No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
An evaluation of traditional admission standards in predicting Kuwait University students' academic performance
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the traditional admission standards utilized by Kuwait University in predicting students' academic performance. It was found that the established practice of using students' score in standardized secondary school examinations and branch of study (i.e. sciences or arts emphasis) to be highly predictive of their college cumulative grade point average. Moreover, it was established that students' secondary school scores reflect intellective as well as the non-intellective factors pertaining to students' background.
... The success in the first year computer science major was predicted on the basis of students' entry level characteristics and continuation in this or other science majors (Campbell and McCabe, 1984). Yousuf and Mohammad (1988) evaluated the admission standards applied by Kuwait University in predicting academic performance and made recommendations on incoming students admission requirements. ...
College students rated 13 likert-type moral choice items on a scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Those items were hypothetical business decisions written in a manner as to approximate the various schools of thought on moral choice rooted in western philosophical thinking on ethical conduct. One hundred forty-seven midwestern university students from a college of business with an enrollment of 872, via core business courses, participated in the survey. Stepwise regression analyses revealed religion, upbringing, certification, and profession to be highly predictive of students' perceptions of their own moral choices (with p< .01 in several of the regression models).
... Although some have found that they do have some predictive powers, high school marks are still better signals of ability and future performance at university (Latif Al-Nasir & Sachs Robertson, 2001, p. 284). This is because school marks do not only reflect what students know, but also what non-cognitive abilities they have (Mohammad & Almahmeed, 1988, p. 214). Research focused on investigating what variables are the best predictors of academic performance at university usually find academic performance at school to be the best predictor (Touron, 1987; Anderson, Benjamin, & Fuss, 1994; Betts & Morell, 1999). ...
Mathematics is an important signal used for admission into commerce courses in South African universities. In 2008 the new National Senior Certificate replaced the former Senior Certificate. This new exam no longer had different grades and thus created a structural break in the ability of the mathematics mark to signal preparedness for university. Although the Department of Education provided a “translation” key between the two Certificates, the University of the Witwatersrand (and other universities) admitted many more students in 2009 that met the entry requirements than previously. However, this cohort has lower average test and exam scores than previous years. This suggests that marks obtained for mathematics in the new National Senior Certificate are inflated when compared to the former Senior Certificate. This paper uses similar tests, for two commerce subjects, written by students in 2008 and 2009 to create a comparison between the mathematics marks under the two different certificates. The results suggest that marks in the range of 40-100% for Higher Grade mathematics for the Senior Certificate are now compressed into the 70-95% range for the new National Senior Certificate. This significantly weakens the ability of the school-leaving mathematics mark to signal the ability of students to cope with first year commerce courses.
In an attempt to define the true purpose of a college education, one can consider the justification for a university as the one that preserves the connection between knowledge and the zest of life, by uniting the young and the old in the imaginative consideration of learning. When one refers to learning, it encompasses every discipline. An individual who knows only material science is but a partially educated person. He/she is oblivious to other facets of living a full life; a meaningful and purposeful life involves developing the whole self, essentially the domain of liberal arts. The mushrooming of vocational institutions is indicative of the obvious choice of education by today’s youth. Universities across the globe recognize the need for students to possess technology and information literacy skills regardless of major. Most university’s strategic plan underscores these skills
as core competencies for students to have upon graduation. The development of a facility and program to support these strategic goals seems to be the next obvious step. Therefore, changes are being witnessed in the teaching landscapes. This digital Tsunami compels the liberal arts education to provide evidence of potential in matching the pace of the information age. The very fact that liberal arts needs justification of capability is a cause of research and exploration of facts.This paper clearly validates the mettle of liberal arts in creating a truly educated person and professional, an essential requirement for the survival of society to have an information age.
Internationally, performance in school Mathematics has been found to be a reliable predictor of performance in commerce courses at university level. Based on the predictive power of school-leaving marks, universities use results from school-leaving Mathematics examinations to rank student applicants according to their predicted abilities. However, in 2008 the structure and scope of school-leaving examinations changed in South Africa from the former Senior Certificate (SC) to the new National Senior Certificate (NSC). This structural break seems to create fluctuations in the signalling ability of the school-leaving marks. South African universities are unsure about how well the current NSC Mathematics marks reflect the underlying numerical competence of students, given that a high number of the 2009 student intake failed their first-year core courses across faculties. This paper estimates a deflator for the new NSC Mathematics marks relative to the former Higher Grade (HG) Mathematics marks, by comparing performance in similar first tests of two commerce subjects, Economics 1 and Computational Mathematics, between the 2008 and 2009 first-year cohorts. The results indicate that the signalling ability of the NSC Mathematics marks is reduced significantly. Instead of differentiating students according to their abilities, the new NSC Mathematics marks compress students with a wide range of abilities and disabilities into a very narrow range of percentage marks.
