Outlines development of interest in student retention studies in Britain arising from concern about the appropriate use of public money. Describes retention strategies being used within the London Institute, a federation of five art- and design-focused colleges. The aim is an overarching and interlinking strategy across a whole college, what the…

Reports that anecdotal evidence and studies by individual institutions suggest that course completion and program retention rates are generally lower in distance education courses than in their face-to-face counterparts. Suggests some of the causes may be that distance students are often older, have more obligations, or that lack of face-to-face…

This longitudinal study compares academic and social integration and intent to persist of two cohorts of freshmen (total n=132) at the American InterContinental University (England), of whom 70 successfully completed a one-term freshman orientation course and 62 did not take the course. Preliminary results suggest that the course promotes…

Examines many different variables defined in the existing literature to determine their relationship to retention rates at Utah Valley State College (UVSC). States that the overall goal was to add insights and descriptive detail about the relationship between remedial education and student persistence rates at community colleges. Contains 63…

The argument that instructors with marketable skills are likely to exit the teaching profession leads many to believe that public schools are populated by teachers of mediocre talent. Yet, teachers with skills attractive to non-education employment may not be the best individuals in the classroom. A two-stage regression technique first estimates a…

There is increasing divergence in the academic outcomes of African American males and females. By most accounts, males are falling behind their female peers educationally as African American females are graduating from high schools at higher rates and are going on to college and graduate school in greater numbers. Some have suggested that school…

As beginning teachers continue to leave the profession within the first several years of entering, educators must identify factors which cause teachers to remain in the profession, as well as factors related to attrition if the current teacher shortage is to be remedied. The purpose of this study was to examine the reported attitudes of beginning…

This article draws attention to local and global attendance monitoring in higher education. The paper outlines benefits of attendance monitoring for both the individual learner and university, and compares traditional paper-based attendance monitoring systems with an electronic system piloted in the Business School and School of Technology at the…

Experienced teachers are, on average, more effective at raising student performance than those in their early years of teaching. This gives rise to the concern that too many teachers leave the profession after less than a full career and that too many leave troubled inner-city schools for suburban ones. Until now, the roots of these problems have…

The research in this article examined an often neglected, but nevertheless equally important, factor in the burnout and attrition rate of special education teachers. This factor was a lack of school supplies, materials and resources. This shortage was largely due to a constant "tug-of-war" with regular education personnel for the same…

The number of students of color transferring to and completing degrees at four-year, non research-extensive universities continues to increase. However, research-extensive universities struggle with recruiting and retaining students of color. This chapter discusses one initiative developed by a research-extensive university focused on increasing…

In order to design effective interventions for working with graduate and professional students, educators must first assess students' needs and experiences. This chapter highlights the importance of assessment in graduate and professional education and offers insights gained from three studies.

Research shows, for African American adolescents, issues of school belonging, identification, and engagement are critical to academic performance and successful completion of high school. In the existing literature, school belonging has been significantly linked with teacher support, peer relations, motivation, engagement, and academic…

Children often perseverate, repeating prior behaviors when inappropriate. This work tested the roles of verbal labels and stimulus novelty in such perseveration. Three-year-old children sorted cards by one rule and were then instructed to switch to a second rule. In a basic condition, cards had familiar shapes and colors and both rules were stated…

The purpose of this study was to test theoretical propositions advanced by Meyer and Herscovitch (2001) concerning the interactive effects of affective, normative, and continuance commitment on focal (staying intentions) and discretionary (citizenship) behavior. Study measures were gathered from a sample of 545 hospital employees. Several a priori…