Measuring the Education Level of California
Community College Students’ Parents:
Current Status and Preliminary Findings
Tom Leigh, Ph.D.
Atsuko Nonoyama, Ph.D
Research, Analysis, and Accountability
Technology, Research & Information Systems
California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office
TOPICS
• Parent Education Data Element
• Data Completeness
• First-Generation
• Definition
• Characteristics
• Educational Outcomes
Parent Education Data Element
Data Entered by Students at CCCApply
Student Profile Section
Parental Education Defined in
CCCApply
Instruction:
“Regardless of your age, please
indicate the education levels of the
parents and/or guardians who raised
you.”
Data Entered by Students at CCCApply
Student Profile Section
Parental Education Defined in
CCCApply
Supplementary Instruction:
“For the two parents, other family
members, and/or guardians who in your
belief played the largest roles in raising
you, please indicate the highest level of
education that you believe each attained.”
Values Available for Parental Education Field (SG09)
Coding
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Y
X
Meaning
Grade 9 or less
Grade 10, 11, or 12 but did not graduate
High school graduate
Some college but no degree
AA/AS degree
BA/BS degree
Graduate or professional degree beyond a BA/BS
Not applicable, no first (or second) parent/guardian
Unknown / Unreported
Position 1 – Parent/Guardian 1
Position 2 – Parent/Guardian 2
* Handout
81 Possible Combinations
Parent/Guardian
#2
Parent/
Guardian
#1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
X
Y
1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
X1
Y1
2
12
22
32
42
52
62
72
X2
Y2
3
13
23
33
43
53
63
73
X3
Y3
4
14
24
34
44
54
64
74
X4
Y4
5
15
25
35
45
55
65
75
X5
Y5
6
16
26
36
46
56
66
76
X6
Y6
7
17
27
37
47
57
67
77
X7
Y7
X
1X
2X
3X
4X
5X
6X
7X
XX
YX
Y
1Y
2Y
3Y
4Y
5Y
6Y
7Y
XY
YY
Simplify!
Highest Educational Level of the Parents:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Grade 9 or less
Grades 10, 11, or 12 but did not graduate
High school graduate
Some college but no degree
Associate degree
Baccalaureate degree
Graduate or professional degree beyond a BA/BS
Unknown/Unreported/Not Applicable
* Handout w/ SAS coding
Data Completeness
Where are we now?
Data Examined for Completeness
1) Students enrolled first time in higher education
between Summer 2012 & Spring 2013
(n=251,828), in all CCCs
2) Both credit and non-credit students
3) Counting ‘Y’ (not applicable) as valid while
‘X’ (Unknown/Unreported) as missing
4) Including only students who attended at least
one course
Results
Not Ready For Prime Time!
College-level
- The college with most complete data
reported 94% with valid data
- 52 colleges (=about half) reported no valid
data
- The median was 0.4%, mean was 19%
Distribution of Colleges Based on Percent
of Students w/ Valid Parental Ed Data
Number of Colleges
80
74
College N=118
60
* Handout
40
20
7
6
6
6
3
7
5
2
2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
% of Students with Parental Ed Data
100
Trend: Students Enrolled in Fall 2012 vs
Spring 2013
Fall 2012
Spring 2013
Number of Colleges
82
80
76
60
40
20
3
8
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
% of Students with Parental Ed Data
100
More on Completeness of Data
Student-level
- 22.4% (=56,530/251,828) had valid parental
education data reported
- 10 colleges with largest # of valid data
accounted for 64% of the reported data
- Non-credit students are much less likely to
have parental education data reported
Credit vs. Non-credit Students
Student N= 251,828
Percent of Students
100
80
6.5
25.3
60
40
93.5
74.7
20
0
Credit
Non-credit
W/ data
Missing
Data for Continuing Students?
Fall 2012 first-time students are followed for 1 year…
Percent of Students
100%
80%
23.6
25.7
76.4
74.3
After the first term
After 1 year
2%
60%
40%
20%
0%
W/ Data
Missing
Of the students whose parental education
data are available,
what do data look like?
