Week+Three+5301

= The Blueprint of Your Study, Part 1 =

My action research study will focus on new motivational methods targeted for first generation college students. My purpose is to discover ways that these methods could impact the retention success rates of students in obtaining their undergraduate degrees.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics “First-generation students are defined as those whose parents’ highest level of education is a high school diploma or less. In cases where parents have different levels of education, the maximum education level of either parent determines how the student is categorized.” (U.S. Department of Education, 1998) The target population for my action research will be the number of active first generation participants enrolled in the TRiO Student Support Services (SSS) program at Lamar. There are 160 active participants in the SSS program and out of these students, 82% have been identified as first generation students. I believe this would provide a good representative sampling of the students from the larger student population at the university since in 1989 – 90 almost half or about 43 percent of first-time beginning students were identified as first-generation students.

I will conduct my research by analyzing the quantitative student data using the Student Access and Banner student management systems, as well as gathering qualitative data by collecting surveys and conducting student and advisor interviews, soliciting comments from students using the SSS blog, maintaining a journal or weblog including links to articles of interest, and reading literature related to research and ideas for motivating first generation students.

U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics. First-Generation Students: Undergraduates Whose Parents Never Enrolled in Postsecondary Education, NCES 98-082, by Anne-Marie Nunez and Stephanie Cuccaro-Alamin.Project officer: C. Dennis Carroll. Washington DC: 1998.

**Teacher Mentoring**
I think that in today’s age of technology with teachers who are digital immigrants and those who are digital natives that it is not always the teacher with the most experience who needs to serve in the role of mentor. One possibility would be to consider conducting a survey of the skills, strengths, and weaknesses of all the teachers and having co-mentor / mentees. An example could be pairing a veteran teacher who has strong classroom management skills with a new teacher who has strong technology integration skills.

**Linking Athletic and Academic Performance**
Richard, I like your idea for action research! In a way it is similar to what I do in that I serve in the role of an “academic coach”. I agree with you that the athletic programs benefit students in many ways which are contributing factors to their ultimate academic success or failure. I see students who are overly involved in campus organizations but fail to exercise the discipline needed to study and apply themselves to their coursework. On the other hand, I see students who have good study habits and grades but lack the confidence or social skills which would enable them to be successful on the college campus. I think researching the link between athletic and academic performance is a great topic. Go team Richard!


 * Week 3 Assignment - Background - Developing Your Action Research Plan**