PERC 2015 Abstract Detail Page
Previous Page | New Search | Browse All
| Abstract Title: | The Impact of Network Embeddedness on Student Persistence in Introductory Modeling Instruction Courses |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | Increasing student retention and persistence - in particular classes or in their major area of study - is a challenge for universities. Students' academic and social integration into an institution is vital to student retention, yet, research on the effect of interpersonal interactions is rare. Social network analysis is an approach that can be used to identify patterns of interaction that contribute to integration into the university. We analyze how a student's position within a social network in a Modeling Instruction (MI) course that strongly emphasizes interactive learning, and how their position impacts persistence in taking a subsequent MI course. We find that students with higher centrality at the end of the first semester of MI are in fact more likely to enroll in a second semester of MI. While the correlation with increased persistence is an ongoing study, these findings suggest that student social integration, in fact, influences persistence. |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster Presentation |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Justyna P Zwolak STEM Transformation Institute, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33199 Phone: 5419081006 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Eric Brewe, Department of Teaching and Learning, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33199, Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33199, STEM Transformation Institute, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33199 |
