Abstract
The literature on retention of college students consistently iterates that, in addition to effective instruction, three general agents are necessary to ensure student persistence and academic success: (1) an initial assessment process to determine student strengths, weaknesses, attitudes and goals, (2) an ongoing monitoring of student progress to detect academic or other problems that need to be addressed, and (3) a collection of support mechanisms to provide information, advisement, study skill enhancement, incentives and recognition, and academic and social integration. In this study, a nine-page survey was sent to department chairs of the 106 California Community Colleges asking them to indicate their department's degree of participation in three retention-promoting operations. The first operation, initial assessment, included tests of theory, aural-skills, keyboard, etc.; performance ability as measured by auditions including those for ensembles and applied studies; and information obtained regarding student backgrounds. The second operation, progressive and exit assessments and continuing student evaluation, concerned measurements of student progress, such as juries, obtained apart from tests given in courses. The third operation, advisement and support services, comprised orientation, advisement, and counseling, study labs, faculty availability to students, supportive social systems, incentive and reward systems, and the solicitation of student suggestions. In order to determine the effectiveness of these three mechanisms, departments were asked to indicate numbers and percentages of music majors who began, completed their first year, and finished their traditional or vocational programs. In addition, the sizes of full-time and part-time faculties were correlated with the responses. Fifty-six departments returned the surveys, a 65 percent response rate of the eighty-six departments having music major programs. Descriptive and ex post facto research designs were utilized. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test for two independent samples, the Mann-Whitney U, and the Pearson technique. The results indicated that 45 percent of departments give an initial assessment of some kind, and many of the rest do limited testing of freshmen skills in ensembles and theory classes. One-third of departments give progressive assessments and one-fourth give exit exams and assessments, usually in the areas of theory, aural skills, and performance proficiency, although many departments take progressive measurements in performance programs. Continuing evaluation occurs in 29 percent of departments that keep open files on their majors and in 52 percent of faculties who meet to discuss their students' progress. Regarding student support services, 91 percent provide lab/study areas and tutoring, 38 percent give an orientation, 71 percent provide faculty advisors, 50 percent provide supportive social systems, 82 percent offer incentives and rewards, 47 percent solicit student opinions, and most instructors make themselves available to students outside of class. Initial assessments were more effective in promoting program completion and transfer or securing employment than in promoting first-year retention. Support services produced slightly higher results. Progressive assessments and continuing evaluation provided the most effective results. Average faculty size was 15.5 instructors. Part-time instructors correlated slightly higher than full timers with both the use of the three mechanisms and the degrees of retention and completion.