English. The importance of success in the basic English courses in colleges can scarcely be overemphasized. As Neville13 points out: Since English is the medium of expression for all subjects, the teaching and learning of every subject is conditioned by the ability of teacher and student to express ideas. Earl J. NcGrath,14 former United States Commissioner of 9 Pierson and Jex, loc. cit. 10 Wallace, loc. cit. 11 Traxler, loc. cit. 12 William C. Krathwohl, "Relative Contributions of Vocabulary and an Index of Industriousness for Eng- lish to Achievement in English," Journal g: Educational Psychology, 42:97-104; February, 1951. 13 Mark A. Neville, "English as a Condition of Lige," Teachers Collegp Journal, 32:102-10; January, 19 1. 14 Earl J. McGrath, (ed.), Communication.;p Gen- eral Education. Dubuque, Iowa: w. M. Brown Company, 1949, p. v. ‘ . «,V-L 14 Education states: Nen cannot live an intelligent life today without a knowledge of, and skill in using, the communica- tion arts. If they cannot read, and talk, and listen, and write understandably and intelligently, they can- not think clearly. The United States Office of Health, Education, and Nel- fare15 has consistently emphasized the value of the use of English. In 1962 that office wrote: This Office's concern for English is related to a larger concern for the quality of instruction in all fields; however, as a basic discipline af- fecting all instructional fields, English has a priority. Colleges recognize the need for success in basic English or Communication Skills courses. The Emory-at- Oxfor college catalog states that a command of English is essential for ...basic knowledge, understanding appreciation, and skill which every educated person should have for effective living and as a preparation for con- centrated study in the upper division of a univer- sity or in a professional school. Recently the Curriculum Commission17 has been much 15 United States Office of Education, "Project English,” Counciletter. College English, 23:313-15; January, 1962. 16 John w. Gfegory, "Approach to Functional English in a Four-Year Junior College," Junior College Journal, 29:203-05; December, 1959. 17 National Council of Teachers of English, Com- mission on the Curriculum, "A Check List for Evaluating thz English Program," English Journal, 51:273-82; April, 19 2. 15 concerned with trying to improve the English curriculum since they feel that "As the course dealing with the fundamental processes of reading, writing, speaking and listening, and therefore the most generally required course in the school curriculum, English has come under close scrutiny." Literature of Factors Involved in Success or Failure in Subject Matter Many educators agree that success in basic English or Communication Skills courses is essential. But what are some of the factors contributing to success or fail- ure in this area? Some were selected for investigation in this study. The problem facing those who investigate these areas of study is one of trying to locate factors which influence success or failure. It has been known that intelligence alone is not the only factor, as has been pointed out by Brown et al18 in their study of "activ- ity delay" where they suggest that adjustment to rou- tine and regulations may have an influence. Hrenn and Humber19 are also aware of the problem, and they point 18 William Brown, Norman Abeles, and Ira Iscoe, "Motivational Difference Between High and Low Scholar— ship College Students," Journal 9: Educational Psychol- ogy, “5:215-23; April, 1954. 19 c. Gilbert Wrenn and Wilbur J. Humber, "Study Habits Associated with High and Low-Scholarship," Journal g: Educational Psychology, 32:611-16; November, 1951. 16 out the difficulty of working on the problem which relies of necessity upon subjective judgments of stu- dents; however, the investigators go on to state that an inventory of students' habits will show what habits deviate seriously from practices of successful students. In a study of the relationship of personality to achievement, Stagner20 believes that energy output of the student is important. He says that personality factors have a marked influence on achievement, but he does not Spell out these factors sufficiently to be of value. He merely states that "high emotionality" and "high self—sufficiency" are retarders. Dowd21 in a study of underachieving students of high capacity found that a personality questionnaire did not help in discriminating between successful and unsuccessful stu- dents. He found that there was a greater incidence of extreme underachievement among male students than among the women. He concluded that factors that depress achievement antecede college years. Kurtz and Swenson22 found that home environment had 20 H. Stagner, "The Relation of Personality to Academic Aptitude and Achievement," Journal g: Educa- tional Research, 26:648-60; Hay, 1933. 21 Robert Dowd, Jr., "Under-Achieving Students of High Capacity," Journal 9i Higher Education, 23:327-30; June, 1952. 22 John J. Kurtz and Esther J. Swenson, "Factors Related to Over-Achievement and Under-Achievement in School," School Review, 59:472-80; November, 1951. 17 some influence on achievement. Where parents show in- terest and pride in their children and children wish to please parents, there seems to be more achievement. Merrill and Hurphy23 investigated non-intellectual factors which influenced achievement. They selected the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule to determine if this might discriminate between successful and un- successful students in similar groupings. They found that among the achievers there was more dominance, less exhibitionistic tendency, less concern about change, and less tendency to affiliate with others. They sug- gested that much more work needed to be done in the study of non-intellectual factors in achievement. Since the present study is based on a division of students into three levels of achievement, it was thought profitable to investigate the literature on this subject. Dabbszu found the Cooperative English Placement tests had good reliability in placing fresh- men in upper, intermediate, and lower groups. He ad- mitted, however, that not all schools have the same cut-off scores for the same level. His report did not 23 Reed H. Eerrill and Daniel T. Murphy, "Per- sonality Factors and Academic Achievement in College," Journal g: Counseling Psycholop , 6:207-10; Fall, 1959. 24 Lowell Dabbs, "Report on Remedial English in Colleges," Junior College Journal, 27:381-87; March, 1957. 18 give cut-off scores for levels. Santee25 while working with elementary children found that separation into ability groups lowered the percentage of failures in English. Wallace26 studied the effect of having weaker students spending longer hours in class than did those who were stronger in English. He could not find any difference in results when class hours were lowered to normal (three hours for three hours' credit). He felt that students were placed more on their own resources when the contact hours were lowered. The size of the high school from which the stu- dent came was thought to be a possible indicator of his success or failure in college Communication Skills classes. Bledsoe27 investigated the performance of 25 A. M. Santee, "Results of Classification of Pupils Based on Ability as Shown by Intelligence Tests, Tests of Achievement and Teachers' Marks," The Problem ,9: the Elementary School Principal lg the Light pf Egg Testing Movement. washington, D. 0.: Second Yearbook of the Department of Elementary School Principals of the National Education Association of the United States. 1923: pp. 276-83. 26 Donald Gordon Wallace, "Comparative Analysis of Achievement in Three and Five-Hour Sections of Freshman English," Journal Q: Educational Research, 49:505-13; Iqar'Ch , 195 o 27 Joseph C. Bledsoe, "An Analysis of the Relation- ship of Size of High School to Marks Received by Gradu- ates in First Year of College," Journal pi_Educational Sociology, 27:414-18; May, l95b. l9 graduates of "small," "medium," and "large" secondary schools at the University of Georgia. He found that "Students from Georgia high schools who are members of large graduating classes tend to make significantly higher marks during their first year of college than do students who attend small and middle-sized high schools." However, Kittell28 at the State College of Washington found that there is no evidence to support the belief that a difference exists on COOperative Eng- lish scores between those who came from rural areas and those who came from metropolitan areas. However, he did not pursue the problem to find what difference there might be in performance at the college level, once the students were enrolled in classes. Shaw and Brown29 also hypothesize that students from smaller communities tend to underachieve more than do students from larger areas. Nevertheless they were careful to state that this is only a hypothesis. Carrow30 found that a bilingual background appeared 28 Jack E. Kittell, "Relationship of Language Scores to Residence Classification of College Freshmen," Jour- nal g£_Educational Research, 52:190-93; January, 1959. 29 Merville C. Shaw and Donald J. Brown, "Scholas- tic Underachievement of Bright College Students," Per- sonnel and Guidance Journal, 36:195-99; November, 1957. 30 Sister Mary Arthur Carrow, "Linguistic Func- tioning of Bilingual and Honolingual Children," Journal 9: Speech and Hearing Disorders, 22:371-80; September, 1957. 20 to make no significant difference in silent reading vocabulary, silent reading comprehension, oral reading rate, or spelling. There was some significance in favor of the monolingual students in oral reading accuracy, oral reading comprehension, and hearing vocabulary. How- ever she pointed out that it was difficult to determine if the language retardation noted was really due to bi— lingualism. She made no difference between the sexes in her study. McCarthy31 suggests that children from bilin- gual home backgrounds may have unconscious symbolic re— action to persons and events in early childhood with which such speech patterns have become associated. This was a factor among others upon which she speculated. In a study on influences on students' persistence at college, Slater32 found no correlation between occu- pations of fathers and the characteristic he investiga- ted. He did find that men in agriculture from farm homes were more persistent but only in agriculture. In a slightly different approach, Holden and Isaksen33 31 Dorothea A. McCarthy, "Factors that Influence Language Growth: Home Influence," Elementary English 29zu21-28; November, 1952. 32 J. l. Slater, "Influences on Students' Percep- tion and Persistence in the Undergraduate College," Journal p§_Educational Research, 54:3-8; September, 1960. 33 Raymond H. Holden and Harry L. Isaksen, "Fathers' Occupations and Intelligence Level of a Homogeneous Oc- cupational Group," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 38: 125-27; October, 1959. 21 established an intelligence level of various occupa- tions. They found that when the factors of educational and occupational level are held constant, the socio- economic status, as represented by the father's occupa- tion, is significant in relation to verbal intelligence. While no study was found on the effect of employ- ment of the mothers on the academic achievements of college students, Gill and Spilka34 found that achiev- ing girls and underachieving boys came from homes that were mother dominated. A study by Smith35 on evaluation of programs in English states in part: The...importance of the interests generated by the school program and the evidence of aesthetic standards of Judgment in pupils' free choices in reading are of major concern to teachers of Eng- lish. Later she discusses books read by pupils and those read by their parents and magazines which were most frequently read as determined in earlier investigations. She stated that in many cases the frequency of newspaper reading was considered the criterion of regularity 3" Lois J. Gill and Bernard Spilka, "Some Non— intellectual Correlates of Academic Achievement Among Mexican-American Secondary School Students," Journal .9; Educational Psychology, 53:144-49; June, 1932. 35 Dora V. Smith, "Recent Procedures in the Eval- uation of Programs in English," Journal pf Educational Research, 38:262-75; December, 19 . 22 of reading. Groff36 found a slight relationship between socio-economic status and the content read; those in the higher status level read more mature books. He could find no correlation between reading ability and students' attitudes toward reading. In a study undertaken by Maize37 to evaluate two methods of teaching English composition to retarded college freshmen, he found no evidence that the atti- tude or mood of students had any effect on success in English when either method was used. Shaw and Brown,38 in their work which was discussed earlier, found that students who were over-achievers carried heavier loads than those who underachieved. Likewise, Carew39 found that there was a tendency for grade points to rise as hours Spent in classes rose. Much work has been done on study, and attempts have been made to identify characteristics of effective study. 36 Patrick J. Groff, "Children's Attitude Toward Reading and Their Critical Reading Abilities in Four Content-Type Materials," Journal g3 Educational 3&- search, 55:313-17; April, 1962. 37 Ray C. Maize, "Two Methods of Teaching English Composition to Retarded College Freshmen," Journal 9f Educational Psychology, 45:22-28; January, 1955. 38 Shaw and Brown, loc. cit. 39 Donald K. Carew, "A Comparison of Activities, Social Acceptance, and Scholastic Achievement of Men Students," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 36:121-2U; October, 1957. 