Relationships between first-generation college-bound students' stated intentions to attend a 4-year college or university directly after high school and the engagement factors of students, their parents, and their peers

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between tenth grade first-generation college-bound students stated intentions to attend a 4-year college or university directly after high school and the engagement factor of students, their parents, and their peers. Data collected for the National Center for Education Statistics Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (NCES ELS:2002) were used in this study. The population for this study was tenth grade students in 2002. The NCES ELS:2002 is a nationally representative sample of that population. The dependent variable was first-generation college-bound students' stated intentions to attend a 4-year college or university directly after high school. Twenty-two independent variables, classified by student, parent, and peer engagement factors, were used in this study. A logistic regression model developed from a backward stepwise regression analysis was used to answer the primary research question considered in this study: "What relationships exist between first-generation college-bound students' stated intentions to attend a 4-year college or university directly after high school and the engagement factors of students, their parents, and their peers?"

A number of significant positive relationships were shown to exist between the dependent variable and independent variables. The results suggest that students' college entrance test plans in grade 10 and grade 11, participation in an AP program, and AP test plans appear to be important predictors of students' intentions. When considering the highest positive odds ratio among all independent variables included in this study, the results suggest that the parent engagement factor, educational aspirations for the tenth grade child: graduate from college with a BA/BS degree or higher, stands out as the strongest predictor of students' intentions. The results suggest that peer influences matter. Students who stated intentions were more likely to have friends who feel it is important to attend classes regularly, study, get good grades, finish high school, and continue their education. The results also suggest that three independent variables were not found to be predictors of students' intentions: 1) student' participation in a college preparation program; 2) parents' checking of school work; and 3) parents' financial savings for the tenth grade child's postsecondary education.