Civic engagement: a study of changes in college.AbstractUsing a mixed method longitudinal lon·gi·tu·di·nal adj. Running in the direction of the long axis of the body or any of its parts. cohort cohort /co·hort/ (ko´hort) 1. in epidemiology, a group of individuals sharing a common characteristic and observed over time in the group. 2. design, the Tufts University Tufts University, main campus at Medford, Mass.; coeducational; chartered 1852 by Universalists as a college for men. It became a university in 1955. Jackson College, formerly a coordinate undergraduate college for women, merged with the College of Liberal Arts in study is examining student involvement in and attitudes towards civic engagement during the undergraduate years and beyond. It does this by using baseline The horizontal line to which the bottoms of lowercase characters (without descenders) are aligned. See typeface. baseline - released version data from students' levels of community service in high school and then analyzes a variety of curricular and co-curricular experiences in college. This article focuses solely on the research design and some preliminary findings of students' civic attitudes during their first two years of college. Introduction Nationally recognized best practices for research on civic learning outcomes often draw from Service-Learning measurements (Bringle, Phillips, & Hudson, 2004; Eyler & Giles, 1999). Research has shown that high school activities are a strong predictor of college activities (Astin & Sax (Simple API for XML) A programming interface (API) for accessing the contents of an XML document. SAX does not provide a random access lookup to the document's contents. It scans the document sequentially and presents each item to the application only one time. , 1998; Jones & Hill, 2003; Marks & Jones, 2004). Research specifically on civic and political engagement has identified civic indicators in youth in general (Keeter, Zukin, Andolina, & Jenkins, 2002). However, less data exists on the impact of college activities on civic and political engagement. To address this gap in knowledge, the Jonathan M. Tisch College for Citizenship and Public Service at Tufts University is conducting a study on civic engagement to examine the link between students' experiences and the development of their civic and political attitudes and activities over time. The study began in the fall of 2003 and will conclude the summer of 2012. During this time period, four academic cohorts of students (classes of 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010) are each tracked over six years. During the spring of 2007, the research team undertook the fourth year of survey administration of this longitudinal study longitudinal study a chronological study in epidemiology which attempts to establish a relationship between an antecedent cause and a subsequent effect. See also cohort study. . The study addresses two main research questions: 1) To what extent does participation in specific programs and activities affect students' attitudes and behaviors towards civic engagement, during the undergraduate years and after graduation Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the associated ceremony. The date of event is often called degree day. The event itself is also called commencement, convocation or invocation. ? 2) How do students' civic and political attitudes, knowledge, and skills develop and change during the undergraduate years? The study assesses the impact of the Citizenship and Community Scholars Program (CPS (1) (Characters Per Second) The measurement of the speed of a serial printer or the speed of a data transfer between hardware devices or over a communications channel. CPS is equivalent to bytes per second. Scholars Program) in cultivating civic competencies, and identifies other activities that influence students' development in these areas. This multi-year, time-series study tracks four cohorts of students throughout their undergraduate tenure, as well as two years post-graduation. Each cohort is divided into three research groups based on their participation in the CPS Scholars Program or their level of high school community service: CPS Scholars, high involvement in high school participants, and low-involvement in high school participants. This article provides background on civic engagement at Tufts University, a brief literature review of national research in this area, and comments on how the Tufts study can uniquely contribute to what is known at present. Next, we outline the research design and methodology of the study, including the process undertaken to develop the research instruments, recruit participants, and collect data. Finally, we share preliminary findings on attitudes, along with the relevance of the Tufts study's eventual findings to higher education higher education Study beyond the level of secondary education. Institutions of higher education include not only colleges and universities but also professional schools in such fields as law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art. . Institutional Background Under the leadership of President Lawrence S. Bacow