Among persistence and retention agenda initiatives undertaken by colleges and universities, gateway-course improvement efforts are often overlooked. However, the engagement of diverse institutional stakeholders in the transformation of gateway courses can contribute significantly to student success. Chief academic officers are in a unique position…

Little research examines the sociocultural aspects of consolidating two post-secondary educational institutions. In a previous study we collected baseline data and reported on the initial impact of consolidation of a research-oriented, health sciences university with a teaching-oriented, comprehensive university. In the study we report here we…

Online courses at the college level are growing in popularity, and nearly all community colleges offer online courses (Allen and Seaman in "Tracking online education in the United States," Babson Survey Research Group, Babson Park, 2015). What is the effect of the expanded availability of online curricula on persistence in the field and…

Barriers to mobility, particularly those imposed by state-level licensure procedures have received growing attention in the media and in reform discussions. Much of this attention is driven by shortages of teachers in some regions and subject areas and the fact that barriers to mobility make it more difficult for states to address such shortages…

A large body of international research focuses on identifying reasons why students do not "persist" (Tinto, 2006) within higher education. Little research has focused on students whose leaving is non-voluntary and where narratives of "persistence" are therefore not as pertinent. This paper seeks to refocus some of the attention…

This article examines the academic performance of secondary school students from the perspectives of grit and mindset through a detailed review of the literature. What makes a learner resilient? Persistent? Willing to take on academic challenges? The research on grit and mindset provides an understanding of why many secondary students struggle…

The purpose of this study was to identify the level of teacher-student interaction, the suitability of learning environment, learning commitment and learning comfort among Biology students. In addition, the contribution of teacher-students interaction, learning commitment and learning environment towards learning comfort were also explored. This…

Academic institution leaders, education researchers, and policy makers have come together to restore America's ranking among the top nations who are educating citizens to prepare for the technology jobs of the future. President Barack Obama tasked the nation to do so after alarming figures in student achievement were revealed from the 2009 PISA…

Although the percentage of high school students in advanced STEM courses has risen steadily in the past two decades throughout the United States, disparities persist across student subgroups, such as racial/ethnic groups (Aud et al., 2013; Laird, Alt, & Wu, 2009; Texas Education Agency, 2011). Racial/ethnic minority student enrollment in…

The first year, first-semester community college students on academic probation and the factors affecting their academic success have been on the rise. As such, many students who are not making satisfactory academic progress (SAP) are at risk of losing their financial aid and, quite possibly, dropping out of school. The purpose of this study was…

High teacher turnover in schools is associated with reduced pupil attainment. High turnover also has an effect on equity, since it tends to be concentrated in schools with deprived intakes. A good deal of research has attributed higher levels of teacher turnover in such schools to the challenges involved in teaching disadvantaged pupils. However,…

In the United States, as the Hispanic population continues to grow, persistently low mathematics achievement among Mexican Americans continues to exist, particularly among girls. Low mathematics achievement places this group in a disadvantaged position. As such, a multistage mixed method study was implemented to investigate possible factors…

With the emergence of a diverse public school student population, existing literature affirms the existence of a Black teacher shortage and the low representation of teachers of color in U.S. public schools. Although there are over 3 million public school teachers, African American teachers only comprise approximately 8 percent of the public…

"Black history is American history," is a popular phrase used by a multitude of people seeking to legitimate Black history to the general population. The motto is usually a two-fold response to concerns about the disregard of Black history. First, "Black history is American history" is used to criticize (and in some cases…

This study examines the degree of agreement between three Haberman Foundation-trained facilitators' interviews and pre-service teachers' self-evaluations of behavioral attributes associated with successful urban teaching. Using a quasi-experimental design research approach, data for this investigation was collected from 17 subjects who are all…