Research

Validation of the College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument

A longitudinal investigation

Participation in college recreational sport programs and services, as well as use of the facilities, has the potential to tremendously affect participants' personal growth. Learning Reconsidered 2: A Practical Guide to Implementing a Campus-Wide Focus on the Student Experience (Keeling, 2006) revolutionized the way members of the higher education community view learning. Learning occurs inside as well as outside the classroom and is most effective if it incorporates many modes of learning into many different contexts. This student learning movement refocused higher education on teaching and learning, in which all parts of the campus community are expected to contribute to student learning (Kuh, 1996). As a result, the measurement of learning outcomes has been a twenty-year trend in higher education (Keeling, 2006).

In order to align with national trends in higher education, The National Research Institute for College Recreational Sports and Wellness created and administered the College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument (Haines & Fortman, in press). The instrument measures personal outcomes of college recreational sports participation including a variety of "out of classroom" experiences and/or experiential learning. In order to facilitate ease in data collection and efficiency, the College Recreational Sports Learning Outcomes Instrument was designed using proxy pretest-posttest methodology. Therefore, pre-intervention and post-intervention data are collected simultaneously. The authors suggest the instrument limitation is a lack of longitudinal data collection, which may make it difficult for participants to identify which outcome gains are the result of their recreational sport participation versus gains from maturation.

In order to address these limitations, the present study measures the validity of College Recreational Sports Learning Outcomes Instrument with a longitudinal design. The purpose of the proposed cohort study is to provide methodologically sound data that will be used to evaluate the validity of a previously administered College Recreational Sports Learning Outcomes Instrument.

Research objectives

1. Validate the use of a proxy-pretest design instrument to measure longitudinal outcomes resulting from participation in college recreational sports.
2. Examine experimental and control group differences before and after sport club participation.
3. Create a baseline database which can be used for future comparisons with outcome data.

Methodology

To meet the above objectives, a longitudinal, cohort design was used. Cohort studies follow a population over a period of time and select a sample from the population at each data collection point.

Participants

Study participants consisted of two groups, n=439. The first group, composed of randomly selected, first-year students entering The Ohio State University during autumn quarter 2007, served as a control group. Control group respondents (n=405) represented the typical growth of college students at Ohio State and provided a basis for which comparisons could be made with the treatment group.

The treatment group (n=34) consisted of first-year students who entered The Ohio State University in autumn 2007 and self-selected to participate in a sport club. All first-year sport club participants were requested to participate in the study.

Measures

The survey instrument asked participants to identify their perceived current level of skill in several areas on a Likart scale ranging from 1 through 10. All items were identical to the College Recreational Sports Outcome Measure, differing only in design and the addition of negative outcomes. In the current study, the instrument was administered in an experimental pretest posttest design, while the previously administered College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument applied a proxy-pretest posttest design. Using identical, positive outcome items and changing only the study design enabled the researcher to test the validity of the proxy pretest-posttest design with recreational sports learning outcomes. Negative outcomes that may result from participation in college recreational sports were also included in order to align with the most recent revisions to the College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument. This addition did not affect the comparison of positive outcome items with the previous administration of the College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument, but is crucial data for validation of the revised version of the instrument. Demographic information was also collected.

Procedure

After group selection was made, each participant received an email from the Ohio State University Student Affairs Assessment Office requesting their participation in a study of growth among college students. The email contained a link to the electronic pretest instrument. Upon completion, the instrument was submitted electronically. During the week of May 26, 2008 the posttest, identical to the pretest instrument, will be administered. Administration of the posttest will be identical to that of the pretest. Posttest groups will again be randomly selected by the Student Affairs Assessment Office and emailed.

Analysis

All descriptive data was tabulated for frequency and percent. Significance testing was conducted. This included a two tailed t-test between control and treatment groups at pretest. Further, the mean gain between pretest and posttest will be calculated for each group. A two tailed t-test will be conducted on the amount of gain between the treatment and control groups. It is hypothesized that both groups will increase in the measured outcome areas because of history, maturation and testing, but the treatment group will have a greater gain because of their participation in sport clubs.

Secondly, the differences in pretest and posttest scores for the treatment group will be compared to the differences in pretest and posttest scores on the previously administered proxy pretest design instrument. Correlations will be drawn to demonstrate this relationship.

Results

Due to the longitudinal nature of the study, current results represent only pretest data. Significance testing indicated that at pretest, both the control and treatment groups were identical. With the exception of exposure to hazing, groups showed no significant differences on any skill or attribute measured. Before participation in sport clubs, the groups are empirically indistinguishable; therefore, all posttest differences between the groups can be attributed to their participation, or lack of, in sport clubs. Upon collection of posttest data, between group gains will be analyzed and the results compared to a previous administration of the proxy pretest-posttest College Recreational Sports Learning Outcome Instrument (Haines & Fortman, in press).

Abstract provided by The National Research Institute for College Recreational Sports and Wellness. Tyler L. Fortman, GAA and Dr. Danell J. Haines.

References

Haines, D.J. & Fortman, T.L. (in press). The College Recreational Sports Learning Environment. Recreational Sports Journal.

Keeling, R. P. (Ed.). (2006). Learning reconsidered 2: A practical guide to implementing a campus-wide focus on the student experience. Washington D.C.: National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) and allied associations.

Kuh, G. D. (1996). Guiding principles for creating seamless learning environments for undergraduates. Journal of College Student Development, 37, 135-148.