Term of Award

Fall 2017

Degree Name

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (Ed.D.)

Document Type and Release Option

Dissertation (open access)

Department

Department of Leadership, Technology, and Human Development

Committee Chair

Dan Calhoun

Committee Member 1

Teri Melton

Committee Member 2

Bryan Griffin

Abstract

Research has shown that engagement, motivation, self-regulation, and their individual effects on student achievement are established factors that influence college students’ success. However, what is less clear are these variables’ relationships and their collective influence on achievement. Since students face unique trials as they persist through college, consideration of these relationships and their effect on the achievement of all students is necessary. There is a widening achievement gap between sexes; females have now passed males in enrollment, persistence, and graduation rates. Previous research in this area has been largely centered on undergraduate female students in their freshman year, but the second year of college can be particularly challenging and is a critical year for student retention (Tobolowsky, 2008; Voyer & Voyer, 2014). Therefore, the current study focuses on engagement, motivation, self-regulation, and their capacity to predict female and male sophomores’ achievement.

A self-report instrument was created using select items from the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) (Pintrich, Smith, Garcia, & McKeachie, 1993) and the Student Course Engagement Questionnaire (SCEQ) (Handelsman, Briggs, Sullivan, & Towler, 2005). Responses from females and males were analyzed separately to determine the variables’ relationships and the predictive capacity of the variables and their interactions on GPA. For males, findings reveal correlations between engagement and three of the four components of motivation, between self-regulation and three of the four components of motivation, and among engagement and self-regulation. For females, analyses demonstrate correlations among engagement and all components of motivation, between self-regulation and three of the components of motivation, and among engagement and self-regulation. Regression analyses establish self-efficacy as predictive of GPA for both sexes and perceived autonomy support is predictive of females’ GPA. Results also indicated that no interactions between these variables significantly predict GPA. Both the application of these findings for educational leaders and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Research Data and Supplementary Material

Yes

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