Nu “VIII--, OF LOW ACHXEVl FRESHMEN the Degree of Ph. D. Thesis for “‘1' M\CH‘GAN STATE DRIVERS Wifiiam G‘ Schaar, Jr. 1966 h—--_—_ mumunumumuu“mumuum\\\\8m\\mw [3 L ,3 p 4 D V i 3 1293 103967 Michigan or.) cc: University This is to certify that the . _ I thesis entitled CHANGES IN ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND SELF-CONCEPT OF LOW ACHIEVING COMMUNITY COLLEGE FRESHMEN presented by WILLIAM G. SCHAAR, JR. has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for Ph.D. degree in Education 443/ My v\v aor professor Date July 27, 1966 0-169 \L'. \4l6 KOO 524' W FEB 2‘6 2015‘ JUL 2 92003 Lg'gi.) z 3' my; ABSTRACT CHANGES IN ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND SELF-CONCEPT OP LOW ACHIEVING COMMUNITY COLLEGE ERESHMEN . by William G. Schaar, Jr. The purpose of this study has been to assess the changes in self-concept and the amount of academic success in the pre— university English course by 'unsuccessful' community college freshmen. Matriculation in the pre-university English course has been accompanied by one of five types of supportive rela- tionships. These relationships have been: A. B. C. No contact with student personnel worker. The receiving of fifteen weekly supportive letters fromthe student personnel office. Participation in fifteen weekly ten-minute supportive interviews with a student personnel worker. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute group supportive counseling sessions. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute individual supportive counseling sessions. There were two independent major hypotheses evaluated: Ho:l There will be no differences in the academic achieve- ment in the pre-university English class among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E. Ho:2 There will be no differences in the amount of change in self-concept among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by five scales of the California Psychological Inventory (CPI). William G. Schaar, Jr. The second general hypothesis was broken down into ten sub- hypotheses testing the differences in self-concept scores among the five groups on each of the five scales of the CPI (Dominance, Sociability, Social Presence, Self-Acceptance, and Sense of Well- being) for both pre- and post-tests. Five groups of ten, low-achieving, male, community college freshmen were matched in terms of scores on an English placement test, high school background in English, and a writing sample. They were also screened on five scales on the California Psycho- logical Inventory. The students were placed in the pre-university English course and participated in one of the five relationships above. The end of course grades in the pre-university English course were used to calculate the non-parametric H statistic developed by Kruskal and Wallis to evaluate hypothesis Ho:l. An analysis of variance of the pre- and post-test scores on the five scales of the California Psychological Inventory was employed to evaluate the ten sub-hypotheses and thus Ho:2. At the end of one semester there were significant differences in the academic achievement among the five study groups in the pre-university English class. These differences were in the following order: Group A, the control group, had least success; Group C, the short interview student; and Group D, the group- counseled students, were next in order. Group B, the recipients William G. Schaar, Jr. of supportive letters in the home, had the second greatest academic success. Group E, the students that received the 40-minute, weekly, individual supportive counseling sessions, had the greatest academic achievement. The trend was generally that academic achievement was associated with the amount of supportive counselor involvement. The one interruption was the relative success associated with letters sent to the home. The results of the analysis of variances failed to show significant differences in the self-concept scores among the five sample groups on the five scales of the CPI for both the pre- and the post-tastings. Thus, the ten null sub-hypotheses were accepted and in turn the major null hypothesis, Ho:2, was accepted. There were no significant differences in the amount of change in self-concept as measured by the CPI among Groups A, B, C, D and E. The level of significance on which the hypotheses were accepted or rejected was P = .05. A brief summary of the results of this study: 1. Differences were found in the academic achievements in the pre-university English class among the sample groups participating in different kinds of supportive counseling experiences. 2. There were no differences found in the amount of change in self-concept among the sample groups as measured by the California Psychological Inventory. Giving consideration to the limitations imposed by the nature of this study, the five following conclusions were ii [{[l'lf‘tl‘ll‘ll'l’l {Illal‘llll'liln‘ William G. Schaar, Jr. reached: 1. 2. 3. 4. S. Supportive counseling can be effective in improving the amount of academic success of community college freshmen with poor academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts. Any planned positive supportive relationship with the college student personnel office is associated with greater academic achievement than no planned supportive contact with students having poor academic background and poor self-concepts. Changes in academic achievement are more readily effected than measurable changes in self-concept by supportive counseling of community college freshmen with poor academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts. When the known supportive counseling variables are considered, the short individual supportive interviews and the group supportive counseling sessions have less academic achieve- ment association than the longer individual supportive counseling sessions. In terms of counseling personnel time-energy involvement, supportive letters sent to the home of the student with poor academic background and poor self-concept, offers a fruitful source of counseling staff time-energy economy. The community—junior college can provide realistic educa- tional programs that will prevent the "Open Door" policy of admissions from becoming a seductive portal to a disappointing educational experience for students with limited academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts. Students with poor academic background and poor self-concepts can have successful educational experiences in the community-junior college through proper identification, proper placement and supportive counseling experiences. CHANGES IN ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND SELF-CONCEPT OP LOW ACHIEVING COMMUNITY COLLEGE FRESHMEN By William GE Sohaar, Jr. A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Counseling, Personnel Services and Educational Psychology 1966 Vita Page William G. Schaar, Jr. Candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Thesis: Changes In Academic Success and Self-Concept of Low Achieving Community College Students Major Subject: Student Personnel Services Minor Subject: Psychology Educational Psychology Biographical Items Born - August 8, 1932, lensing, Michigan B. A. - Michigan State University, 1957 M. A. - Michigan State University, 1958 Experience 1. United States Air Force - 1950-1954 2. Teacher - DeWitt High School, Mich. - 1958-1959 3. Counselor - Bloomfield Hills H. S., Mich. - 1959-1961 4. Counselor - Muskegon Community College, Mich. - 1961-1963 5. Dean of Student Personnel, Muskegon County Community College, Michigan - 1963-1966 Professional Membership 1. American Personnel and Guidance Association 2.’ Michigan College Personnel Association 3. Michigan Counselors Association 4. Muskegon Area Counselors' Association ii Acknowledgments I would like to acknowledge the encouragement and pro- ' fessional direction given to me by my guidance committee: Dr. Gregory A. Miller, Dr. Elizabeth Drews, Dr. James W. Costar, and Dr. Charles P. Wrigley. Particular acknowledgment is given to Dr. Gregory A. Miller, who has served as the chair- man of this committee and my major advisor for this research. It has been through his insights into the problems of such a project that has assisted its conclusion. The efforts and c00peration of the faculty members of the English Department and the assistance of Mrs. Charles Rein, of the Student Personnel Services Office of Muskegon ‘County Community College, have been indispensible in this research effort. The interest and enthusiasm of Dr. Ralph A. Austermiller, President of Muskegon County Community College, has been a major contribution toward the meaningfulness of this study to the community-junior college movement. For continual assistance in working out the technical details of procedure and statistical analysis, I would like to acknowledge Dr. Willard G. Warrington, of the Department of Evaluation Services, Michigan State university. To Mr. Kenneth Sproll, Dean of Student Personnel, Lansing Community College, Mr. Robert DeYoung, Director of Admissions, Grand Valley State College, and Mr. Walter Gregory, counselor, Grand Valley State College, I would give thanks for reviewing the electronic tapes of the counseling interviews, which were an important part of this study. For the many hours of typing, proof—reading, patience and understanding encouragement, I would like to acknowledge my wife, Charlene. Without her efforts this project would still be in pencil.. Finally, I would like to acknowledge my two sons, Mark and Mike, Who have sacrificed many hours of companionship to make this research a reality. iii DEDICATION To my wife, Charlene. The most wonderful woman in the world.... iv ABSTRACT ; VITA PAGE TABLE OF CONTENTS AcmmmmEmNTs O O O O O .- O O O O O O O O O O O. O O O DEDICATION TABLE OF CONTENTS 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIST OF APPENDICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chapter I O INTRODUCT I ON 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O The Problem The Need for the Study Hypotheses to be Evaluated Definition of Terms Organization of Study II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE. . . . . . . . . ... . The Community-JUnior College Challenge The College Drop-Out Non-intellectual Factors Self-Concept: A Theoretical Base Identifying Unsuccessful Students The Group Approach The Generating Pilot Study Summary III. DESIGN OF THE STUDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Hypotheses Sample Selection Instrumentation Pre-University English Class Self-Concept Scales (CPI) Independent Variable Groups The Supportive Interviews Dependent Variables Measured Statistical Treatment Variable Considerations Page ii iii iv vii ix 10 39 IV. V. ANALYSIS OF RESULTS . . . . . . . . . . . . Hypothesis Ho:l Hypothesis Ho:2 Summary SUMMARY, DISCUSSION OF RESULTS, CONCLUSIONS ANDIWLICATIONSO'oooooooooOOO BIBLImRAPHY O O O O O .- O 0 O O O O O O O O O O O APPENDICES ooooooo'o'o‘oooooooooo'o' Vi Page 56 69 90 99 1 ? l ( f l I k f l f l l l f myw-¢v~f »~,r~ ~—— r , Table l. 8. 10. ll. 12. LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Distribution of grades given by pre-university English instructors and ranks assigned for computation of H for the 50 subjects . . . . . Grades and ranks for Groups A, B, C, D and E with ten subjects each and calculated H StatiStiC O O O O O O O O O IO O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of pre-test scores on the Dominance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D andB O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of pre-test scores on the Sociability Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of pre-test scores on the Social Presence Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E . . . . . . . . . . . Analysis of variance of pre-test scores on the Self-Acceptance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E . . . . . . . . . . . Analysis of variance of pre-test scores on the Sense of Well-being Scale for the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E . . . . . . . . . . . Analysis of variance of post-test scores in the Dominance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of post-test scores on the Sociability Scale of the CPI for Groups A,B,C,DandEoooooooooofl'oooo Analysis of variance of post-test scores on the Social Presence Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of post-test scores on the Self-Acceptance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Analysis of variance of post-test scores on the Sense of Well-being Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E . . . . . . . . . . . vii Page 57 59 61 61 62 62 63 64 64 65 65 66 Table 13. 14. Figure l. Page Sums of ranks for Grades in pre-university English for Groups A, B, C, D, and E . . . . . 78 Number and percentage of deficient grades in pre-university English for Groups A, B, C, D’ and EO O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 74 Schematic representation of the independence of the two major hypotheses . . . . . . . . . . 7 viii LIST OF APPENDICES Supportive letters sent to homes of Group B Page 1. The right step congratulations . . . . . . . . . . 100 2. Realistic goals are obtainable . . . . . . . . . . 101 3. All men have been given certain abilities . . . . 102 4. There is no short cut for sincerity and hard work O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 103 5. Time is an important asset . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 6. Planning is profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 7. A little growth is success . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 8. Persistence is more powerful than luck . . . . . . 107 9. Immediate reward versus long term goals . . . . . 108 10. Self-evaluation leads to achievement . . . . . . . 109 ll. Self-confidence is the road to success . . . . . . 110 12. Each man tends to be what he thinks he is . . . . 111 13. We react to situations as we think they are . . . 112 14. Self-discipline is the key to.success. . . . . . . 113 .150 What iS SUCCESS? o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 114 ix Changes in Academic Success and Self-Concept of Low Achieving Community College Freshmen Chapter I Introduction The community-junior college movement has become entangled in its share of the briar bushes. Out from under these briar I bushes stalks a problem presented by a paradox of the feather- less biped. The student who by some evaluation, objective or subjective, has been identified as having sufficient academic potential to do college level work; yet through various types of performances, this same student shows a lack of academic skills in some area that prevents him from succeeding in college level work. For example, Don X is a student who is highly motivated toward engineering and a very strong person in the math and related laboratory sciences. Don X doesn't know a verb from a comma. All evidence points to the fact that Don X will fall flat on his face in the university level English course. What do we do with Don X? Don X represents only one specific example of the many individual different configurations of this general problem. 9 What are the responsibilities of the community-junior colleges in this whole area of remedial or developmental work with students? It is obvious that holding up the banner of the "American Dream" on the standard of the "Open Door Policy" - 1 _ contributes to the growth of this problem. Are we to hide under the cloak of purity and point a finger at our colleagues, who toil in our high schools? This can be a great temptation! But those who have been fellow toilers in our high schools refrain from this. Finger pointing accomplishes nothing in the area of positive productiveness and the pointing finger is apt to end minus that area up to the first knuckle. These are but a few of the questions that stem from the general problem of the student that seems to have potential, yet lacks skills. The Problem The purpose of this study has been to assess the changes in self-concept and the amount of academic success in a pre- university English course by 'unsuccessful' community college freshmen. Matriculation in the pre-university English course has been accompanied by one of five types of supportive rela- tionships. These relationships have been: A. No contact with student personnel worker. B. The receiving of fifteen weekly letters from the student personnel office. C. Participation in fifteen short, weekly interviews with a student personnel worker. D. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute group counseling sessions. E. