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ERIC Number: EJ1127422
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2307-6267
EISSN: N/A
Faculty Intervention as Support for First-Year Students
Naidoo, Ana'dhavelli; Lemmens, Juan-Claude
Journal of Student Affairs in Africa, v3 n2 p17-32 2015
The impetus for this study is grounded in a strategic decision by management to measure readiness for university education as part of an early alert and referral system. The motivation for this project is also rooted in literature that points out that the South African higher education system faces challenges with students entering the system underprepared. Data at entry to the university, specifically related to the individual student, is used initially to profile the students. This profile is used to identify students who could be at risk of failing. These students are referred to a Faculty Student Advisor (FSA) for support to address their needs. Using a survey, 966 students were identified as being at risk at the beginning of the 2013 academic year. After additional criteria were applied to our prediction model, 200 students were selected for academic development workshops or individual sessions provided as intervention in the first semester. An outcomes assessment method was used to determine whether the number of sessions that at-risk students attend has had an influence on their academic achievement in the first semester. The assumption is that students who made more use of the intervention services (attended more sessions) were more likely to be successful than students who defaulted on the intervention or attended fewer sessions with the FSAs. A cross-tabulation showed a significant association on the Pearson's Chi-square statistic (13.60, df(4), p = 0.009), which implies that students who attend more sessions with the FSA are more likely to be academically successful in their first semester.
University of Stellenbosch. 15A Bosman Street, Private Bag X1, Matieland ZA-7602, South Africa. Tel: +27-833505959e-mail: jsaa_editor@outlook.com; Web site: http://www.jsaa.ac.za/index.php/jsaa/index
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: South Africa
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A