The study examined the academic performance of students in the compulsory courses in technical education during the transition period of first and second years of three years Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) Technical programme before choosing their disciplines in the third year. The study comprised of 237 students that consisted of Automobile, 22; Building, 8; Electrical/Electronics, 21; Metalwork, 24; and Woodwork, 4 admitted into year one in 2002/2003, 2003/2004 and 2004/2005 academic sessions who transited to third year of the programme in 2004/2005, 2005/2006 and 2006/2007 academic sessions respectively. Data consisted of examination scores for 20 compulsory courses offered by the students and was analyzed with the arithmetic mean, one-way ANOVA and the Scheffe’s test. The study established that, students in Electrical/Electronics discipline performed better than their counterparts who made Automobile, Building, Metalwork and Woodwork as their discipline, and the academic performance of the five groups of students differed significantly.Keywords: academic, performance, transition, specialization.
This paper reports empirical research which tested the validity of a theoretical model of the correlates of engineering freshman academic performance in an Irish context. The research examined the hypothesis that academic performance is related to both students' previous educational experience (input) and to their application to study (process) during the freshman year. The model explains 49% of the variance in such performance. It indicates that both input and process variables contribute to the explanation of differences in engineering freshman academic performance. The implications of these findings are discussed.
This article examines if and to what extent a set of pre-enrolment variables and background characteristics predict first year performance in art college. The article comes from a four-year longitudinal study that followed a cohort of tertiary art entrants in Ireland from their time of entry in 2002 to their time of exit in 2006 (or before, for those who failed or dropped out). Using descriptive and inferential statistics, the article shows that portfolio score at entry and school leaving examination results predict performance in first year. The predictive validity of both measures, however, was not particularly strong. Combined, portfolio score at entry and school leaving examination only accounted for 15.5 per cent of variance in first year marks, leaving a large percentage of variance unexplained.
FACTORS INVOLVED IN THE TESTING OF MINORITY GROUP CHILDREN ARE PRESENTED. THE CONVENTIONAL INSTRUMENTS OF MENTAL TESTING ARE TOO OFTEN DEVELOPED FOR THE INTELLECTUAL AND SOCIAL WAYS OF MIDDLE-CLASS CHILDREN. AS A RESULT MINORITY GROUP CHILDREN ARE EXCLUDED FROM OPPORTUNITIES FOR TRAINING BECAUSE OF "CULTURAL DEPRIVATION." THE GUIDE EXPLAINS HOW THIS SITUATION COULD BE REMEDIED, AND IT OFFERS SOME CRITERIA FOR INTERPRETING TEST SCORES OBTAINED FROM CHILDREN WHO DID NOT HAVE THE ADVANTAGES OF THE MIDDLE-CLASS CHILD. ONE PRINCIPAL DIFFICULTY REGARDING STANDARDIZED TESTING IS THE RELIABILITY OF DIFFERENTIATION. A TEST PUBLISHER SHOULD DESCRIBE THE RELIABILITY SAMPLE IN TERMS OF FACTORS SUCH AS AGE, SEX, AND GRADE LEVEL COMPOSITION, ALSO, THE PUBLISHER SHOULD REPORT SUBGROUP RELIABILITIES. INSTITUTIONS THAT USE TESTS REGULARLY FOR PARTICULAR MINORITY GROUPS SHOULD MAKE THEIR OWN RELIABILITY STUDIES IN ORDER TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE TESTS ARE RELIABLE WHEN USED WITH THESE GROUPS. THE SECOND DIFFICULTY, THAT OF PREDICTIVE VALIDITY, IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE, ORDINARILY, AN INDIVIDUAL'S TEST SCORES DESCRIBE ONLY HIS RELATIVE STANDING WITH RESPECT TO A SPECIFIED NORM GROUP. AN EXPLANATION OF HIS STANDING SHOULD BE ATTEMPTED UTILIZING BACKGROUND FACTORS, ALSO WHEN LONG-RANGE PREDICTIONS ARE NEEDED, BACKGROUND FACTORS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED. THE LAST DIFFICULTY, THE VALIDITY OF TEST INTERPRETATION, SHOULD BE APPLIED TO TESTS IN GENERAL, TEST RESULTS SHOULD BE INTERPRETED BY COMPETENTLY TRAINED AND KNOWLEDGEABLE PERSONS. MEDICAL CASE HISTORIES SHOULD BE USED AS WELL AS PSYCHOLOGICAL AND EDUCATIONAL TEST RECORDS. TOO OFTEN ANSWERS THAT ARE DEVIANT FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF A MAJORITY CULTURE ARE TYPICAL OF A MINORITY GROUP. THIS ARTICLE IS PUBLISHED IN THE "JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES" VOLUME 20, NUMBER 2, APRIL 1964.
