Principles of Best Practice with
Diverse College Students
UC Irvine
Student Affairs
October, 2008
Main Points
• Questioning assumptions and norms
• Theory and research about key outcomes:
– Student academic success
– Sense of belonging
– Preparation for a diverse workplace/society
Implications for Student Affairs work
The Challenge: Educating Students in
the Context of Inequality
Rationale
• Demographic shifts: 60% of Americans will be
from a distinct racial/ethnic group, CA is diverse
• Student body diversity promotes learning
outcomes, better prepares students for diverse
workplace and society, and better prepares them
as professionals (Sandra Day O’Connor, 2003)
• Economic benefits: Equalizing B.A. degree
attainments across groups will generate billions
in tax revenues and maintains high skill jobs
Maximizing The Benefits of Diversity for
Student Learning and Development
• Changing minds, changing assumptions:
Diversity is an asset, inequality is the
problem/Students are ready to learn
• Concept of “inclusive excellence,” focusing
on student success (AAC&U)
• Attention to multiple forms of a diverse
learning environment, including
representation, perceptions of the climate,
and interactions across groups
Transition and Adjustment to
College
First Year Findings
Theories of Transition
• “Rite of Passage” – Leaving prior relationships
•
•
behind to form new ones (Tinto/Van Ganepp)
Vectors of Student Development-Achieving
Autonomy / Interdependence
(Chickering & Reisser)
Social and academic integration, engagement
• Period of disequilibrium- familiar habits and
routines, automaticity are not viable—yields
stress but also a tremendous learning
opportunity (Ruble, Piaget)
Academic Adjustment: Challenges
• 97% of freshmen expected to make at least a B
•
•
average, but 77% actually reported they did so
(only about 17% reported making A’s)
About 40% reported they were completely
successful adjusting to the demands of college—
6% were unsuccessful
Students thought they were unsuccessful
managing their time 15%, getting to know
faculty 21%, developing effective study skills
11%
Fewer Students Studying 6+ Hours a
Week as High School Seniors
50
30
20
10
6+ Hours Studying
20
05
20
03
20
01
19
99
19
97
19
95
19
93
19
91
19
89
0
19
87
Percentage
40
Transition Conceptual Model
College Entry
Student
Background
Social and Academic First Year
Experiences
Campus Structures that Link
the Social and Academic
Systems (specific programs,
memberships, courses,
advising)
First Year Outcomes
Academic
Development
and Performance
Psychological Sense
of Integration:
Success in Managing
the Academic
Sense of belonging at
the institution
Financial
Concerns
Pre-college
Academic
Achievement
Peer Environment
Quality of cross-racial
friendships
Racial Climate
Competitive Climate
Family as External
Push or Pull
Factor
Hurtado, Chang, Saenz, Espinosa, & Cabrera, (2007).
Predicting Successful Management of the
Academic Environment
Positive
Expects contact with
professors
Ability to manage time
Interaction with TA (URMs)
Social self-concept (URMs)
Academic advising by a
junior/senior peer
Working with academic
advisor to select courses
Hrs/wk studying or
homework
Relevance of coursework
College GPA
Negative
Concern about financing
college
Interfering family
responsibilities
Climate: hostile racially or
competitive
Academic advising by
another freshman peer
(URMs)
Social Adjustment: Too Much or Too
Little?
• 60% were completely successful in developing
•
•
close friendships with other students; 58%
participated in student clubs
Increase in drinking in first year: 62% drank
wine or liquor, 55% drank beer frequently or
occasionally –26% report 6+ hrs/week partying
48% felt lonely or homesick frequently or
occasionally, 35% felt isolated from campus life
Personal/Emotional Adjustment and
Renegotiation of Relationships
• Freshmen survey reflects an all time high of
•
•
parental involvement in college decisions
Family support to succeed is important, but
interfering family responsibilities detract from
academic adjustment and sense of belonging in
college
39% frequently felt overwhelmed by all they had
to do, 31% reported occasional difficulty with
roommates, 13% reported depression
Sense of Belonging/Attachment to the
Institution
• Social cohesion – students have other
choices if they don’t feel a sense of
attachment to the institution
• Research suggests connecting the
academic and social systems to engage
students
• Finding a niche that connects students to
the larger campus environment
Predictors of Sense of Belonging in the
First Year
Positive
Academic advising by a peer
(junior/senior +)
Academic support program
for URMs
Cross racial interactions
Change in ability to conduct
research
Successful management of
the academic
environment
Social self-concept
Family support to succeed
Negative
Interfering family
responsibilities
Perceptions of a hostile
racial climate
Concern about financing
college
Competition
Implications of Research Findings
• Facilitate methods of support and
challenge—disequilibrium is uncomfortable
but a necessary part of growth and
development
• Validating students’ competencies and
ability to overcome challenges
• Racial dynamics within the institution can
undermine college adjustment
Undergraduate Outcomes for a Multicultural
Society
• Pluralistic Orientation – Thinking and
interacting skills for a diverse workforce
and society
• Complex Thinking – Sociohistorical
attributions, multiplicity, contextual
knowing
• Perspective-taking – Ability to see the
world from someone else’s perspective
Informal Peer Interactions and
Campus-facilitated Interactions
Campus Practice
Knowledge about
diverse groups
(curricula)
Diversity co-curricular
activities
Intergroup dialogue
Community service
Quality of informal peer
interactions
Outcome
Complex thinking
Pluralistic orientation
Perspective-taking
All outcomes
Implications of Rethinking Assumptions
Student Affairs Can Shape the Climate for
Learning:
• Creating new expectations/facilitating transition
• Acknowledge multiple demands on student time
• Eliminating hierarchy/increase collaboration
• Intentional facilitation of intergroup relations
• Harnessing the power of the peer group
CIRP Research Reports
First Generation, Black, Asian, & Latina/o
Students—Trends and College Studies
•
Advancing in Higher Education:
A Portrait of Latina/o College Freshmen
at Four Year Institutions, 1975-2006
Sylvia Hurtado, Victor B. Saenz, Jose
Luis Santos, Nolan L. Cabrera
Resources
Higher Education Research Institute—reports on
freshmen and research on students and
faculty: www.heri.ucla.edu
Science students:
www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/nih
JournalsResearch in Higher Education, Journal of Higher
Education, Journal of College Student
Development