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute individual counseling sessions. The Need for the Study The community-junior college finds itself on the cutting edge moving toward the problems found in higher education. Such issues as the purposes of higher education, increasing enrollments, adult demands for education, the encouraging of all individuals to gain more schooling and the realistic maintenance of standards have given empetus to the community; junior college movement (Thornton, 1960). In response to the above issues and the needs that have developed around these issues, community-junior colleges have grown in number to augment the efforts of the four-year institu- tions of higher education. Not only has there been augmentation, but there has been complementation in terms of plugging curricu- lum gaps fostered by the wider demands of educational diversifi- cation in the technical and service areas. Thus community-junior colleges have grown in number at a rapid pace; from (8) in 1900 to (594) in 1952 to (719) in 1965 (Harper, 1965). The student enrollment in the community-junior colleges leaped sixteen percent in one year between 1963 and 1964, with every reason to believe that this trend will not come ‘ ... mn- L' _ 4 - to an abrupt stop (Harper, 1965). In many cases community- junior colleges have just grown out of the necessity to accom- modate students and this growth has not always been by considered plan. This study is basically concerned with Student Personnel Services within the community-junior college and the many unsolved but identified problems in this area of Student Personnel Services. The need for research and study in this area has been brought vividly into view by the findings of a two-year study sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation under the chairmanship of T. R. McConnell (Raines, 1966). This study listed the following as critical findings in the area of Student Personnel Services in the community-junior colleges: A. Three-fourths of the junior colleges in the United States have not developed adequate student personnel programs. B. Counseling and guidance services are inadequately provided in more than half of the junior colleges. C. The functions designed to coordinate, evaluate, and upgrade student personnel services are ineffective in nine out of ten institutions. D. There is a lack of professional leadership that would enhance development of personnel prOgrams. E. The vast majority of institutions-lack sufficient numbers of trained staff members. F. Criteria and related sources of emperical data for evaluating student personnel programs are almost nonexistent. G. The nature and purposes of student personnel work have not been effectively interpreted to board members, administrators, faculty, and the community. H. While interest is increasing, graduate training centers have given insufficient attention to the special needs of junior colleges. It would seem that, with the understanding of the above shortcomings of student personnel programs in the community- junior colleges, any research in the area would be a step ahead. This present study has particular relevance to the institu- tion in which it has taken place and to the practical problems facing the student personnel program of that institution. The above criticisms of student personnel prOgrams in community- junior colleges also points to the participating institution in a meaningful way. The typical student-counselor ratio presents a real challenge to do an adequate job for all students in most community-junior colleges. In addition to the lack of trained counselors, there is an ever increasing number of students who have skill deficiencies or special background limitations that call for added counselor time and involvement. Thus, this study has particular implica- tions toward more and efficient use of counselor time and staff involvement. At the same time, it will allow us to gain more insight into an approach for handling a potential problem segment of the student population. _ 6 _ Hypotheses to be Evaluated There were two independent major hypotheses that were evaluated. Both of these major hypotheses have been stated in the form of null hypotheses: The first major hypothesis concerns itself with the differences in academic achievement among five groups: Ho:l There will be no differences in academic achievement in the pre-university English class among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E. (The samples have been drawn randomly from identical p0pulations). The second major hypothesis concerns itself with differences in the amount of change of self-concept among five groups: Ho:2 There will be no differences in the amount of change in the self-concept among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D, and E, as measured by five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. (The samples have been drawn randomly from identical populations). ,The following ten sub-hypotheses have been evaluated in support of Ho:2: Ho:2a There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Dominance scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. Ho:2b There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. Ho:2c There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. Ho:2d Ho:2a Ho:2f Ho:2g Ho:2h Ho:21 Ho:2j There among scale There among being There among scale There among scale There among scale There among scale There among being _ 7 - will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-acceptance of the CPI in the pre-testing. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sense of Well- scale of the CPI in the pre-test’g. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Dominance of the CPI in the post- testing. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability of the CPI in the post-testigg. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence of the CPI in the post-test' g. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-acceptance of the CPI in the post—testing. will be no differences in the mean scores Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sense of Well- scale of the CPI in the post-testing. There has been no attempt to establish a relationship pre-university English class. handled independently in this study. Sample groups between changes in self-concept and academic achievement in the The two major hypotheses have been Figure I below represents the independence of the two major hypotheses. Academic success concept Figure I (l) (2) (3) _ 8 _ Definition of Terms (Community-Junior College) refers to institutions of higher education that offer programs of study up to two years of work. These programs may range from the first two years of a typical four-year program in education, liberal arts or engineering to a one-year program in practical nursing. With recent trends, perhaps we can also introduce the term "comprehensive two year college" which is dedicated to a curriculum that reflects the educational needs of its service community. This could mean a wider variety of technical and industrial programs as well as the more traditional "academic" programs. We have found in the literature that the terms 'community college' and 'junior college' have referred to the same kinds of institutions. The (unsuccessful community college student) has been, for the sake of clarity, referred to as a student Who has had limited success in certain academic areas, yet seems to have sufficient potential to do academic work. This student has been more specifically identified for the purposes of this study in a part of this paper. The (pre-university English course) is a non-credit English course designed primarily for students who are lacking a certain level of sophistication in English. The major _ 9 _ objective of this course is to provide students with the needed skills to be successful in the university level or college credit English course. A more detailed description of this course and its relevance to this study has been given in Chapter III of this paper. (4) The term (self-concept) has been used in the sense of one's perception or feelings about himself or as he thinks others perceive him. Thus, it is a self-report type of concept for the purpose of this study. A theoretical definition of self-concept has been presented in more detail in Chapter II. And in Chapter III the operational definition has been presented as a variable to be measured. Organization of the Study The general format of this study has been presented as follows: In Chapter II a review of pertinent literature has been presented. Chapter III contains the methods used in the collection of the data, its organization, and statistical methods used for analysis. The findings of the study are reported in Chapter IV along with the tables to assist in clarification of data. Chapter V contains a summary, discussion of findings, conclusions and implications for the community-junior college and further research. I I! I’ll, : alul'lllv I}, Chapter II Review of Literature Community-Junior College Challenge In spite of all of the philosophical greatness and benevo- lence held warmly within the "Open Door" policy of admission of many community-junior colleges, we have to consider the conse- quences of such a policy. Many of the resulting consequences have forced some institutions to modify the original thesis of the "Open Door" policy. Some institutions have not only modified this policy but have, for all practical purposes, done away with it. Other institutions are fighting to retain the philosophy of admitting high school graduates and adults who seek educa- tional opportunities, while still others are under legislation to do so. It will not benefit us to stew about the fact that these problems have come. A more apprOpriate approach is to recognize these problems and move in a positive fashion. It is obvious that many students who do not possess adequate academic skills are admitted to colleges. This is a problem not limited to the community-junior colleges, but it is shared by the other institutions of higher education. However, a vast group of the four-year institutions have a built-in solution to aid them in this area. The selectivity of admissions standards provide the four-year institutions a screening device and thus directly or indirectly giving a student deliverance to the steps of institutions with more benevolent philosophies. - 10 - 9,. as»! m._“ (I) 2-7»- »4.: r1 LII F) ()1 - ll - Here comes the paradox provided by our students who lack skills and the "Open Door" policy. One point put forward is that a short-sighted admission policy encourages a student to enroll Without reasonable evidence that the student can success- fully meet the scholastic and social requirements of the college (Wrenn, 1951). Psychologically, not excluding a common sense, failure is not always helpful to an individual and often provides a thorn in the area of self-confidence. The words, ethical or unethical, may not be tasteful at this point but they have truth 1 in description when we state that it is unethical to admit students without regard for their chances of suceeding. Keeping the above statements in mind, what is the responsi- bility of the institutions holding firm to minimum entrance re- quirements? If the students lack the skills to succeed in university parallel courses and the community-junior college finds him in its classroom, what is to be done? It seems logical that the responsibility is to provide success for the student. It has been said that the community-junior college must be the "salvation institution," a sort of 'last chance' in the academic wilderness (Medsker, 1960). This question is presented without an answer: Is it fair to assume that the community- junior college should provide this service? What are some alternatives? One alternative would be to change the admission policies, thus eliminating this particular problem or at least cut it to a _ 12 _ minimum. This means that the student lacking academic skills would not be allowed to attend college. The Wisdom of this action raises questions in view of its possible social conse- quences. Is it desirable for our nation's future to neglect the saving of youth and the resources of youth? The soundness of a system of education that assists and spurs a student beyond a premature termination of learning is worthy of praise. In view of projected national needs for skilled man and woman power, our first alternative may be unsatisfactory. A second alternative could be to let the student walk in the front door and shove him out the back door. This gives every student an equal opportunity - an equal opportunity to fail. This leaves a great deal to be desired in view of the psychology of economics involving the student, the college, the community and the individual tax payer. Then there is a possibility of dumping this student through policy-counseling into a program clouded somewhere between a well- developed terminal situation and basket-weaving science. The above statement is presented due to the oft practiced seduction of students into such programs that neither benefit the student nor-the development of a much needed worthy terminal program. Policy-counseling, setting up straight—line limitations on program selection, can be as lethal as highly selective admission policies. This can work two ways. Arbitrary placement in curriculums according to abilities in performance alone tends _ 13 _ to seal the crypt and bury many students alive. A good techni— cal program is not deve10ped through policy-counseling. One other thought to observe is what evidence is there to indicate that a student who lacks skills would be successful in a program in which he is arbitrarily placed? There have been several realistic alternatives presented to c0pe with the student who lacks academic skills: Sidney J. French (1954) has discussed the use of clinics. The clinics are established to aid students lacking in various skill areas who are referred by instructors of regular classes. In some cases the student attends the clinic in lieu of class and in other cases in addition to regular classes. Teaching in the clinic is individualized on the basis of student need. When the student has raised himself to reasonable competence, in the skill for which he was referred, he leaves the clinic but may return for special help whenever he needs it. This method has some advantages in meeting individual needs. With the proper staffing of such a clinic, it is beyond a doubt very valuable. There are some practical considerations to be brought out about the clinic. How much time and money can be spent on one individual in terms of a total student body? What type of operation is necessary to give individual teaching to 50, 100, 200, 500 students at any one time? Even if the student took a great deal of responsibility on himself for the use of the clinic, there are practical limitations. However, the clinic - 14 _ program has positive advantages that could be very useful with smaller numbers of students. Follow-up research seems to be lacking in this area of the clinic method, but this area does not stand alone! Why not sent the student back to high school? How did such a student get out of high school? What is the matter with a curriculum that allows a student to graduate with a seventh-grade reading ability? If Don X doesn't know an adjective from a semi-colon, isn't it about time for our second- ary schools to start some re-evaluation? These questions seem to have some 10gical simple answers; but when we deal with humans, simplicity leaves via the nearest exit. We can be sure that Conant (1959) has said enough about the deficiencies of our high schools. Curriculum changes and expansion, magic potions, and triple-tracking plus the games of robins and bluebirds are not going to cure all the ulcers in our secondary schools. There are some problems that accompany the creature called human; motivation, bio-psycho maturation, attitudes, and other social complications. These are beyond curriculum. To be sure, these are influenced by curriculum but they are no sure cure for the total problem. There is a possibility that the high schools offer these remedial aids in an evening program. This too has merit; yet, what if the individual is lacking in one skill only! There is a problem of coordination. There is the psychological function - 15 _ of an individual returning to the scene of his old failures. There is the problem of time when only one skill is lacking! Does a student stay out of a college program completely while he makes up one course? If the community college and high school could coordinate a program of this type, then its possibilities are enhanced. Finally we come to the alternative in which is found a major concern of this study - the formal class that is offered H to the student who is lacking skills. Medsker (1960) related that all of the community colleges that he surveyed recognized the problem of the student who lacked skills and that about three-fourths of the colleges were moving to meet the challenge. Medsker also related that most often when the remedial work iis completed in a regular class lasting for a semester or a quarter, credit is given toward the two-year degree. More findings of Medsker pointed out that three-fourths of the colleges offering remedial courses placed students with the aid of achievement tests. Other methods such as writing samples and actual performances were used to evaluate the skill levels of students for placement in remedial work. Medsker found that of those responding to his questionnaires, 25 percent rated formal remedial courses as an unimportant function of the community-junior college, 50 percent rated them important, while 25 percent rated them very important. It is obvious that the personnel involved in this challenge feel that it is a worthy and a much needed endeavor. ’ ~ 5' '2. -. “ *E‘Ql". _ l6 _ What about the practicality of such remedial courses? Are the courses now in progress in our community-junior colleges throughout our country worth the effort, time and money? What does the research have to say about this? The journals are naked in this area. Only one follow-up study was located. There are reasons for this nakedness. One reason is that most programs are so new that there hasn't been time for this important research. A follow-up study of the Pre-Technical Program of Broome Technical Community College of Binghamton, New York, puts some interesting light on the subject. Two groups were followed through their one full year on the pre-technical program (development-remedial) and through the total two years of a regular program. The group who entered the initial pre- technical were students who were identified as having academic potential, "good inherent ability." Instructors for the pre- tech program were selected with care as to their abilities to teach students who lacked academic skills and their interest in the program. The first year's program was designed to bring these students up to high school senior levels of skills and were taught on the high school level using high school text books. At the end of the first year pre-tech program, fifteen (15) of the original 33 entered the regular two-year program. At the end of the regular two year program only three success- fully completed the program, less than 10%; Roehl (1960) felt - , ....4 —1_—~.