This article examines racial differences in the effects of intellectual and nonintellectual student characteristics and faculty attitudes and behaviors that significantly predict students' college performance. Significant differences between black and white students' college performance and the predictors are discovered. Educators must address these differences to achieve equity in higher education.
This report reviews and summarizes the data of published reports and papers pertaining to the validity of measures commonly used at college entrance. These measures consist of various types of quantitative indices used to describe the high school record and various types of academic tests. The data were categorized by sex and ethnic classifications where possible and comparisons were made. Most of the observations made in previous reviews of this kind were upheld. Both the high school record and standardized academic tests appear to be generally useful at college entrance. Both tend to predict college performance, but they are most appropriately used in combination. For Anglo populations, the high school record usually yields slightly higher predictive correlations. For black populations (except black females), however, the data suggest no superiority of the high school record as a predictor of college performance. The amount of data available for Chicano samples was not sufficient for any generalizations about predictive correlations, but the magnitude of those correlations available were on the average lower than those for Anglo populations. For recent years, correlations for black samples tended to be slightly lower than those for Anglo samples. A primary objective in the review was to consider whether inferences made from the high school record and test scores about different populations tended to be correct inferences. Where inferences tended to be systematically incorrect, there was an interest in the direction of the error. Since the high school record and test scores are used in making inferences about probable college performance, the systematic inferential errors of interest consisted of the degree to which college performance of populations were over or underpredicted when the data used in making the inference were not limited to data for that population. Data from a number of studies show that the college performance of black populations, male and female, have been consistently overpredicted by the traditional academic predictors (the high school record and standardized test scores) when predictions are based on data from white or predominantly white samples. The high school record would appear, from the studies reviewed, to be the principal source of this overprediction. Standardized test scores also have tended to overpredict college performance of black populations, but a combination of the high school record and test scores appears to minimize over prediction. In contrast, published data show women to be consistently under predicted by the traditional predictors when predictions are based on data from male or predominantly male samples. This review indicates a number of topics where further research appears to be needed. These topics include the study of: long-range criteria, objective criteria, prediction within major-field, the high school record for different populations, college grades for different populations, neglected populations, factorial consistency of measures across populations, item characteristic curves, expert judgment of test content, and the rationale of the content of standardized tests.
The efficiency of aptitude and mental ability measures to predict high school grade-point average for Negro students in secondary school was studied. The total sample of 222 students was randomly divided into two samples in order to determine the consistency with which the variables predicted the criteria. The predictor variables were: The Differential Aptitude Tests, the California Test of Mental Maturity, The Cooperative Ability Tests, The Sequential Tests of Educational Progress, Junior High School Grade-Point Average, and Social Status Ratings. The data were analyzed by multiple linear regression. The instruments consistently yielded substantial correlations with High School Grade-Point Average. Negro students appeared to be as predictable as other groups.
