2014 - Results of a Large-Scale, Multi-Institutional Study of Undergraduate Retention in Computing

Attribution: Barker, Lecia, Hovey, Christopher Lynnly, & Thompson, Leisa D.
Researchers: Christopher Lynnly HoveyLecia BarkerLeisa D. Thompson
University Affiliation: University of Texas at Austin; Northeastern University; University of Virginia
Email: lecia@ischool.utexas.edu
Research Question:
What factors are related to undergraduate retention in Computer Science?
Published: No
Journal Name or Institutional Affiliation: N/A
Journal Entry: N/A
Year: 2014
Findings:
  1. Several variables had no significant influence on retention, including race (Underrepresented Minority and Majority), the interaction of race and gender, academic year, and age.
  2. Meaningful assignments, student-faculty interaction, male gender, collaboration on programming assignments, and prior experience and workload were all significantly associated with retention.
  3. Within-major social life, egalitarian environment, and classroom climate were not found to have a significant effect on retention in any group. However, classroom climate did have a small significant negative effect on students that were in the racial majority but the authors have limited confidence in this finding.
  4. Meaningful assignments maintained the strongest effect size across all groups and was highly significant as a predictor of retention in each model. Of note, the effect size substantially increased for females and underrepresented minority students as compared to males.
  5. Collaboration on programming assignments was moderately important and statistically significant to all groups except underrepresented minorities.
  6. With respect to differences across departments surveyed, the authors found that interaction with teaching assistants was negatively associated with retention. They speculate that the reason for this may lie in differences among institutions in terms of the effectiveness of how teaching assistants are trained or used.
  7. Prior experience and workload was not a predictor for women. This is not surprising since they tend to enter computing majors with less prior experience than their male counterparts.
Scholarship Types: Unpublished Research (Paper at Conference)Keywords: AssignmentsComputersDiversityFemaleGenderPersistenceRetentionMethodologies: QuantitativeResearch Designs: SurveyAnalysis Methods: Linear Mixed Effects ModelsOLS (Ordinary least-squares) Sampling Frame:Compter Science Students
Sampling Types: Non-random - opportunityAnalysis Units: InstitutionStudentData Types: Quantitative-Cross Sectional
Data Description:
  • The Student Experience of the Major (SEM) survey from 2008-2011. Students responded anonymously to a set of questions standardized across the institutions concerning their experiences in and perceptions of the major. In total, 2,077 students from 14 institutions responded in part to the survey, with 1,312 students replying to all questions used in the regression analysis.
  • The dependent variable is commitment to computer science major or minor. This is the likelihood of declaring or completing a computing major or minor and the sense of belonging in the computing major.
  • The independent variables includes:
    • A variable for classroom climate that encapsulates students’ perceptions about comfort and frequency with asking questions in class, and how frequently faculty call on students by name in class.
    • A composite variable for prior experience and workload that captures students’ responses to questions about the number of hours spent on homework, pace of classes, and how well their previous exposure and experiences within computing have helped them manage the required workload.
    • Meaningful assignments
    • Student-Faculty interaction which was measured by career and academic advice from professors; professor praise and encouragement; professor mentoring; and comfort in talking to the professor one on one.
    • Student-TA interaction which was measured by the frequency of and comfort with asking TAs for help; rating of TAs’ abilities to support learning and provide encouragement.
    • Within-major social life which was measured by how much students spent non-school time with other students from class; encouragement from other students to persist; membership in student organizations.
    • Collaboration on programming assignments which was measured by encouragement by faculty to collaborate on programming assignments.
    • Egalitarian Environment which was measured by the belief that some students are treated differently by race/ethnicity or gender; prevalence of racist/sexist jokes in class or lab.
  • The authors also control for academic year, age, gender, race/ethnicity, and institution type.
Theoretical Framework:
Relevance:STEM Persistence and Retention
Archives: K-16 STEM Abstracts