UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Assessing the Relationship between Grit, Efficacy, Mindset & Motivation (GEMM) and Academic Probation among Community College Students A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education by Tammy Lee Mahan 2017 © Copyright by Tammy Lee Mahan 2017 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Assessing the Relationship between Grit, Efficacy, Mindset & Motivation (GEMM) and Academic Probation among Community College Students by Tammy Lee Mahan Doctor of Education University of California, Los Angeles, 2017 Professor Mark Kevin Eagan, Chair This study examined the relationship between factors of GEMM (grit, efficacy, mindset & motivation) and academic probation status removal as well as student perception of personal contributors to academic probation, tutorial interventions, and the effectiveness of a mandatory academic probation workshop at a large urban community college in Southern California. A mixed-method design was used. Survey data, as well as personal interview data, was collected. A total of 695 students out of 830 students who were placed on A1 probation status attended a mandatory workshop prior to the beginning of the Fall 2015 semester. Out of the 695 students, 194 completed their GEMM pre-survey correctly and were assessed to determine if factors of GEMM correlated with successful academic probation status removal. A total of 211 students expressed interest in participating in the review of GEMM tutorial interventions, with 31 students committing to participate in the intervention program, and only 13 completing. Academic self-efficacy was the only GEMM factor found to be predictive of academic probation status removal. Student perception of the online GEMM tutorial interventions was ii overwhelmingly positive with the majority of the students favoring the video content of personal student interviews. Participation and follow-through proved to be problematic for this study, and only 79 out of the 695 students on A1 academic probation returned to good standing by the following semester. Implications and recommendations for future research are contained within. iii The dissertation of Tammy Lee Mahan is approved. Linda P. Rose James W. Stigler Linda J. Sax Mark Kevin Eagan, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2017 iv Dedication I give this manuscript as a gift to my two sons, Brandon & Blake. Throughout this doctoral program, both Brandon and Blake patiently supported me throughout the process. Sacrifices were made by all of us in order to successfully complete this dissertation and degree. It is my hope that I have served, and will continue to serve, as a defining role model within their lives personally (morally, ethically, spiritually), academically, and professionally. In addition, I would like to dedicate this dissertation to all of my family, friends, and colleagues who offered their continued support and encouragement. It is with the completion of this dissertation that I would like to express the importance of having faith in your dreams, no matter what the perceived obstacles may be. To continue, despite hardships, to refocus for clarity when needed, and to live your life with strength and integrity, all while attempting to discover your divine life purpose along the way. v TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................. xi CURRICULUM VITAE ................................................................................................. xii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................... 1 Statement of the Problem: Academic Probation among Community College Students ................................................................................................................................. 2 Historical Context of Academic Probation Interventions ....................................... 4 Linking GEMM Characteristics with Academic Probation in Community College .................................................................................................................... 5 Research Design and Research Questions .............................................................. 7 Site Selection .......................................................................................................... 9 Participants and Data Collection ............................................................................. 9 Significance ........................................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................... 12 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 12 The Role and Demand for Remediation in Community Colleges ........................ 13 Academic Probation Interventions ........................................................................ 14 Challenges to Reaching and Sustaining Community College Students’ Participation ............................................................................................................................... 16 Chaffey College .................................................................................................... 17 Supporting the Need to Intervene ......................................................................... 19 Examining Probationary Students’ Motivation, Coping, and Receptivity to Support Services: Looking for Differences According to Ethnicity .................................. 22 Developing Metacognitive Skillsets as an Alternative to Directive Measures ..... 23 Duckworth’s Concept of Grit ................................................................................ 23 Dweck’s Concept of Growth vs. Fixed Mindset ................................................... 25 vi Bandura’s Concept of Academic Self-Efficacy .................................................... 27 The Role of Student Motivation ........................................................................... 29 Educational Practices Moving Forward ................................................................ 30 CHAPTER 3: DESIGN AND METHODS ................................................................... 32 Overview of the Research Design ......................................................................... 33 The Research Site ................................................................................................. 36 Research Participants ............................................................................................ 38 A1 Academic Probation Workshops ..................................................................... 39 Participant Selection for Intervention Tutorials .................................................... 40 GEMM Tutorial Interventions .............................................................................. 41 Tutorial Completion and Personal Interviews ...................................................... 47 End of Semester Post-Survey ................................................................................ 48 Research Instruments and Data Collection ........................................................... 49 Personal Interviews ............................................................................................... 50 Quantitative Analysis ........................................................................................... 51 Qualitative Analysis .............................................................................................. 52 Ethical Concerns ................................................................................................... 53 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS .............................................................................................. 56 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 56 Academic Probation Workshop Leaves Students Feeling Disengaged ................ 56 Finding Community and Direction from the Workshop ....................................... 57 Workshop’s Lack of Personal Relevance can Alienate some Students ................ 59 Student Action Plans: Students’ Thoughts about the Contributors to Academic Probation ............................................................................................................................... 60 Student Perception of GEMM Tutorial Interventions .......................................... 66 Logistic Regression Predicting Academic Probation Removal ........................... 73 Mean Comparisons for GEMM ............................................................................ 75 Tutorial Interventions Comparison of the GEMM Inventory Scores before and after ............................................................................................................................... 76 Predicting Successful Academic Probation Removal by Assessing GEMM ....... 77 Summary ..............................................................................................................