“—-—_—W‘-“W _ 17 - this to be a highly unsatisfactory percentage. Some changes in course content and the adoption of college text books and materials were undertaken for the second year's pre-tech program. The program was taken off spoon feeding and brought closer to the college level of expected performance. One further change was the increase in effort toward more individual counseling. The results of the second group found that a greater number of academically weak students fell beside the way during the pre-tech program. Of the 19 students from the second year pre-tech program, the mortality; rate in the total two-year program was lower than that of the total student body. Yet, when we take into consideration the drop-outs during the pre- tech program, only 20% of the original group completed the two-year prOgram. Again the author of the Broome survey felt that it is dangerous to make sweeping generalizations about the success of their pre-tech program. But he held to the possi- bility of salvaging and eventually graduating previously un- prepared individuals who may have otherwise been wasted. The above is only one report of a follow-up of individuals participating in remedial or developmental courses. It would depend a great deal on one's individual philosophy as to the success of the Broome program. The salvaging of 20% of the individuals usually lost seems to be a giant step forward. In small numbers this 20% may not seem great but multiply it by 10,000 or 50,000; then it has meaning. The time, effort and cost of such programs, which requires far more than the regular _ l8 - programs, is a question for discussion. In terms of the human resources of our nation, perhaps this is an expenditure we should afford. The College Drop-Out Although the college drop-out has been a topic of interest for the last 50 years, the reviewers of the studies in this general area have concluded that our knowledge of the attrition process is relatively meager (Summerskill, 1962; Marsh, 1966). It also seems that the college drop-out problem has captured the concern of higher education for more practical reasons than just the conservation of human potential. Most of the concerns about college attrition have deve10ped, to date, around three major origins (Summerskill, 1962). The first of these origins spring from the persistent assumption that college is a training center to supply needed persons for career entrance. Thus, when attrition rates are high, and students fail to make the grade, the supporting community or patrons of the college criticize the instituion as doing a poor job. This criticism is motivated in terms of economic investment and production out-put for the culture. When there is a shortage of qualified individuals in a certain area, then regardless of the quality of education, the burden is not seen to fall on the student but the college. The second concern about attrition is one of more direct economic involvement. Due to the budgetary problems in higher - 19 _ education, drop-out rates are often measured in terms of a waste of time, energy and money. In this light, attrition rates have tended to be a measure of fiscal efficiency. The third concern is the direct financial loss involved from student tuition. This is a natural concern as when the student leaves the campus, so do his dollars. Much of the research in the area of the drop-out has been prompted by these economic concerns. While it is reasonable to see the economic problems of the college drop-out, an over play of these problems may well bias or misdirect research which should be more rigorously student oriented. The consistent rates of college attrition throughout the past 30 years tend to support the idea that although we know some things about the college drop-out, we have not been able to do much about it (McNeeley, 1937; Effert, 1957). The descriptive factors that have tended to be most signifi- cant when describing the drop-out have been secondary school preparation, scholastic aptitude, motivation, college adjustment and finances (Summerskill, 1962; Marsh, 1966). As we look at the unsuccessful community college student, he tends to be a lmarked failure from all sides. The Don X of this study has beenidentified as having a poor high school achievement back- ground, he has performed poorly on standardized academic aptitude evaluations, and his self-report tends to be negative. And being a clommunity-junior college student, he is no doubt a student of Itbnited financial means. Thus, Don X has been labeled a natural _ 20 _ for the attrition pile. There will be a more detailed description of "Don X" as a sample population in a latter part of this paper. The studies on the drop-out - or "Don X," the "unsuccessful" student of our concern - have been very positive about the role that poor preparation and limited academic skills have played. The areas of motivation, self-concept and other non-intellectual factors have also been given some attention that make their consideration worth while. Perhaps more consideration of these latter factors would assist workers to harvest greater salvation yields. Non-intellectual Factors There has been some emphasis in recent years in identifying non-intellectual or non-academic factors and their relation to academic achievement. These factors have been called personality factors and may indicate factors that represent an individual's reaction toward himself and toward his total environment. The literature has reported differences between highly successful students (called overachievers in some studies) and tunsuccessful.students (underachievers). Differences have been reported in techniques in adjustment, interpersonal relationships, ability to cope with anxiety, self-confidence, self-ideal and selfiacceptance. The factor of self-attitude has been recently reported as an important difference between the unsuccessful aIKi the highly successful student (Martire, 1956). For the purpose of this research, the study findings have - 21 _ been grouped into seven factors. These factors have been established for the convenience of communication and of summarizing the research findings (Taylor, 1961). (1) Relationships Toward Authority Many investigators have recognized that the unsuccess- ful achiever's hostility and aggression toward authority has developed from parent relationships (Kimball, 1953; Kurtz and Swenson, 1951; Shaw and Brown, 1957; Horrat, 1957; and Hopkins, Mowlleson and Sarnoff, 1958). Kimball (1953) has concluded that the unsuccessful achiever has not had much chance to directly express his hostilities as he grows. In a study of perceived parental attitudes, Payne (1961) concluded that the student felt that his parents would not accept responsibility for his academic efforts. Yet at the same time, an investigation by HOpkins, Mowlleson, and Sarnoff (1958) concluded that the unsuccessful student chooses his subjects because of parental pressures rather than personal interest. Studies by Dowd (1952), Kirk (1952), Walsh (1956), Shaw and Brown (1957), Shaw and Grub (1958) and Lum (1960) have concluded that these hostilities have been directed toward the teachers and have manifested themselves in resistance toward academic work. It has been concluded that the unsuccessful achiever's resistance to academic effort can be seen as a reaction against his parents. _ 22 _ (2) Interpersonal Relationships Several investigators have concluded that unsuccessful achievers tend to have conduct conflicts, conflicts in hetero-sexual adjustment, and be overly critical of others in their social behavior (Furtz and Swenson, 1951; Horral, 1957; Gough, 1955; Gowan, 1957; and Shaw and Brown, 1957). The unsuccessful achievers obtain lower ratings on c00pera- tion, dependability, and judgment. Holland (1959) reported that the unsuccessful achiever creates a less favorable impression upon peers and authority figures. The unsuccessful student has been pictured as a person with many conflicts and behavior problems that he is unable to resolve. These tend to cause overt activities of aggression and rebellion within his social relationships. (3) Dependence-Independence Values A number of studies have concluded that the unsuccess- ful student can be seen as a person who is easily influenced by parents regarding future aspirations, yet tends to follow stronger peers into conflict situations (Brown, Abeles, and Iscoe, 1954; Armstrong, 1955; Hopkins, Mowlleson and Sarnoff, 1958; and Mitchell, 1959). Kimball (1953) found that male unsuccessful achievers had prominent dependence needs. One study by Stagner (1953) reported some contrary findings to the above. (4) Activity Patterns (5) _ 23 _ A number of studies have reported that the unsuccess- ful student lacks motivation for academic involvement, but tends to obtain satisfactions in social activities (Terman and Oden, 1957; Holland, 1959; and Mitchell, 1959). Gerberick (1949) and Middleton and Getherie (1959) have concluded that the unsuccessful achiever had a tendency toward pleasure seeking and extroversion along with strong affiliation needs. He tends to be active socially and is more interested in immediate rewards and gratification. He needs to affiliate, identify and gain support from a satisfying group. Anxiety Patterns Mitchell (1959) and Horrall (1957) have concluded that unsuccessful achievers tend to have a high degree of anxiety which demoralizes a great deal of personal and academic effort. Other studies have suggested that the unsuccessful student displayed a high degree of emotionality, exhibits instability and maladjustment, denies normal shortcomings, has difficulty paying attention in class (Middleton and Gutherie, 1959; Kimball, 1953; and Gerberick, 1951). Walsh (1956) reported an exaggerated free-floating emotion tended to be expressed by the unsuccessful student and at the same time he repressed emotion when emotional responses were appropriate. The unsuccessful student fears failure, yet his fears tend to lead toward an exaggerated anxiety which results in using a great part of his energy in controlling that anxiety. (6) (7) - 24 _ Goal Orientation .It has been indicated that an unsuccessful achiever is highly emotionat lacks decisiveness to act, is rest- less, changeable, and lacks motivation for task-completion (Brown, Abeles, and Iscoe, 1954; Kurtz and Swenson, 1951; Stagner, 1953; and Lum, 1960). These same studies reported an inability to decide on vocational goals. This tended to reemphasize outside parental pressures on goal selection (Taylor, 1961). Thus the unsuccessful student tends to be unable to form decisions about goals due to his conflicts and anxieties. This indecisiveness about his goals and himself increase his anxiety and insecurity, which in turn results in immature behavior and lack of purpose. Self-Concepts The unsuccessful student has feelings of inadequacy, strong inferior feelings, tends to be passive in failure, and is concerned about his health (Kirk, 1952; Horrall, 1953; and Kimball, 1953). Other studies have expressed that the unsuccessful student is self-derogatory, depressed in his self-concept, and tends to lack self-confidence (Kurtz and Swenson, 1959; and Gowan, 1957). Holland (1959) tends to disagree with this idea of negative self-value, but agrees with the concept to false self-image by the unsuccessful student. It is this concept _ 25 - of the poor or false self-image that has permeated these studies on the personality factors of the unsuccessful student. Self-Concept: A Theoretical Base The original rise of scientific psychology tended to play down such concepts as soul, ego, will and self. James (1890) began a resurgence of interest in the concept of the self and was the stepping stone for much of today's thinking in the area. Since the work of James, many workers have presented additional ideas and have continued to expand on the self-concept. Snygg and Combs (1949) developed the phenomenal self; Lundholm (1940) has made useful distinctions between the subjective and the objective self, and Sherif and Cantril (1947) have established their ego as the self—as-object. The inferred self - one's image of himself - was a product of Hilgard (1949). The literature has yielded writers who have not agreed as to the theoretical structure of the self. Some have considered the self as a precess or a doer (Koffka, 1935) and some, such as Mead (1934), have structured the self as an object of awareness rather than process. Carl Rogers has been the most prominent contributor, in recent years, to this concept for the self-structure as a personality structure. He has developed a method of psycho- therapy that has been used as a base for independent variable manipulation within this research project. Rogers (1945) has _ 25 _ related that successful client-centered therapy allows the therapist to enter into a personal and subjective relationship with the client, not as a scientist in an investigation, not as a physician with diagnosis and care; but as a person to a person. The basic ingredients of Rogers' theory are these: (1) the organism which is the total individual, (2) the phenomenal field which is the totality of experience, and (3) the self which is a differentiated portion of the phenomenal field and consists of conscious perceptions and values of the "I" or "me." The properties of the organism have been presented as: (1) it reacts as an organized whole to the phenomenal field, (2) it strives to actualize, maintain, and enhance itself, (3) it may grant symbolization to experience making them conscious, it may deny symbolization as that they remain unconscious, or it may ignore the eXperiences. Hall (1957) has summarized the pr0perties of Rogers! self as: (a) it develops by interaction with the environment, (b) it may introject and distort values of other people, (c) it strives for consistency, (d) the organism behaves in ways consistent to self, (e) experiences not perceived as consistent with the self-structure are seen as threats, (f) the self may change as a result of maturation and learning. Rogers has given a more detailed discussion of his theory and his approach to therapy in his book, Client7Centered Therapy, (1951). The approach that Rogers has taken to personality structure and to _ 27 _ psychotherapy has proven adaptable for working with students in educational situations and he has stimulated continual research in the areas of personality structure and psycho- therapy. It is understood that theory is constantly open to criticism and Rogers (1954), himself, has been evaluating much of his own original thinking. The client-centered approach has been utilized as a theoretical basis for a dependent variable in this study. The ideas of self-support and re-evaluation of the self-structure in a non-threatening, reflecting atmosphere, has been a major consideration. There tends to be a strong logical validity of the importance to this method in working with the unsuccess- ful student. Identifying Unsuccessful Students Much of the literature relating to the student who has tended to achieve below the level of expected achievement assigned to him, has tended to label his type the 'under-achieving' student. The student who has tended to fall at the Opposite pole as the underachiever, has been designated as the 'over-achiever.’ Thorndike (1963) has questioned the soundness of these labels. He presented a very interesting notion when he asked whether an under-achiever was actually under-achieving and an over- achiever was actually over-achieving. Thorndike (1963) held that a student was achieving at his level at all times. These differences have been seen as a matter of a difference in - 28 _ operational identification. For the sake of clarification, the terms 'under-achiever' and 'unsuccessful student' will be interchangeably used in much of the discussion of this study. In much of the literature, there seems to be general consensus as to the abstract definition of under- and over- achievement. An over-achiever exceeds an aptitude-based-expectancy of academic performance and, conversely, the under-achiever falls below this expectancy. Farquhar and Payne (1961) have stated that the genesis of contradictory conclusions in the studies with over-and-under-achievers rests in the operational rather than abstract definition of discrepant achievement. At this point several techniques of selecting under-and-over-achieving students will be reviewed. (1) Central Tendency Splits This method simply dichotomizes a distribution of combined aptitude and achievement measures. Shaw and McCuen (1960) and Dowd (1952) utilized this method by selecting the top 25% in ability based on one intelligence scale and those who fell below class mean in grade achieve- ment. (2) Quadrant Splits - Middle Group Eliminated This method has provided a way of studying discrepancies in achievement by contrasting extreme groups and by elimina- ting the middle group. Winberg (1947), Drews and Teahan (1957) and Brookover (1959) utilized this approach in their studies. There has been some concern about using extreme (3) (4) -29- groups, yet these workers stated interest in extreme groups. Relative Discrepancy Splits Studies such as conducted by Mitchell (1959), Duff and Diegel (1960), and Diemer (1960) have used this approach. This method gives independent ranks to grade point averages and academic aptitude predictors and the discrepancies are calculated by employing the differences in the rankings. Regression Model Selection This technique involved a regression equation achieve- ment from an aptitude measure. Selection was based on a discrepancy between predicted and actual achievement of at least standard deviation. Several sophistications of this approach combined this technique with central tendency splits and the removal of middle groups (Malloy, 1954; Owens and Johnson, 1949; Krug, 1959; and Lum, 1960). This approach tends to satisfy the concerns of the critics of extreme groups programming. Farquhar and Payne (1961) have listed characteristics of the ideal technique for identifying students who perform lower or higher than expected: A. The achievement criterion should: 1. Be academic - not contaminated with activity courses. 2. Equate different grading systems at various schools. - 30 _ B. The aptitude predictor should: 1. Be heavily loaded with valid and reliable academic predictor factors. 2. Be a stable estimate free as possible of spurious effects as low chance scores due to poor test administration. C. The selection should: 1. Represent the full range of achievement and ability. 2. Be built separately for the two sexes. 3. Classify the criterion groups with a minimum chance of overlap. 4. Meet the assumptions of the parametric statistic. 5. Control regression effects. To satisfy these statements, Farquhar and Payne (1961) developed a two-stage regression technique which established the Verbal Reasoning Scale, (VR) of the Differential Aptitudes Test, (DAT) as having the highest correlation with academic achievement. The Group Approach Thirty years ago the concept of group psychotherapy was not on the academic billboards. Today it has come, full bloom, into fashion. There are two reasons given for this rise. Alexander (1940) has represented one reason as being basically economic; there were fewer trained therapists and an over supply of clients. Klein (1948) fostered the second reason when he concluded that - 31 _ demonstrated results of group therapy have been superior to individual therapy in some circumstances. These circumstances have been stated by Reisman (1950) in his concern for the social isolation of our present-day social interaction. It may have been that group psychotherapy represents a correction against this social isolation. Putzey (1956), in his "Bibliography of Group Psychotherapy," reported that between the years of 1906 and 1910 only eleven articles and books appeared on the topic. In the period of 1951 and 1955, some 880 articles and books were written about the group approach. There have been counter claims as to the fatherhood of the group approach to psychotherapy but the names of Mesmer, Adler, and Moreno have appeared with consistency (Klapman, 1946). One of the earliest recorded instances of group influence in the treatment of psychological disorders were found in the writings of Camus (1904). His writings reported that patients recovered much faster when put in wards with other patients than when isolated. Several other early workers continued to report favorably on the group approach (Pratt, 1922, and Moreno, 1952). Corsini (1957) has presented the following definition of the group approach that has come to be accepted by most workers in the field. "Group psychotherapy consists of processes occurring in formally organized protected groups and calculated to attain rapid ameliorations in the personality and behavior of individual members through specified and controlled group interaction." . 