Minding the Gap whilst Moving Forward Student Attainment Summit Dr Debra Cureton The University of Opportunity

Overview Progress from last year: –What you asked for: An understanding of students pre-expectations Better understanding of the role of belonging in attainment Overview of findings –Students’ University Pre-expectations of HE –Students’ Perceived Belongingness

Students’ University Pre-expectations University is a means to: Meeting personal aspirations. These are: –Career goals –A better life –Study goals Preparing for a career –HE is required for intended career –HE will support getting a better job –HE will provide better knowledge and skills Life enhancing experience –Transformative/ better life –Enhance my skills –Educational journey

Clashes HE definition of independent learning Independent learning Independent learning Learning experience being an active Students definition – doing assignments, set homework and meeting targets set by lecturers Being given everything to do assignments Expecting an FE style education in a HE setting Learning experience is a passive activity – it is ‘done to me’

Clashes Massification – Large group teaching. Learning journey – attending University to acquire academic knowledge Learning journey Transformative experience Individualised learning experience Focus is not on learning journey, but life beyond University University is a means to an end University provides a good job University will change my life and make me into a better person

Expectations To be coached for success Lectures will be structured, easy to understand and tailored to my needs and provide me with the information needed to complete assignments Learning will be made easy and success will be achievable Lectures will fun, entertaining and interactive Lecturers will be supportive Lecturers will be invitational and experts Lecturers will respect students and their prior knowledge University will provide all the skills and knowledge required for future employment in chosen field University will be harder, more challenging but rewarding/ worth it The university will provide a quality learning experience.

Belongingness 941 Questionnaire –Majority from full time students (94.3%) –All three levels of study Level 4 (43.5%) Level 5 (37%) Level 6 (19.3%) –Age range under 20 to over 50 Under 20 (54.1%) –Nearly ¾ of the sample were female –Range of broad ethnicity groups 48.1% are White British –All campuses –All Faculties –Other factors considered First in family Disclosure of disability Care responsibilities Disruptive home study environment Working while studying

Identified Trends Factors that didn’t affect perceived belongingness Mode of study Gender – as an overall category First in family Disclosed disability Factors that have an affect Level of study –Belongingness dips at Level 5.

Age

Belongingness increase with age. This trend is evident across all levels. However, an increased belonging with age is not evident when ethnicity is considered. Older students from minority background have a different perceived sense of belonging. ECU (2013) the attainment gap differs with age: Younger students 8.6% Older students 26.8%

Perceived belongingness differs by ethnicity group Students from minority backgrounds perceive the belongingness differently to their white counterparts Ethnicity by level suggests that Level 5 students of Asian origin are particularly at risk.

Chinese students have a higher perceived sense of belonging Males from the ethnicity categories of black and other are at risk Females who are white other are at risk Chinese students outperform other students (ECU, 2014) Black males are less likely to gain a good degree (ECU, 2014)

Students based at Telford have the strongest sense of belonging Students from Walsall have a strong sense of belonging There are slight differences in belonging as a result of Faculty.

Other factors Belongingness is lowest for students who always travel more than 45 minutes to university Students from outside Europe have high sense of belonging European students have a low sense of belonging Students with disruptive home environments have lower sense of belonging Students with caring responsibilities have a higher sense of belonging than those who do not Interaction between Faculty and campus suggest belongingness is stronger in faculty on smaller campuses

Conclusions Belongingness is linked to students attainment (Thomas, 2012) Similar patterns of weaker belongingness are found for students who are less likely to gain a first or a 2:i at the University of Wolverhampton Small/ discreet campuses with home buildings lead to stronger sense of belonging i.e. –The International Academy –The Performance Hub We focus on level 4 and 6, but also need to pay attention to our level 5 students

Thank you