23 Schlesser and Younguo constructed what they called a "Studiousness Index" for use at Colgate University. They found it important to insist on vigorous and per- sistent effort. In a similar attempt to find study habit factors, Locke”l devised a Study Habits Test. He divided his test into the following areas: note-taking, study, time budget, reading, examinations, foreign lan- guages, and vocabulary. He Claims this inventory can discriminate between the students with high grades and those with low grades. Also he hopes to locate specific causes of scholastic difficulty by a score on sub-tests. “2 developed a Study Habits Inventory Brooks and Heston for use at DePauw University. They found that the better students violated 27 per cent of the rules recommended for effective study while the poorer students violated 31 per cent of the rules. Dienerb’3 in his study on 40 George E. Schlesser and C. H. Young, "Study and Work Habits," School Review, 53:85-89; February, 1945. “1 Norman M. Locke, "The Student Skills Inventory: a Study Habits Test," Journal of Applied Psychology, 2#:493-504; August, 19MO. “2 Fowler D. Brooks and Joseph C. Heston, "The Validity of Items in a Study Habits Inventory " Journal of Educational Psychology, 36:257-70; May, 19A5. “3 Charles L. Diener, "Similarities and Differences Between Over-Achieving and Under-Achieving Students," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 38:396-400; January, 1960. 24 achievement at the University of Arkansas states that over-achievers had better study habits than under- achievers. Chahbaziuu conducted a test on study habits at Cornell University. He found some statistical re- lation between success and non-success as follows: lack of interest in a subject, quality of note taking, and hours of study. He found that those who lacked inter- est in a subject neglected that subject and that those who Spent more hours in study did better work than those who spent less time. He felt more work should be done on item analysis of factors that might lead to success or failure in college work. Gerberich45 in a study of factors related to col- lege achievement at the University of Arkansas found that the high scholarship groups spent more time in sleep and at meals as well as more hours in classes than did those in the low scholarship groups. He suggested that two factors contribute to low scholarship—~study tech- niques and time expenditure. He also found that the high “4 Parviz Chahbazi, "Analysis of Cornell Orienta- tion Inventory Items on Study Habits and Their Relative Value in Prediction of College Achievement," qurnal 9: Experimental Education, 27:135-42; December, 1958. “5 J. R. Gerberich, "Factors Related to the College Achievement of High-Aptitude Students Who Fail of Ex- pectations and Low-Aptitude Students Who Exceed Expecta- tions," Journal 9: Educational Psychology, 32:253-63; April, 1941. 25 scholarship group spent more time in study than did the low scholarship group. Carewué also found that as hours of study rose, grade point averages rose also. “7 found that as the hours spent in gainful Carew employment increased, the grade point average rose. Chahbazi48 found in his group of agriculture students that those who spent more time in gainful employment did not succeed as well as those who Spent less time working. Dickenson and Newbeginl‘L9 found that as em- ployed students stay in college, the weaker students reduce their academic load. These investigators con- cluded that other factors besides the amount of outside employment may be important for success at college. In a study of students at the University of Hawaii, Kalish and Bartos50 found no relationship between aca- demic achievement and participation in campus activi- ties. Carew51 found no relationship between hours ”6 Carew, loc. cit. “7 Carew, ibid. “8 Chahbazi, loc. cit. “9 Carl Dickenson and Betty Newbegin, "Can Work and College Mix?" Personnel and Guidance Journal, 38:314-17; December, 1960. 50 Richard Kalish and Ctomar Bartos, "Survey of Student Attitudes Toward Campus Activities at the Uni— versity of Hawaii," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 39:292-99; December, 1960. 51 Carew, loc. cit. 26 spent in either scheduled or non-scheduled activities and grades earned. However he found that time spent on social activities of all kinds is double the total time spent On work, classes, and study. Shaffer52 in a study of English deficiency and social adjustment compared characteristics of a group of non-deficient English students with a group of students deficient in English. She found that extensive participation in group activ- ities was harmful to scholastic standing. Deficient students appeared to feel that they had extra time to deVote to activities. Summary The effect of non—intellectual factors and their influence on scholastic achievement received increased attention during the latter 1940's and the 1950's as evidenced by the frequency with which studies appeared in professional publications. Interest in English and particularly in remedial English at the college level has been studied fairly extensively during the past decade. Much of the work has been done on predictive studies based on entrance tests. Investigations seem to indicate that a good foundation in English is 52 Robert H. Shaffer, "English Deficiency and Social Adjustment," Journal 9: Higher Education, 20: 373-76; October, l9b9. 27 necessary for success in other fields, such as science and commerce. The literature agrees that there are vexing factors other than intellectual ability that have a bearing in success or failure in college work. Likewise the lit- erature during the past decade and a half has seen much more investigation carried on in higher education than was done formerly. A fairly large segment of this lit- erature is devoted to trying to isolate those factors which contribute to success or non-success at the college level. The literature does not agree on the effect of high school size as a factor in success in higher edu- cation. There seems to be a tendency to imply that those from smaller schools may have a more difficult time succeeding in college than do graduates from metro- politan area high schools. There appears to be agreement that a bilingual background has some effect on performance in English, but there is no clear-cut evidence as to its exact nature. Although attempts have been made to establish a relationship between the successful at college and their socio-economic background or occupational class of their fathers, there has been no evidence to sub- stantiate its existence. 28 There appears to be no study concerning the rela- tionship between reading newspapers, magazines, or books and success in freshman English. However, most authors agree that reading has an important part in the success- ful pursuit of any subject. Investigators have found that time spent in classes, or class load, has an effect on college success. In the cases reported, those carrying the heavier load did bet- ter than those carrying an underload. No investigation showed just what an underload might be. The literature reveals the fact that much has been done on study and study habits at the college level. A great deal of the effort has been undertaken to deter- mine the factors involved in effective study. A few surveys concerning time spent per week in study were made. They agreed that more time Spent in this way had the effect of raising grade points. It appears, according to past investigations, that gainful employment within reason is a motivational fac- tor for success in college. There seems to be no agreement on the factors in— volved in the use of leisure time. In some cases the amount of leisure time appears to have no effect; in others it is significant. Perhaps this position is more apparent than real since not all methods of inves- tigation were alike and some were not carried out in 29 much detail. For example, there is no clear-cut agree- ment on the factor of time spent in sleep and at meals and its relationship to success or failure. In nearly every instance, authors indicated that further investigation on the non-intellectual factors and their bearing on success in college would be a fruitful pursuit in the field of education. CHAPTER III In this chapter the design of the study will be divided into the following sections: (1) Instruments, (2) Sample, (3) Collection of the data, (4) Treatment of the data, and (5) The null hypothesis. Instruments The instruments used in this study may be divided into four parts, namely: (1) questionnaire A, dealing with the students' home backgrounds, previous training in English, reading habits, and attitudes toward aca- demic subjects and college education; (2) questionnaire B, dealing with the distribution of time spent in classes, work, activities, and personal care; (3) Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes;1 and (H) teachers' evaluation of students' work and class attitudes. Qpestionnaire 5,2 This questionnaire was adminis- tered to all students in this study during the second week of the quarter. The questionnaire obtained the following facts: 1 Brown-Holtzman, loc. cit. 2 Appendix A. 30 31 The amount of high school English the student had studied before entering a Communication Skills class was investigated. Since in many schools only three years of high school English are required, it was de- cided to separate the groups into those with 3 years or less of high school English and those with 3.5 years or more of English. The home language background of the student was di- vided into two categories: (1) those homes in which one or both parents Spoke a language other than English and (2) those who had a monolingual background (English). The occupations of the fathers of the students were divided into two groups according to The Dictionapy IQ: Occupational Titles.3 One consisted of those whose fathers were in the professional or managerial group, and the other was composed of those whose fathers were in the non-professional group. The employment of the mothers outside the home was investigated. Students were divided into two groups: (1) those whose mothers were employed outside the home and (2) those whose mothers were not employed outside the home. 3 United States Employment Service. Definition 2: Titlgg. Vol. I of Dictionary_g§ Occupational Titles Z2nd ed.). Washington, D. 0.: Government Printing Office, l9h9, passim. 32 Next, students' newspaper reading habits were learned. The students were first divided into two groups according to the frequency with which they read newspapers. Those who read papers frequently were com- pared with those who read them occasionally or never. The students were then divided according to newspaper reading habits; those who read chiefly sports and com— ics were compared with those who read mainly news ar- ticles and editorials. The magazine reading habits of the students were sought. Those who read non-fiction type magazines were compared with those who read fiction type magazines. The non-fiction magazines included the ones covering news, technical subjects, and essays. Students were divided into two groups according to their interests in books, those who read technical or non—fiction books and those who read fiction. The attitude of the students toward school subjects was treated in two different ways. First, students were divided into the group which preferred academic subjects or the group which preferred vocational subjects; sec- ondly, they were separated into those who disliked some academic subject and those who disliked some vocational subject. Th (D attitude of the students toward college educa- tion divided the group into those who thought a college 33 education was essential or highly desirable and those who thought it only partially necessary or were uncer- tain of its advantages. Questionnaire 3.“ This questionnaire was given to all the students involved in the study during the tenth week of the quarter and was designed to determine the utilization of the students‘ time. The student was asked to account for the 168 hours in the week as ac— curately as possible. This time was broked down as follows: Hours per week spent Ag classes and laboratories. The students were divided into the group that spent 26 or less hours per week in classes and those who spent 27 or more hours per week in classes. This division point was selected as it was found that the average amount of time spent in classes and laboratories was approximately 26 hours per week. Hours per week Spent in study. The students were divided into two groups, those who spent 26 hours or less per week in study and those who spent 27 or more hours per week in study. Since the median number of hours per week of study fell at approximately 26, this was selected as the dividing point for the groups. Hours pgr week spent 1 sleep and g3 meals. The students were divided into two groups, those who spent 4 Appendix B. 34 65 hours or less per week in sleep and at meals and those who spent 66 hours or more per week week in sleep and at meals. The dividing point of 65 hours was selected since most spent approximately this amount of time. Hours per week spent in part—time work. The stu- dents were divided into two groups, those who spent 8 hours or less per week in part-time jobs and those who spent 9 hours or more per week. Eight hours was select— ed as the dividing point as this was the maximum amount of time recommended by college authorities for a full- time student to spend in outside work. Hours per week spent 3g scheduled activities. Scheduled activities included athletics, music, speech, clubs and fraternities, church organizations, and pub- lications. The students were divided into two groups, those who spent 9 hours or less per week in these activ- ities and those who spent 10 hours or more per week. The majority of the students spent approximately 9 hours per week in scheduled activities; hence this was selec- ted as the division point. Hours per week spent in non-scheduled activities. Non-scheduled activities included recreational games, spectator sports, socializing at the Student Center, dating, travel on week-ends, housekeeping duties, and personal grooming. Since the majority spent about 50 hours per week in these pursuits, the students were 35 divided into two groups, those who spent 50 hours or less per week in non-scheduled activities and those who spent 51 hours or more per week. Survey_2f Study Habits and Attitudes.5 This Survey was administered to all students involved in the study during the second week of the quarter. Since the med- ian score of the students participating in this Survey was 33, they were divided into two groups, those who ranked 33 or less on the Survey and those who ranked 34 or more on it. Although national college norms at the 50 percentile are slightly different for men and for women (36 for men, 33 for women), a single median was used for this study. Since the norm for this group, which includes more men than women, is slightly lower than the national college norm, the population under study is probably slightly below the average freshman student throughout the country. 