Effects of peer mentoring on the achievement and persistence of academically underprepared college freshmen

<p>PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether a peer mentoring program incorporating learning styles impacts upon the achievement and persistence of entry-level academically underprepared college students.</p> <p>PROCEDURE: Subjects were freshmen at Bemidji State University during the fall terms of 1985 and 1986 who were assigned to remedial/developmental English because of low placement test scores. An experimental group of 31 English 100 students participated in Connections: The Student-to-Student Mentoring Network, a pilot program designed to help underprepared students make a successful transition into college. The experimental group was compared to a control group of 40 students who were not mentored but who took the course the previous year from the same instructors. Analysis of covariance procedures and chi-square statistics were used to assess the effects of peer mentoring on grades and reenrollment status. Effects of mentors and students matching and mismatching in learning style, age-level, and gender were analyzed by comparing grades and reenrollment status of matched and nonmatched pairs. The Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator was used to assess level of learning style match.</p> <p>FINDINGS:</p> <p>1. Students in remedial/developmental English who received peer mentoring achieved a more favorable reenrollment status than comparable students who took the course without mentoring.</p> <p>2. Mentored students attained more satisfactory grades than nonmentored students.</p> <p>3. Matching students and mentors by learning style was not found to be a factor in improving students' grades or reenrollment status.</p> <p>4. Matching students and mentors by gender was not found to be a factor in improving students' grades or reenrollment status.</p> <p>5. Matching students and mentors by age-level was not found to be a factor in improving students' grades or reenrollment status. Contrary to the research hypothesis, the findings suggested that students who had mentors of a higher age-level attained a more favorable reenrollment status.</p> <p>6. Mentored students were more knowledgeable about campus resources and used them more frequently.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Education

Year dc:date.available

1988

Author dc:creator

• Austad, Ann Ferden

Contributors dc:contributor

• B. R. Hopkins

• Peer-group tutoring of students
• College freshmen Minnesota Bemidji
• Academic achievement
• Education

Licence

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/504

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarlycommons.pacific.edu:uop_etds-1503