Distribution of Parental Education (*Highest)
Parent Education Level
Count
Percent
Grade 9 or less
6,123
10.8
Grades 10,11,or 12 but did not graduate
4,814
8.5
12,505
22.1
Some college but no degree
9,844
17.4
Associate degree
5,172
9.1
10,015
17.7
7,267
12.9
790
1.4
56,530
100.0
High school graduate
Baccalaureate degree
Graduate or professional degree
Not applicable, no parent/guardian
All
Grade 9 or less
Grade 10, 11, or 12 but did not graduate
High school graduate
Some college but no degree
AA/AS degree
BA/BS degree
Graduate or professional degree beyond a BA/BS
Not applicable, no second parent/guardian
'
10.8 8.5
22.1
17.4
9.1
Less than AA/AS
0%
20%
40%
17.7
12.9
1.4
AA/AS or Higher
60%
80%
100%
Using The Parent Education Data Element:
First-Generation College Students
“Uncertain Climbers”
(Richard and Skinner, 1992)
Selected First-Generation Characteristics:
• Female (Nomi, 2005)
• Older (Engle, et. al, 2006 )
• Rely on financial aid (Nunez & Cuccaro-Alamin,
1998)
• Less academically prepared for college (U.S.
Department of Education 2008).
• Under-represented minority.
Selected First-Generation Characteristics (cont’d):
• Less likely to persist into the second year (Chen &
Carroll, 2005)
• Complete fewer academic credits (Pascarella,
• et. al., 2003)
• Less likely to successfully complete coursework
(Davis, 2010)
Variable Definitions of First-Generation
• less than a bachelor degree
• less than an associate degree
• no postsecondary education
Options
Grades
Some
Grade Nine 10,11,or 12 High School
College No
Or Less
But Did Not Graduate
Degree
Graduate
Option 1
First
Generation
First
Generation
First
First
First
Generation Generation Generation
College
College
Option 2
First
Generation
First
Generation
First
First
Generation Generation
College
College
College
Option 3
First
Generation
First
Generation
First
Generation
College
College
College
College
Graduate or
Associate Baccalaureate
Professional
Degree
Degree
Degree
First-Generation Student Definition:
• less than an associate degree
Options
Grades
Some
Grade Nine 10,11,or 12 High School
College No
Or Less
But Did Not Graduate
Degree
Graduate
Option 2
First
Generation
First
Generation
First
First
Generation Generation
Graduate or
Associate Baccalaureate
Professional
Degree
Degree
Degree
College
College
College
First-Generation Counts and Percentages*
Status
Count
Percent
First-Generation
19,256
60.7
Non-First-Generation
12,458
39.3
All
31,714
100.0
* Fall 2012 first-time student with valid parent education value.
Caveat: Although these findings are helpful in assessing the
construct validity of the Parent Education data element they
are not generalizable to the CCC system due to missing
data.
First-Generation Status by Gender
First-Time Students Fall 2012
100%
90%
80%
49.4
70%
51.3
46.3
60%
50%
Female
40%
Male
30%
50.6
48.7
53.7
All
(N=31,474)
First-Generation
(N=19,118)
Non-First-Generation
(N=12,356)
20%
10%
0%
First-Generation Status by Age Group
First-time Students Fall 2012
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
72.4
72.1
72.9
18-19
20-24
50%
25-29
40%
30-39
30%
40-49
20%
10%
0%
12.4
10.6
4.1
4.3
3.8
3.5
4.3
4.3
3.5
3.3
3.8
4.4
4.4
3.9
All
(N=27,455)
First-Generation
(N=17,103)
Non-First-Generation
(N=10,352)
11.7
50-70
First-Generation Status by Race-Ethnicity
First-Time Students Fall 2012
100%
90%
7.5
0.3
11.6
7.9
0.3
9.2
6.8
0.4
15.4
80%
African American
70%
23.8
60%
44.2
57.3
50%
6.8
0.3
40%
30%
4.9
0.4
46.4
21.0
0%
All
(N=31,425)
Hispanic
First-Generation
(N=19,099)
Pacific Islander
White
31.0
10%
Asian
Multi-Race
3.7
0.5
20%
American Indian
Non-First-Generation
(N= 12,326)
Parent Education Level by Race-Ethnicity
N = 31,425
All
44.2
31.0
Grade Nine Or Less
87.4
Grades 10,11,or 12 But Did Not Graduate
74.2
3.5
8.8
African American
American Indian
High School Graduate
48.7
Some College No Degree
25.5
41.6
Associate Degree
31.9
35.4
37.0
Asian
Hispanic
Multi-Race
Pacific Islander
White
Baccalaureate Degree
Graduate or Professional Degree
19.6
20.5
47.2
53.5
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
First-Generation Status by Financial Aid Receipt
First-Time Students Fall 2012
100%
90%
37.4
80%
70%
56.1
68.2
60%
50%
Yes
40%
65.6
30%
20%
43.9
31.8
10%
0%
All
(N=31,662)
First-Generation
(N=19,228)
Non-First-Generation
(N=12,434)
No
Educational Attainment:
•
•
•
•
•
Developmental Course Enrollment
Persistence Fall-to-Fall
Course Retention
Course Success
Units Earned
First-Generation Status by Developmental Course Enrollment*
First-Time Students Fall 2012
Terms Fall 2012 through Fall 2013
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
67.2
54.4
75.1
50%
Yes
40%
No
30%
20%
10%
32.8
45.6
24.9
0%
All
(N=22,683)
First-Generation
(N=14,019)
Non-First-Generation
(N=8,664)
*Developmental course defined with 2014 Scorecard cohort criteria.
