Correlation Between Academic Credit-use Policies and Student Persistence in Multidisciplinary Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) Courses
Correlation Between Academic Credit-use Policies and Student Persistence in Multidisciplinary Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) Courses
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学术学分使用政策与学生坚持多学科垂直整合项目（VIP）课程之间的相关性
DOI：
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发表时间：
2018
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Randal T. Abler
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
J. Sonnenberg;E. Coyle;Randal T. Abler
在垂直整合项目（VIP）计划中，本科生通过参与长期的、大规模的、多学科的项目团队来获得学分，这些项目团队是应教师的要求创建的，以帮助他们进行研究和其他创新活动。学生们在项目中贡献他们的专业技能，与其他学科的学生合作，学习和实践许多专业技能。建立和维持富有成效的VIP团队的关键是让学生参与多个学期，有时长达六个学期。这使学生能够发展更深层次的专业知识，并承担越来越多的责任。学术院系为VIP课程制定了一系列学分使用政策，一些院系鼓励参加多个学期，每种政策的激励措施和门槛不同。除了课程政策之外，学生参加VIP的学期数可能会受到学生与导师所在部门的匹配/不匹配以及学生在VIP第一学期的学术排名的影响。本研究描述了佐治亚理工学院VIP招生人数最多的四个学术单位的政策，并通过政策、学术等级以及学生和教师部门之间的匹配-不匹配来检查参加VIP的学生学期数（N = 869）。在二次分析中，比较了奖励性信贷使用政策建立前后学位课程的坚持率（N = 45）。结果表明，较高的持久性与两项政策相关：1)在获得最低数量后，允许所有VIP学分计入专业选修课；2)允许学生通过VIP完成设计顺序要求，在正常设计顺序之外没有额外的规划/要求。本研究除一项分析外，其余均采用卡方分析，因为方差分析的假设不满足。这些发现将对现有的和未来的VIP项目，以及寻求增加学生在本科研究中的持久性的机构和部门有用。
In the Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) Program, undergraduates earn academic credit for their participation in long-term, large-scale, multidisciplinary project teams that are created at the request of faculty to assist them with their research and other innovative activities. The students contribute their disciplinary skills to the project, collaborate with students from other disciplines, and learn and practice many professional skills. A key to launching and maintaining productive VIP teams is having students participate for multiple semesters, sometimes up to six semesters. This allows students to develop deeper expertise and take on increasing levels of responsibility. Academic departments have established a range of credit-use policies for VIP courses, with some departments incentivizing multiple semesters of participation, with different incentives and varying thresholds for each policy. Beyond curricular policies, the number of semesters students participate in VIP may be affected by matches/mismatches between students and their instructors’ departments, as well as student academic rank in their first semester of VIP. This study describes policies for the four academic units with highest enrollments in VIP at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and examines the number of semesters students (N = 869) participate in VIP by policy, by academic rank, and by matches-mismatches between student and instructor departments. In a secondary analysis, persistence rates are compared for a degree program before and after an incentivizing credit-use policy was established (N = 45). Results show correlation between higher persistence and two policies: 1) allowing all VIP credits to count as in-major electives after a minimum number are earned; and 2) allowing students to fulfill a design sequence requirement through VIP, with no additional planning/requirements beyond the normal design sequence. The study employed chi-square analysis for all but one analysis, because assumptions for analysis of variance were not met. These findings will be of use to existing and prospective VIP Programs, as well as institutions and departments seeking to increase student persistence in undergraduate research.