6 Teachers' evaluation. The teachers of the var- ious Communication Skills classes involved in the study were asked to report the number of absences each stu— dent had during the term. Since the majority of teach— ers consider three absences (one for each credit hour) not excessive, the students were divided into two groups, 5 Brown-Holtzman, loc. cit. 6 Appendix C. 36 one in which the student had 3 or less absences per term and the other in which the student had h or more absences during the quarter. The teachers were also asked to evaluate the stu— dents in reSpect to class participation, dividing them into one of three categories; the upper quarter of the class, the middle half, or the lower quarter. Instruc- tors were also asked to classify students in the same way in regard to class responsibility. Class respon- sibility was defined as promptness in doing assignments, neatness of work, concern about progress in the course, cooperation, and class attitude. Selection of Sample Permission from the Dean of the General Education Division of Ferris Institute and from the head of the Department of English was granted to carry on this study in the Communication Skills classes in the fall quarter of 1959 when it was decided to divide the Com- munication Skills classes into three divisions as des- cribed in Chapter I. Inasmuch as there has been no change in procedure to the present date and since Ferris Institute still maintains the "Open door" policy, this sample probably represents the same caliber student as those now enrolled in the Communications Skills classes. All students who were classified as Remedial (3G) 37 in Communication Skills were included in the study. The Intermediate Group (IG) and the Upper Group (UG) included nine classes each. These were randomly se- lected from among 28 classes taught by full-time staff members. No classes taught by substitute or part-time instructors were included. All of the instructors in- volved were willing to cooperate in the project and ful- filled their part of the study. The successful group and the unsuccessful group were determined by grades. Those who received C or better were considered successful, and those who earned D or less were considered unsuccessful. The D grade was included as unsuccessful because it is lower than the standard required for graduation and is not a trans- ferable grade. Included in the study were 16M students in the Re- medial Group (RG), 136 men and 28 women; 260 in the In- termediate Group (IG), 183 men and 77 women; and 272 in the Upper Group (UG), 141 men and 131 women. Table 3.1 shows the division of students among the successful and unsuccessful. In every case there are fewer women than men, but at Ferris Institute the popu- lation is predominately male; in fact, the ratio of women to men in the study is higher than in the insti- tution as a whole. This may possibly be due to the fact that more women than men are enrolled in short, terminal 38 courses and appear in greater numbers among the fresh- man class. The total of 696 students in this study represents approximately 85 per cent of the freshman class who enrolled for that term. TABLE 3.1 DIVISION OF SIUDEHTS INVCLVED IN THE STUDY Successful Unsuccessful Total Group Nen women Ken Women Men Women Total RG* 114 24 22 4 136 28 164 IG** 115 52 68 25 183 77 260 UG*** 124 120 17 11 141 131 272 Total 353 196 107 40 460 236 696 * Remedial Group (Communication Skills 100) ** Intermediate Group (Communication Skills 1013) new Upper Group (Communication Skills 101) The results of the questionnaires,7 Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes,8 teachers' evaluation sheets9 and grades were recorded by class 1eVels and by sex im- mediately after completion. In cases where not all data were available, students were asked to complete the 7 Appendix A and B. 8 Brown-Holtzman, loc. ci . 9 Appendix C. 39 questionnaires by appointment. The complete record of a few persons was not available since they drOpped from school during the term because of financial, health, or administrative reasons. These were not included in the final tally. Collection of the Data During the second week of the term, questionnaire A10 together with the Survey of Study Habits and Atti- tudes11 was given in all participating Communication Skills classes. A direction letter12 to the teachers concerning the administering of the questionnaire was also distributed. The second week of the quarter was selected because by that time students were permanently located in their respective Communication Skills classes. Questionnaire 313 was administered during the tenth week of the quarter. By that time the students had de- veloped a routine in the utilization of their time. When the term ended, the teachers were asked to list the absences and to evaluate their students in re- spect to responsibility and class perticipation.1“ 10 Appendix A. 11 Brown-Holtzman, 12g. gig. 12 Appendix D. 13 Appendix B. 14 Appendix C. 40 Treatment of the Data The Remedial Group was assigned grades as the result of scores made on a standardized test because members of this group were not allowed to enter a cred- it course until they achieved a level of competence on the COOperative English Test as described in Chapter I. The Intermediate Group and the Upper Group were assigned successful or unsuccessful grades by their respective instructors. Although there may be some question about the reliability of grades, grades are the final criter- ion used to determine success or failure of students. This is a survey study to determine which, if any, of selected environmental factors appear to influence successful or unsuccessful achievement in freshman Com-. munication Skills. The factors under investigation were dichotomized to facilitate the tabulation and calculations neces- sary for chi square item analysis. The frequency for every reSponse for each factor was entered into a 2 x 2 contingency table for the successful and unsuccessful to determine the chi square value according to the meth- od given by Walker and Lev.15 Because of the nature of the data, every response concerning class responsibility 15 Helen M. Walker and Joseph Lev, Statistical Inference. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1953. 41 and class participation was entered into a 2 x 3 con— tingency table to determine the chi square value.16 Factors that discriminated between the successful and unsuccessful students at the 0.10 level or better were considered as significant and interpretable. Since much of the data obtained is subjective in nature, the use of chi square to determine significance between groups appears to be the most appropriate sta- tistical method. Chi square analysis is the usual pro- cedure for dealing with non-parametric data of many classifications. Sige117 makes the statement: When the data of research consist of frequencies in discrete categories, the chi square test may be used to determine the significance of differences between independent groups. Walker and Lev13 and Garrett19 also suggest the use of chi square in cases where opinion and dichotomy occur. The research hypothesis to be properly tested must be worded in null form. Following is the null hypoth- esis to be tested in this study: 16 Ibid. 17 Sidney Sigel, Nonparametric Statistics for the Behaviorial Sciences. New York: KcGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1956: p. 104. 18 Walker and Lev, 92. cit., p- 81. 19 Henry E. Garrett, Statistics in ngphology_and Education. New York: Longmans, Green and Company, 1947. p. 241. 42 Hull Hypothesis: The factors in this study will not discriminate between the successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes.20 Sub Hypothesis: There is no significant differ- ence between male and female students within unsuccessful groups with respect to the fac- tors included in this study.20 Summary Two questionnaires to obtain the data for the fac- tors involved in the study were prepared. One was given near the beginning of the quarter together with the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes; the other was given near the end of the term. At that time the in- structors involved rated the students in class partici- pation and in responsibility. Final grades were ob- tained to determine the successful and the unsuccessful. The data were set up in a dichotomous system from which a chi square analysis was made. The level of 0.10 or better was selected as being significant to discrim— inate between successful and unsuccessful students for each factor involved. 20 Factors listed on page 3. CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS OF THE DATA This chapter is concerned with the analysis of the data and presentation of the results which were obtained from the data. From Chapter I it will be recalled that there were 20 variables in the study. The significance, if any, of these variables in respect to the success or failure of students enrolled in freshman Communication Skills classes will be presented. Size of High School As has been stated previously, graduates of schools of Class A and B are compared with those from Class C and D in reference to the success or failure of students in Communication Skills. Class A high schools have an enrollment of 750 or more students in the upper four grades (9, 10, 11, and 12); Class B high schools have an enrollment of between 450 and 750 students; Class C high schools have an enrollment of between 200 and 450 students; and Class D schools have fewer than 200 stu— dents in the upper four grades. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis I: The size of the high school will not discriminate between 43 MU successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communi- cation Skills classes. TABLE 4.1 FREQUENCY AID CHI SQUARE VALUES CF SUCCESSFUL AHD UNSUCCESSFUL STUDEETS F303 CLASS A AHD B HIGH SCHOOLS CCECPA TED E‘J'I‘EH STL‘DEZ-H‘S F1101} CLASS C AND D HIGH SCHOOLS A and B Schools C and D Schools 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X M F M F M F H F H F 33* 82 15 13 3 32 9 9 1 1.45 0.23 IG** 79 33 49 20 36 19 19 5 0.32 5.13% UG*** 84 70 11 8 no 50 6 3 0.63 0.63 * Remedial Group (Communication Skills lOO) ** Intermediate Group (Communication Skills 1013) *** Upper Group (Communication Skills lOl) # Significant at the 0.10 level or better Inspection of Table 4.1 indicates that for the men the null hypothesis that the size of the high school from which the student comes will not discriminate be- tween successful and unsuccessful groups in Communica- tion Skills will be accepted. However one group of women (Intermediate Group) shows a significant differ- ence in performance between those from larger and those from smaller schools. Further investigation shows that 45 38 per cent of those from the larger schools were un- successful while only 21 per cent of those who came from Class C and D schools were unsuccessful. The Be- medial Group and Upper Group women show no significant difference in this reSpect. J Years of High School Eialish Since the majority of high schools in Michigan require 3 years of English for graduation, his study is comparing those students having 3 years or less with those having 3.5 years or more. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis II: The number of years of Eng- lish studied in high school will not discriminate be- tween successful and unsuc- cessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. Table H.2 on Page #6 shows that among the men and women in all groups there was no significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in respect to the amount of English studied before entering college. However in the Intermediate Group of men, the value of X2 approaches significance. In this case the percent- 'age (41) of unsuccessful was higher among those who A6 TABLE 0.2 FREQ’EKCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UHSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS HAVING 3 YEARS OR LESS OF HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH AND THOSE HAVING 3.5 YEARS OR MORE OF ENGLISH 3 Years or Less 3.5 Yrs. or More 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X H F M F M F H F H F RG 53 7 10 2 61 l7 l2 2 0.008 1.30 I0 38 22 15 9 77 30 53 16 2.50 0.30 UG 3U 32 4 4 9O 88 13 7 0.12 0.47 had 3.5 years or more of high school English than among those who had 3 years or less of English (28 per cent). Language Background of the Student Students from homes in which either or both par- ents Spoke a foreign language were compared with stu- dents from homes in which no foreign language was spoken. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis III: A bilingual or monolingual home background will not discriminate between the successful and unsuccess- ful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. “7 TABLE “.3 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES 0F SUCCESSFUL AND UZSUCCESSFUL STUDEHTS HAVING BILINGUAL 03 HONOLIHGUAL HOKE BACKGROUND Honolingual Bilingual 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X H F H F H F H F M F RG 90 16 19 3 24 8 3 1 0.64 0.11 IG 88 47 49 19 27 5 19 6 0.45 2.85* UG 99 96 12 6 25 24 5 5 0.76 3.68* * Significant at the 0.10 level or better The table shows that among the men there appears to be no significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in respect to their language back- grounds in the home. However, among the women, with the exception of the Remedial Group, there is enough differ- ence to reject the null hypothesis. In the Intermediate Group and Upper Group women the percentage of failures was higher for those with a bilingual background than for those with a monolingual background. In the Inter- mediate Group the percentage of failures was 29 for those with a monolingual background while it was 53 for those with a bilingual background. In the Upper Group the percentage of failures among those with a monolin- gual background was only 6 while there were 17 per cent failures among those with a bilingual background. 