First-Generation Status by Fall-to-Fall Persistence
First-Time Students Fall 2012
100%
90%
80%
70%
63.2
61.6
65.7
60%
50%
Yes
40%
No
30%
20%
36.8
38.5
34.3
All
(N=30,542)
First-Generation
(N=18,823)
Non-First-Generation
(N=11,719)
10%
0%
First-Generation Status by Course Retention
First-Time Students Fall 2012
Terms Fall 2012 through Fall 2013
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
87.45
86.51
88.85
Yes
40%
No
30%
20%
10%
0%
12.55
13.49
11.15
All
(N=254,788)
First Generation
(N=152,258)
Non-First Generation
(N=102,530)
First-Generation Status by Course Success
First-Time Students Fall 2012
Terms Fall 2012 through Fall 2013
100%
90%
80%
70%
68.1
65.0
60%
72.8
50%
Yes
40%
No
30%
20%
31.9
35.0
All
(N=254,788)
First Generation
(N=152,258)
10%
27.2
0%
Non-First Generation
(N=102,530)
Average Units Earned Per Student Per Semester
First-Time Students Fall 2012
Major Terms Fall 2012 through Fall 2013
9.0
8.0
7.9
7.5
7.2
All
(N=78,952)
First Generation
(N=47,058)
7.0
6.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
1.0
0.0
Non-First Generation
(N=31,894)
Summary of Findings
No Effect
• Age
• Course Retention
Small-to-Moderate Confirming Effects
• Gender
• Persistence Fall-to-Fall
• Course Success
• Average Units Earned Per Semester
Large Confirming Effects
• Race-Ethnicity
• Financial Aid Receipt
• Developmental Course Enrollment
Future Directions
• Continue to improve the completeness and
quality of the Parent Education Level data
element.
• Include the First-Generation subgroup in routine
reporting of student demographics and
educational outcomes.
• Analyze subgroups within the Parent Education
data elements.
Thank You.
Questions or Comments?
References
Chen, X. & Carroll, C. D. (2005). First-generation students in postsecondary education: A
look at their college transcripts. Washington, DC: U. S. Department of Education, National
Center for Education Statistics.
Davis, J. (2010). The first-generation student experience: Implications for campus
practice, and strategies for improving persistence and success. College Student Education
International. Sterling, VA.
Nomi, Takako. (2005). Faces of the future: A portrait of first-generation community
college students. American Association of Community Colleges. Washington, DC
Nunez, Anne-Marie, Stephanie Cuccaro-Alamin. ( 1998). First generation students:
Undergraduates whose parents never enrolled in postsecondary education. Washington,
DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
References cont’d
Pascarella, E., Wolniak, G.C., Pierson, C.T., & Terenzini, P.T. (2003). Experiences
and outcomes of first-generation students in community colleges. Journal of
College Student Development, 44, 420-429.
Engle, J., Bermeo, A., & O'Brien, C. (2006). Straight from the Source: What
works for first-generation college students. The Pell Institute For The Study of
Opportunity In Higher Education . Washington, DC
Richardson, R.C., & Skinner, E.F. (1992). Helping first-generation minority
students achieve degrees. In L.S. Zwerling & H.B. London (Eds.), Firstgeneration students: Confronting the cultural issues (New Directions
for Community Colleges Series, No. 80, pp. 29-43). San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.
(2008). National Postsecondary Student Aid Study. NPSAS: 08. Data Analysis
System.