1.314 1 l I I I I _ 32 - There have been writers in the field of group therapy that have presented principles of procedure and chance dynamics (Corsini and Rosenberg, 1955; Bach, 1954; and Hinckley and Hermann, 1951). With any approach, there will be advocates and critics. Some of the critics have been Scheidlinger (1948), Ebaugh (1951), and Meiers (1948). Those who have tended to be positive in their conclusions about the group approach have been Sternbach (1947), Marsh (1935), Harris (1948), Somers (1940), and Wender (1951). There has been a relative nakedness in the literature on the superiority of individual and group psychotherapy. Baehr (1954) showed that a combination of individual and group therapy was superior in effectivenesstto either method alone. Rogers (1951) has opened his theoretical approach of therapy to this group therapy concept. He stated that the therapist should create an emotionally neutral field for free expression where the members of the group could review their thoughts without disapproval. He further stated that the therapist was to reflect feelings and avoid interpretation. An approach that seemed to reflect some of the needs of this study was that of Bierer (1942). Bierer's approach could be classified as non- directive-verbal-superficial in that there was no attempt on the part of a therapist to go beyond the level of support and re- flection. _ 33 _ Generating Pilot Study Since the community-junior college does open its doors to a student body that has a large range of preparational back- ground and academic skills, one of the concerns of student personnel services is proper course placement. The pressing problem of the community-junior college in which this writer is employed has been the proper placement of students in English. In conjunction with the English Department of the college, a means of screening students (standardized testing, a writing sample, and high school English grades) has been established. As a parallel activity, a pre-university English course was constructed by the English Department as a logical placement position for students who were identified as having poor English backgrounds. The major objective of this course was to give the student more adequate skills in preparation for the basic course in university level English composition. This course was designed to be of one semester in duration utilizing a combination of programmed material and instructor presentation. At the end of the first year of this program the English Department realized a substantial decline in the percentage of failing (D or below) grades given to students in the first semes- ter of English composition. It dropped from 23 to 8 percent. In discussions with the English instructors, it was expressed that they sensed a more homogeneous grouping by background and thus were able to upgrade the English curriculum. _ 34 - In 1962 a follow-up study was made of 100 students who had been placed in the pre-university English course (English 100). It was found that 44 or 44% of the original 100 students succeeded (C or better) in the university level English (English 101) during the second semester. Forty-four percent salvation may not, on first inspection, seem very impressive, but it was somewhat above the salvation percentage reported in a similar study referred to earlier in this paper. One of the more distressing factors was the fact that 14 of the original 100 students followed failed to have any success in the pre-university English course. The writer of this paper held interviews with these 14 students and with the English 100 instructors of these students. The interest here was to identify some possible characteristics of these students other than what was already known about their academic back- ground. This was done in a rather informal way by putting down anecdotal comments about the students behavior during the interviews. This same approach was generally followed by asking the instructors general questions about the students' behavior in the class room. Even though there were no attempts at formal quantification or statistical analysis, several characteristics began to appear. These individuals seemed to lack a sense of self-confidence and expressed an uneasiness about attending and participating in the class room experiences. The instructors expressed that these students tended to be loners and somewhat socially inhibited. -35- They did not freely volunteer to contribute during class. These observations led to a continuing interest about these non-academic factors and the possibility of counter- acting them through some form of counselor contact. In the fall of 1963 there were 133 students enrolled in the pre- university English course. During the first week of that class the California Psychological Inventory was completed by these students. Thirty-eight male students were identified as fall- ing one standard deviation or more below the mean for college males on the following scales: (1) Dominance, (2) Sociability, (3) Social Presence, (4) Self—Acceptance, (5) Sense of Well-being. These scales have been described in a latter part of this paper. From the thirty-eight pre-university English students Who were identified as having poor self-concepts, five were selected by capsule drawing with replacement. These five students participated in ten 40-minute individual counseling interviews spread out over a period of fifteen weeks. The nature of these sessions were primarily supportive and informational. There were no attempts at depth interpretation, rather it was a time of reflecting feeling and allowing a student to have a staff person help him discuss his educational experiences. The pre-university English grades were recorded for the total group of thirty-eight students, the population originally identified as having low self-concepts. All five of the counseled group were successful (C or better) in their class achievement. Of the 33 students who served as a control group, 21 were _ 36 _ unsuccessful (D or below) and 3 withdrew from the class after mid-term. No statistical analysis was employed at this point to indicate a significant difference in the grades received by the two groups, but a visual inspection certainly favored the counseled group. A post-evaluation on the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) was made by five members of the counseled group. A t test was enployed to evaluate any change in the scale means between the pre—and the post—test scores. Only one scale showed a significant change. This was the (sense of well-being) scale which is described as a scale that identifies persons who minimize their worries and complaints, and who are relatively free from self-doubt and temperament. There was no attempt to post-evaluate the 33 control students to see if any change may have occurred in their CPI scales. The results of this very limited pilot study have not been the major contribution to this present larger study. It has been rec0gnized that the sample size of five is certainly not very impressive in terms of all the variables involved in this kind of approach. The major contributions to this pilot study have been in the area of method and identifying variables that should be controlled in a larger study. One of the major problem areas that was identified was the holding of the counseling sessions at consistent depth while (dealing with meaningful information. A second problem identified ‘nas the cutting down on the variability introduced by three _ 37 _ instructors of the pre-university English classes. A third area of concern that was newly introduced from the pilot study was the large amount of time involvement on the part of the counselor. It would be practically impossible to provide the needed man hours to counsel the number of students involved and carry on the other aspects of the student personnel program. Thus several approaches to the counseling relationship were introduced to explore a possible conservation of staff involvement. Summary Thus, Don X is the challenge to the community—junior college. Don X with limited academic skills, a poor high school background and an inadequate self-concept is a prime candidate for the college drop-out list. Don X, as he enters college, represents a sizable financial and emotional investment to himself, the college and to the total national economy. Yet Don X tends to have basic potential to learn! What are the responsibilities of the community-junior college toward Don X? It seems logical first of all to be able to identify the potential drop-out. The next step would be to study his situa- tion, not in terms of dollars alone but in terms of human resources, and of the student's personal emotional investments. The realization that the open-door policy of the community- .junior college is not a license to draw students in the front (floor and blow them out the back door is a valid concept to - 33 _ maintain. The community-junior college in facing its challenge must be more than a wind tunnel. Not only must the potential drop-out be identified, but the characteristics of the potential drop-out should be studied in order to provide reasonable positive circumstances for success. The real crux of this whole challenge is to follow up understanding and insight with activity that will assist Don X toward a more successful educational experience. A meaningful beginning of this activity has been the concern of this study. ..Fw ~—, ———o--— p—W_ 7 _ _ _. - Chapter III Design of the Study Research Hypotheses There have been two major independent hypotheses evaluated in this study. There have been ten sub-hypotheses evaluated in this study in support of the second of the two major hypotheses. These hypotheses have been stated below in the form of null hypotheses with their alternatives. The first major hypothesis concerns itself with the differ- ences in academic achievement among the five sample groups: H0:1 There will be no differences in academic achieve- ment in the pre-university English class among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D, and E. (The five samples have been drawn randomly from identical populations). H:l There will be a difference in the academic adhieve- ment in the pre-university English class among the five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E. The second major hypothesis concerns itself with differences in the amount of change of self-concept among five sample groups: Ho:2 There will be no differences in the amount of change in self-concept among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. (The samples have been drawn randomly from identical populations). H:2 There will be differences in the amount of change in ’ self-concept among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. The following ten sub—hypotheses have been evaluated in support of Ho:2 above: Ho:2a There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E as the Dominance scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. '; 39 _ arr-“w ‘24 H:2a Ho:2b H:2b Ho:2c Ho:2d H:2d Ho:2e H:2e Ho:2f H:2f _ 4Q - There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Dominance scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability_scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. D mum There will be a difference in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be no difference in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-Acceptance scale of the CPI in the pre-testing.’ There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-Acceptance scale of the CPI in the pre—testing. There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sense of Well-being scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sense of Well-being scale of the CPI in the pre-testing. There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Dominance scale of the CPI in the post-testing. There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Dominance scale of the CPI in the pest-testing. There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability scale of CPI in the post-testing. There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sociability scale of the CPI in the post-testing. _ 41 - Ho:2h There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence scale of the CPI in the post-testing. H:2h There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Social Presence scale of the CPI in the post-testing. Ho:2i There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-Acceptance scale of the CPI on the post—testing. H:2i There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Self-Acceptance scale of the CPI on the post-testing. Ho:2j There will be no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the Sense of Well- being scale of the CPI on the post-testing. H:2j There will be differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E in the Sense of Well-being scale of the CPI on the post-testing. Sample Selection: The 'Unsuccessful' Student The subjects were initially selected on the following basis: They were all recent June graduates, male, 17 to 19 years of age and were selected for participation in the pre-university English course. The selection for the pre-university English course was based on the following: (1) Raw scores of between 28 and 37, which converts to the 10th to the 20th percentiles, on the Mechanics of Expression section of the 1960 revision of the English Coopera— tive tests, Form 1A, (2) A D average or below in high school English grades, (3) and evaluation of a standardized writing sample in which three independent evaluators agree on a recommendation for the pre-university English course. (The standardized test and the standardized writing sample has been _ 42 - included to help eliminate the variables in high school mark- ing systems). The second process of selection was based on a raw score of 57 or above on the Otis-Scoring Mental Ability test; form Gamma E.M. This score represents the 50th percentile based on local Muskegon County Community College incoming freshman norms. The use of this scale is to give us some evaluation of academic aptitude based on a verbal instrument designed to estimate the possibility of academic success (Otis, 1954). The third process of the selection was based on the follow- ing raw scores and scales on the California Psychological Inventory: 1. Dominance.............................22 and below 2. Sociability...........................20 and below 3. Social Presence.......................30 and below 4. Self-Acceptance.......................l4 and below 5. Sense of Well-being...................32 and below These cut-off scores are one standard deviation below the mean for college males. The rationale for utilizing college norms is that this was the group in which the subjects are to have interaction (Gough, 1961). There were 128 students that initially fit the selection criteria. From these 128, ten sets of five subjects were matched as closely as possible with particular attention given to the pre-test scores on the five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. The matched sets of five were assigned to the research groups by rotating the placement, such that member 1 in a matched _ 43 - set was placed in Group A and in the next set member 1 was assigned to Group B. A visual inspection of the five groups (each containing ten subjects) assured us that there was no piling up of students from any particular high school in a single study group. The research treatments were assigned to the study groups by capsule drawing with replacement. The students selected were not informed that they were subjects in a study. They were aware that there was added attention given to them. This information filtered back through the interview contacts. It was discovered that some of the subjects had friends that had been involved with the pre- university English course during the previous school year. The evaluation sessions for subject selection were as standardized as possible; there was the consideration of a 30-day difference between the first group of students to be evaluated and the last group. The room, the test administrator, the lighting and basic physical conditions were all standardized. Instrumentation Validity and reliability studies for the three standardized instruments can be found in their respective manuals (Otis, 1954, and Gough, 1961, and in Buros, 1959). The writing sample is an essay construction exercise constructed by the English Department of the Muskegon County Community College. A pilot study, carried out two years ago with a group of students who went into the regular English program when an evaluation of the writing samples [‘1' i ill ll: III! ,Illl'l I _ 44 _ recommended the pre-university English course, reported a 78% failure (D grade or below) in the first semester English course. The percentage of failure increased to 86% at the end of the second semester. The percentage of failure (D or below) of those who were recommended for the regular prOgram was 18% at the end of the first semester and 22% at the end of the second semester. Even though this may not be conclusive, it tends to show at least a validity trend. Pre-University English Class (English 100) The Pre-university English course is a program designed to assist students in gaining skills in written eXpression that will be required in the university-level English class. There were ten sections of this class offered during the semester of this research. There were three instructors teaching these classes. The fifty subjects were not segregated in terms of groups or sections but they were randomly spread out in the ten sections according to the subjects' schedule needs. The course was initially instituted in 1961 and has been taught each consecutive semester since that time. The course has been in operation with the present content and procedure for the last four semesters. The basic material used in the course is a programmed text, English 3200, along with departmental assignments and evaluations. The objectives and goals of the course have been a product of the combined efforts of the three instructors plus the chairman of the English Department. This - 4g _ tapproach has unified the ten sections of the pre-university English classes and has cut the variability from one class to the other to a minimum. There was some concern initially about the differences in teaching technique and personality among the three instructors involved. These differences have been held to a minimum through preplanning of assignments and evaluation procedures. The instructors were aware of the research program and they did take part in the original planning of the methodology to be involved. It was agreed upon that they were not to be informed as to which of their students were in the study groups. Visual inspection of the distribution showed that students from a particular study group did not pile up in any one English section and that all ten sections contained at least three members of the total study group. The instructors were asked to evaluate success in the pre- university English classes on the basis of twelve ranks: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, and E. This was done to assist in the analysis of data. Self-Concept Scales (California Psychological Inventory) The five scales used as an evaluation of self-concept were selected from the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) developed by Harrison Cough and published by Consulting Psycholo- gists Press. The CPI contains 480 items (200 of these items appeared _ 45 _ originally in the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory) and yields eighteen factor scores. This inventory was deve10ped by the "empirical technique." In this method a criterion dimension which one seeks to measure is defined. An example is personal dominance. Inventory statements which seem to bear a psychological relevance to the criterion dimension are assembled in a preliminary scale. These questions are then administered to persons who can be shown by some independent procedure to be strongly characterized by this trait or dimension. The more complete report on the development of the CPI can be found in Gough's CPI manual. Whenever an instrument is used, it is wise to review what other workers think about the instrument. A look into Buros, (1959), gives us the opinion of three men. Lee I. Cronbach feels that Gough did a creditable job in the development and technical work of the instrument. The reliabilities were care- fully determined by retesting and the validities were determined by dozens of cross validities on sizable samples. Cronbach feels that there are some misleading aspects in reporting validities based on extreme groups and that the trait labels are extremely loaded; yet he commends Gough for pur- suing his own point of view skillfully. Robert L. Thorndike finds the CPI's strength in its method of construction, but he criticizes the amount of intercorrelation between the eighteen traits and again the faulty analysis using extreme groups. Thorndike feels that there may be a role for a _ 47 _ personality inventory following the rationale of the CPI, but it must be proven by more research. Lawrence F. Shaffer tells us that by both objective and subjective evaluation, the CPI appears to be a major achieve- ment. He feels that the CPI will receive wide use for research and for practical applications. The five scales employed can be described by purpose: 1. (Do-dominance): To assess factors of leadership ability, dominance, persistence and social initiative. 