48 Occupation of the Father In this part of the study, the occupations of the fathers were divided into two groups: (1) professional and managerial and (2) non-professional. Students whose fathers were in group 1 were compared with students whose fathers were in group 2. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis IV: The occupations of the stu- dents' fathers will not dis- criminate between successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.4 FREQLLNCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UFSUCCEOSFUL STUDENTS WHOSE FATHERS HAVE PROFESSIONAL OR NANAGERIAL OCCUPATIONS COMPARED WITH STUDENTS WHOSE FATHERS HAVE NCN-PROFBSSIOHAL OCCUPATIONS Father Profes— Father Non- sional,hanagerial Professional Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 M F M F H F M F M F 30 36 7 7 1 78 17 15 3 0.00 0.03 IG #5 25 28 15 70 27 40 10 0.21 0.96 UG 03 49 u 5 81 71 13 6 0.38 0.89 Mg Inspection of Table “.4 shows no significant dif- ference between the successful and unsuccessful groups, either men or women, in respect to the occupations of the fathers. In this case it indicates that the null hypothesis is correct. Mothers Employed or at Home This part of the study was undertaken to determine if the employment of the mothers outside the homes had any effect upon the success or failure of students in freshman Communication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis V: The employment of the students' mothers outside the home will not discriminate between success- ful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.5 ) FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UUSUCCESSFUL STUDEHT WHOSE KOTHERS WORK OUTSIDE THE HOME COEPAflfiD WITH STUDENTS WHOSE MOTHERS ARE TOT EKPLOYED Nothers Employed Hothers wot Emol. Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess A M F M F M F M F M F 30 36 4 8 1 78 20 14 3 0.19 0.02 IG 39 18 26 8 76 34 42 17 0.35 0.05 UG 42 47 3 3 82 73 14 8 1.81 0.60 50 Table A.5 suggests no significant difference in any group between the successful and unsuccessful stu- dents in respect to the employment or non-employment of the mothers outside the home. Newspaper Heading Habits There are two purposes in this division of the study: (I) to determine if there is any difference between the successful and unsuccessful students in Communication Skills classes according to the frequency with which they read newspapers and (2) to determine if what these students read in newspapers--comics, features, and sports as compared to front-page articles and edi- torials--decides the difference between the successful and unsuccessful groups. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis VI: The frequent reading of news- papers will not discriminate between successful and unsuc- cessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. Sub Hypothesis: The type of material read in newspapers will not discrim- inate between successful and unsuccessful groups in fresh- man Communication Skills classes. 51 TABLE 4.61 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES or SUCCESSFUL AND UHSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS WHO READ NEwSPAPHdS FREQUENTLY COMPARED WITH STUDEHTS YHO READ NEHSPAPERS IN HEQUENTLY Head Frequently Head Infrequently Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 H F M F M F H F M F 3G 83 20 14 3 31 4 8 1 0.76 0.16 IG 84 36 49 22 31 16 19 3 0.01 1.59 UG 103 95 14 11 21 25 3 0 0.00 0. 01 TABLE “.62 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS VHO HEAD CHIEFLY COHICS FEATURES AID SPORTS IN NEWSPAPERS COMPARED WITH STLJENTS WHO HEAD CHIEFLY NETS IETICLES AND EDITORIALS Comics and Sports News, Editorials 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X IT I? IT I? ii I? Ii I? 14 I? RG 99 15 26 5 91 33 18 2 0.70 4.26% IG 115 30 67 11 109 72 65 37 0.01 0.07 UG 104 65 15 8 119 168 17 14 0.00 0.70 * Significant at the 0.10 level or better Table 9.6 shows no significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in any group of men or women in regard to the frequency with which they read newspapers. No difference appears between the successful 52 and unsuccessful in reSpect to what they read except for the Remedial Group of women. Here there are 25 per cent failures among those who read chiefly comics, features, and Sports compared to only 10 per cent fail- ures among those who read chiefly news articles and editorials. The significance is at the 0.05 level and indicates that the null hypothesis may be rejected for the Remedial Group of women. Magazine Heading Habits This section of the study deals with the magazine reading habits of students in freshman Communication Skills classes. It was made to determine if the type of magazines students read-—fiction or non-fiction—- decides the difference between the successful and un- successful groups in Communication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis VIII: The type of magazine read will not discriminate be— tween successful and un- successful groups in fresh- man Communication Skills classes. Table 4.7 indicates no significant difference be- tween successful and unsuccessful in any group, either 53 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS THO READ NON-FICTION MAGAZINES COHPAEED WITH STUDENTS WHO HEAD FICTION MAGAZINES Read Non-Fiction Bead Fiction 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X H F M F M F H F M F HG 218 43 32 5 57 16 14 3 2.16 0.37 IG 221 95 118 45 67 33 36 15 0.00 0.01 UG 229 239 32 20 83 76 6 8 0.26 0.18 male or female, in reSpect to the type of magazines read. However, the Remedial Group (HG) of males approaches sig— nificance. In this group there were 20 per cent fail— ures among those who read chiefly fiction magazines com- pared to 14 per cent failures among those who read chiefly non-fiction magazines. Book Reading Habits This part of the study was conducted to learn if there were any differences between the successful and the unsuccessful students in respect to the reading of technical or entertaining books. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis VIII: The reading of technical books will not discriminate 54 between successful and un— successful groups in fresh— man Communication Skills classes. TA3LEL}.8 FflzC E‘"CY h1D CEEI Saul}; VALUES 0F SUCCESSFUL A.D UNSUCCESSFUL SDUD3.IS 1THO 3flAD iDCHTICAL BOOKS CCILPA. 3D TITH SWLIZLDS ZUO RES 3""‘1311‘. IN 33G BOOKS Technical Books Non—Technical Books 9 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X“ H F H F H F N F M F :G 26 3 5 0 109 23 17 4 0.14 0.51 IG 23 9 19 2 107 58 61 28 0.81 0.9M U“ 24 15 0 0 115 118 17 11 0.01 0.01 Inspection of Table 4.8 shows no significant differ— ence between the successful and unsuccessful in any groug either men or women, in regard to the kind of books they read. The null hypothesis appears to be correct in this instance. Interests in School Subjects This section of the study is divided into two parts: (1) the first is aimed at determining differences, if any, between the successful and unsuccessful students in re— lation to their interests in academic or vocational sub- jects; (2) the second is aimed at determining differences, 55 if any, between these groups in relation to their dis- likes of some academic subjects or some non—academic Item Analysis desults Full Hypothesis IX: The students' interests in academic subjects will not discriminate between suc- essful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Commun- ication Skills classes. Sub Hypothesis: The students' dislike of some academic subjects will not discriminate between successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communi- cation Skills classes. TABLE “.91 FREQUE"CY AITD CHI SQU {E VALU ES 0F SUCCESSFUL AND UHsUCCESSFUL STUDEIITS v;IO STAE E A" IE iSdJS I .LI‘ ACADE IIC SUBJECTS COII-‘A13D IIIL'. '3 ST UD-SIIIS ZIHO ST.T3 K IZTTEXEST I3 VLCAPTSYAL SUBJECTS Academic Ir terest Vocational Interest Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X“ H F H F H F H F M F as 85 17 15 4 29 7 7 0 0.39 0.06 IG 89 35 53 18 26 17 15 7 0.01 0.17 1 UG 110 91 15 10 14 29 2 0.00 1.30 (fl (‘3 Cf 56 TABLE 4.92(continued) FREQUENCY ADD CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND ULSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS NHO DISLIKE SOME ACADEKIC SUBJE T COHPAHED WITH THOSE WHO DISLIKE SOKE NON-ACADEMIC SUBJECT Dislike Academic Dislike Non- Subject Academic Subject Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 M F N F M F N F M F as 106 23 21 4 8 1 1 0 0.18 0.17 IG 105 48 62 23 10 4 6 2 0.01 0.00 UG 115 102 15 11 9 18 2 o 0.42 1.91 Table 4.9 indicates that there is no significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in any group in reSpect to their likes and dislikes of academic subjects or non-academic subjects. Attitude Toward College Education This part of the study was undertaken to determine the difference, if any, between successful and unsuc- cessful students in Communication Skills classes and their belief that college was necessary in their post- college life. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis X: The student's belief that a college education is necessary 57 will not discriminate between the successful and unsuccess- ful groups in freshman Commun- ication Skills classes. TABLE 4.10 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCE SFUL ADD ‘NSUCCESSFUL ST TITS WHO BELIEVE A COLLEGE EDUCATION NECESSARY COMPARED WITH THOSE 3H0 BELIEVE A COLLEGE EDUCATION NOT KECESSARY College Necessary College Unnecessary Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X“ M F M F M F M F M F RG 99 20 13 3 15 4 4 1 0.39 0.16 IG 106 41 61 21 9 11 7 4 0.33 0.29 UG 115 111 17 11 9 9 0 0 1.32 0.89 Inspection of Table 4.10 shows that there is no sig— nificant difference between the successful and unsuccess— ful in any group, either male or female, in respect to the students' belief that a college education is necessary or not necessary. In this case the null hypothesis is accepted. Time in Classes and Laboratories Since, on the average, students at Ferris Insti— tute engaged in this study spent approximately 26 hours per week in classes and laboratories, this number was taken as the median, and the groups were divided between 58 those who had 26 hours or less in classes and labora- tories and those who had 27 hours or more in classes and laboratories to determine if the time spent in this manner had any relation to the success or failure of students in Communication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XI: The number of hours per week spent in classes and labora— tories will not discriminate between successful and un- successful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.11 FREQUENCY AED CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UUSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS WHO SPENT 26 HOURS OE ESS PER WEEK IN CLASSES AND LABORATORIES COMPARE) WITH THOSE HHO SPENT 27 HOURS 03 KORE PER REEF IN CLASSES AND LABORATORIES 26 Hours or Less 27 Hours or More 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X M F E F M F M F H F RG 108 16 20 3 6 8 2 1 0.49 0.11 IG 100 #8 67 24 15 u 1 1 7.17* 0.38 UG 112 116 15 10 12 4 2 1 0.07 0.91 * Significant at the 0.10 level or better Table 4.11 shows no significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in all groups of women 59 students in respect to the number of hours per week spent in classes and laboratories. Likewise in the Remedial Group and the Upper Group of men no significant differ- ence is indicated in this respect. However, in the In- termediate Group of men there is a significant differ- ence between those who Spent 26 hours or less per week in classes and laboratories and those who spent 27 hours or more per week in this manner. The former had 40 per cent failure while the latter had only 6 per cent fail- ure. The chi square analysis shows a level of 0.01 sig- nificance, and the rejection of the null hypothesis in this case is in order. Time Spent in Study Since 26 hours in classes and laboratories was found to be the average load, it was thought that, at the least, this same number of hours should be spent in study. It was then decided to determine if there was any difference between the successful and unsuccessful in reSpect to 26 hours or less of study per week and 27 hours or more of study per week. