201 1 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) Structure, Quality, and Benchmarks Summary I. Information Collected in the NSSE Questionnaire The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) is an annual survey collecting information from nearly 1,500 baccalaureate-granting colleges and universities in the United States and Canada (NSSE 2011 Overview, 2011). The purpose of the survey is to examine freshmen and senior student participation in program and activities that institutions provide for learning and personal development. The NSSE questionnaire collects information in five content categories to measure undergraduate experience, document effective educational practice, and assess collegiate quality (Kuh & Gonyea, 2002). Structure of the NSSE Instrument Student Behaviors
Institutional Actions and Requirements
Student Learning and Development
Reactions to College
Student Background Information II. Data Quality The overall quality of the FSU NSSE data yielded a continuous improvement. The FSU NSSE 2011 data consisted a sample of 3,271 respondents (FR: n=1,102; SR: n=2,169). The sampling errors associated with the 2011 NSSE data were reduced from 4.2% in the year of 2005 to 2.7% for the freshmen and from 3.9% to 1.9% for the senior students, indicating FSU had sufficient respondents to represent the entire student population. The improvement of data quality also allowed a more precise and reliable estimate of the benchmark scores and future researches. FSU NSSE Data Quality Indicators Year 2011
Sampling Error1 FR SR 2.7% 1.9%
Response Rate FR SR 17% 21%
Number of Respondents FR SR 1,102 2,169
Black student population was underrepresented in the 2011 NSSE survey (freshmen: 11% of the population vs. 7% of the NSSE sample; seniors: 8% of the population vs. 11% of the NSSE sample). Male students were underrepresented in the 2011 NSSE survey (freshmen: 42% of the population vs. 30% of the NSSE sample; seniors: 48% of the population vs. 39% of the NSSE sample).
1 Sampling Error is the deviation of the selected sample from the true characteristics, traits, behaviors, qualities or figures of the entire population. “A large degree of sampling error limits the precision of the estimation about the population provided by the survey� (NSSE Psychometric Portfolio, 2010).
III. NSSE 2011 Benchmark Comparison Results NSSE benchmarks were created as indicators of empirically-derived effective educational practices. Each benchmark contains a cluster of NSSE questions that best represent these practices. 2011 FSU Mean Benchmark Scores vs. Selected Peers Benchmark
Class FR SR FR SR FR SR FR SR FR SR
Level of Academic Challenge (LAC) Active and Collaborative Learning (ACL) Student-Faculty Interaction (SFI) Enriching Educational Experiences (EEE) Supportive Campus Environment (SCE)
Public RU/VH2 53.2 56.0 40.9 48.4 31.6 39.4 29.5 42.0 61.0 56.5
NSSE 20113 53.7 57.4 43.2 51.3 41.9 40.6 27.7 40.4 62.7 59.1
Both of the FSU freshmen and senior respondents had significantly (P<.001 or p<.01) higher benchmark scores on SFI, EEE, and SCE compared to that of their peers from the Public RU/VH universities and the national norm. FSU seniors yielded a significantly (P<.001) lower score on LAC compared to the Public RU/VH group and the national norm; FSU respondents (FR and SR) also yielded significantly (p<.001) lower scores on the benchmark of ACL compared to the national norm. FSU multiple-year (2005 to 2011) benchmark scores indicate a general trend of increase for all the engagement areas identified by NSSE benchmarks. Specifically for the benchmark of Supportive Campus Environment (SCE), the 2011 benchmark score increased by 17.4% for the freshmen students (2005: SCE=57.5; 2011: SCE=67.5) and 11.4% for the senior students (2005: SCE=56.2; 2011: SCE=62.6). Freshmen Multiple-Year Benchmark Mean Scores 70.0 65.0
53.6
48.5
45.0
35.0 29.5
35.3
LAC
'06 ACL
30.3
29.1
27.0 '05
55.0
55.3 53.2
52.0
'07
'08 SFI
48.6
45.0
35.1
'04
58.5
40.2
36.2
30.0
62.6
50.0 40.0
40.0
65.0
56.2 53.1
50.0
Seniors Multiple-Year Benchmark Mean Scores
60.0
57.5
55.0
25.0
67.5
62.2
60.0
2
FSU 53.6 55.3 40.2 48.6 35.3 43.3 30.3 42.4 67.5 62.6
'09 EEE
'10
'11 SCE
47.7
48.0
41.4
41.9
40.0
'04 LAC
'05
42.4
40.2
39.5 35.0
43.3
'06 ACL
'07
'08
'09
SFI
Public RU/VH represents public universities with very high research activities according to Carnegie classification. NSSE 2011 represents all other 2011 U.S. NSSE institutions (Canadian participants are also included in this group for Canadian institutions). 3
EEE
'10
'11 SCE