#CSAM18 Day 22: Astin & Community
I really like Astin’s theories and research. I think it lends itself incredibly well to the student affairs field. I also think some people within the field cling to this theory like a life raft while totally ignoring most of what Astin says. Astin agrees with all of us, that co- and extra-curricular acitivites and engagement leads to student retention and success (measured by a few different features).
BUT!
Astin also talks about community - which involved way more than just student affairs professionals. It’s all of us. It’s us working together, building trust among us, and creating an environment where students want to participate in our community.
Astin studied student development and his research included a measure described as "Lack of Student Community", which really meant infrequent interaction among students and a general apathy from students. This lack of community "has a stronger effect on satisfaction than any of the other 150 institutional characteristics that we included in our study. This lack of student community tends to correspond with low levels of satisfaction among faculty and low levels of trust from students. Lack of student community is also negatively correlated with, among other things, writing skills and critical thinking.
Title of theory: What Matters in College: Four Critical Years Revisited
Year theory was published: 1993
Students originally studied: Studied student development at 217 institutions.
Background of the author: Dr. Alexander Astin received his AB in Music and then his MA and PhD in Psychology. He is one of the most cited academics within higher education. He has over 300 articles and 22 books published. He is currently the Allan M. Cartter Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Higher Education at the University of California, Los Angeles and Founding Director of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA.
How theory can be used now: How our campuses create community and count engagement matters and it contributes to the total, over-all experience our students have when part of our communities. Our community is not secondary, it's not something that just happens, and it's not parties and balloons. How we build and support community should be based on research and theory, it should be strategic, and we should be checking in with our students to see how we're doing.
Words of warning: I think a lot of student affairs professionals believe Astin's research promotes co-curricular engagement. And then we twist that meaning even further so that engagement can only be quantified (card swipes into events) as opposed to making sure our events are meaningful and add to the experiences of our students. Astin proved that college engagement is more than just what happens in the classroom, but that doesn't mean that engagement is *only* outside of the classroom. We need to be connecting what we do co- and extra-curricularly with their classroom experiences.
https://gseis.ucla.edu/media/AlexanderAstinCV.pdf?x63302, https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/celebritytalentbios/Alexander+Astin/404840,
Astin, A. W. (1994). Higher education and the concept of community. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
BUT!
Astin also talks about community - which involved way more than just student affairs professionals. It’s all of us. It’s us working together, building trust among us, and creating an environment where students want to participate in our community.
Astin studied student development and his research included a measure described as "Lack of Student Community", which really meant infrequent interaction among students and a general apathy from students. This lack of community "has a stronger effect on satisfaction than any of the other 150 institutional characteristics that we included in our study. This lack of student community tends to correspond with low levels of satisfaction among faculty and low levels of trust from students. Lack of student community is also negatively correlated with, among other things, writing skills and critical thinking.
Title of theory: What Matters in College: Four Critical Years Revisited
Year theory was published: 1993
Students originally studied: Studied student development at 217 institutions.
Background of the author: Dr. Alexander Astin received his AB in Music and then his MA and PhD in Psychology. He is one of the most cited academics within higher education. He has over 300 articles and 22 books published. He is currently the Allan M. Cartter Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Higher Education at the University of California, Los Angeles and Founding Director of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA.
How theory can be used now: How our campuses create community and count engagement matters and it contributes to the total, over-all experience our students have when part of our communities. Our community is not secondary, it's not something that just happens, and it's not parties and balloons. How we build and support community should be based on research and theory, it should be strategic, and we should be checking in with our students to see how we're doing.
Words of warning: I think a lot of student affairs professionals believe Astin's research promotes co-curricular engagement. And then we twist that meaning even further so that engagement can only be quantified (card swipes into events) as opposed to making sure our events are meaningful and add to the experiences of our students. Astin proved that college engagement is more than just what happens in the classroom, but that doesn't mean that engagement is *only* outside of the classroom. We need to be connecting what we do co- and extra-curricularly with their classroom experiences.
https://gseis.ucla.edu/media/AlexanderAstinCV.pdf?x63302, https://www.allamericanspeakers.com/celebritytalentbios/Alexander+Astin/404840,
Astin, A. W. (1994). Higher education and the concept of community. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
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