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XII: The number of hours per week spent in study will not dis— criminate between successful and unsuccessful groups in 60 freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.12 FEEQUEHCY AHD CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AHD UKSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS WHO SPENT 26 HOURS OR LESS PER HEEi IH STUDY COMPARE WITH THOSE Til-{O SPEUT 27 HOURS CR KOflE P53 HEEK I? STUDY 26 Hours or Less 27 Hours or More 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X M F M F H F H F H F 3c 74 18 17 u no 6 5 o 1.27 1.27 IG 77 33 #6 15 38 19 22 10 0.01 0.29 we 78 75 13 7 46 45 u u 1.20 0.01 The data in Table b.12 indicates no significant dif- ference between the successful and unsuccessful in any group, either male or female, in respect to the number of hours spent in study. The null hypothesis is accepted in all groups for this factor. Time Spent in Sleep and at Heals Since it was eXpected that a person would normally spend about 65 hours per week in sleep and at meals, this part of the study was undertaken to determine what effect, if any, spending 65 hours or less per week in sleep and at meals compared with spending 66 hours or more per week in this way had on the success or failure 61 of students in Communication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XIII: The number of hours per week spent in sleep and at meals will not discriminate be- tween successful and unsuc- cessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.13 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UHSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS EHO SPENT 65 HOURS OR LESS PER WEEK IN SLEEP AND AT MEALS COEPAHED WITH THOSE HHO SPENT 66 HOURS 03 MORE PER WEEK IN SLEEP AND KEALS 65 Hours or Less 66 Hours or More Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 H F H F H F H F H F ac 58 15 6 2 56 9 16 2 4.04* 0.07 10 60 32 34 9 55 20 34 16 0.08 4.42* UG 58 71 7 6 66 49 10 5 0.19 0.06 * Significant at the 0.10 level or better. Inspection of Table 4.12 shows that among the men there was a significant difference between the success- ful and unsuccessful in the Remedial Group. Further investigation shows that while 10 per cent failed among those who spent 65 hours or less per week in sleep and 62 at meals, 22 per cent failed who spent 66 hours or more per week in sleep and at meals. The Intermediate Group and Upper Group men showed no significant difference be- tween the successful and unsuccessful in respect to time spent in sleep and at meals. The women showed no significant difference in this reSpect in the Remedial Group and in the Upper Group. However, in the Intermediate Group the women who spent 66 hours or more per week in sleep and at meals had a 44 per cent failure compared to only a 22 per cent fail- ure for those who spent 65 hours or less in sleep and at meals. In the case of the Remedial Group of men and the Intermediate Group of women, since the chi square value reaches the 0.05 level of significance, the null hypoth- esis is rejected. Time Spent in Employment Frequently administrators and counselors in col- leges and universities recommend that no more than eight hours of gainful employment be undertaken by a full-time student. Since there was nothing in the literature to show that eight hours should be the op- timum for a full-time student, this part of the study was made to determine if there was any difference be- tween the successful and unsuccessful students in each group in respect to Spending eight hours or less per 63 week in employment compared to Spending nine hours or more per week. Item Analysis jesults Null Hypothesis XIV: The number of hours per week spent in employment will not discriminate between the successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Commun- ication Skills classes. TABLE 4 . 14 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUAHE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UESUCCESSFUL STUDEHTS H30 SPENT 8 HOUJS OR LESS PER WEEK IE EMPLOYMENT COMPARED WITH THOSE WHO SPEKT 9 HOURS OR KORE PER WEEK Work 8 Hours Work 9 Hours or Less or More 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X M F H F H F H F E F HG 89 23 18 4 25 l 4 0 0.16 0.17 IG 91 47 56 23 24 5 12 2 0.28 0.05 UG 97 107 13 11 27 13 4 0 0.03 0.09 The data in Table 4.13 shows no significant differ- ence between the successful and unsuccessful students in any of the three groups for either sex. Therefore the null hypothesis concerning the gainful employment of students is accepted. 64 Time Spent in Scheduled Activities Since the average amount of time spent in scheduled activities was 9 hours per week, this part of the study was made to determine the difference, if any, between the successful and unsuccessful students in Communica- tion Skills in respect to Spending more or less than 9 hours per week in scheduled activities. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XV: The number of hours spent per week in scheduled activities will not discriminate between successful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Communica- tion Skills classes. TABLE 4.15 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UHSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS 3H0 SPENT 9 HOURS OR LESS PER HEEK IN SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES COEPAHE HITH THOSE WHO SPENT 10 HOURS 03 KORE PER MEEK IN SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES 9 Hours or Less 10 Hours or Kore Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X H F H F H F H F H F RG 102 23 19 3 12 1 3 1 0.18 2.33 IG 101 48 58 25 14 4 10 0 0.24 2.03 UG 106 107 15 9 18 13 2 2 0.09 0.69 65 Inspection of Table 4.15 shows no significant dif- ference between the successful and unsuccessful in any group, male or female, in regard to the amount of time spent per week in scheduled activities. However, in the case of the women in the fiemedial Group and in the Intermediate Group the value of chi square is near the level of significance. In the Remedial Group those who spent 10 hours or more per week in scheduled activities had the larger percentage of failures (50 per cent com— pared with 12 per cent) while those in the Intermediate Group who spent 9 hours or less per week in scheduled activities had the greater percentage of failures (34 per cent compared with none). Time Spent in Hon—scheduled Activities The average amount of time spent in non—scheduled activities, such as those described in Chapter III, was 50 hours per week. This part of the study was under- taken to determine what effect, if any, spending more or less than 50 hours per week in non-scheduled activ- ities had in determining the difference between success- ful and unsuccessful groups in Communication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Full Hypothesis XVI: The number of hours per week 66 spent in non-scheduled activ- ities will not discriminate between successful and un- successful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.16 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AID UNSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS WHO SPENT 50 HOURS OR LESS PER WEEK IN NON—SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES COMPARED WITH THOSE WHO SPTNT 51 HOURS 03 MOHE PER NEEK IN NON-SCHEDULED ACTIVITIES 50 Hours or Less 51 Hours or More Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 H F H F H F H F H F RG 49 10 10 O 65 14 12 4 0.05 2.59 IG 48 17 24 ll 67 35 44 14 2.57 0.93 UG 67 49 6 5 57 71 ll 6 2.10 0.09 The data in Table 4.16 indicates no significant difference between the successful any group, male or female, time per week spent in non-scheduled activities. ever, and unsuccessful in in respect to the amount of How- in the Intermediate Group and the Upper Group of the men and in the Remedial Group of the women the chi square value approaches the significant level. In each of these groups those who spent 51 hours or more in non- scheduled activities had higher percentages of failures than did those who spent 50 hours or less per week. 67 The ratios of percentage of failures were as follows: Intermediate Group of men, 40 per cent for those with more time consumed in non-scheduled activities compared with 34 per cent for those spending less time; Upper Group of men, 16 per cent failure for those spending more time and 8 per cent for those Spending less time in unscheduled activities; Remedial Group of women, 22 per cent for those Spending more than 50 hours per week in unscheduled activities compared with no failures for those who Spent 50 hours or less per week. Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes All groups were given the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes; the median was 33 for all students tested in this study. It will be recalled from Chapter III1 that this is slightly lower than the national norm for college freshmen. This part of the study was undertaken to determine what effect, if any, a score of more or less than 33 on this Survey had in determining the difference between the successful and unsuccessful groups. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XVII: The scores on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes 1 See page 35. 68 will not discriminate be- tween successful and unsuc- cessful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. TABLE 4.17 FHE UEIICY AID CZII SMUQHE VALUES OF SUCCL SSFUL AIID UH SUCCESSFUL SPUDLUTS HHO HAHKED 34 03 LOHE ON THF SURVEY OF STUDY HABITS AND ATTITUDES COHPAHED ”HITH THOSE WHO HANKED 33 OH LESS ON THE SUE IV? SI 34 or Kore 33 or Less 2 Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X H F H F H F M F H F 56 o 8 o 58 24 14 4 1.21 # r’u (D IG 58 5 31 O 57 47 37 25 0.40 2.57 cc 85 26 11 o 39 94 6 11 0.10 2.97* # Does not give a rational mathematical result * Significant at the 0.10 level or better Inspection of Table 4.17 shows that there is no sig- nificant difference between the successful and unsuccess— ful among the men in respect to their rank on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. Among the women in the Remedial Group none were above the median range and no comparison was possible. In the Intermediate Group of women the chi square value approaches significance with the greater percentage of failures among those who ranked lower than 34 on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. 69 The Upper Group of women reached the significant level; those ranking lower than 34 on the Survey had the higher percentage of failures. In fact, among the women there were no failures indicated for those who ranked above the median on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes. Absence from Classes Since usually three absences in a three-hour Com- munication Skills class are permitted at Ferris Insti- tute, this part of the study was undertaken to see if there were any differences between those who were ab- sent 3 times or less and those who were absent 4 times or more in respect to their success or failure in Com- munication Skills classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XVIII: The number of absences from class will not dis- criminate between suc- cessful and unsuccessful groups in freshman Com- munication Skills classes. Inspection of Table 4.18 on page 70 shows that there is a significant difference between the success- ful and unsuccessful men in respect to class attendance. In every group those who were absent 4 times or more per term had the higher percentage of failures. The 70 TABLE 4.18 FEEQL UCLCI AND CHI SQUAIE VI UES OF SUCCESSFUL AND U*sLCCSSSELL STUUP”TS vEc nian ASSSII EECL CLASS 3 IILZS 0*.1 LE JSS PE 1 HIV CCLPIE‘D IITH THOSE .FHO 3 ABSENT 4 TIHES CH LCPE 3 or Fewer 4 or More Absences Absences Group Success Unsuccess Success Unsuccess X2 H F H F H F H F H F HG 101 21 16 3 13 3 6 1 3.86* 0.44 IG 106 47 57 2o 9 5 11 5 3.06% 1.61 UG 119 114 14 9 5 6 3 2 5.18* 3.05% * Significar t at the 0.10 level or better ratio of percentage of failures were as follows: Re- medial Group, 32 per cent for those with 4 absences or more compared with 14 per cent for those with 3 absences or less; Intermediate Group, 55 per cent failures for the larger number of absences compared with 35 per cent failures for those with the lesser number of absences; Upper Group, 38 per cent failures for those with 4 or more absences per term compared with 11 per cent for those who had 3 or fewer absences per term. Among the women there were no si :nific ant differ- ences between the successful and unsuccessful in reSpect to absences in the Remedial Group and in the Intermedi- ate Group. The Upper Group showed a significant differ- ence wit h those missinr 4 or more classes per term having 71 25 per cent failures and those missing 3 or fewer classes for the term having only 7 per cent failures. For all three groups of the men and for the Upper Group of the women, the null hypothesis is rejected. Class Participation Students in each class were ranked in the lowest quarter, middle half, and upper quarter in class par- ticipation according to the instructor's judgment. This was undertaken to determine the differences, if any, be- tween the successful and unsuccessful groups in reSpect to class participation. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XIX: The amount of Class partici- pation will not discriminate between successful and un- successful groups in fresh— man Communication Skills classes. According to tne data in Table 4.19 on page 72, there is a significant difference between the success- ful and unsuccessful in respect to class participation in all groups except one (the Remedial Group of women). However, this group also approaches the level of Sig- nificance. Further analysis shows that in all groups 72 TABLE 4.19 FREQUENCY AND CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL STUDENTS WHO RANK IN THE LOREST QUARTER, NIDDLE HALF, AND UPPER QUARTER IN CLASS PARTICIPATION AS JUDGED BY INSTRUCTORS Classification Successful Unsuccessful X2 Group N F M F M F 3G Lowest & 22 7 8 3 Middle 3 65 9 12 0 Upper % 27 8 2 l 4.57* 4.30 IG Lowest ; 22 5 3O 14 Middle % 6c 27 28 10 Upper E 32 20 10 1 13.63% 22.56% US Lowest % 13 10 13 5 Middle 3 78 7o 4 6 Upper E 32 40 o 0 43.39% 14.54% * Significant at the 0.10 level or better those who were ranked in the lowest quarter in class par- ticipation had the greatest percentage of failures, while those who ranked in the upper quarter had the lowest per- centage of failures. Class Responsibility This part of the study is an attempt to determine what difference, if any, there is between the successful and unsuccessful students in respect to class responsi- 73 bility in Communication Skills as measured by the in- struotor. Students were ranked in the lowest quarter, middle half, and upper quarter of their classes. Item Analysis Results Null Hypothesis XX: The amount of class responsi- bility will not discriminate between successful and un- successful groups in freshman Communication Skills classes. r1 : *3 1+ 1A3LE .20 FIEQUENCY AKD CHI SQUARE VALUES OF SUCCESSFUL AND UFSUCCESSFUL STUDEN”S HBO RAUK IN TLE LOHEST QUAK‘FER, MIDDLE HALF, AID UPPER QUAR"E‘.R IN CLASS RESPONSISILITY AS JUDGED BY INSTRUCTOBS Classification Successful Unsuccessful X2 Group H F K F M F RG Lowest : 21 6 6 2 Fiddle % 60 8 15 1 Upper E 33 10 1 1 6.23% 1.06 IG Lowest 2 15 2 23 9 Fiddle % 70 28 37 15 Upper % 29 22 8 1 13.85* 20.76* UG Lowest E 17 7 11 4 Middle % 83 75 6 7 Upper % 23 38 0 0 24.93* 14.69* * Significant at the 0.10 level or better 74 Inspection of Table 4.20 indicates that there is a