The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) was administered at CSULB in 2006 and again in 2007 to samples of first-year students and seniors. NSSE is widely used and highly regarded in higher education and includes 85 items that measure student involvement with learning in and out of the classroom. NSSE measures five benchmarks of effective educational practice: Level of Academic Challenge, Active and Collaborative Learning, Student-Faculty Interaction, Enriching Educational Experiences, and Supportive Campus Environment. CSULB results for both years are similar, lending confidence that results are accurate for the campus. Unless other noted, results describe both years.
| Benchmark/Item | CSULB Results1 |
|---|---|
Level of Academic Challenge |
CSULB seniors report slightly less academic challenge than comparison institutions. Freshmen report a level of challenge similar to comparison institutions.CSULB seniors report greater level of challenge than CSULB freshmen. |
Active and Collaborative Learning |
CSULB seniors report slightly (2006) to moderately (2007) less opportunities for active learning than comparison institutions. Freshmen report opportunities similar to comparison institutions. CSULB seniors report more opportunities than freshmen. |
Student-Faculty Interaction |
CSULB seniors indicate substantially less student-faculty interaction than comparison institutions. Freshmen indicate moderately (2006) to slightly (2007) less interaction than comparison institutions. CSULB seniors report more interaction than CSULB freshmen. |
Enriching Educational Experiences |
CSULB seniors indicate slightly less enriching experiences than seniors at comparison institutions. Freshmen indicate similar (2006) to slightly more (2007) experiences than comparison institutions. Seniors report more enriching experiences than freshmen. |
Supportive Campus Environment |
CSULB freshmen and seniors indicate an environment similar to comparison institutions and CSULB seniors report support similar to CSULB freshmen. |
Specific Item Results with Moderate or Greater Difference Favoring CSULB 2 |
“Serious conversations with students of a different race or ethnicity,” “Included diverse perspectives in class discussions or writing assignments,” “Voting in local, state, or national elections,” “Understanding people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds,” and “If you could start over again, would you go to the same institution you are now attending?” |
Specific Item Results with Moderate or Greater Difference Not Favoring CSULB 2 |
“Number of written papers or reports of fewer than 5 pages,” “Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussions,” “Made a class presentation,” “Discussed grades or assignments with an instructor,” “Talked about career plans with a faculty member or advisor,” “Discussed ideas from your readings or classes with faculty members outside of class,” “Received prompt written or oral feedback from faculty on your academic performance,” “ Practicum, internship, field experience, co-op experience, or clinical assignment,” “Come to class without completing readings or assignments,” “Community service or volunteer work,” “Independent study or self-designed major,” “Relationships with other students, “Worked with faculty members on activities other than coursework,” “Working for pay on campus,” “Attending campus events and activities,” and “Acquiring job or work-related knowledge and skills,” “Developing a deepened sense of spirituality.” |
1 NSSE reports include “effect sizes” that guide interpretation of results. Effect sizes with absolute values < 0.1 suggest that CSULB is effectively “similar” to comparison institutions; effect sizes > 0.1 to 0.2 suggest that CSULB is “slightly different;” effect sizes > 0.2 to 0.3 suggest that CSULB is “moderately different;” effect sizes > 0.3 to 0.4 suggest that CSULB is “substantially different.” There are no larger differences in these data. Only comparisons to Carnegie peer institutions are reported here.
