What We Talk About When We Talk About Rigor: Examining Academic Rigor Conceptions

• In Event: Challenging Normative Discourses About Learning and Development in Postsecondary Education

Abstract

Academic rigor constitutes an enduring issue to stakeholders of higher education, especially given concerns that students are not developing the intellectual skills and habits necessary to be lifelong learners (Arum and Roksa, 2011; Bok, 2013). Coursework demands and cognitive challenge constitute two definitions of academic rigor. This study examines the relationship between these two conceptions of rigor and undergraduate development of three related intellectual skills: the need for cognition, positive attitudes towards literacy, and critical thinking skills. The study examines growth after the first and fourth years of college using student data from the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education, including 46 four-year institutions. This study’s results suggest that cognitive challenge contributes more to intellectual development than workload requirements.

Authors

• KC Culver, University of Southern California

• John M. Braxton, Vanderbilt University

• Ernest T. Pascarella, The University of Iowa