significant difference between the successful and un- successful in respect to class responsibility as Judged by the instructors, except in one group (Remedial Group of women). In all the groups where significant differ- ences are noted, those ranked in the lowest quarter in class responsibility had the greatest percentage of failures while those ranked in the upper quarter had the lowest percentage of failures. Summary The following factors were investigated to deter- mine the difference, if any, between the successful and unsuccessful groups, divided accroding to sex, in each of the three levels of Communication Skills: (1) size of high school from which students graduated, (2) years of high school English, (3) language background in the home, (4) occupation of the father, (5) employment of the mother outside the home, (6) frequency of reading newspapers and the material read in newspapers, (7) magazine reading preferences, (8) book reading prefer— ences, (9) school subjects liked and school subjects disliked, (lO) attitude toward a college education, (11) time spent per week in classes and laboratories, (12) time spent per week in study, (13) time spent per week in sleep and at meals, (14) time spent per week in 75 employment, (15) time spent per week in scheduled activ- ities, (16) time spent per week in non-scheduled activ- ities, (17) rating on the Survey of Study Habits and At- titudes, (18) absences from class per term, (19) class participation as judged by the instructor, (20) class responsibility as Judged by the instructor. These factors were tested by chi square with the 0.10 level of confidence selected as being significant in showing any differences between the successful and unsuccessful groups. where such a significance appeared in this study, the null hypothesis stated for each fac— tor was rejected. In this study a significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful males in the Remedial Group (HG) was found among the following factors: (1) those who spent 66 hours or more per week and those who spent 65 hours or less per week in sleep and at meals, (2) those students who missed 4 or more classes per term and those who missed 3 or less classes per term, (3) those who were ranked in the lowest quarter in class partici- pation by the instructors and those ranked in the upper quarter, (M) those students who were ranked in the lowest quarter in class responsibility by the instructors and those ranked in the upper quarter. The Intermediate Group (IG) of male students in this study showed a significant difference between the 76 the successful and unsuccessful among the following factors: (1) those students who spent 26 hours or less per week in classes and laboratories and those who spent 27 hours or more per week in classes and laboratories, (2) those students who missed four or more classes per term and those who were absent three or fewer times per term, (3) those students who were rated by instructors in the lowest quarter in class participation and those who were rated in the upper quarter, (4) those students who were rated by instructors to be in the lowest quar- ter in class responsibility and those rated in the upper quarter. The Upper Group (UG) of male students, according to the findings of this study, showed a significant difference between the successful and unsuccessful in the following factors: (1) those students who missed 4 or more classes per term and those who missed 3 or fewer classes per term, (2) those students who were ranked by instructors in the lowest quarter in class participation and those ranked in the upper quarter in class participation, (3) those students ranked by the instructors in the lowest quarter in class responsi- bility and those ranked in the upper quarter in class responsibility. The female students in the Remedial Group (3G) showed a significant difference between successful and 77 unsuccessful among those who read chiefly sports, fea— tures, and comics in newspapers and those who read chiefly editorials and news articles. The Intermediate Group (IG) of females in this study showed a significant difference between the suc— cessful and unsuccessful in the following factors: (1) those students who came from class A and B high schools and those who came from class C and D high schools, (2) those who Came from homes with bilingual backgrounds and those who came from monolingual home backgrounds, (3) those students who spent 66 hours or more per week in sleep and at meals and those who spent 65 hours or less in sleep and at meals, (4) those students who were ranked by instructors to be in the lowest quarter in class participation and those ranked in the upper quar- ter in class participation, (5) those students ranked by instructors as falling into the lowest quarter in class responsibility and those ranked in the upper quar- ter. The Upper Group (UG) of female students showed a significant difference between the successful and the unsuccessful among the following factors: (1) those students who had bilingual home backgrounds and those who had monolingual home backgrounds, (2) those stu— dents who ranked 33 or less in the Survey of Study Hab- its and Attitudes and those who ranked 3H or more, 78 (3) those students who missed M or more classes per term and those who were absent 3 or less times per term, (4) those students who were ranked by instructors to be in the lowest quarter in class participation and those ranked in the upper quarter, (5) those who were ranked by instructors to be in the lowest quarter in class re- sponsibility and those ranked in the upper quarter. According to this study, there were some factors that approached the level of significance. The factors and groups that approached significance are as follows: The Remedial Group (3G) of male students indicates the possibility of a significant difference between those students who read fiction magazines and those who read non-fiction magazines. The Intermediate Group (IG) of male students may possibly show significance between those who had 3.5 years or more of high school English and those who had 3 years or less of high school English; those who spent 51 hours or more per week in non-scheduled activities and those who Spent 50 hours or less per week in non- scheduled activities. The Upper Group (UG) of male students indicates the possibility of a difference between those who spent 51 hours or more per week in non-scheduled activities and those who spent 50 hours or less per week in non- scheduled activities. 79 The Remedial Group (HG) of female students may possibly show a difference between those who spent 10 hours or more per week in scheduled activities and those who spent 9 hours or less per week in scheduled activi— ties; those who spent 51 hours or more per week in non- scheduled activities and those who spent 50 hours or less per week in non-scheduled activities; those placed by instructors in the lowest quarter in class partici- pation and those ranked in the upper quarter. The Intermediate Group (IG) of female students in- dicates a possible difference between those students who spent 9 hours or less per week in scheduled activi— ties and those who spent 10 hours or more per week; those who ranked 33 or less on the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes and those who ranked 34 or higher. CHAPTER V INTERPRETATION AND DISCUSSION OF THE DATA The purpose of this chapter is to interpret and discuss the factors as they relate to the hypotheses discussed in Chapter I. The findings as reported in Chapter IV will form the basis for the presentation. Size of High School While the data obtained on the success and fail- ure of students in Communication Skills among the men showed no significant difference between those coming from large and small high schools, the Intermediate Group of women showed a significant difference at the 0.025 level. Those from the larger schools had the poorer record. This might be due to the fact that the women who came from smaller schools were more inclined to ask for help since they may have been in the habit of seeking help from teachers whom they came to know well while in small high schools. This finding is at variance with the findings of Bledsoe,1 who stated that students from the larger schools did better than those from rural or small schools. However, his investigation l Bledsoe, loc. cit. 80 81 did not cover one specific area nor make a difference between the sexes. Years of High School English There has been a great deal of discussion concern- ing high school English preparation, largely to the effect that as much English as possible should be taken by students who plan to attend college. This study in- dicates that there seems to be no significant relation- ship between those who succeed or fail in freshman Com- munication Skills and the amount of high school English taken. In fact, the one group (Intermediate Group of men) who came near significance showed the poorest record among those having the most high school English. Of course this study does not probe into the quality of high school instruction, but it tends to question the value of simply requiring more than three years of English. Language Background of the Student The home background of the men, whether monolin- gual or bilingual, seems to show no relationship be- tween success or failure in freshman Communication Skills classes. However, in the case of the women there appears to be a difference between the successful and unsuccess- ful in freshman Communication Skills in regard to their language background. While the Remedial Group showed 82 no difference, only a small number had a bilingual back- ground. The remainder of the women showed a poorer record among those who had bilingual backgrounds than among those with monolingual backgrounds. The find- ings imply a difference between the men and women in this regard. One might suppose that there is the possi- bility that the women may be more sensitive about their bilingual backgrounds since frequently they are more closely linked to the home environment than are the men. Referring to the original data, one finds that the women students who failed in no case attempted to learn the second language. This may suggest a dislike or re- sentment to a foreign home background and language. On the other hand, the successful in approximately one third of the cases learned to speak the second language and sometimes to read the second language. The apparent hostility of those who failed may have carried over to Communication Skills. This data in some ways tends to support the find- 2 in which she discovered that those with ings of Carrow monolingual backgrounds had better reading comprehension than did those with bilingual backgrounds. However, her study did not probe into the differences between the SBXGS. 2 Carrow, loc. cit. 83 Occupation of the Fathers If the occupation of the father indicates the socio- economic level, in the present study this does not seem to be a factor bearing on the success or failure of stu- dents in freshman Communication Skills. Likewise, if the different backgrounds have any tendency to motivate success of either men or women, it was not found in this investigation. Employment of the Mother Hany times criticism has been leveled at mothers who work outside the home. This study would appear to indicate that this age group of students does not seem to differ in success or failure regardless of the em- ployment of the mothers. Perhaps the fact that both men and women students are away from home, in most cases, may lessen the influence, if any, of this factor. Reading Habits The data from Chapter IV does not indicate that the reading of newspapers has any relationship to the student's success or failure in freshman Communication Skills. However, one group (Remedial Group of women) indicates that the type of material read may point out some relationship with success or failure. This group had a higher percentage of failures among those whose reading interest was mainly in comics, sports, and 84 features, (possibly styles, clothes, etc.) while suc- cesses were greater among those who read chiefly news and editorials. This difference was not obtained in any other group in relation to newspaper reading habits. The type of magazines read did not seem to be sig- nificant in relation to success or failure in freshman Communication Skills. However, it is of interest to note that one group--this time the Remedial Group of men--came close to being significant. In this group those who read purely entertaining magazines had more failures than did those who read news and technical periodicals. The data on kinds of books read (excluding text books) seems not to be related to the success or fail- ure of students in freshman Communication Skills. The original data indicates that book reading is not as popular as the reading of magazines. The only relationship of reading habits to success or failure appears to be in the Remedial Groups. Fail- ures in these groups seem to be more prevalent among those inclined to read for entertainment rather than for information. Students' Academic Interests This study seems to indicate interest in either academic or vocational subjects has no bearing on the 85 success or failure in Communication Skills. Likewise a dislike of academic or non-academic subjects appears to have no relationship to those who are successful or unsuccessful in Communication Skills. However, a fur- ther study of original data shows that those who spe— cifically indicated a dislike of English as compared to those who disliked some other academic subjects shows no significant difference, in any group, in re- gard to their success or failure in Communication Skills. This is somewhat different from the findings of Chahbazi,3 who stated that lack of interest in a subject contributed to neglect of that subject. His area of investigation was limited to students of agriculture and might have been different if a more catholic group were studied. Need for College Education It might be supposed that those who feel that a college education is needed would do better than those who feel it is not essential. However, this study