2. (By-sociability): To identify persons of outgoing, sociable participative temperament. 3. (Sp-social presence): To assess factors such as poise, spontaneity and self-confidence in personal and social interaction. 4. (Sa-self-acceptance): To assess factors such as a sense of personal worth, self-acceptance, and capacity for independent thinking and action. 5. (Wb-sense of well-being): To identify persons who minimize their worries and complaints, and who are relatively free from self-doubt and temperament. Change in self-concept has been Operationally defined as a change in scores of the five scales above Which have been more favorably accepted than many other such scales. One additional advantage of the CPI is the non—clinical titles given to the scales. These titles tend to be less threatening to the worker and to the students involved in their use. Independent Variable Groups Group A_contained ten subjects who served as a control group. This group has no planned contact with the student - 43 - personnel office. They had all of the matriculation benefits of the student body. QESEEHE contained ten subjects. These ten subjects re- ceived fifteen weekly letters at their resident addresses. Each letter had an enclosed self-addressed post card which the students were instructed to sign and return to the office of Student Personnel Services. The letters were pre-written and were of a supportive nature. QEQEEHE contained ten subjects who participated in fifteen short, weekly interviews with a student personnel worker. The content of these interviews was of a supportive nature based on the contents of the letters sent to Group B. These interviews had a maximum length of ten minutes. The nature of these sessions was basically supportive in that the subject participated in a very limited way. The concept of rapport was considered and held positive at all times. 93222.2 contained ten subjects who participated in fifteen weekly, 40-minute group sessions with a student personnel worker. The student personnel worker fostered an atmosphere in which the members could re—evaluate self-concepts in a non—threatening way. The worker's approach was primarily semi-directive and supportive. The worker entered with appropriate supportive advisory type information when the group progress called for it. There was no attempt to participate in "depth therapy" in this situation. Group E contained ten subjects who participated in fifteen ‘9 , ‘WFI'J‘Piz—rv - 49 - weekly, 40-minute individual sessions with a student personnel worker. The underlying method and depth of the sessions was held as constant with that of Group D as possible. The task of the worker was to reflect feelings and create self-concept support when appr0priate. Supportive Interviews: The basic objective of the interviews with Groups C, D, and E was to provide the subjects with supportive information and contact with a student personnel worker. The kinds of information and tOpics of the supportive conversations were taken from the letters that were sent to Group B. The general topics have been designed to give the subjects support in their study activities. The subjects were screened initially on the basis of a low self-concept as measured by the California Psychological Inventory. The student personnel worker was constantly using the face-to-face situation to build a sense of self-confidence in the subjects within the frame work of the various approaches. The general topics utilized in the fifteen contacts were: 1. The right step congratulations. 2. Realistic goals are bbtainable. 3. All men have been given certain ability. 4. There is no short cut for sincerity and hard work. 5. Time is an important asset. 6. Planning is profit. 7. A little growth is success. 8. Persistence is more powerful than luck. 9. Immediate reward versus long term goals. 10. Self-evaluation leads to achievement. ll. Self-confidence is the road to success. 12. Each man tends to be what he thinks he is. - 50 — 13. We react to situations as we think they are. 14. Self-discipline is a key to success. 15. What is success? Copies of these fifteen letters can be found in the appendix of this paper. There was constant effort to maintain uniformity in the depth level of the various approaches. In the short interviews this was a relatively easy job. The forty-minute group inter- views and the forty-minute individual interviews often had to be stirred back to the supportive level. The necessity to re- establish the direction of the interview had to be employed more often in the individual interviews. As mentioned earlier, electronic tapes were utilized to keep a check on the depth of the interviews. It was noticed that the subjects as a group tended to be tape recorder shy initially, but became more at ease as the sessions continued. The tapes were reviewed by three additional student personnel workers who were independent of the study and the institution where the study was taking place. These reviewers were asked to evaluate the comparative depth of the interview approaches. The three reviewers were professionally trained counselors having experience both as high school and college counselors. 'All three reviewers had been oriented to the reviewing task in terms of levels of depth and the major objective of the review. Thus the reviewing procedure was held as consistent as possible. The reviewers independently agreed that the depth of the -51- taped interviews was consistent in all three approaches; Groups C, D and E. They also agreed that the supportive role of the counselor was consistent within each of the three approaches utilized. Dependent Variables Measured There was a post-evaluation of the fifty (50) subjects _on the California Psychological Inventory with the values of the five scales previously listed considered. This was done to evaluate changes in self-concepts as indicated on the in- strument used. The academic success was evaluated by consider- ing the end-of-course grade in the pre-university English course. Statistical Treatments To determine whether or not there were differences in the academic achievement among the five sample groups in the pre-university English course, a nonparametric statistic was employed. The null hypothesis that the samples were drawn from identical populations was tested by the H statistic developed by Kruskal and Wallis; (Edwards, 1957). The grades given by the class room instructors were re- ported in twelve levels: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, and E. A distribution of letter grades was arranged from 1 to 50 with the grades A to E, receiving appr0priate ranks of 1 through 50. Where tie grades were given a mean rank was assigned. The H statistic was computed which is distributed as X2 with k-l degrees of freedom. - 52 _ The nonparametric statistic of Kruskal and Wallis was selected for two basic reasons. The first consideration was that no assumption could be made about the normal distribution of grade levels assigned to students by classroom instructors. Thus, the equal interval scaling assumption for quantification had not been fulfilled by the ranking approach taken. The second reason for selecting the nonparametric approach was that the sample sizes were relatively small and the distribution of the individual subjects did not lend itself to a more powerful consideration. The computed value of the H statistic was compared to the X2 value at the .05 level with 4 degrees of freedom. Thus, the .05 level of confidence was level of significance selected for the accepting or rejecting hypothesis Ho:l. To assess the differences in the amount of change in the self-concepts among Groups A, B, C, D and E, the pre- and post- test scores on the five scales of the California Psychological Inventory were utilized. Each of the five scales were treated independently on both the pre- and the post-testing scores. Thus, the testing of the second major hypothesis, Ho:2 was done in two steps. As an initial step, an analysis of variance procedure was employed with the pre-test scores on the five scales of the CPI. The initial step consisted of five independent analysis of variance tests, one for each of the five scales of the CPI on the pre-test scores. The statistic F was calculated for each scale on the pre—test scores. The lll‘llllllltl] -53- calculated F values were compared to tabled F values at the .05 level with 4 and 45 degrees of freedom (Edwards, 1957). Hypotheses Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d, and Ho:2e were accepted or rejected utilizing the .05 level of significance. The second step in testing the major hypothesis Ho:2 consisted of testing hypotheses Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i, and Ho:2j by five independent analysis of variance tests. There were five additional F values calculated, one for each of the five CPI scales on the post-test scores. The calculated F values were compared to tabled F values at the .05 level with 4 and 45 degrees of freedom (Edwards, 1957). Hypotheses Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i, and Ho:2j were also accepted or rejected at the .05 level of significance. Since the concern of Ho:2 was to evaluate the differences in the amount of change in self-concept among Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by the CPI scales, it was logical to be aware of the CPI scale's pre-test scores. If it were found that there were no differences in the mean scores on the five CPI scales in the pre-testing among the groups, then the analysis of variance of the post-test scores on the five scales would be adequate to evaluate differences in the amount of change in self-concept. Using the scores on the five scales of the CPI as part of the screening and matching procedure, indicated that the above approach was most logical. If it were found that there was a difference in the mean scores on any individual CPI scale - 54 _ among Groups A, B, C, D and E, on the pre-testing, then an analysis of covariance would have been employed. The initial analysis of variance procedure to test sub-hypotheses Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d, and Ho:2e was completed previousto the beginning of the study period. The findings of these tests allowed a second series of analysis of variances to be an adequate procedure to complete the testing of the major hypothesis Ho:2. Variable Considerations There were attempts made to hold down procedural and personnel variables. As discussed earlier, electronic record- ings were made of the sessions with Groups C, D and E. This was done to evaluate the standardization of approach and depth of the sessions. Each subject was assigned to two other courses along with the pre-university English course. Practical considerations such as background, vocational objectives and personal needs determined what additional course work the subjects carried. ‘There was no attempt, in this study, to consider academic success in the courses other than the pre-university English course. The subjects were not segregated by groups in their classes. They were in classes with members of other groups and students who were not subjects in the study. (It is recog- nized that this is not a test-tube approach to research - yet, it is felt that there will be some strengths of natural observa- tion introduced). - 55 - All of the subject contact sessions were conducted by the same student personnel worker. This tended to hold down some of the variables that would be introduced by different workers. It has been mentioned that the sex, date of graduation and age range of the subjects had been considered. The use of standardized evaluation of academic achievement in communica- tive skills had been introduced to help compensate for the variance of grading systems in the various high schools. Chapter IV Analysis of Results Hypothesis Ho:l A general review of the statistical procedures and comments of the rationale for the procedures used has been integraded in the following pages to assist the analysis clarification. To determine whether or not there were differences in the academic achievement among the five samples in the pre-university English course, a nonparametric statistic was employed. The null hypothesis that the samples were drawn at random from identical populations was tested by the H statistic developed by Kruskal and Wallis (Edwards, 1957). The grades were reported in terms of twelve levels; A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D4, E and the H statistic was computed which is distributed as X2 with k-l degree of freedom. In review, the nonparametric H statistic of Kruskal and Wallis was selected for two basic reasons. The first considera- tion was that no assumption could be made about the normal distribution of levels assigned to students by the classroom instructors. Thus, the equal interval scaling assumption for quantification has not been fulfilled by the ranking approach taken. The second reason for selecting the nonparametric approach was that the sample sizes were relatively small and the distribution of the individual subjects did not lend itself to a more powerful parametric consideration. _ 56 _ -57.. Table I shows the distribution of grade levels assigned to the 50 students of the five groups, as well as the ranks given to the grades for computation. Table 1 Distribution of grades given by pre-university English instruc- tors and ranks assigned for computation of H for the 50 subjects. Ranked Grade Computational Ranked Grade Computa- Positions Assigned Rank Positions Assigned tional Rank 1 B+ 1 26 C 16.5 2 B 27 C- 27 3 B 3.5 28 D+ 4 B 29 D+ 29.5 5 B 30 D+ 6 B- 6 31 D+ 7 C 32 D .‘ 8 C ‘1 33 D ' 9 C 34 D 10 C 35 D 11 C 36 D , 12 c 37 D I 13 C 38 D 14 C 39 D 38 15 C 40 D 16 C 41 D 17 C 42 D 18 C S 43 D 19 C 16.5 44 D 20 C 45 E 21 C 46 E 22 c I 47 E 47.5 23 C 48 E 24 C ”j 49 E 25 C 50 E A distribution of letter grades was arranged from 1 to 50 with.the grades A to E receiving appropriate ranks of 1 through - 53 _ 50. Where tie grades were given a mean rank was assigned. Table 2 shows the individual ranks received by members of Groups A, B, C, D and E, the sums of ranks for each group, and the calculations required to calculate the H statistic employed. As Table 2 indicates, the value of H was 14.9485. Follow- ing the procedures of Kruskal and Wallis the null hypothesis that the five sample groups were drawn at random from identical populations was tested by entering a table of X2 values with the degrees of freedom equal to 1 less than the number of groups. Entering the X2 table found in Edwards (1957), it was found that with 4 degrees of freedom, the value of X2 at the .05 level was 9.488, the null hypothesis has been rejected. Due to the rejection of the null hypothesis; Ho:l, the alternative hypothesis, H:l has been accepted. That is, if the null hypothesis has been rejected, it has been generally resolved that the populations are not equal. Thus, the academic achievements in the pre-university English course by Groups A, B, C, D and E are significantly different. Inspection of the Ts (totals) of the Groups A, B, C, D and E indicate the possibilities of meaningful gaps between Groups .A and the cluster BCD and between the cluster BCD and Group E. However, the nature of the data and ranking does not allow the employment of methods such as Tukey's procedure for evaluating significant gaps (Edwards, 1957). The idea of performing individual rank tests between any two groups was considered. S9 - Hm>me Ho. u a we» pm pcmofimecmam we mmem.ea co msam> m cm were ssm.me we Ho. n a you sausage co awesome a nun; ax no maam> was .. .IIIImeppmnuu .. a . Aa+cva mmem.ea u Aemvm Amo.eommmvafl n Aaucvm .dwmw «a n m www.mema mam.aoas H.3mms m.mmam m.memma ems m.mma m.mmm Ham mam 43m 9 m.ma 0 mm a mm a m.ae m mm m m.ma u m.ma o m.m m m.ma o m.se m m.wH o m.ma +n mm a m.ma 0 mm a m.mm +n mm a mm a m.m m m.se m a +m m.mm +6 m.ma o m.mm +9 m.me o m.m m m.ea o m.mH o m.ma 0 am .0 m.oe o e -m mm m m.se m m.ma o m.ea 0 mm m mm a m.ma 0 mm m m.m m m.me 0 mm a m.ma o m.s4 m m.ma 0 mm a m.ma o m.maa o m.se m A>nov:fiumcoqv m Acsonmv a A>eoDCHIunonmv o Anouuodv m Aaonucoov a owumwpmum 3 mo onam> toumasoamo use some muoohoom cop Suez m one .Q .0 .m .a masono pom mxcmm new moooeo N mflnme _ 50 - However, the nature of the study and the sample size did not warrant this kind of involvement. It was felt that the use of the H statistic showing significant results and appropriate conclusions would be more satisfactory than extending procedures beyond the warranted limits of this study. Hypothesis Ho:2 To assess the amount of change in self-concept among Groups A, B, C, D and E, the pre- and the post-test scores on the five scales of the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) were used. Each of the five scales were treated inde- pendently. As an initial step, an analysis of variance procedure was employed with the pre-test scores to test the null hypotheses Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d, and Ho:2c. Tables 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 present the summaries of the analysis of variance for Groups A, B, C, D and E on the five CPI scales; Dominance, Sociability, Social Presence, Self- Acceptance and Sense of Well-being, for the pre-test scores. Included in these tables are the F values for the respective tests with 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. Inspection of these