Lawrence S. "Larry" Bacow has been president of Tufts University since September 1, 2001. A lawyer and economist whose research focuses on environmental policy, he holds faculty appointments in five departments at Tufts. , Tufts University has an articulated ar·tic·u·la·ted adj. Characterized by or having articulations; jointed. institutional mission that embraces three focus areas--active citizenship, international perspective and life sciences and the environment. Tufts uses the term "active citizenship Active citizenship generally refers to a philosophy espoused by some organizations and educational institutions. It often states that members of companies or nation-states have certain roles and responsibilities to society and the environment, although those members may not have " to encapsulate en·cap·su·late v. 1. To form a capsule or sheath around. 2. To become encapsulated. en·cap holistic Holistic A practice of medicine that focuses on the whole patient, and addresses the social, emotional, and spiritual needs of a patient as well as their physical treatment. Mentioned in: Aromatherapy, Stress Reduction, Traditional Chinese Medicine , collective, multi-sector, results oriented o·ri·ent n. 1. Orient The countries of Asia, especially of eastern Asia. 2. a. The luster characteristic of a pearl of high quality. b. A pearl having exceptional luster. 3. civic participation towards community solutions (Hollister, 2002). Tisch College was created in 2000 to lead Tufts University's mission to prepare students in all fields of study for lifetimes of active citizenship, promote new knowledge in the field, and build an enduring and broadly shared ethos e·thos n. The disposition, character, or fundamental values peculiar to a specific person, people, culture, or movement: "They cultivated a subversive alternative ethos" Anthony Burgess. of citizenship and public service across the university. The Citizenship and Public Service Scholars Program engages students in active citizenship projects while providing skills-based training and required academic coursework coursework Noun work done by a student and assessed as part of an educational course Noun 1. coursework - work assigned to and done by a student during a course of study; usually it is evaluated as part of the student's . The program follows a developmental model, using a structured framework to foster these connections and to achieve a set of civic learning outcomes. The CPS Scholars program includes a weekly meeting of the scholar community, regular staff advising on projects, retreats and workshops, and guidance on course selection. Foundations of research Theorists of democracy, citizenship, freedom, and the public sphere The public sphere is a concept in continental philosophy and critical theory that contrasts with the private sphere, and is the part of life in which one is interacting with others and with society at large. have long argued about the foundation of democratic skills (Dewey, 1916). One of the original purposes of higher education in the U.S. was to build a broad base of individuals equipped to engage in the policy debates of the day, to assure a strong democracy instead of yielding to the rule of a narrow aristocracy aristocracy (ăr'ĭstŏk`rəsē) [Gr.,=rule by the best], in political science, government by a social elite. In the West the political concept of aristocracy derives from Plato's formulation in the Republic. . Today, we witness a renewed commitment to that early mission of preparing people for lives of active citizenship (Boyer, 1996; Checkoway, 2001; Harkavy, 2006). As Amy Gutmann
Amy Gutmann (1949 - ), Ph.D., is the 8th President of the University of Pennsylvania[1]. She is also a political theorist who taught at Princeton University from 1976 to 2004 and served as its Provost. , President of University of Pennsylvania (body, education) University of Pennsylvania - The home of ENIAC and Machiavelli. http://upenn.edu/. Address: Philadelphia, PA, USA. recently argued "No one mistakes Penn for an ivory tower ivory tower n. A place or attitude of retreat, especially preoccupation with lofty, remote, or intellectual considerations rather than practical everyday life. . And no one ever will. Through our collaborative engagement with communities all over the world, Penn is poised to advance the central values of democracy: life, liberty, opportunity, and mutual respect" (Gutmann, 2004). Stanford University Stanford University, at Stanford, Calif.; coeducational; chartered 1885, opened 1891 as Leland Stanford Junior Univ. (still the legal name). The original campus was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. David Starr Jordan was its first president. President John Hennessy There have been several people named John Hennessy, including:
