Understanding the Transition between High School and College Mathematics and Science

Mathematics and science education is gaining increasing recognition as key for the well-being of individuals and society. Accordingly, the transition from high school to college is particularly important to ensure that students are prepared for college mathematics and science. The goal of this study was to understand how high school mathematics and science course-taking related to performance in college. Specifically, the study employed a nonparametric regression method to examine the relationship between high school mathematics and science courses, and academic performance in college mathematics and science courses. The results provide some evidence pertaining to the positive benefits from high school course-taking. Namely, students who completed high school trigonometry and labbased chemistry tended to earn higher grades in college algebra and general chemistry, respectively. However, there was also evidence that high school coursework in biology and physics did not improve course performance in general biology and college physics beyond standardized test scores. Interestingly, students who completed high school calculus earned better grades in general biology. The implications of the findings are discussed for high school curriculum and alignment in standards between high schools and colleges. 158 S. A. CULPEPER, C. BASILE, C.A. FERGUSON, J.A. LANNING, and M.A. PERKINS Introduction No matter where in the educational continuum transitions take place (i.e., elementary to middle school or high school to college), systems are needed to ensure that students are prepared and that academic and non-academic factors are considered. In particular, the transition from secondary to post-secondary education is one that is receiving greater attention as data suggests that close to 50% of all college freshman students either fail or are put on academic probation due to poor performance [1]. Further, a large portion of student failure and academic probation is due to failure in mathematics and science courses. Kuh states that “many high school seniors are not prepared academically for college-level work and have not developed the habits of the mind and heart that will stand them in good stead to successfully grapple with more challenging intellectual tasks” [2]. Often, college and university faculty do not consider high school standards to be congruent with college expectations [1, 3]. Hoyt and Sorensen argued that “lax and/or inconsistent standards may create student attitudes, behaviors, and expectations for performance that lead to failure in the college environment” [3]. The literature cites many factors that may affect first-year students’ performance in mathematics and science, including academic preparation, congruence between high schools and institutions of higher education, alignment of secondary education standards and expectations in higher education, and several non-academic factors (i.e., pre-enrollment preparation, social relationships, financial issues, parent background and support) [4]. What is clear from existing data is that the transition between high school and college is not conducive to fostering student success for many graduating seniors. As Conley states, “The two systems—K-12 and postsecondary—evolved in relative isolation. Although each is clearly engaged in education, each has traditionally seen its purposes and goals as distinctly different from the other’s” [5]. Studies show that sufficient academic preparation is essential for success in college. For example, students who complete higher-level mathematics and science courses are more likely to attend college, succeed in college-level mathematics and science courses, and graduate [6-8]. In a review of research in science education, Tai, Sadler, and Loehr specifically point to pedagogical approaches, critical concepts taught, the type of laboratory experience, the degree of lesson structure, instructional technology use, AP science instruction, and mathematical background as factors that predict success in science to varying degrees [9]. Research also suggests a lack of congruence between high schools and post-secondary institutions [1-3, 10]. Brown and Conley found that most state assessments do not align with college and university expectations and the ACT National Curriculum Survey: 2005-2006 found UNDERSTANDING THE TRANSITION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE . 159 that few teachers agreed with college educators on what is important to teach. College professors valued thinking skills over content knowledge while high school teachers valued the exact opposite. The ACT survey suggests that this is due to content knowledge making up most state standards. There is also a body of literature related to mathematical knowledge itself and its impact on science courses. Kuh found that students who do not take upper-level mathematics courses are less likely to complete a baccalaureate degree. Hoyt and Sorensen found that students who receive less than a Cin high school Algebra I, Algebra II, and/or Geometry are more likely to take college remedial math. Recently, researchers and policymakers are examining the alignment between state assessments and standards, and courses in colleges and universities. In fact, according to the ACT National Curriculum Review, “Inadequate high school coursework may account for at least part of the remediation problem. Too few students may be taking enough high school math (up through Algebra II at a minimum)” [1]. Standards are also problematic as they do not match college and university needs [1]. The ACT National Curriculum Survey found the following in its research: High school teachers are being held accountable to teach students the content and skills listed in state standards. Given those expectations, it is not surprising that our survey found that high school teachers tend to rate more content and skills with higher importance and at greater frequency than do their post-secondary counterparts [1]. Finally, there are also the non-academic factors. Studies have examined behavior and relationship issues. Ferry, Fouad, and Smith found a correlation between family involvement and classes taken in high school [11]. The more parents were involved, the higher level the classes that were taken by their high school-aged children. Nonis and Hudson looked at study habits and found that the amount of time students spend studying is related to the number of mathematics and science classes that students take [12]. However, they found that the strongest predictor for college success is either the ACT (American College Test) or SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) score. K. Cockley, et al. compared African-American and Euro-American students and reported differences in self-concept among students which they felt contributed to success in higher education [13]. The aforementioned literature clearly supports the need to better understand the alignment between mathematics and science courses in high school and college. Previous 160 S. A. CULPEPER, C. BASILE, C.A. FERGUSON, J.A. LANNING, and M.A. PERKINS research in this area has primarily examined the relationship between high school course-taking and post-secondary enrollment and performance on standardized test scores or high school grades on college grades [14-17]. Consequently, additional research is needed to understand the link between high school course-taking and academic performance in college. Accordingly, the goal of this study was to explicitly assess the value of high school course-taking on student performance in freshmen-level mathematics and science courses (i.e., general biology, general chemistry, college algebra, and physics). More specifically, the purpose of this study was to address two central questions. First, how well do standardized test scores predict students’ performance in freshmen-level mathematics and science courses? Secondly, what is the contribution of high school course-taking to academic performance in college after controlling for students’ standardized test scores? Moreover, a significant relationship between high school and college courses provides evidence for alignment between secondary and post-secondary education. The following discussion is divided into three sections. The first section discusses the sample, variables, and statistical model used to assess the research questions. The second section presents results from a nonparametric regression and discusses the results in relation to the research questions. The last section discusses the implications of the results and provides concluding remarks. Methods Sample—Students for this study attended a public, urban university in the Rocky Mountain region. For purposes of this study, data were collected on students who completed one of four mathematics or science courses, namely general biology, general chemistry, college algebra, and physics, between Fall 2005 and Spring 2008. The study examined data from a total of 2,108 students (i.e., 878 students in general biology, 499 in general chemistry, 482 in college algebra, and 249 in physics). Variables—Table 1 presents descriptive statistics for the variables of interest. Specifically, the dependent variable, course grade, was a twelve-point scale ranging from zero to eleven to represent letter grades on a +/scale; e.g., 11 represents an A, 10 is an A-, 9 a B+, 8 a B, etc. Table 1 shows that the average course grades ranged between a C and C+ in Biology (e.g., a mean of 5.6) to a Bin Physics (e.g., a mean of 7.3). We also examined the relationship between students’ standardized test scores (as indicated by ACT Mathematics and Science sub-test scores) and credits earned with course performance. In particular, credits earned was an important control variable to account for the fact that students differ in exposure to college classrooms. In UNDERSTANDING THE TRANSITION BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE . 161 fact, the average student completed biolog