Civic engagement of college students in China

• In Event: Roundtable Session (Monday II)
  In Refereed Round-Table Session: Critical analyses of civic education and young people's sense of citizenship, civic attitudes, and participation

Proposal

Abstract
1.Objectives
Civic engagement refers to the ways in which citizens participate in the life of a community in order to improve conditions for others or to help shape the community’s future. Civic engagement can be defined as individual and collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern. To realize the civic engagement in campus, this study selected college students as our target group to explore what is the current civic engagement perceived by the students. Then, what kind of factors might impact on the student’s civic engagement stock.
2. Method
Sampling
1,114 students from six universities were sampled based on voluntary participation by using selected NSSE module. The study analyzed civic engagement with students’ disciplinary area, learning experiences in departments, and time spent on related activities. Males are 43.8%, females are 52.9%. The students’ majors have been classified by six different major colleges. They are humanities (25.1%), science (10.3%), technology (17.5%), management (26.4%), social science (including education) (14.3%), and agriculture and medical colleges (6.4%). Students’ social economic status (SES) has been classified 6 different groups based on their family income.
Questionnaires
The questionnaire contents demographic variables (gender, college, family income), time spent on (academics, service activities etc.), capabilities (experienced by students), academic achievement, and civic engagement (with discussing dimension, promoting dimension, and actual work with dimension).
Statistical analysis
This study apply SPSS to analyze the data. Basically, means, t-test, ANOVA, and regression models have been conducted to realize and verify the assumptions that civic engagement might different in groups. The group differences, for example the gender, college, and SES, were used t-test or ANOVA to determine the differences in specific groups. The Tukey method was selected for post hoc tests in ANOVA. Time spent, learning experiences, and academic achievement all have been assigned as independent variables to construct our regression model with civic engagement. The significant difference level for related testing is α=.05.
3. Results
According to the report of college students, the average of civic engagement is 3.036. It presents that the current status of civic engagement among the students is in the middle of our scale. Each dimension of civic engagement is lower than our expectation. Especially, the dimension of actual work with civic engagement activities is below the average.
3.1 Determining the differences
The result reveals there is no gender difference in civic engagement (t=1.179, p=.239) and in its different dimensions. Similarly, the SES groups also show no significant differences (F(5,922)=.914, p=.471) and its sub dimensions. While the different college students have demonstrated their differences in civic engagement (F(5,975)=3.301, p=.006), discussing dimension (F(5,976)=3.032, p=.010), promoting dimension (F(5,980)=3.630, p=.003), and actual work with dimension (F(5,975)=2.890, p=.013). The result reveals the students majored at social science demonstrated higher civic engagement than that of management majors. Specifically, the students in college of humanities are higher than that of college of management in the discussing dimension; Students in college of humanities and social science are higher than that of management in promoting dimension; Social science major’s students have found more actual working with civic engagement activities than that of agriculture and medical colleges. This study reveals that the student in management, agriculture and medical colleges do need to enhance their civic engagement.
3.2 Search impact factors for civic engagement
This study applied regression models to determine which factor might impact on civic engagement. First, the time spent on preparing coursework, extra-curriculum related activities, and participating social services have been assigned as independent variables to verify their impact on civic engagement. The result reveals only slim variances of extra-curriculum related activities (β=.095, p=.003) and participating social services (β=.149, p=.000) can be used to interpret the civic engagement (R2=.041). Second, we considered the relationship between learning performance (learning experiences and academic achievement) and civic engagement. The regression model displays that only learning experiences (β=.261, p=.000) can be used to interpret the civic engagement (R2=.068). The relationship between academic achievement and civic engagement did not exist in this study.
3.3 Learning capability and civic engagement
Following NSSE module, the learning capabilities experienced by students are oral presentation, critical thinking, data analysis, job-related skills, effective cooperation with others, developing personal values, realizing other person’s background, problem solving, and informative and active citizen.
In regression model, three capabilities experienced by students in terms of “informative and active citizen”, “realizing other personal background”, and “developing personal values” have demonstrated their impacts on the civic engagement. Totally, the three variables can be explained 18.1% of the civic engagement (R2=.181).
4. Conclusion
Previous studies have provided numerous perspectives and practices to tackle the civic engagement issues in different settings. This study explores the college students’ civic engagement and its meanings in a specific higher education system which leading a new movement focusing service learning for students in or off campuses. The NSSE’s modules can be used to survey the core issue about service-learning, community service or volunteer work, and becoming an informed and active citizen in various higher education institutes. This study provides an example to realize the current status of civic engagement more details in a specific higher education setting. The findings suggest civic engagement should consider students’ disciplinary area, learning experiences in department, and time spent on related activities in current institutes. The various dimensions might provide useful information for enhancing the ongoing practices. Linked to the findings and initiatives, the current students’ civic engagement generally needs to enhance, especially the related provision for students in college of management, agriculture and medical colleges. The finding suggests the dimension of actual work with civic engagement activities is relative low, it is necessary to review the current measures in universities to ameliorate the ineffective practices.

Author

• YUXIN LYU, Tsinghua University