In this context the research on civic engagement is growing. Our study builds on two lines of research: Civic engagement/service learning and positive youth development. Nationally recognized best practices for research on civic learning outcomes often draw from Service-Learning measurements (Bringle, Phillips, & Hudson, 2004; Eyler & Giles, 1999). In particular, prior research has shown that high school activities are a strong predictor of college activities (Astin & Sax, 1998; Jones & Hill, 2003; Marks & Jones, 2004). Research specifically on civic and political engagement has identified specific civic indicators, electoral indicators and indicators of political voice (Keeter, Zukin, Andolina, & Jenkins, 2002). Substantial empirical data has been provided by the National Survey of Student Engagement The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) (pronounced: nessie) is a survey instrument used to gauge the level of student participation at universities and colleges in Canada and the United States as it relates to learning. (NSSE NSSE National Survey of Student Engagement (Indiana University) NSSE National Study of School Evaluation NSSE National Special Security Event (US) NSSE National Security Special Event ) which collects information nationwide about college student participation in programs and activities that institutions implement for their learning and personal development. Research from Positive Youth Development indicates that engagement can take many forms and still have a positive impact on youth development so it is important to examine all kinds of activities not just ones presumed to have an impact (Baldi et al., 2001). Even short intense experiences can have an impact on students, so tracking changes over time is a research imperative (Scales, Benson, Leffert, & Blyth, 2000). In summary, civic engagement research is important to higher education today, and the Tufts study builds upon previous research by increasing the scope of inquiry in three ways: the study focuses on the entire student experience, not solely the classroom experiences; embraces curricular and co-curricular civic and political engagement, and tracks development over time through a mixed method, longitudinal approach in place of the more traditional cross-sectional, annual designs or pre- and post- intervention A procedure used in a lawsuit by which the court allows a third person who was not originally a party to the suit to become a party, by joining with either the plaintiff or the defendant. evaluations. Research design & Methodology The study collects qualitative and quantitative data on the activities and attitudes of undergraduate Tufts students from each of the four cohorts (academic classes of 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010) for six consecutive years (four years as undergraduate students plus two additional years as alumni.) The design for this longitudinal study includes the administration of an annual web-based survey instrument. The survey tracks the development of students' civic and political behaviors and attitudes. The study began in fall of 2003 and will conclude the summer of 2012. A stratified stratified /strat·i·fied/ (strat´i-fid) formed or arranged in layers. strat·i·fied adj. Arranged in the form of layers or strata. , random sample of students (based upon each academic cohort's first year composition of gender and racial background, as well as school affiliation) was selected to participate in the study. Annual study recruitment invited all first year students to take the Tisch College Participant Survey. This survey instrument was designed as a screening tool, and queries respondents In the context of marketing research, a representative sample drawn from a larger population of people from whom information is collected and used to develop or confirm marketing strategy. on their high school activities and involvement. Each academic cohort consists of 60-80 undergraduates, for a total of 267 participants. Survey data is augmented by other data sources. Qualitative data is collected from ten percent of participants who are randomly sampled to be interviewed during their second and fourth years of college. In addition, participants' responses from routine outcomes assessment instruments (including the Sophomore Experience and Senior Surveys), student transcripts, and demographic data are triangulated. The respondents to the annual high school survey became the population from which the sample for each cohort was pulled for the study. To facilitate later comparative analysis, respondents were divided into the three distinct groups based upon their involvement in the CPS Scholars program or community service activities in high school: CPS Scholars, High School--High Participators (HS Highs), and High School--Low Participators (HS Lows). For the cohorts from classes of 2007, 2008, and 2009, the student participation in community service in high school separated as follows: CPS Scholars: averaged 16.8 hours of community service per month in high school; HS Highs: had 19.3 hours of community service per month in high school; HS Lows: reported 2.7 hours of community service per month in high school. Each spring, all participants receive and complete the annual Civic and Political Activities and Attitudes Survey (CPAAS) that was developed after reviewing a number of sources and with input from national experts[1]. The survey was created by compiling com·pile tr.v. com·piled, com·pil·ing, com·piles 1. To gather into a single book. 2. To put together or compose from materials gathered from several sources: questions from existing instruments designed to gather information on college students' civic and political engagement, as well as creating additional items specific to the research questions. The items are integrated or adapted from the following eight validated val·i·date tr.v. val·i·dat·ed, val·i·dat·ing, val·i·dates 1. To declare or make legally valid. 