Developing a Measure of "Success" for an Experiential Learning School

• In Event: 63.078 - Analyzing Perceptions, Negotiating Identity, Eliciting Voice, Measuring Success When Participating in Experiential and Service-Learning

Abstract

This paper describes the background, development, and results of a survey instrument designed to measure the “success” of students who formerly attended an experiential high school. The survey combines already validated psychometric tools that measure life satisfaction, civic engagement, and self-efficacy in relation to school and work. We analyze the results for both the instrument’s capacity to discern group difference and with respect to its reliability. Our findings suggest that this instrument is a starting point that we hope to improve upon to create a measure that will be useful to all experiential learning educators.

Authors

• Joanna R. Weidler-Lewis, The Pennsylvania State University

• Jimmy Frickey