It has been hypothesized that a student will develop more fully academically if grouped with students of similar ability. A study was undertaken at Harcum Junior College to assess the effect upon academic performance of the assignment of roommates with varying high school academic records. For investigation purposes students were identified as above average, average, and below average. Four groups were then formed: Group I paired above average students with average students; Group II, average with average; Group III, above average with below average; and Group IV, below average with below average. Analysis of results indicated that significantly higher levels of academic achievement could be attained by average and below average achievers by assigning them as roommates to above average academic achievers. (CK)
NEGRO STUDENTS WHO HAD SOUGHT ASSISTANCE FROM THE NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP SERVICE AND FUND FOR NEGRO STUDENTS TO ATTEND INTERRACIAL COLLEGES WERE FOLLOWEDUP TO DETERMINE THE DEGREE OF THEIR PROGRESS AND ADJUSTMENT IN COLLEGE AND AFTER GRADUATION. DATA FOR 509 STUDENTS WERE OBTAINED FROM A PRECOLLEGE INFORMATION SHEET PREPARED WHEN THE SCHOLARSHIPS WERE AWARDED FROM COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS AND POST-GRADUATION QUESTIONNAIRES. THE MAJOR FINDINGS WERE--STUDENTS' DROPOUT RATES WERE LOWER THAN THE NATIONAL AVERAGE FOR WHITES AND FOR NEGROES ATTENDING SEGREGATED COLLEGES. FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES WERE THE MAJOR REASONS FOR LEAVING COLLEGE. ON THE WHOLE, COLLEGE GRADES WERE AVERAGE AND DEPENDED MORE ON THE STUDENTS' HIGH SCHOOL AVERAGES AND THEIR PARENTS' EDUCATION THAN ON THEIR PARENTS' INCOME OR THE STUDENTS' PRECOLLEGE TEST SCORES. NEARLY ALL THE STUDENTS JUDGED THEIR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE FAVORABLY, BUT SOME INDICATED THAT THEY ENCOUNTERED RACIAL PROBLEMS AND PRESSURES. GENERALLY, IT WAS FOUND THAT THE COLLEGE-TRAINED NEGRO WAS NOT FORCED TO TAKE A MENIAL JOB BUT WAS NOT FULLY INTEGRATED INTO PRIVATE INDUSTRY. HE STILL HAD TO DEPEND UPON GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE AGENCIES FOR A JOB IN WHICH HE COULD USE HIS SKILLS. (BD)
The hypothesis is tested that the true standard error of prediction of college grades is identical for men and women. Over 3500 students from 7 different colleges were used. High school grades as a predictor reveal a significant sex difference in the observed standard error of prediction. Aptitude test scores as a predictor reflect no sex difference. Combining the two predictors, there was again a significant sex difference. The factor chiefly responsible for this difference was the greater homogeneity of women's college grades, their standard deviation being smaller than for the men. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Used responses of 176 black undergraduates to the Student Profile Section (SPS) of the American College Testing Program Examination (ACT) to investigate whether the responses had nonintellective academic prediction potential. 122 biographical variables from the SPS and the ACT English, social studies, mathematics, science, and composite scores were used as predictor variables. The criterion variable was academic success as measured by the 1st semester grade point average (GPA) and cumulative GPA. 26 SPS variables correlated significantly with the 1st semester GPA, 30 SPS variables correlated significantly with the cumulative GPA, and 14 SPS variables correlated significantly with both criterion variables. Data suggest that reasons for choosing a particular school, patterns of expected extracurricular activities in college, accomplishments in high school, and activities in music, speech, art, writing, or science may be instrumental in determining the academic success of black students. The ACT was also found to be a valid prediction instrument for black students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Factorial analysis of the records of 174 men students showed patterns of relationship among certain facts regarding college students. The 23 variables included socio-economic data such as educational levels of father and mother, number of siblings and type of financial support, as well as grade point level and the scores on several psychological tests. Seven factors were extracted, of which two accounted for the correlation between grade points earned and the other variables used in the study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Test scores on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) and the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED), grade point average (GPA), and rank in high school were obtained from a sample of 3202 students in Iowa State College and Iowa University. High school GPA was the best predictor of college freshmen GPA (r = .67) and 4-year college GPA (r = .59). ITED yielded multiple correlations of .63 with freshman GPA and .53 with 4-year GPA. ITBS (elementary school level) correlated .85 with college freshman GPA. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Reports the relationship found between academic success of freshmen and their performance on these tests: (1) ACE Psychological Examination; (2) Michigan State College Reading Test; (3) Test of English Usage (Hickok); and (4) Arithmetic Proficiency Test. Results: (1) Women achieved higher grades than men. (2) The Reading Test was the best predictor of academic success. (3) Women performed more nearly in accord with their measured ability than did the men. (4) In general, students failing to obtain at least a C average tended to be those with lower ability, but some students in the low-ability group made satisfactory grade averages. (5) Practically all of the individuals in the high-ability group obtained at least a C average; about 50% of those in low-ability group failed to obtain a C average. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The purpose of this study was to reexamine the value of high school grades (relative to standardized test scores) for predicting college grades of black students. Data from previous studies and from a predominantly black university were analyzed. Results tend to indicate that high school grades do not consistently make the greatest contribution in predicting college grades of black students, perhaps particularly of men, whereas they do for whites. Unreliability of grade reporting, invalidity of grades in high school, restriction in range due to selection processes, and intergroup differences in personality characteristics were advanced to explain this phenomenon. Further research on this problem was suggested in view of the fact that many selective institutions are relying heavily on high school grades in their selection of black students.