2. To mark with an indication of official sanction. 3. instruments: First, CIRCLE's Young Citizens Survey for questions about involvement in different types of civic and political activities, second, Pew's Civic and Political Health of a Nation[2] for questions about involvement in activities including voting and current affairs current affairs npl → (noticias fpl de) actualidad f current affairs current npl → (questions fpl d')actualité f , and third, the Americorps Baseline Survey[3] for questions about civic attitudes. The fourth and fifth sources are two sub-scales of the Civic Attitude and Skills Questionnaire (Social Justice attitudes and Diversity attitudes). The sixth and seventh sources are the Community Service Self-Efficacy Scale and the Public Service Motivation Scale respectively. The eighth and final source of items on the CPAAS is the Social Responsibility Inventory which measures levels of agreement with attitudinal statements[4]. The CPAAS asks a series of questions aimed at examining the extent to which the Tufts experience influences students' civic knowledge, skills, and values. The survey questions focus on both students' activities as undergraduates, as well as their civic and political attitudes. These activity and attitudinal questions are designed to enable a comparative analysis that highlights how participation in the CPS Scholars Program and levels of community service in high school affect students' choices of activities and their attitudes about civic and political action during the undergraduate years. A civic engagement scale has been developed to assess students' respective attitudes towards the importance of and belief in the values of civic engagement. Students' attitudes towards the importance of civic engagement are measured on five factors: Value of Commitment to the Public Good, Personal Efficacy through Community Service, Personal Efficacy through Politics, Appreciation of Dynamics of Diversity, and Awareness of & Interest in Community and National Issues. Students' levels of participation in behaviors that exhibit their dedication to civic engagement are scaled according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the number of hours they spend participating in community service activities, civic actions, and political actions. Preliminary findings Preliminary findings suggest that students' civic attitudes and participation in civically-based activities vary significantly according to their levels of involvement in community service in high school and involvement in the CPS Scholars program while at Tufts. Specifically, CPS Scholars' involvement in activities at Tufts has differed from that of HS Highs or HS Lows, with CPS Scholars indicating being more involved than HS Highs or HS Lows in civic and political activities while at Tufts. Participation levels of all three research groups in community service activities have differed significantly from one another. Additional, preliminary findings indicate that CPS Scholars' impressions of the importance of four of the five factor categories of civic learning outcomes have also differed significantly from the other two research groups. CPS Scholars' impressions of the implied civic responsibility of citizens to perform public service, their power to evoke e·voke tr.v. e·voked, e·vok·ing, e·vokes 1. To summon or call forth: actions that evoked our mistrust. 2. change through both community service and political action, and the importance of remaining informed about community and national issues, are all significantly stronger than HS Highs or HS Lows. In contrast, only students' attitudes towards the fifth factor category, dynamics of diversity, do not significantly differ. Specifically, students' impressions (regardless of research group) are similar with regard to the positive and negative dynamics of interacting with individuals with diverse economic, cultural, and racial backgrounds. See issue website http://www.rapidintellect.com/AEQweb/sum2007.htm Results of the qualitative follow-up interviews during participants' sophomore years have further illuminated il·lu·mi·nate v. il·lu·mi·nat·ed, il·lu·mi·nat·ing, il·lu·mi·nates v.tr. 1. To provide or brighten with light. 2. To decorate or hang with lights. 