Fall 02 Learning Communities data base normed to CIRP and NSSE

2002 CIRP INSTITUTIONAL PROFILE—First-time Full-time*

LC N=84

	LCs	CIRP NEIU 2002		LCs	CIRP
Age: 16 or younger	0%	0%	Average grade in high school:
17	5	0	A	10%	8%
18	30	48	A-	8	9
19	37	46	B+	16	10
20	8	4	B	33	26
21-24	11	2	B-	12	21
25-29	2	0	C+	14	19
30-39	0	0	C	5	7
40-54	5	0	No response	2	--
55 or orlder	2	0

nota bene: Due to small N in LC survey, “true first-time full-time” students were not pulled out of the total.

Student rated self above average or highest 10% as compared with the average person of his/her age in:

LCs	CIRP	NEIU 02	LCs	CIRP	NEIU 02
Academic ability	44%	36%	Persistence	55%	48%
# Artistic ability	42	27	Popularity	23	31
Computer skills	19	29	Public speaking ability	26	28
Cooperativeness	62	56	Risk-taking	46	45
Creativity	56	54	Self-confidence [intellectual]	48	55
Drive to achieve	59	57	Self-confidence [social]	46	50
Emotional health	51	45	Self-understanding	51	55
Leadership ability	54	51	Understanding of others	60	67
Mathematical ability	21	24	Writing ability	29	36
Physical health	40	40

[# Outside +/-10% ]

Your ethnic background:			Had had special tutoring or remedial work in:
LCs	CIRP	NEIU 02	LCs	CIRP	NEIU 02
White/Caucasian	41%	42%	English	13%	14%
African American/Black	10	6	Reading	12	11
American Indian/Alaska Native	0	0	Mathematics	21	19
Asian American/Asian	4	8	Social Studies	11	13
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	0	0	Science	17	11
Mexican American/Chicano	24	24	Writing	5	9
Puerto Rican	12	8	Foreign Language	18	14
Other Latino	6	10
Other	1	6

Objectives considered to be essential/very important

[On 8 of the 14 items, here, LC respondents’ percentages were more than 10% over those of the CIRP survey.] Ranking the responses—from highest % included in essential/very important to lowest—and comparing LCs with CIRP produces:

Highest in importance:

LCs

CIRP NEIU 02

	Raising a family
	Helping others in difficulty
	Being well off financially

75-87%

69-77%

Middle in importance

LCs

CIRP NEIU 02

	Becoming an authority in my field
	Improving my understanding of other countries/cultures
	Influencing social values
	Becoming successful in a business of my own
	Helping to promote racial understanding
	Developing a meaningful philosophy of life

54-69%

38-63%

[The six items in this range were ranked in the same order listed, here, except the 3^rd and 4^th items were reversed in the LC and CIRP samples.]

Lowest in importance

LCs

CIRP NEIU 02

	Becoming involved in programs to clean up the environment
	Becoming a community leader
	Keeping up to date with political affairs
	Influencing the political structure

30-36%

23-30%

Traits that describe student to a great extent	LCs	CIRP NEIU 02
Searching for mission/purpose in life	68%	44%
Engaging in self-reflection	40	31
Appreciating the interconnectedness of everying	48	36
Being honest in my relationships with others	79	73

[nota bene: The rankings of these four items are the same in both sampled groups.]

Reasons noted as VERY IMPORTANT in deciding to go to college:	LCs	CIRP NEIU 02
My parents wanted me to go	46%	59%
I could not find a job	10	14
To be able to get a better job	78	75
To gain a general education and appreciation of ideas	74	72
To improve my reading and study skills	62	61
There was nothing better to do	7	6
To make me a more cultured person	49	48
To be able to make more money	76	75
To learn more about things that interest me	82	79
To prepare myself for graduate or professional school	73	74
To get training for a specific career	86	80

Comparison of Fall 02 LCs student sample with NSSE NEIU 02 student sample

[1=never, 2=sometimes, 3=often, 4=very often]

	LCs Mean	NSSE NEIU 02 Mean
Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussion	2.71	2.82
Made a class presentation	2.08	2.30
Prepared two or more drafts of a paper or assignment before turning it in	2.02	2.88
Came to class without completing readings or assignments	1.66	1.82
Worked with other students on projects during class	2.41	2.54
Discussed grades or assignments with an instructor	2.33	2.59
Discussed ideas from your reading or classes with faculty members outside class	2.16	1.88
Received prompt feedback from faculty on your academic performance	2.31	2.53
Worked with faculty members on activities other than coursework	1.98	1.47
Had serious conversations with students of a different race or ethnicity than your own	2.47	2.74
Had serious conversations with students who differ from you in terms of their religious beliefs, political opinions, or personal values	2.28	2.65

Comparison of Students Enrolled in Learning Communities Courses to Students

Enrolled in All Other General Education Course Sections in the Fall, 2002 Semester

	Learning Communities	General Education*
Number of Course Sections	21	266
Number of Course Registrations	393	9648
Number of Students Enrolled [Unduplicated]	185	4800
Average Term GPA for Fall Semester	2.82	2.66
Average Cumulative GPA at end of Fall Semester	2.9	2.79
% Students Persisting Within Fall Semester	93.5%	92.8%
% Students Persisting in Spring, 2003 Semester	92.4%	82.9%
% Students Enrolled Full-Time in Fall	92.4%	68.4%
% Students Enrolled Full-Time in Spring, 2003	88.9%	66.4%

*Excludes learning community general education course sections, graduate level students, and the students included in the learning community cohort who were enrolled in other, non-learning community, general education courses.

Learning Communities Student Exit Survey

[% responding either “Strongly Agree” or “Agree Somewhat” when given response options of: strongly agree/agree somewhat/disagree somewhat/disagree strongly]

Taking this class—	Strongly Agree	Somewhat Agree	Total
Increased the degree to which I studied with other students.	16	52	68
Increased the degree to which I participated in class discussions.	30	45	75
Increased the degree to which I coped with test anxiety.	23	38	61
Increased the degree to which I sought feedback from my instructors outside of class.	24	51	75
Has helped me adjust to the college social environment.	43	41	84
Improved my understanding of faculty expectations of students.	36	50	86
Improved my ability to deal with stress.	24	44	68
Improved my ability to meet new people.	33	45	78
Improved my ability to establish close friendships.	31	42	73
Improved the degree to which I was able to see multiple sides of issues.	35	49	84
Improved the degree to which I was able to evaluate the quality of opinions and facts.	30	62	92
Improved my writing skills.	33	54	87
-reading skills.	33	48	81
-decision-making skills.	29	48	77
-computer skills.	23	43	66
-oral presentation skills.	21	42	63
Taking this class increased the degree to which I— Took effective notes.	36	43	79
-Reviewed my class notes before the next class	23	51	74
Completed homework assignments on time.	52	42	94
Prepared for tests well in advance.	37	42	89
Taking this class improved my commitment to completing my degree.	43	42	85
Taking this class has helped me in my ability to succeed in—Other courses generally.	45	41	86
-My career. #
-My life. #
I feel good about how this term has gone.	55	42	97
My experience at Northeastern, so far, has been better than I expected.	50	38	88
I feel that I have been constantly challenged in my courses.	33	54	89
I am likely to stay at Northeastern until I graduate	48	30	78
I would recommend Northeastern to a friend.	60	36	96

# An error in printing the instrument prevented reliable responses on these two items.

Northeastern Illinois University Home Page - College of Arts and Sciences Home Page