Pre-med aspiration, excitement about learning, and competitiveness each predict higher engagement; gender, race, and most pre-college measures do not¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associational r2 · q3
Currency · newest study 2012 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? Students aspiring to a medical degree, those who felt excited about learning new concepts, and those rating themselves more competitive reported significantly higher engagement (all p < 0.05 or stronger). → Gasiewski 2012

Evidence¶

Gasiewski 2012¶

Gasiewski, J. A., Eagan, M. K., Garcia, G. A., Hurtado, S., & Chang, M. J. (2012). From Gatekeeping to Engagement: A Multicontextual, Mixed Method Study of Student Academic Engagement in Introductory STEM Courses. Research in Higher Education, 53, 229–261. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-011-9247-y

q3 · i? · associational · r2

HLM results (Table 3) show "Frequency: Felt excited about learning new concepts 0.08 0.01 ***"; the authors report excitement absorbed the predictive power of personal interest, supporting an intrinsic-motivation account. Degree aspiration: medical doctorate (0.05, SE 0.02) and competitiveness (0.04, SE 0.01) were also significant.

"Frequency: Felt excited about learning new concepts 0.08 0.01 *** Frequency: Felt collaboration among other students in this course 0.09 0.01 *"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Perceived collaboration among peers positively predicts academic engagement, but competitive climates can undercut collaboration — related
• Feeling comfortable asking questions in class is the strongest classroom-climate predictor of students' behavioral academic engagement in introductory STEM courses — related
• Latino CPS graduates who aspire to a four-year degree are least likely to plan to attend a four-year college after graduation — related
• The 2020 Post-Secondary Attainment Index is 27 percent, and no race/ethnicity and gender group reaches the 75 percent aspiration benchmark — related
• The 2021 PAI ranges widely by race/ethnicity and gender, from 11.6% for Black young men to 67.3% for Asian/Pacific Islander young women, and no group reaches the 75% aspiration level — related
• Viewing STEM courses as competitive was associated with impostorship and, in turn, lower engagement and grades, especially for first-generation students — reports the opposite