Correlates of Academic Performance of Freshman Students at the College of Micronesia--Federated States of Micronesia, Pohnpei Campus
Author: Lamsis, Pablo H., Jr.
Date: 2010-04-00
Type: Dissertations/Theses - Masters Theses
Subjects: Health Services,Student Attitudes,Grade Point Average,Faculty Evaluation,Educational Attainment,Student Surveys,Questionnaires,Science Laboratories,Program Effectiveness,Correlation,Student Evaluation of Teacher Performance,College Freshmen,Academic Achievement,Higher Education,Institutional Characteristics,Parent Background,Parents,College Faculty,Parent Attitudes,Family Income,Family Size,Socioeconomic Background,Socioeconomic Status,Blue Collar Occupations,Educational Resources,Instructional Effectiveness,Parent Participation,Foreign Countries,Two Year Colleges

The study aimed to correlate the performance of Pohnpei Campus freshman students in the College of Micronesia-Federated States of Micronesia during the fall semester 2009 to students' socio-demographic characteristics, parents'/guardians' socio-demographic characteristics, and school characteristics. The Student Survey Questionnaire gathered data from 98 respondents. Secondary data were also obtained. The Grade Point Average (GPA) at the end of the fall semester 2009 was used as the measure of academic performance. Descriptive statistics such as mean, frequency, percentage, standard deviation, and Pearson's Product Moment Correlation were used to analyze the data. Results revealed that freshman students were predominantly with the mean age of 19 years old. Majority (72.5%) of them belonging to a big family with the mean number of children in the family at six, 79.6% were later born children, having low levels  of English language (90.8%), Math (57.1%), and 91% admitted to the certificate programs of study. The average educational attainment of parents/guardians was at high school level, working on blue-collared jobs, and having annual income of less than 10,000 US$. Students perceived that their parents encouraged them to pursue higher education, helped them in their assignments, provided them proper discipline, understood financial aid procedures, and were neutral when it comes to their parents' attendance to college functions and activities. Students indicated that they sometimes used the available college services and facilities, were somewhat satisfied, and considered the educational resources and facilities as somewhat important. Moreover, students agreed to all statements in the questionnaire describing faculty performance. Correlation analysis revealed that math placement score, educational attainment of parents/guardians, satisfaction and importance in student health services, and frequency of use and importance of science laboratories (science labs, trade and technology labs/workshops combined) correlated with students' academic performance. Students' perceptions on the courses/subjects that they attended at the college of being well organized and well taught also correlated with their academic performance. Implications for further research were discussed. Five appendixes are included: (1) Permission Letter from COM-FSM VPIA; (2) Permission Letter from COM-FSM Pohnpei Campus Director; (3) Request Letter to Student Participants; (4) Student Survey Questionnaire; and (5) Researcher's email communication with COM-FSM VPIA. (Contains 10 tables and 3 figures.)