Quantitative Research: Measuring Program Success
Quantitative Research: Measuring Program Success
Travis Karr
MSM 630-Management of Metrics and Measurement
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Quantitative Research: Measuring Program Success
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Quantitative Research: Measuring Program Success
In “Quantitative Methods in Education Research,” researcher Dr. Homan (2006) states
that in the education field, “research has largely moved away from the numbers approach.” The
emphasis in this field has been more on qualitative methods which can incorporate the variables
involved with results on student satisfaction surveys. However, the use of numbers can also be
a very useful tool, as part of a larger project that employs many different methods for a complete
piece of work (Hohman, 2005). This paper describes the importance of quantitative research
showing how this particular study can be applied to establish the objectives of measurement for
a grant funding veteran services within a college system. This paper will show that the use of
quantitative methods provides a way to measure progress of the grant’s objectives to show this
grant’s overall success.
In 2010, Central Community College (CCC) in Nebraska applied for and was awarded
the Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success grant (CEVSS). The CEVSS grant is
financed with the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education within the Department
of Education. CCC was one of only fifteen schools within the nation to receive this highly
competitive grant (Karr, 2013). The overall purpose of this grant is to establish a model
program that supports veteran student success in post-secondary education by coordinating
services that address the academic, financial, physical, and social needs of veteran students
(Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education, 2011). The goals detailed by the Fund for
Improvement of Postsecondary Education to define success rates of the grant were found to be
too vague to conduct proper research on the services implemented. There was no real direction
set to define success of veteran students on campus with this new program. Author Lorraine
Gay (1996) defines quantitative research as the collection of numerical data in order to explain,
predict and/or control phenomena of interest. Looking for the most accurate method of study,
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the grant’s project director determined that a combination of both quantitative and qualitative
research must be implemented to define this program’s success rates.
Although both types of research were utilized, the primary focus became quantitative
methods which helped to provide numerical data on veteran student: contact, enrollment,
participation, persistence, retention, completion, and graduation rates. These numbers were
figured after implementation of newly established veteran services on campus and could be
compared to those of the campus before these services. This data can also be used to compare
CCC to other competing colleges. Quantitative research methods proved more beneficial than
qualitative research methods because they allowed the grant’s director to utilize a larger sample
size of students and provided the director with the ability to analyze both individual services and
the program as a whole.
Quantitative methodology focuses on research that describes, explains, and predicts
success (Cooper & Schindler, 2011). Using quantitative study results, the grant director was
able to formulate three objectives to help define the goals for the new veteran services
implemented on campus. Objective one is for an increase in year to year persistence and
completion rates. The goal for persistence rates is an increase from 47% to 80% and
completion rate from 21% to 60% by 2013. These figures compare rates before and after the
director’s grant-funded veteran services are used. Objective two focuses on increasing the
enrollment of student veterans from a baseline of 175 to at least 834 students by October 2013.
The final objective utilizes a combination of both quantitative and qualitative research to
establish a holistic picture of the veteran service’s success measured by yearly satisfaction
questionnaires. This objective is for increased contact (email, Facebook, meeting with the
student) from 0 to at least 80% by 2013.
Quantitative research methodology is an invaluable resource for CCC’s veteran student
grant director. It produces results that can be used to compare persistence, completion, and
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success rates of veterans who utilize the grant’s services with those who did not. Additionally,
the research has yielded analysis throughout the project allowing the program to produce a
business plan model to identify success factors, measure objective goals and show a return on
investment from each student. Quantitative research produces values that shows the
relationship between variables and helps to define the grant’s overall success now and for years
in the future.
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References
Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2011). Business research methods (11th ed.). New York, NY:
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Gay, L.R. (1996). Educational research; Competencies for analysis and application.(5th ed.).
New Jersey: Prentice Hall
Hohmann, U. (2006) Quantitative methods in education research. Centre for teaching
mathematics, University of Plymouth. Retrieved from
http://www.edu.plymouth.ac.uk/resined/Quantitative/quanthme.htm
Karr, T. (2013). Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success Grant. Retrieved from
Central Community College http://www.cccneb.edu/futurestudents/veterans/veteranstudentsuccessgrant.html
Office of Postsecondary Education. (2011). Centers of Excellence for Veteran Student Success:
Purpose. United States Department of Education. Retrieved from
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/cevss/index.htmlhohman