does not indicate that this was true among the groups studied, at least in reference to their success in the required course of Communication Skills. Distribution of Time The data from Chapter IV indicates that only one 3 Chahbazi, loc. cit. 86 group (Intermediate Group of men) shows any signifi- cant difference between those successful and unsuccess- ful in Communication Skills in respect to time Spent in classes. The Intermediate Group of men who had a heavier class load had less failures than did those who carried lighter loads. This is in accord with the findings of Carewu who discovered that an increase in hours in class tended to cause those students with the larger load to have a higher grade average. Possibly this indicates that students who carry a heavier load need to organize their work. Since this Intermediate Group was composed of people weak in English, as determined by the Cooper- ative English Test, it is assumed that they probably needed to organize their work in order to succeed. While it might be expected that those who spent more time in study would have a greater degree of suc- cess than those who spent less time in study, the cur- rent investigation does not justify this expectation. This may possibly suggest that the amount of time spent in study is not as important as the method of study em- ployed. In time spent in sleep and at meals, the two groups who showed significant differences between success and failure in Communication Skills were the Remedial Group 4 Carew, loc. cit. 87 of men and the Intermediate Group of women. The unsuc- cessful in both of these groups spent more time sleep- ing and eating than did the successful at these levels. Judging from their records on the Cooperative English Test, these groups were weak in English. Possibly these students spent more time sleeping and conversing at meals than did most as an escape mechanism, a method to avoid getting at their work. These findings seem to be somewhat at variance with those of Carew,5 who found no relationship between grade points and hours spent in sleeping. However, his study was not statistically tested; in addition, the students were not divided into groups or by sex. The amount of time Spent in gainful employment showed no significant difference between the success- ful and unsuccessful students in any group. This agrees 6 with the findings of Carew as he discovered no rela- tionship between success or failure and work; in fact, he found a slight tendency for the grade point to rise as the hours of employment increased. Perhaps the findings of Dickenson7 may also parallel this study. "e found that those who stay in 0011959 reduce their 5 Ibid. 6 Ibid. 7 Dickenson, loc. cit. 88 load academically as they mature. The original data show that only 27 women among all those studied were gainfully employed; therefore there probably cannot be any satisfactory comparison between the successful and unsuccessful women in this regard. While a significance at the 0.10 level was not re- vealed in the relationship of time spent in scheduled activities and success or failure in Communication Skills, there seemed to be a trend toward significance among the women. Both the Remedial Group and the Inter- mediate Group approached significance and showed a ten— dency for those who devoted more time to scheduled activ- ities to do poorer work in Communication Skills than did those who spent less time in this way. The men did not show this tendency; possibly because there are compara— tively few women in this college, more pressure is put upon them to join and to participate in scheduled activ- ities. There seemed to be a tendency on the part of the men toward failure in Communication Skills if they spent more than 50 hours per week in unscheduled activities; this appeared in the Intermediate Group and Upper Group of the men. Likewise there was a tendency on the part of the Remedial Group of women to fail if they spent more than 50 hours per week in unscheduled activities. Since the tendency was more pronounced among the men, 89 this may indicate that men are more prone to overindulge in events which they plan outside the regular schedule of school activities. Class Absences Since many instructors and students alike seem to think that class attendance should not be required, it is interesting to note that this study shows that in almost every group there were more failures among those who were absent 4 or more times per term than among those who were absent 3 or fewer times per term. An investigation of the original data of the only two groups that did not show significance——Remedial Group of women and Intermediate Group of women—-revea1ed that there were only two cases where there were as many as six absences, while the other groups recorded students with a much higher absence rate. This might indicate that compulsory class attendance may be justified in a school where an "open-door" policy is in effect. The Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes The Survey 0 Study Habits and Attitudes did not appear to be able to discriminate between the success- ful and unsuccessful male students. However, the Sur- vey seemed to be able to discriminate among the women. While the results for the Remedial Group of women were not comparable statistically, all of the failures ranked 90 low on the survey. The Intermediate Group of women tended toward more failures for those who scored low on the Survey. Since the Survey is not supposed to be a better predictor for women than for men, perhaps the women were more conscientious in answering questions on the Survey than were the men. Class Attitudes One attitude which seemed to be able to discrim— inate between the successful and unsuccessful was class participation. This was significant in all groups but one (Remedial Group of women) where it was near signif- icance. Those persons who were ranked by their instruc- tors in the lowest quarter in participation were the least successful while those who were ranked in the up- per quarter were the most successful. Class responsibility as defined in Chapter III was also a discriminator between the successful and unsuc- cessful in Communication Skills. Here, again, the only exception was the Remedial Group of women. In all groups of men and in the Intermediate Group and Upper Group of women, those ranked by the instructors in the lowest quarter had the least success while those ranked in the upper quarter were the most successful. These last two factors are based on value judg- ments on the part of teachers, but they reach a hig 91 level of confidence (0.01) as factors in discrimin— ation between successful and unsuccessful students. CHAPTER VI S UI'II'TABY AND C OIICLUS I 01 ES Summary This study was designed to examine selected factors and their influence on the success or failure in fresh- man Communication Skills. The subjects studied were selected from the 1959 freshman class in Communication Skills at Ferris Institute, Big Rapids, Hichigan. In- cluded in the study were 696 freshmen enrolled in three levels of classes. Of this number 460 were men and 236 were women. The three levels into which they were di- vided were: Remedial Group, consisting of 136 men and 28 women; Intermediate Group, consisting of 183 men and 77 women; and Upper Group, consisting of 141 men and 131 women. During the second week of the fall quarter, the following information was obtained from each subject included in the study: size of high school from which he graduated, years of high school English taken, lan- guage background in the home, occupation of the father, employment of the mother, newspaper reading habits, magazine reading habits, book reading habits, interest in school subjects, attitude toward the value of a 92 93 college education. At this time the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes was also administered. During the tenth week of the term the following information was obtained from each subject: time spent in classes and laboratories, time spent in study, time spent in sleep and at meals, time spent in gainful em- ployment, time spent in scheduled activities, and time spent in non-scheduled activities. At the end of the term the following information was obtained concerning each student: his grade; his class attendance record; his rank in the lowest quarter, middle half, or upper quarter in class participation and in class reSponsibility as judged by his instructor. The groups were divided into those who succeeded (grade of C or better) and those who were unsuccessful (grade of D or lower) and by sexes. The data on the several factors were set up in a dichotomous system from which a chi square analysis was made. Forty-four analyses were obtained, one for each sex group on each of the twenty factors and two sub-factors. Findings 1. Although there appear to be some significant differences in the backgrounds of the students in re— lation to their success or failure in freshman Commun— ication Skills classes, such as the bilingual background 94 of women, the instances where significant differences appear are so scattered that they may be due only to chance rather than to any real differences. 2. The reading habits of students showed no sig- nificant difference between the successful and unsuc- cessful students in freshman Communication Skills classes. 3. In time utilization, those factors showing significant differences between the successful and un- successful students in Communication Skills, such as the time spent in sleep and at meals, were again scat- tered and may be due entirely to chance. 4. Class attendance appeared to be a significant factor in discriminating between the successful and un- successful in most groups of freshman Communication Skills classes. Those who absented themselves from classes more than three times per term showed a poorer record than did those who were absent no more than three times a quarter. 5. A factor that showed strong significance in all groups was the class participation of the students. Those whom instructors ranked in the lowest quarter in class participation did the poorest, while those in the upper quarter did the best. This ranged from the 0.05 level to the 0.01 level of confidence. 6. Another factor which had a strong significance 95 in the success or failure of students in freshman Com- munication Skills in all groups was the class responsi- bility of the students as judged by the instructor. Again those in the lowest quarter did the poorest, while those in the upper quarter in class responsibility did the best. Conclusions This investigation was designed to examine whether or not certain selected factors of a non-academic nature had any influence in determining the successful and un- successful students in freshman Communication Skills classes. The results of this investigation must be ver- ified or refuted by additional studies of these and other factors before valid conclusions can be drawn about the influence which non-academic factors have on performance of students in freshman Communication Skills classes. Among the group involved in this study there was no conclusive evidence that the background of the stu- dent made any significant difference between the suc- cessful and unsuccessful in freshman Communication Skills classes. This investigation shows that class attendance was a significant factor in discriminating between the suc— cessful and unsuccessful in most groups. Those who were 96 absent from class an excessive number of times did poorer work than did those who attended class regular- ly. The study also shows that in all groups those who were ranked low in class participation did poorer work than did those who were ranked high in participation. The investigation shows that in all groups those who were ranked low in class responsibility did poorer work than did those who were ranked high in class re- sponsibility. Implications for Further Research The factors investigated here might well be under— taken in a college which has a selective entrance pol— icy to determine if these factors discriminate or fail to discriminate between the successful and unsuccess— ful groups in Communication Skills classes or other freshman English courses. Perhaps these non—academic factors might be inves- tigated by using the case-study method in which inter- views could be held and the results recorded and analyzed for more study in depth. B IBLI OGRAPHY A. BOOKS B. PBXIODICALS C . PAT-IPHLE‘T‘S BIBLIOGRAPHY A. BOOKS Campbell, William Giles. Form and Style ip Thesis Writing New York: Houghton Hifflin Company, Garrett, Henry E. Statistics i2 Psychology and Edu- cation. Third edition. New York: Longmans, Green and Company, 1947. pp. 232-253. Good, Carter V., A. S. Barr, and Douglas E. Scates. The Methodology pf Educational Research. New York: D. Appleton-Century Crofts, 1931. 890 pp. Hoel, Paul G. Elementary Statistics. New York: John Wiley and Son, Inc., 1960. pp. 157-181. ' McGrath, Earl J., (ed.). Communication in General Education. Dubuque, Iowa: William C. Brown Company, 1949. 244 pp. Honroe, Walter 8., (ed.). Encyclopedia 9: Educational Research. Revised edition. New York: H. H. Wilson Company, 1950. 1520 pp. Robinson, Sarita, Bertha Joel, and Zoda Limerich, (ed.). Readers Guide p9 Periodical Literature. 22 vols. New York: H. w. Wilson Company, January, 1900- February, 1961. . ‘Readers Guide to Periodical Literature. 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"A Comparison of Activities, Social Acceptance, and Scholastic Achievement of Men Students," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 36: 121-24; October, 1957. Carlsen, G. Robert. "English for the Ungifted," English Journal, 50:329-33; Ray, 19h1. Carr, 1. N. "Why Such Lack of Good written English Among College Students?" Association 23 American Colleges Bulletin, 38:“08-11; October, 1952. Carrow, Sister Mary Arthur. "Linguistic Functioning of Bilingual and Monolingual Children," Journal 9; Speech and Hearing Disorders, 22:371-80; Septem- ber. 1957. Chahbazi, Parviz. "Analysis of Cornell Orientation Inventory Items on Study Habits and Their Relative Value in Prediction of College Achievement,“ Jour- ngl 9: Experimental Education, 27:135-42; Decem- ber, 1958. 