ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF BACCALAUREATE NURSING STUDENTS.
Contributors: North Carolina State University.
Published: 1994
Number of pages: 200
Subjects: Education, Adult and Continuing.; Education, Higher.; Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The purpose of this research was to determine the relationships among variables associated with the academic achievement of nursing students using a model adapted from Tinto's Model of Student Integration. Independent variables were Background Attributes, External Demands, Educational Commitment, Professional Commitment, Academic Integration, and Social Integration. Dependent variables were the National League for Nursing (NLN) Diagnostic Readiness Examination Test score and the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).

The population was the 1993 graduating class (N = 115) of a baccalaureate nursing program. The sample consisted of all graduates responding to a mailed questionnaire (N = 76) yielding a response rate of 66%. Pascarella and Terenzini's Institution Integration Scales and an External Demands scale were merged into a single instrument, the Nursing School Experience Questionnaire. Data were collected through mailed questionnaires, review of university transcripts, and official results from the NLN Testing Service and the North Carolina Board of Nursing.

Correlation analysis including Cronbach's alpha was used to evaluate reliability of the model as well as individual scales. Exploratory factor analysis was used to evaluate construct validity of original scales and to aid in modifying scales when indicated. Multiple regression was used in path analysis and hypothesis testing.

Findings indicated that when Academic Achievement was measured as the NLN Test score, there were no direct or indirect influences by any of the variables in the model. However, when Academic Achievement was measured as NCLEX-RN, the results were different and partially supported Tinto's Model of Student Integration. In this study, NCLEX-RN performance was influenced by Educational Commitment, Academic Integration, and Professional Commitment. NCLEX-RN was not influenced by Social Integration, External Demands, or Background Attributes.

Implications are discussed for changes in admissions procedures based on levels of commitment, academic counseling during nursing school based on motivational orientation, and a curriculum which incorporates the relevance of learning needs for adults. Suggestions for future research include investigation of how a model of academic achievement might operate differently over time, determination of possible differences among ethnic groups, and examination of interaction effects between variables.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 55-08, Section: A, page: 2247.

Thesis (ED.D.)--NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY, 1994.

School code: 0155.