3. these differences in students' opinions of an individual's ability to influence a community through civic efforts. CPS Scholars and HS Highs frequently indicated believing that individuals can evoke change in a community through community service. These interviewees cited the reactions and "feedback" of "the people that you interact with [through community service]" as evidence of the powerful effect of their efforts in the community. In particular, one interviewee noted "just seeing how you can make a difference, one person, person to person, that definitely has made me feel that individuals can impact a community." She continued on to describe how these community experiences had led her to believe that "if you really want to achieve it, you can somehow make a difference. Preliminary findings also suggest that students' involvement in particular activities affect students' attitudes towards their self-efficacy, the value of commitment to the public good, and levels of community and national knowledge. Indeed, after isolating i·so·late tr.v. i·so·lat·ed, i·so·lat·ing, i·so·lates 1. To set apart or cut off from others. 2. To place in quarantine. 3. the variance The discrepancy between what a party to a lawsuit alleges will be proved in pleadings and what the party actually proves at trial. In Zoning law, an official permit to use property in a manner that departs from the way in which other property in the same locality due to a student's level of involvement in high school (their research group), students' levels of involvement in community service activities serve as significant predictors of their viewpoints on self-efficacy through community service and the value of and commitment to the public good. More specifically, a students' level of involvement in community service activities serves as the most influential factor in determining their beliefs towards their ability to evoke positive developments in a community through community service. Additionally, students' levels of involvement in political activities serve as significant predictors of their viewpoints on their own self-efficacy through politics and awareness of and interest in community and national issues. In particular, students' participation in political activities has had the largest affect on their attitudes towards the need to acquire and remain informed on community and national issues. Qualitative data has substantiated these findings as well. Interviewees noted that participation in specific activities had raised their awareness about civic or political issues. For example, one interviewee commented that her on-campus volunteer activity had, "increased my awareness on issues that are important." In addition, participation in particular activities also increased certain students' involvement in and concern about their community. For example, one interviewee noted that his off-campus volunteering opportunity at a free-clinic has, "definitely opened my eyes" to the issues of affordable health-care currently facing a large population of individuals in the metro-Boston area. Similarly, another interviewee indicated that the opportunity to "perform in various communities" through a community-based activity had "raised my awareness about some of the things that are going on." Looking ahead Although this longitudinal study is still in its early stages, with data collection scheduled to continue into 2012, preliminary findings suggest some important results. Participation in civic engagement activities and the acquisition of civic engagement attitudes has been found to differ based upon participation in CPS Scholars program, along with students' levels of participation in community service in high school. The early findings also suggest that even for students who were active in high school, an intense intervention such as the CPS Scholars program, is associated with even stronger civic attitudes. In addition, as discussed in the preliminary findings, particular civic engagement activities predict students' development of civic competencies. Therefore, these initial results suggest that involvement in higher education can affect students' civic and political attitudes, a finding that could substantiate To establish the existence or truth of a particular fact through the use of competent evidence; to verify. For example, an Eyewitness might be called by a party to a lawsuit to substantiate that party's testimony. the need for institutions of higher education to promote these types of activities going forward. These findings, which already allude to allude to verb refer to, suggest, mention, speak of, imply, intimate, hint at, remark on, insinuate, touch upon see see, elude a link between students' engagement in activities and their adoption of civic engagement attitudes, will help Tufts and other universities shape and direct programs that enhance student commitment to civically engaged lives. The study of civic learning outcomes presents an exciting opportunity to conduct creative research that matters to the world. To date, the team has shared preliminary findings at several educational research conferences, including the American Association American Association refers to one of the following professional baseball leagues:
Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge the many contributions to the study made by Dr. Molly molly see mare hinny. Mead mead (mēd), wine made of fermented honey and water, sometimes flavored with spices. It is highly intoxicating. Mead was known in classical Greece and Rome and was the favorite drink of the tribes of N and W Europe. , Lincoln Filene Professor, Jonathan M. Tisch College for Citizenship and Public Service, Tufts University, for getting the study started, Karen Horsch who participated in the initial survey design, and Dean Robert Hollister, Tisch College, for encouraging us to keep going. References Astin, A., & Sax, L. (1998). How undergraduates are affected by service participation.. Journal of College Student Development Journal of College Student Development is an academic journal founded in 1959 and is the official publication of the American College Personnel Association. The journal publishes scholarly articles and reviews from a wide variety of academic fields related to college , 39(3), 251-263. Baldi, S., Perie, M., Skidmore, D., Greenberg, E., Hahn, C., & Nelson, D. (2001). What democracy means to ninth-graders: U.S. results from the international IEA IEA International Energy Agency IEA International Environmental Agreements IEA International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement IEA Institute of Economic Affairs IEA Inferred from Electronic Annotation IEA International Ergonomics Association civic education study. US Department of Education, Office of Educational Research & Improvement, National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), as part of the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES), collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States; conducts studies . Boyer, E. L. (1996). The scholarship of engagement. Journal of Public Service & Outreach Outreach is an effort by an organization or group to connect its ideas or practices to the efforts of other organizations, groups, specific audiences or the general public. , 1, No. 1 (Spring). Bringle, R., Phillips, M., & Hudson, M. (2004). The measure of service-learning: Research scales to assess student experiences. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is a professional organization representing psychology in the US. Description and history The association has around 150,000 members and an annual budget of around $70m. . Checkoway, B. (2001). Renewing the civic mission of the American research university. Journal of Higher Education, 72, 125-147. Dewey. (l916). Democracy and education. New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of : Macmillan. Eyler, J., & Giles, D. J. (1999). Where's the learning in Service-Learning? San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden : Jossey-Bass, A Wiley Company. Gutmann, A. (2004). University of Pennsylvania, Inaugural address. Providence Providence, city (1990 pop. 160,728), state capital and seat of Providence co., NE R.I., a port at the head of Providence Bay; founded by Roger Williams 1636, inc. as a city 1832. , RI: Campus Compact. Harkavy, I. (2006). Forward. In S. L. Percy, N. Zimpher, M. J. Brukhardt (Eds.), Creating a new kind of university: Institutionalizing community-university engagement. Boston: Anker Publishing Co. Hennessy, J. (2005). Stanford University Presidential speech. Providence, RI: Campus Compact Hollister, R. (2002). Lives of Active Citizenship. Paper presented at the inaugural lecture for the John DiBiaggio Chair in Citizenship and Public Service, Tufts University. February 7, 2002. Jones, S. R., & Hill, K. E. (2003). Understanding patterns of commitment: student motivation for community service involvement. Journal of Higher Education, 74 (5),(Sep-Oct), 516-539. Keeter, S., Zukin, C., Andolina, M., & Jenkins, K. (2002). Civic and political health of a nation: a Generational portrait. College Park, MD: Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. Marks, H. M., & Jones, S. R. (2004). Community service in the transition: Shifts and continuities in participation from high school to college. Journal of Higher Education, 75 (3) (May-Jun), 307-339. National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). (2006). From http://nsse.iub.edu/index Scales, P., Benson, P., Leffert, N., & Blyth, D. A. (2000). The contribution of developmental assets to the prediction of thriving thrive intr.v. thrived or throve , thrived or thriv·en , thriv·ing, thrives 1. To make steady progress; prosper. 2. among adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 4, 27-46. Endnotes [1] Dr. Robert Bringle, Dr. Andrew Furco and Dr. Dwight Giles each reviewed and provided input on the survey instrument. [2] Pew's Civic and Political Health of a Nation survey instrument developed by CIRCLE at http://www.civicyouth.org [3] Americorps Baseline Survey was developed by the Corporation for National Service at http://www.nationalservice.org [4] The latter five of these eight instruments are reviewed in "The Measure of Service Learning" (see References). Nancy E. Wilson, Tisch College, Tufts University, MA Ande Diaz, consultant, MA Lisa S. O'Leary, Tufts University, MA Dawn Geronimo Terkla, Tufts University, MA Wilson is Director and Associate Dean, and Diaz, is evaluation consultant for Tisch College at Tufts. O'Leary is Assistant Director and Terkla, Ed.D. is Executive Director, Office of Institutional Research & Evaluation, Tufts University. |
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