'Cook, Luella B. "Search for Standards," English Jour- nal, H9:321-28; Hay, 1960. Dabbs, Lowell. "Report on Remedial English in Colleges," Junior College Journal, 27:381-87; Karch, 1957. Dickenson, Carl and Betty Newbegin. 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Groff, Patrick J. "Children's Attitude Toward Reading and Their Critical Reading Abilities in Four Con- tent-Type Materials," Journal of Educational fie- search, 55:313-17; April, 1962. Guiller, Walter S. and Emmett A. Betts. "A Critical Summary of Selective HesearcE," Elementary Englisfi Review, 11:75—80 Harch, 193 ; 111-18, April, 193 ; 139-56, Hay, 1934; 164-69, August, 1934. Halfter, Irma T. and Frances M. Douglas, "Measurement of College Level Heading Competence in Content Area," Journal of Educational Research, 53:223-30, Feb- ruary, 1960. Harris, Daniel. "Factors Affecting College Grades: Re- view of Literature 1930-1937," Psychological Bul- letin, 37:125-66; Harch, 1940. Hartley, Helene H. "English in a Community of Conflict- ing Interests," English Journal, 49:149-54; March, 19 O. Holden, Raymond H. and Henry L. Isaksen. "Fathers' Occupations and Intelligence Level of a Homogen- eous Occupational Group," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 38:125-27; October, 1959. Holland, John L. "The Prediction of College Grades from the California Psychological Inventory and the Scholastic Aptitude Test," Journal of Educ;- tional Psychology, 50:135-42; August, 1949. Jensen, Vern H. and Honroe H. Clark. "Prediction Study of Cooperative English Test Scores," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 36:635-36; Hay, 1958. Kalish, Richard and Otomar Bartos. "Survey of Student Attitudes Toward Campus Activities at the Univer- sity of Hawaii," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 39:292-99; December, 1960. 102 Kittell, Jack E. "Relationship of Language Scores to Residence Classification of College Freshmen," Journal of Educational Research, 52:190-93; January, 1959. Nrathwohl, Hilliam C. "Relative Contributions of V0- cabulary and an Index of Industriousness for English to Achievement in English," Journal 2: Educational Ps cholo , 42:97-104; February, 1951. Hurtz, John J. and Esther J. Swanson. "FaCtorS Related to Over-Achievement and Under-Achievement in School,"_§phool Review, 59:472-80; November, 1951. Locke, Norman M. "The Student Skills Inventory: a Study Habits Test," Journal of Applied Psychology, 24:493-504; August, 1940. McCarthy, Dorothea A. "Factors that Influence Language Growth: Home Influence," Elementary English, 29: 421-28; November, 1952. Naize, Ray Charles. "Two Hethods of Teaching English Composition to Retarded College Freshmen," Journal of Educational Psychology, 45:22-28; January, 1954. Kallery, David. "A Human Relations Approach to Writing," English Journal, 39:429~35; October, 1950. Marshall, N. V. and E. H. Simpson. "Vocational Choice and College Grades," Journal of Educationa 3e- search, 37:303-05; December, 1943. Nehus, O. Nyking. "Academic Achievement of College Students in Different Kinds of Extra-Curricular Activities," Journal of Educational Sociology, 8:50—56; Kay, 1935. . "Extra-Curricular Activities and Academic Achievement," Journal 93 Educational Sociology, 6:143-49; November, 1932. Herrill, Heed H. and Daniel T. Murphy, "Personality Factors and Academic Achievement in College," Journal of Counseling Psychology, 6:207-10; Fall, 1959. National Council of Teachers of English. Commission on High School-College Articulation. "But What Are We Articulating With?" English Journal, 51:167- 79; March, 1962. 103 . Commission on the Curriculum. "A Check List for Evaluating the English Program, " English Journal, 51: 273- 82, April, 1962. . Commission on the Curriculum. "what the Colleges Expect; a Report," English Journal, 50: 402-12; September, 1961. Neville, Hark A. "English as a Condition of Life, " Teachers College Journal, 32: 102- 10; January, 1961. Oxford (England) Times. "English for Plodders; Preju- dices of the Adolescent," The Oxford Times Educa- tional Supplement, February 8, 1952. Pierson, George A. and Frank B. Jex. "Using the Co- operative General Achievement Tests to Predict Success in Engineering," Educational and Psycho- logical Heasurement, 11:397-402; Autumn, 1951. Robertson, Malcolm H. and liildred H. Harrison. "Read- ing Skill as a Predictor of College Achievement, " Journal of Educational Research, 53: 258-62; larch, 1960. Russell, David H. "Research in English--Dynamic or Deluding?" College English, 23:502-04; March, 1962. Santee, A. H. "Results of Classification of Pupils Based on Ability as Shown by Intelligence Tests, Tests of Achievement and Teachers' Harks, " The Proolem of the Elementary School Principal in the Light of the Testing Hovement, Hashing ton, D. 0.: Second“ Yearbook of the Department of Elementary School Principals of the National Education Assoc- iation of the United States. 1923, pp. 276-83. Schlesser, George H. and C. W. Young. "Study and Work Habits," School Review, 53:85-89; February, 1945. Scott, Carrie Hae. "Background and Personal Data as Factors in Prediction of Scholastic Success in College," Journal of Applied Psychology, 22:42— 49; February, 1938:— Seibert, Joseph C. and Neale C. Bogner. "Study of the Socio-E conomic Backgrounds of Parents of Ii’iami Uni- versity (Ohio) Students, " Journal of Educational Research, 54: 259- 64; Harch, 1961. 104 Shaffer, Robert H. "English Deficiency and Social Ad- justment," Journal of Higher Education, 20:373-76; October, 19 9. Shaw, Herville C. and Donald J. Brown, "Scholastic Under- achievement of Bright College Students," Personnel and Guidance Journal, 36:195-99; November, 1957. Slater, J. I. "Influences on Students' Perception and Persistence in the Undergraduate College," Journal ‘9: Educational Research, 54:3-8; September, 1960. Smith, Dora V. "Recent Procedures in the Evaluation of Programs in English," Journal of Educational Re- search, 38:262-75; December, 1944. Stagner, Ross. "The Relation of Personality to Academic Aptitude and Achievement," Journal of Educational Research, 26:648-60; Hay, 1933. Traxler, Arthur E. "Some Comments on 'The Prediction of Differential Achievement in a Technological College,'" Journal of Applied Psychology, 27:176- 79; April. 1943. United States Office of Education. "Project English," Counciletter. College English, 23:313-15; Jan— uary, 1962. Hagner, Hazie Earle and Eunice Strabel. "Homogeneous Grouping as a Means of Improving the Prediction of Academic Performance." Journal of Applied Psycholop , 19:426-46; August, 1935. (See also School and Society, 40:887-88; December 29, 1934.) Hallace, Donald Gordon. "Comparative Analysis of Achievement in Three and Five-Hour Sections of Freshman English," Journal of Educational Research, 49:505-13; Harch, 1956. Hallace, Nimburn L. "Differential Predictive Value of the ACE Psychological EXamination," School and Society, 70:23-25; July 9, 1949. "The Prediction of Grades in Specific College Courses," Journal o£_Educationa1 Research, 44:587- 97; April, 1951. 105A Hrenn, C. Gilbert and Wilbur J. Humber. "Study Habits Associated with High and Low—Scholarship," Journal 9: Educational Psychology, 32:611-16; Hovember, 1941. C . PAI-iPHLEI'S Afflerbach, Janet et a1. Cooperative English Test, Form a. Princeton, New Jersey: Educational Test- ing Service, 1953. 32 pp. ' Brown-Holtzman. Survev of Study Hagips and Attitudes. Jew York: The Psychological Corporation, 1953. 4 pp . A. APPENDIX QUESTIOKHAIRE A Environmental Data QUESTIONNAIRE B Behavioral Data TEACHERS' EVALUATION DIRECTIOHS F03 ADKINISTRATICN OF QUESTI OI‘IETAI RES APPEi-IDIX A QUESTICIEI-IAIPLE A Name _________________ Class Code No._ _ From what high school did you graduate? _________ ______________ City_____________ When did you graduate? Konth._l_l_ _Xear _._. How many years of English did you take in high school?_ _ ‘_ Does your father speak another language besides English? _ _If so, name the major language Spoken. _______ Does you mother speak another language besides English? ._._ If so, name the major language spoken. _______ Do you speak another language besides English? _____ If so, what language? _______ Can you read another language besides English?_ _ _If so, what language?__ ‘_ What is the present occupation of your father? _____ ____________ If your mother is employed out- side her home, what does she do? ____________ Since July 1, have you read a newspaper (l) frequently? _ _ (2) fairly regularly?_ ._ (3) occasionally?_ (4) practically never?_ _._ In the following list of articles that appear in newspapers, check the two types you like best: sports__J comicsm ; front page stories , editorials__J features__J others (specify) Since July 1, what magazines have you read? _______ _“—_——_——_———"4-————-———————— 108 APPENDIX.A Continued) In addition to your text-books, have you read any books during the last year?_._ If so, give the titles as ac- curately as possible. __________________ When you were in high school, which subject did you like best? ____________ Which did you like least? ______________ Is a college education related to success in what you want to do? Check one: It is (l) essential___J (2) highly desirable___d (3) it helps , (4) I don't know . APPEKDIX B QUESTIOHIAIKE B Name age___Sex_ _Class Code_ _ Class (circle one): C.S. 100 C.S. 1013 C.S. 101 At the present time how many hours per week do you spend in each of the following: (Be sure to include Saturdays and Sundays) Classes and laboratories hrs. Study (include library study) hrs. Sleep hrs. heals hrs. Work at a part-time job: Honday through Fri- day hrs., Saturday and Sunday___. ' Estimate as accurately as possible the number of hours per 7-day week you spend on any of the following ac- tivities. Put an X in the appropriate column. E TIME 'N HOURS P33 7-DAY WEEK SCHEDULED ACTIVITIE 10-3v4-6;7-9210-12'13-15;16-18219 or i ; ‘L L_ 5 - L more Athletics . i I i ' Varsity Athletics_______fig’_y _____ ;_,_.___._._._._. Intramural Sports______!___________.____.__ Kusic ' 4 Band ' 4 J ________ ._.__P_.T__P_—__p_—-———.1—— Glee Club or Chorus_____§_________________._ Other (specify)____4__1_________.____..__. Speech ! Ferris Playhouse__r__1__4__q______4___.r.__ 1.1.. ! 1' DLQCeL/e _______ h—‘b_q_—q~——4—_.———qb—— Other (specify)___!_________________.________ Departmental Clubs Ifazne of Club __________ .__.4|L._._—-_—__«r.——f—-——-J~—— I —————————— F—qp—fiF—-P——dn——IL———qn—— __________ ___.__.__...__-._.__i ._._-_.__ Church Group * (Name of Group) ! __________ ...___.___J___.___J.__-. 109 110 APPENDIX B (Continued) TIRE IN HOURS SCHEDULED ACTIVITILS 0-3 4—6 7—9 10-12 13-15 lé—ld 19 or more Ferris Torch _____ _ _,_,H _,_ _ ___,_,,,_ _,_ _ _._ Other ________ JL_JL_.___L__._JL__.L__L__ Estimate as accurately as possible the number of hours per 7-day week you spend on informal activities, both those that take place during the day and in the evening. Put an X in the correct column. { TIRE IN HOUR ACTIVITY 0—314—617—9q10-12‘13-15r16—18 19 or L V more Recreational Games I - Cards, ping-pong__ 4 _gm__ H _.P _ _ “,_._.m._ _4_._.a Spectator Sports Football, etc.____q______r,_4,__-.-,__._..H__._;____. Coffee in Union, "Bull Sessions"____,___1~__.,___4____a____i.__._..__ Dating _______ ~>~—~~—-~—~~-——-r-—-‘r-—‘~‘—— Parties ______ ‘-_p___w _ ___y______H___.it_ -1i._._ Movies ________ h—~_—i-«~———--~——4——-—(~—— Zaratching TV____'____+__U__q__+,__‘_____i-_.__,_.__. Travel (include r to dc from home)____q_______y__m____~__d___1___ Church Activities_ _ ____“__,W__y.____m _ _.W ______ Housekeeping Duties, Laundry,Pressing_._,w__.‘L_‘w _.+-—.—-».—--4—-—-«—-—- Personal Care(dress~ ing, bathing, shampooing, etc.__w___+___ d_._4_____4____ __ y____ Other (specify) ___________ ...._.-._.--_._.-._._...-«..--_...l APPENDIX C TEACHERS' EVALUATICN Attached are lists of students in your classes. Please list the number of absences for each student and rate each one on class participation and on re- sponsibility. In the column headed "Class Participation" please place a 3 after the name of the student if he ranks in the upper fourth of this class in participation; place 1 after his name if he is in the lowest fourth of his class in participation. List all others as 2. The term "responsibility" includes punctuality, both in attendance and in handing in work, neatness of work, concern about progress in the course, cooper- ation, and class attitude. In this column please place a 3 after the name of the student if he ranks in the upper fourth of this class in responsibility; place 1 after his name if he is in the lowest fourth of his class in this regard. List all others as 2. 111 APPEKDIX D DIRECTIONS To Communication Skills Teachers: In an institutional survey such as this, questions will arise. To make the responses as valid as possible, we have tried to anticipate questions and submit the following answers: "Father" refers to the step-father, guardian, or other male who is the head of the household where the student makes his home. If he is living with his mother only, he should state "deceased" or "divorced" after questions regarding his father. "Eother" refers to step-mother, etc. Employment: If a parent is temporarily unemployed, the student should state the usual type of work. Part— time employment should be included. magazines: If titles cannot be recalled, the student should state the type of periodical--sports, romance, etc. Please read the following to the class before papers are distributed. TO STUDENTS: We are conducting a survey to give us more infor— mation about Ferris Institute students. we hope that 112 113 APPENDIX D (Continued) you will assist us by giving honest answers. This in no way affects your mark in Communication Skills. Your instructor will not see the completed questionnaires; neither will your dean. One of your class members will collect the papers and take them to the Registrar's office as soon as you have completed them. He hope that you will cooperate by giving Just as honest and accurate information as you can. ”an, we: may » p. x, . $- ‘4 “a V‘ r . p. _ 9:. it 4e" t «'15. ‘o ' ' J I..." ‘0‘ -__‘_ 'Aigfi 1?“ ah.“ 2:: ”i ”'TITI'ITJLTIIMEJMIfliflililyifllllflflilfljffllmfl'ES