tables tell us that there were no F values that reached the .05 significance level. Thus, for the pre-testing of the five CPI scales, the null hypotheses; Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d and Ho:2e have been accepted. There were no significant differences among Groups A, B, C, D, and E on the five CPI scales for the pre-testing. Thus, Analysis of Variance of pre-test scores on the Dominance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. _ 31 - Table 3 Source of Variations Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups .12 4 .03 Within Groups 410.3 45 9.1177 Total 410.42 Significant values of F with F = .03 = .0032 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 9.1177 001 " 3.785 005 " 20585 Table 4 Analysis of Variance of pre-test scores on the Sociability Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups .28 4 .007 Within Groups 407.5 45 9.0555 Total 407.78 Significant values of F with P = .007 = .0007 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 9.6555 col " 30785 .05 - 2.585 -62- Table 5 Analysis of Variance of pre-test scores on the Social Presence Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 6.52 4 1.63 Within Groups 396.60 45 8.8133 Total 403.12 Significant values of POWithi F = 1.63 = .1849 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 808133 .01 - 30785 005 - 2.585 Table 6 Analysis of Variance of pre-test scores on the Self-Acceptance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 5.48 4 1.37 Within Groups 145.9 45 3.2422 Total 151.38 Significant values ofiF With F = 1.37 = .4225 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 3.2422 .01 - 3.785 005 - 20585 _ 63 - Table 7 Analysis of Variance of pre-test scores on the Sense of Well-being Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E. _ Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Maan Squares ___—- Between Groups 33.20 4 8.3 Within Groups 233.90 45 5.1977 Total 267.20 Significant values of P with .3 = 1.5968 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. .1977 .01 - 3.785 005 - 20585 in terms of the instrument used to measure self-concept, the mean scores of Groups A, B, C, D and E were not significantly different on the pre-testing. The above results paved the way for the second step in testing the major hypothesis Ho:2. The second step was the testing of the null sub-hypotheses; Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i, and Ho:2j by the employment of analysis of variance on the results of the post-testing of the five CPI scales. Tables 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 present the summaries of the analysis of variance for Groups A, B, C, D and E of the post- test scores on the five utilized scales of the CPI. The F values have also been included for the respective tests. _ 64 _ Table 8 Analysis of Variance of post-test scores on the Dominance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df. Mean Squares Between Groups 32.92 4 8.320 Within Groups 360.70 45 8.0155 Total 393.62 Significant va-ues of P with F = 8.230 = 1.0267 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 8.0155 .01 - 3.785 .05 - 2.585 Table 9 Analysis of Variance of post-test scores on the Sociability Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 10.6 4 2.650 Within Groups 469.40 45 10.4311 Total 480.00 Significant values of Piwith P = 2.650 = .2540 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 10.4311 .01 - 3.785 .05 - 2.585 _ 55 _ Table 10 Analysis of Variance of post-test scores on the Social Presence Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 18.08 4 4.5200 Within Groups 327.30 45 7.2733 Total 345.38 Significant values of F with F = 4.5200 = .6214 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 7.2733 .01 - 3.785 .05 - 2.585 Table 11 Analysis of Variance of post-test scores on the Self-Acceptance Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 30.92 4 7.7300 Within Groups 140.60 45 3.1244 Total 171.52 Significant values of F with F = 7.7300 = 2.4740 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 3.1244 .01 - 3.785 .05 - 2.585. .27_u.—;r:—.-z':_.. -2 ' z-w w-a-r- - 66 _ Table 12 Analysis of Variance of post-test scores on the Sense of Well-being Scale of the CPI for Groups A, B, C, D and E. Source of Variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares Between Groups 12.92 4 3.230 Within Groups 289.50 45 6.4333 Total 302.42 Significant values of’F with F - 3.230 = .5020 (NS) 4 and 45 degrees of freedom. 6.4333 .01 - 3.785 005 "' 2.585 Inspection of these tables indicate that the F values for the five CPI scales did not reach the .05 level of confidence. Thus, the null hypotheses; Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i and Ho:2j have been accepted. There were no significant differences in the mean scores of Groups A, B, C, D and E on the five scales of the CPI for the post-testing. The findings of the analysis of variance tests have indicated that there were no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the CPI scales on the pre- testing. The findings of the analysis of variance tests have also indicated that there was no differences in the mean scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E on the CPI scales in the post- testing scores. These acceptances of the ten null sub-hypotheses; Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d, Ho:2e, Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i and _ 57 _ Ho:2j support the acceptance of the second major null hypothesis; Ho:2. There were no significant differences in the amount of change of self-concept among Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by the five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. Summary of the Results The significant results of this study have been summarized as follows: I Ho:l was rejected. It was found that there were signifi- cant differences in the amount of academic achievement among Groups A, B, C, D and E in the pre-university English class. The order of success in the pre-university English class of Groups A, B, C, D and E was in the following order of the least success to the greatest success: 1. Group A; whose subjects had no planned contact with the student personnel office. 2. Group C; whose subjects participated in fifteen weekly 10-minute supportive interviews. 3. Group D; whose subjects participated in fifteen weekly 40-minute group supportive counseling sessions. 4. Group B; whose subjects received fifteen weekly supportive letters at their homes. 5. Group E; whose subjects participated in fifteen weekly 40-minute individual counseling sessions. The general trend was that academic success in the pre- university class was associated with the amount of contact in a supportive-counseling situation. Group A, which had no planned contact, had the least amount of academic achieve- ment. There was no interruption in this trend. The academic success associated with Group B, the group that received the -68... supportive letters in the home did fall out of this trend. This interruption will be discussed in Chapter V. II. Ho:2 was accepted. It was found that there were no significant differences in the amount of change of self- concepts among Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by the California PsycholOgical Inventory. Ho:2 was accepted on the basis that all ten of the null sub-hypotheses; Ho:2a, Ho:2b, Ho:2c, Ho:2d, Ho:2c, Ho:2f, Ho:2g, Ho:2h, Ho:2i, and Ho:2j, were accepted. It was found that there were no significant differences in the mean scores on the five scales of the CPI for the pre-test scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E. It was also found that there were no significant differences in the mean scores on the five scales of the CPI for the post-test scores among Groups A, B, C, D and E. If there were no differences in the pre-test means and no differences in the post-test means, then it is adequate to say that there was no difference in the amount of change of self-concept among the control Group A and the four experimental Groups; B, C, D and E. Chapter V I Summary, Discussion of Results, Conclusions, and Implications Summary The primary purposes of this study were to investigate differences in academic achievement in a pre-university English class, and the changes in self-concept of "unsuccessful" community- junior college students who possessed a measured low self-concept. Matriculation in the pre-university English course has been accompanied by one of five types of supportive relationships: A. No contact with student personnel worker. B. The receiving of fifteen weekly supportive letters from the student personnel office in the home. C. Participation in fifteen weekly ten-minute supportive interviews. D. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute supportive counseling sessions. E. Participation in fifteen weekly 40-minute individual supportive counseling sessions. Five groups of ten, low-achieving, male community college freshmen were matched in terms of scores on an English placement test, high school background in English, and a writing sample. They were also screened on five scales of the self-report Cali- fornia Psychological Inventory to complete the matching process. These students were placed in the pre-university English course and participated in one of the five supportive relationships above. _ 69 - - 70 - There were two independent major hypotheses evaluated: Ho:l There will be no differences in the academic achieve- ment in the pre-university English class among the five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E. Ho:2 There will be no differences in the amount of change in selfeconcept among five groups of subjects; Groups A, B, C, D and E, as measured by five scales of the California Psychological Inventory. The second major hypothesis was broken down into ten sub- hypotheses testing the differences in the self-concept scores among the five groups of subjects on each of the five CPI scales for both the pre- and post-test scores. The CPI scales used were: Dominance, Sociability, Social Presence, Self-Acceptance, and Sense of Well-being. The end of course grades in the pre-university English course were used to calculate the nonparametric H statistic developed by Kruskal and Wallis to evaluate Ho:l. An analysis of variance of the pre- and post-test scores on the five scales of the California PsycholOgical Inventory was employed to evaluate the ten sub-hypotheses; Ho:2a ... Ho:2j and thus evaluating the second major hypothesis, Ho:2. At the end of one semester, the duration of the experimental period, there were significant differences in the academic achieve- ment among the five study groups in the pre—university English class. These differences were in the following order: Group A, the control group, had the least achievement. Group C, the short interview students; and Group D, the group-counseled students, were next in order. Group B, the recipients of - 71 - supportive letters in the home, had the second greatest academic success. Group E, the students that received the 40-minute supportive counseling sessions,had the greatest academic achieve- ment. The trend was generally that academic achievement was associated with the amount of supportive counselor involve- ment. The one interruption in this trend was the relative amount of academic success associated with the supportive letters sent to the home. The results of the analysis of variances failed to show significant differences in self-concept scores among the five samples on the five scales of the CPI for both the pre- and the post-testings. Thus, the ten sub-hypotheses; Ho:2a ... Ho:2j were accepted; and, in turn, the major null hypothesis, Ho:2, was accepted. There were no significant differences in the amount of change in self-concept as measured by the CPI among Groups A, B, C, D and E. The level of significance on which the hypotheses were accepted or rejected was P = .05. A brief summary of the results of this study: 1. Differences were found in the academic achievement in the pre-university English class among the sample groups participating in different kinds of supportive counseling experiences. 2. There were no differences found in the amount of change in self-concept among the sample groups as measured by the California Psychological Inventory. - 72 _ Discussion of Results: The result that there was a significant difference in the achievements in the pre-university English course between Groups A, B, C, D and E, is not entirely satisfying. At the same time, the nature of the study, the sample sizes and the non-parametric method used to find this difference does not warrant further manipulation of the data for statistical inferences. However, an inspection of the sums of ranks for Groups A, B, C, D and E reveal a meaningful trend. Table 13 given these sums of ranks with a general trend of high to low corresponding inversely to the amount of supportive counselor involvement. Table 13 indicates that the control group, which received no special counselor contact, had the lowest academic achieve- ment in the pre-university English class. While Group E, which received the greatest amount of counselor contact per individual, had the greatest academic achievement. This was the general expectation of the study; as the student began to receive support, he would turn this support into motivation for academic effort. This expectation was born out by the results. . However when we inspect the sums of ranks for Groups B, C, and D, this general trend of more counselor involvement - better grades, has been interrupted. The order of success for these three groups, in terms of academic achievement, was Group B, Group D, and then Group C. This seems to be in reverse of the general expected trend. Group B, which received the suppor- tive letters and had no planned counselor contact, received - 73 - Table 13 Sums of ranks for grades in pre-university English for Groups A, B, C, D and E W Group Counselor Involvement Sums (T) of Ranks A Control - no special contact 364 15 weekly supportive letters B sent to homes 227 15 weekly lO-minute individual C supportive interviews 281 15 weekly 40-minute group D supportive counseling sessions 261 15 weekly 40-minute individual E supportive counseling sessions 136 higher grades than Groups C and D, which had planned counselor involvement. If we were to take another approach to comparing the academic achievement of the five groups, this middle group trend inter- ruption becomes even more evident. Calculation of the number of deficient grades received by each group (D+ or below), offers another picture of this trend interruption. Table 14 shows the number of grades, D+ or below, received by each of the five study groups. Table 14 also acknowledges that Group A has the lowest academic achievement and Group E has the highest academic achieve- ment. The difference between the academic success of Groups B, C, and D are somewhat more exaggerated by this approach than by - 74 - Table 14 Number and percentage of deficient grades in pre-university English of Groups A, B, C, D, and E. Number of D+ or Group Counselor Involvement Below Grades A Control - no special contact 7 - 70% 15 weekly supportive letters B sent to the home 3 - 30% 15 weekly lO-minute individual C supportive interviews 6 - 60% 15 weekly 40-minute group D supportive counseling sessions 6 - 60% 15 weekly 40-minute individual E supportive counseling sessions 1 - 10% the H test involved in the statistical analysis. But for the purpose of the discussion of results, this added approach is helpful. The results of the academic achievements of Groups B, C, and D, have lead to the speculation that several other factors, as well as counselor involvement, may have played influencing roles. The relative amount of academic success associated with the supportive letters sent to the home may have been due to the motivational influences not only on the student, but also on other members of the family. There is the possibility that parents may have read the letters and in turn responded as motivational support through the student personnel office of _ 75 - the college and through the home-situation at the same time. This is entirely plausible due to the consistent influence the home environment has on academic achievement. The relative lack of academic success associated with the short ten-minute interviews may have been influenced by the lack of a genuine relationship between the counselor and the student. It was noticed by the counselor that the students responded to the materials presented in an attentive way; but there was little time for the student to respond to the situation. Whereas, in the 40-minute counseling sessions, the students were able to project themselves and the materials presented into situations. In many cases the counselor preceived that the students felt that coming to the ten-minute interview was an unnecessary burden for such a short interview. The lack of time may not have allowed for a supportive relationship to become established. The relative lack of academic success in pre-university English, associated with the group interviews, was similar to that success associated with the short individual interviews. This approach, at first glance, would seem to offer a student with poor self- concepts an adequate chance to re-evaluate his self-evaluations. However, observations made by the counselor in the group inter- views indicated that the students continued to be poor relators and somewhat inhibited throughout the total fifteen sessions. As an indication of their continuation toward being "loners," they preferred to use name tags during all of the sessions because they felt that they did not know each other's name - 75 - well enough to remove them. Speculation in this situation was that students who tended to be inhibited in group activity continued to be inhibited in group activity of this size. They possibly continued to see this group as somewhat threatening as all previous groups had been in the past. They may have been more concerned about pre- serving what self-worth they had rather than putting themselves into the situations presented to them. The student responses in this group situation remained quite superficial as opposed to the student response and involvement in the 40-minute individual counseling sessions. This tended to be so even as the depth of the material presented was the same. It seemed that a student with a low self-concept level had much more difficulty relating in a group situation than with a single individual. He perhaps saw the professionally-trained counselor as less threatening than a group of his own peers. In terms of academic success, the results of this study tends to support the pilot study. Supportive counseling of community college students with limited academic skills and low self-concepts can be associated with significant differences in academic success. The greatest achievement tended to be associated with the longer (40-minute) individual counselor interviews. The least amount of achievement tended to be associated with no planned counselor contact. In terms of academic success, when viewed with concern for