This study examined the effects of four aspects of student-faculty interaction (frequency of formal interaction, frequency of informal interaction, quality of faculty advising, and helpfulness of faculty) on a variety of student outcomes after four years. These effects were examined within a context of a causal model adapted from Astin''s general college impact model. Outcomes data were gathered from a 1975 Freshman Questionnaire and a 1979 Graduating Students Survey. The results provided support for the importance of student-faculty interaction on the intellectual and personal/social outcomes of college and students'' satisfaction with their educational experience.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of personality characteristics, academic ability, and achievement among pairs of male dormitory roommates. OPI factor scores were developed for five groups of roommate pairs who were identified as exhibiting similar achievement and ability patterns. The scores were analyzed to provide an indication of the degree of similarity or difference between the individual pairs on the personality measures and to determine if there were important trends evident in the data within groups. The results suggest that personality may have a differential effect on achievement among students of different ability levels. For example, there was evidence that average- and low-ability students earn higher grades when paired with high-ability students of similar personality profiles.
Thesis--University of Wisconsin. Abstracted in Dissertation abstracts, v. 16 (1956) no. 11, p. 2088-2089. Vita. Bibliography: leaves 97-99. Microfilm (positive) of typescript. s
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Minnesota, 1958. Abstract in Dissertation abstracts, v. 19 (19-58). Bibliography: leaves 178-183. Microfilm of typescript. s
Evaluation of 1,910 first-, second-, and third-grade students indicated that visual function and academic performance as measured by reading were not positively related. Visual function tests included visual acuity, muscle balance, preferred eye and hand, color vision, refraction, sensory and motor function, and a writing and drawing task. Academic tests included the Metropolitan Readiness Test, the Cognitive Abilities Test, the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, and the teacher's assessment of reading level. A simple test which can be completed during the office visit and interpreted by the ophthalmologist in the office included drawing, copying, and writing. A segment of this test, the "draw a bicycle test," can be used by an ophthalmologist to demonstrate the difference between vision and performance when examining a child up to third-grade level who is referred because of school failure.
Roommate-Impact Upon Academic PerformancePredicting The Academic Achievement of Secondary School Negro Students
- B Blai
Blai, B. (1971). Roommate-Impact Upon Academic Performance. Bryn Mawr, Pa.: Harcum Junior College, U.S.A. Boney, J. D. (1966). "Predicting The Academic Achievement of Secondary School Negro Students." Personnel and Guidance Journal 44: 700-703.
Effects of Homogeneous Housing Assignments for High Ability Students
- D Decoster
- D. Decoster
The Reciprocity Between Student-Faculty Informal Contact and the Undergraduate Grade Point Average of University Students. Paper presented at the Annual meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education
- J Bean
- G Kuh
The Academic Achievement of Residents Living in a Scholar Residence Hall
- C Duncan
- K Stoner
- C. Duncan
Academic Achievement of College Freshmen and its Relationship to Selected Aspects of the Students
- T F Gallant
Predicting Success in College and University
- E R Henry
- E. R. Henry
The Effects of Standardized Achievement Test Performance and Family Status on Black-White College Access
- G E Thomas
- G. E. Thomas
The Negro Student at Integrated Colleges. New York: National Scholarship Service and Fund for Negro Students
- K B Clark
- L Plotkin
- K. B. Clark
- J A Fishman
- M Deutsch
- L Kogan
- R North
- M Whiteman
- J. A. Fishman
Academic Achievement of College Freshmen and its Relationship to Selected Aspects of the Students' Background
- T F Gallant
- T. F. Gallant
The Prediction of Academic Performance
- D E Lavin
- D. E. Lavin
Personal Background, Experience, and School Achievement: An Investigation of the Contribution of Questionnaire Data to Academic Prediction
- T L Hilton
- A E Meyers
- T. L. Hilton