the amount of counselor time involvement, the supportive letters _ 77 - sent to the home have presented some interesting results. These results will be taken up again in a latter part of this chapter when dealing with the implications of this study for community- junior colleges. The results of the analysis of variance for both the pre- and post-test scores on the California Psychological Inventory indicated that there were no significant differences to be associated with Groups A, B, C, D, or E. With these results, several speculations have appeared for discussion. One speculation is that it seems only logical that academic achievement is much more immediately responsive to supportive counseling than basic personality structure. This does not infer that basic personality changes cannot be brought about by supportive counseling, but it does infer that academic success is much easier to evaluate than basic. This will be re-emphasized in the conclusions section of this paper. A second speculation is that possibly the temporal limita- tions of this study (eighteen weeks) did not allow enough time for measurable changes to occur. The notion that there have been measurable changes in personalities of college students has been established by research (Webster, Freedman, and Herst, 1962). Yet the studies where more significant changes in personality have taken place have been typically longitudinal studies of two to four more years in duration. One final speculation to be presented is that possibly changes in basic personality did occur, but the instrumentation _ 73 - used to measure these changes was not adequate to record these changes. The reviewers of the California Psychological Inventory have indicated the CPI's ability to differentiate personality traits, but there has been no mention of its ability to measure change in personality (Buros, 1959). Summarizing these speculations, there could have been a possible working together of all three concerns that have brought up about the results of no change in self-concept as measured by the California Psychological Inventory. The illusiveness of personality change, the temporal limitations of the study, and the weaknesses of personality inventories may have all contributed to the results. In the long run, the outstanding contribution of the California Psychological Inventory in this study may not have been its ability to measure change but what could be more important is the identification of students who have the greatest potential for failure. Conclusions Within the limitations imposed by the nature of this study, the nature of the samples, and the temporal considerations of this study, the following conclusions were reached: 1. Supportive counseling can be effective in improving the amount of academic success of community college freshmen with poor academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts. The significant results of this study indicated that supportive counseling was effective in improving the academic - 79 - achievements of students with limited academic backgrounds. The level of the relationship is the important aspect in this conclusion. The fact that the community college is typically an institution for instruction and typically understaffed with personnel trained in "depth therapy," the relative straight forwardness of the supportive approach has a practical advantage. Thus the supportive approach used in this study, being more centered in the instructional experiences of the student, holds promise for the community-junior college. 2. Any planned positive supportive relationship with the college student personnel office is associated with greater academic achievement than no planned supportive contact with students having poor academic background and poor self-concepts. The amount of academic achievement recorded by Group A, the control group, was consistent with the findings of the pilot study discussed in Chapter III. In terms of students who were successful, the percentage was only 30%. When we look at the percentage of successful students in the experimental groups there was a range of 40% to 90% (Table 14). These values indicate the above conclusion to be generally appropriate. Percentages can be deceiving when dealing with a small sample of ten subjects. 80 we can inquire as to the meaningful differ- ence between 40% success and 30% success, with some question. However, as we return to the T values of Table 2, we can see that the Kruskal-Wallis statistic tends to give us a different picture of the gap between Group A and Groups B, C, D and E. - 3o - 3. Changes in academic achievement are more readily effected than measurable changes in self-concept by supportive counseling of community college fresh- men with poor academic backgrounds and poor self- concepts. The significant results of this study support the above con- clusion. There were significant differences in the academic achievements among Groups A, B, C, D and E. There were no measurable differences in the amount of change in self-concept by the instrumentation employed. The acceptance of the implied assumption that the classroom instructor's grade evaluations are valid measures of success in that respective course, it is relatively obvious that achievement of specific course objectives are more readily accomplished. Changes in self-concept continues to be a more complex activity requiring more refined instrumenta- tion and temporal experiences. 4. When the known supportive variables are considered, the short individual supportive interviews and the group supportive counseling sessions have less academic association than the longer individual supportive counseling sessions. The significant findings of this study support this conclusion. However, we must stay close to limitations of this study and preserve a clear understanding of the experimental approaches involved. 5. In terms of counseling personnel time-energy involve- ment, supportive letters sent to the homes of students with poor academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts offers a fruitful source of counseling staff time- energy economy. The results of this study supported this conclusion. There was no planned direct contact with a student personnel worker _ 31 - by the subjects of Group B. There was a period of pre-planning the composing of the supportive letters. The sending of the letters and the keeping of a response tally was kept by the secretary of the Office of Student Personnel Services. If a student did not respond by returning the postal card, he re- ceived a telephone call from the secretary, reminding him to do so. The relative amount of academic success associated with the supportive letters, 70% passing in pre-university English, as compared to 90% passing with the individual 40-minute suppor- tive counseling sessions, leads us to make the above conclusion. It seems reasonable to feel that there are possibilities of conserving some counseling time and energies by the use of supportive letters. One hundred and fifty (150) counseling hours were spent on Group E in direct contact while there were no planned direct contact hours with Group B. The contact- success ratio here is obvious. The significant results of this study, along with two implied assumptions of this study: A. Identification of students with poor academic back- grounds and poor self-concepts is an essential initial factor in assisting students who have great potential for failure. B. Proper course in terms of academic strengths and weaknesses is essential to assisting students who have great potential for failure. These assumptions have loaned some credence to the idea that the community-junior college can become an "Open Door" college. Proper identification, pr0per course placement, accompanied by _ 32 - supportive counseling can give students with poor academic backgrounds and poor self-concepts successful educational experiences in the community-junior college. The results of this study indicate that through insight into the academic limitations of students plus some insight into a student's self-perception level or their ideas of themselves, steps toward academic success can be made. The "Open Door" of the community-junior college does not have to be the entrance to an unsuccessful educational experience for students with poor academic backgrounds and poor measure self-concepts. Limitations of the Study One of the major limiting factors of this study has been just discussed in the previous pages of this paper. There has been a certain level of caution placed on extending the results of this study beyond its duration setting by its temporal short- ness. A study of more longitude, no doubt, could have made a better plea for more definite findings. Thus a similar study, checking academic success and changes in self-concept at the end of a two-year time period rather than one eightEen-weeks semester, would be more meaningful. The findings of this study must be seen in terms of the limitations placed on it by its relatively small sample size. Ten subjects in each group is not an exceptionally large sample, but at the same time, the nature of the study did not call for samples of 1,000 in each group. One possible positive consideration f {7" m- _ 33 _ that could be given to the sample size is that the differences found had to be relatively obvious to be significant. With large samples the difference in terms of achievement could be statistically significant; yet at the same time, inconsequential to the needs of the study or an individual student. Two additional limitations placed on the findings can be found in the fact that all of the subjects were male and that the study took place in one educational institution. Some caution must be exercised in extending these findings to females even within the same institution. This same consideration must be kept in mind when extending the findings to community- junior colleges whose English programs may not be equated to the pre-university English course of this study. There should be an awareness of the fact that all of the contact supportive interviews were conducted by the same counselor. The results of this study could well have been partially an evaluation of a single counselor's ability to work effectively in various approaches to supportive counseling. The evaluations of the electronic recordings of the contact interviews mentioned earlier was an attempt to offset this limitation, but it did not remove it entirely. The selection criteria for sample groups tend to place some limitations on extending results beyond the samples as a population. There should be an awareness of just What is meant by students of low academic skills, yet having average academic potential. Thus, when discussing Don X, care should - - 34 _ be taken that all parties have essentially the same descrip- tion of Don X. This same concern should be held when discuss- ing Don X as a student with low self-concepts. When talking about changes in self-concept, operational criteria should be clarified before extending the results of this study to other groups of community-junior college students. The outstanding enlightenment of this study has been, in spite of its limitations, that successful educational experiences can be given to students who under less favorable circumstances would be college drop—outs. Implications for the Community-junior College Because of the "Open Door" policy of admissions, the community-junior colleges of our nation will consistently have Don X's on their door steps. Students that have limited academic skills, low self-concepts, and destined to failure will be continuing to seek educational experiences in community- junior colleges. In the past, the "Open Door" of the community- junior colleges have been to many students much less than salvation portals or spring boards to a successful learning experience. These "Open Doors" have been the seduction end of a gigantic wind tunnel; a wind tunnel that sucks the student in one end and blows him out the other end. This predictable continuation of unpleasant educational experiences, for any single student, does not say many positive things about the "American Dream" through education or the supporters of obtaining _ 35 - the "American Dream" through education. This study has positive implications for improving the chances for Don X to gain a successful educational experience in the community-junior college. The outcome of this study indicates that students with limited academic skills and low self-concepts can be successful students. This study has the following basic implications for the community-junior colleges that admit Don X's to their programs: 1. Don X should be identified in terms of his academic skills and his general learning potential. 2. Don X should be identified in terms of his self- concepts, his sense of self-worth, and in terms of his educational aspirations. 3. Don X should be presented with a realistic opportunity to repair his deficiencies in learning skills within the limits of a reasonable community-junior college curriculum. 4. Don X should be given an opportunity through a genuine supportive counselor relationship to re-evaluate his sense of self-worth, to have assistence in interpretting his educational experiences, and to have a positive relationship with someone representing the educational institution. A second area of implication that this study has for the community-junior college comes from the relative amount of academic success that was associated with the supportive letters sent to the homes of Group B. One of the major problems in student personnel programs in the community-junior colleges today is the lack of trained professional counselors. This has been brought out by Raines (1966) in an earlier part of this paper. There is no doubt that giving Don X fifteen hours _ 33 _ of professional time each semester is a very expensive situa— tion in terms of counselor time and salaries paid to these counselors. Thus, the lack of trained personnel and the expen- siveness of these personnel makes a bid for some consideration of the relative effectiveness of the supportive letters. How much of the academic success associated with the letters that could be attributed to the Hawthorne effect (Attention-paying effect) can only be roughly estimated. Yet, the differences between the academic success associated with the letters and that success associated with the short individual interviews and the group interviews give some favorable meaning to the letters. The implication presented to the community-junior college by the relative amount of success associated with the supportive letters is that in terms of staff involvement, the letters may be as fruitful as the longer individual interviews. Perhaps a combination of the supportive letters and fewer 40-minute interviews would be an ideal compromise. This leads to the next section of this paper. Implications for Further Research The limitations of this study present a whole host of implications for further research in this area of Don X. Since there has been very little previous research done in this area of student personnel services of the community-junior college (Raines, 1966), the value of this study may be as positive in _ 37 _ its implications for more research as it is in its general findings. The implications for further study have been categorized and numbered for ease of presentation. 1. 2. S. The same questions that we have about Don X are also worthy questions to ask about Donna X. There are female students who also have limited academic skills and low self-concepts. Would female students respond to supportive techniques as male students? The subjects involved in this study were students who had poor self-concepts. These were students who were more docile and were quite accepting. It seems that this study may have different results with low-achiev- ing students who may over estimate themselves and be somewhat hostile to support. Students scoring on the upper ends of the CPI could offer interesting differences. The possibility of using several counselors with larger samples to check the effects of counselor personality and counselor skill on the various approaches. The implication is that could the results be a matter of approach or a matter of a particular counselor’s effectiveness at various approaches. This study was concerned with only the results of the English 100 grades. It would prove interesting to record the achievement of the samples in the other courses in which they participated. It would seem that there would be a carry-over into the other courses because of the nature of support. There seems to be a need to study Don X and the approaches over a longer period of time. Perhaps the academic successes at the end of two years would be more meaning— ful than at the end of one semester. Perhaps there would be some significant changes in self-concepts over a longer period of time. Perhaps other instrumentation that measure self-concepts and motivation level would prove more fruitful than the CPI. The relative success of the supportive letters sent to the home in this study indicates further possibilities for studies in counselor time economy. The use of limited contact in the home plus planned counselor _ 33 - contact offers some possibilities for research. More insight into the influences of the supportive and motivational factors in the home offers a whole avenue for community-junior college research. One concern is given by the writer to those persons Who may have an interest in replicating this study; an insight into the sample, approaches, instrumentation and the class- room procedures of English 100 is a must. Any changes in any of these areas must be understood as contamination of the replication. The general results of this study; that students with limited academic skills and low self-concepts can have academic success through proper classroom placement and supportive counseling exPeriences, have several questions to ask community-junior colleges. What are they doing for Don X if the front door is open to him? What are the reason- able responsibilities of the community-junior college to assist its most highly potential drop-out toward a successful educational experience? 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Gilbert, Student Personnel Work ip_College, Ronald Press, New York, 1951, pp. 420-421. ‘l [“Ikl APPENDIX Supportive Letters Sent to Homes of Group B - 100 - September 29, 1965 Dear You are to be personally congratulated for taking the step you are taking. Our world and society tells us that education is the way toward achieving and retaining both personal and public freedom. Education has lifted the bonds of ignorance and mis- fortune, not only for individuals but for whole nations. You have started this process by beginning your college experience. Congratulations again, for not everyone has the insight that you have shown -- that education is your key to the future. We all recognize that personal freedom carries with it responsi- bilities, and that obtaining an education is not the incurring of a magic spell. There will be some hard work ahead; yet, what worthy things are not won but by hard work! We here at Muskegon County Community College feel that you are capable of accepting the responsibilties of an education. During this semester you will be receiving a letter from the Dean of Student Personnel each week. You are requested to read these letters and return the enclosed postcard with your signa- ture to the Dean of Student Personnel. It has been said that each man grows by accepting his educa- tional responsibilities. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. (l) -. .A‘... " - lOl - October 6, 1965 Dear At one time, in the history of our world, it was said that man did not plan to sail his ship to the stars, only use them to guide his way from one port to another. However, due to successful technical achievements that have come one step at a time, the goal of sailing a ship to the stars has become more and more realistic. Now man is taking close-up pictures of Mars! Thus, remote and distant goals become realistic and obtainable as success is achieved step by step. It is sometimes like learning to swim. We do not become Olympic stars our first time in the pool. We become champions one step at a time. Gaining an education or succeeding in personal life goals is much the same process. You know you want an education and you want to become a successful techniciang, teacher or buéinessman. These goals become more realistic and obtainable as we gain achievement one step at a time. The successful completion of each individual task, assignment or examination brings us closer to our desired goals. At the same time, desired goals become more realistic. REALISTIC GOALS ARE OBTAINABLE' The common sense approach is to strive for achievement in each task, no matter how simple or how small. The man that understands this process can gain his individual goals. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR (2) - 102 - October 13, 1965 Dear The one idea that most men have that tends to hold them down in the world more than anything else is that they personally have no skill or ability. This idea has defeated the lives of hundreds upon thousands of potentially successful men. It is interesting to observe lower forms of animal life about us that thrive and grow and complete successful life experiences. To a certain extent, they have an advantage over man. They do not seem to be plagued with the conviction that they cannot compete with the world about them. Man, with all of his physical and mental advantages, often loses sight of his basic skills and abilities. One of the most fundamental of these skills and abilities is the ability to learn. It may be true that some men seem to learn more and faster, but some men practice learning. The most important concept here is that we all have the ability to learn: We all have this ability in some form. The question that should be asked is not, do I have skills, but how much doxI practice using my basic ability to learn! All men have been given skills. Whether this has been a Divine Plan or a law of nature -- the fact still stands: All men have the ability to learn. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR (3) - 108 - October 20, 1965 Dear When we examine the basic traits of successful people, we find two common traits. One is the understanding that there is no short cut for hard work. The second is the sense of sincerity they have for their work and the people about them. It is amazing the number of men who never reach their maximum potential because of the wasted energy utilized in looking for the eternal shortcut or the easy way out. For in reality much of life is like the little boy sitting on his bed crying because he can't find his shoes. He is expecting his shoes to come to him! A little common sense tells us that the boy is wasting energy and time in his approach. Yet, many times we, as more mature people, approach our challenges in the same way. When a person wants to learn how to swim, the first thing is to be sincere about that desire. If one is sincere about wanting this, then the next step is into the water and hard work. Certainly, we start in the shallow end of the pool. But we cannot become a successful swimmer without lots of hard work and getting wet. Success in all phases of life has this same pattern -- be sincere about wanting success and then go after success with hard work. Success cannot find a man who sits still and hides from it. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR (4) -104- October 27, 1965 Dear If there is a shortage of one thing in our world for mankind, it is time. The man with time on his hands is either very foolish or very dead. The basis of the economic structure of our world is the productive man-hour. No matter what talent or skill a man has, he is not reimbursed wholly on the basis of these skills or talents. He is rewarded in terms of the time he spends putting his skills and talents to productive use. Yet, the greatest human waste in any individual's life is the waste of time. It would do each of us a great deal of good to evaluate our personal use of time. There seems to be no in between about the use of time; we are either wasting it or using it wisely. This does not mean that every moment must be utilized in a frenzied pursuit of ficticious busy work. What it does say is that one must observe time as a human asset and not a by-product to be squandered. Since you, as a student, own a certain amount of time, you should treat it with respect. You should decide whether your use of time is working for you or against you. Time can make you money while you are in college in terms of learning. You are working for yourself in college. How much time do you have on your hands? Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel enc. TR PLEASE BE SURE TO RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (S) — 105 - November 3, 1965 Dear In the last letter, we discussed time as an important asset. Now, we will consider a partner asset: -- the willingness to plan. In the economic world of business and in our private lives, planning is profit. If one is building a large build- ing, plans are essential, and when one is looking forward to future personal goals, planning is necessary for self-discipline. Just the relatively simple process of planning onefs daily schedule is a step toward personal profit. Let's take a little inventory! Do you know what you will be doing tomorrow night at 9:00 P.M.? Do you know how many hours you studied last week? Do you have specific hours set aside for study- ing this week? If you can say yes to the above questions, then you are on your way to success. If you find that you can't answer these questions, then let's start here. We can begin by setting up a daily schedule of how we will spend our time -- hour by hour. We should give ourselves about forty hours outside of class each week for studying, if we are full time students. You will be surprised about the amount of time you have to turn into profit. Planning in profit! Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel enc. TR PLEASE BE SURE AND RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (6) - 106 - November 10, 1965 Dear We have heard this said several times, "He won by a nose!" When we look behind this saying we see that it tells us that winning success is often a matter of just a very little bit. But we recognize that this little bit represents effort. In terms of our individual lives, success is often represented by just a little bit of growth. Individual improvement, no matter how slight, is the key to total success. Many times we see our own efforts and success in terms of the apparent success of other people. We often make hasty and false judgments about ourselves. Things are more realistic if we measure our own success in terms of our own individual growth. The completion of any single task, no matter how small, contributes toward growth and thus toward personal success. Many times we want to accomplish lifetime goals overnight. What we must constantly remember is lifetime success is a combination of many little successes and one inch of growth at a time. We should view all growth as success and judge our growth in terms of where we were, not where other people are. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (7) -107- November 17, 1965 Dear You and I would agree that the belief in magic and magic spells has long been replaced by common sense and experience. However, when we inspect the behavior patterns of many people, we find a belief held that is very similar to magic. This is the over dependence on this thing called luck. Most people do not come right out and say that they hold luck as an idol, but their behavior speaks for them. They stand around waiting for great things to happen to them. They constantly say to themselves, "One of these days I will get lucky." ‘3 The world is full of examples of men who are still waiting for their "ship to sail in." There is a power within the reach of every man that is much more productive than luck -- it is persistence. Most of the great accomplishments attained by men have not been won by luck, or sheer intelli- gence or by chance. They have gained by planned persistence, by the willingness to continue striving even at the point of personal hardship. Let's survey our own feelings about luck. Are we dependent on luck? Or do we allow our persistence to create success? We will never know the true extent of our success unless we are persistent. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (8) !|u|lll|!\‘ - 108 - November 24, 1965 Dear There is a psychological concept that has a great deal of meaning for us. This is the concept of the "Neurotic Paradox." In Operational terms, it suggests that we as men are more often attracted to situations that are immediately rewarding; even if in the long run they are harmful to us. An example of this is the fact that we sometimes eat more than we should, because the food tastes good, but at the same time, it may lead to discomfort and overweight. As students, we are often caught up in this same struggle. We find that going to the movie or watching TV is somewhat more satisfying immediately than studying, yet we know in the long run that studying should be our number one consideration. One of the major steps toward emotional maturation is under- standing and overcoming this "Neurotic Paradox." The honest and sincere weighing of the consequences of our behavior, not only in the terms of immediate rewards, but in terms of life- time goals characterizes the mature individual. How much is your individual behavior based on immediate reward, without concern for long term effects on future goals? Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (9) - lO9 - December 1, 1965 Dear Student: How do we know what we have accomplished in a particular field -- or how do we know what achievements we have made? Some time ago we made a statement that we should measure our achievements, not in terms of an external or outside standard, but in terms of our personal growth. In order that we may evaluate personal growth, we must involve ourselves in the activity of introspection or self-evaluation. Self-evaluation is not always a pOpular activity for us as individuals. As a matter of fact, most of us take ourselves for granted. We would rather let someone else evaluate us. The activity of self-evaluation calls for us to take the attitude that we as individuals count in our world. No state- ment could be more reasonable -- we do count in our world. Then, one of the primary steps toward achievement is the willingness to evaluate ourselves. This may at times be an uncomfortable task; but on the other hand, we may be pleasant- ly surprised. When a person stops to be concerned about him- self, he finds that it is easier to be concerned about others. We cannot measure our achievements, without the process of self-evaluation. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (10) - llO - December 8, 1965 Dear Student: Have you ever had an opportunity to teach a younger person how to ride a bicycle? There is an interesting lesson to be learned by this experience. This lesson is the importance of self-confidence! I have tried this adventure on many occasions. The approach that has been the most successful is the one that instills in the learner a sense of self-confidence. That is the feeling on the part of the learner that he can learn the task in front of him. I have found that if you take the learner to a slight sloping area (preferably grass sod) and give him a shove, he will sail along at least ten to twenty feet. Then there will be a crash of some sorts. But as long as the learner gets at least ten feet of free flight, there builds up a sense of self-confidence that brings him back up the slope. The important aspect of this whole learning experience is the sense of self-confidence and the willingness to give things a try. In some aspects of our lives, we have to be willing to expose ourselves. We must have self-confidence to be successful in the things that are important to us. We may have to start at the bottom of the pile in many of our adventures -- but the belief in one's ability to learn and achieve is essential. The question that is worthwhile is in the form of a challenge. Are you willing to try to gain at least ten feet of free flight and after a crash or two -- go back at at? No one goes through life without one or two crashes. Self- confidence is part of the road to success! Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (ll) - lll - December 15, 1965 Dear Student: There is an overpowering psychological principle that affects all of our lives. That principle is that you and I tend to be what we think we are! And in doing this we are constantly striVIng for a certain amount of consistency. For example, if we think we are a good football player -- we strive to do the things that a good football player does. After several years of honest striving, because of the practice, we become what we think we are. We can see this in many other situations. How about the person who thinks he is a tough guy? He strives to act like a tough guy! After several years practice he is caught in his own idea of what he is. How about the person that feels that he is a bum. He strives to be consistent with the way he feels -- what else can be become but a bum of some sorts. This, then, proposes an interesting situation for us. What do we think we are? Here is a question that is important for us. Have we decided that we are a college student? For if we have, then we will strive to do the things that are consistent with being a college student: Study! You will find that honest study will turn us into a college student! Thus, toward gaining the goals we want. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (12) - 112 - December 22, 1965 Dear Student: Have you ever been upset over something and reacted toward a person in a certain way only to be sorry and aShamed about your behavior at a later time? I feel that this has happened to all of us at least once or twice. No doubt we have been on both sides of this. In our relationships with other people, it pays to understand that we react to each other, in many cases, not in terms of who a person is, but who or what they represent to us. For example, there is a long line at the theater and it is cold outside -- we are apt to be somewhat short with the lady selling tickets. Sometimes when things haven't gone right for us all day, and when we get home, we jump down the throats of our parents and friends. It pays to realize that we are reacting to a situation, but taking it out on people. The same is true on the other end of the rope. Someone says something to you that may hurt you. If we understand that most likely it is said in terms of a person’s feelings about a situation rather than about us as individuals, then we are ahead of the game. A good example of this can be that you are a gas station attendant and I have had nothing but trouble with my car. Your association with my car may be enough for me to say something negative to you. Normally I would not, but because of the situation you are caught in this. When we are evaluating ourselves and others, to understand that we and others may only represent situations rather than ourselves, is an asset. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (l3) - 113 - January 5, 1966 Dear Student: There are several kinds of discipline. Perhaps the kinds of discipline can be set down in two large categories. One cate- gory is the outside or external type that is enforced on an individual. The other is the type of discipline that comes from within an individual -- this is self-discipline. As we survey the lives of successful people, we do not neces- sarily find a heavy force of intellectual minds. What is dis- covered is a sense of self-discipline and a dedication toward forcing oneself to become an improved person. There is a pre- vailing misunderstanding that successful individuals have gained success with relative ease. This is not true! The overwhelming majority of successful people have had to work like horses and constantly fight themselves. This constant fighting with one- self is the area of self-discipline. People use the farmer's philOSOphy of "leading the horse to water but you can't make him drink" with good reason. Where does self-discipline begin? It begins with little things. Simple things like: Do you get yourself up in the morning or do you depend on someone else? Are you in good physical condition? Do you put important things off? Do you skip small courtesies that make a difference? Are you constantly late for appointments? When a person develops self-discipline he never has to concern himself with external enforcement. The reverse of this is also true. Successful people in any area must have self-discipline. Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR . enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (l4) -114- January 12, 1966 Dear Student: This is the final letter in this series that you will be re- ceiving from this office. Over the period of the last fifteen weeks we have discussed several concepts that have been useful to others, and we hOpe to you. We have constantly felt that you have been a person with academic potential and if you have given yourself to the opportunities pro- vided, a measure of success has been your reward. What is success? Let's discuss three aspects of success together. 1. Success is an attitude: When we have gained a positive attitude toward ourselves and the tasks that confront us -- this is success. 2. Success is desire converted to action: When we st0p wasting energy worrying about what we know to be profitable and become engaged in an honest effort toward realistic goals -- this is success. 3. Success is growth: When wePhave improved our position in terms of knowledge and insight, when we have moved ahead -- even in a small way -- this is success. Muskegon County Community College feels that you can continue to be successful. What is your willingness to continue? Sincerely, William G. Schaar, Jr. Dean of Student Personnel TR enc. PLEASE RETURN THE ENCLOSED POSTCARD! (15) __._.——- “‘ "I41111114111