A new article is suggesting a student’s determination could be the key to helping shape their outcome in college.
Dr. Terrell L. Strayhorn says it has long been known that a student’s grade point average and test scores from the SAT and ACT foreshadow the level of academic achievement in college. He sought to test what role a noncognitive trait — grit — plays in predicting successful outcomes, as well.
In the article, “What Role Does Grit Play in the Academic Success of Black Male Collegians at Predominantly White Institutions?” Strayhorn takes a look at a student’s social background, as well as his academic performance. In it, grit is defined as “the tendency to pursue long-term, challenging goals with perseverance and passion.”
“About 2009, people started saying there are certain groups that face challenges and barriers in college that require them to have other skills and abilities to succeed that have nothing to do with their grades or their confidence,” said Strayhorn, an associate professor of higher education in the School of Education Policy and Leadership within the College of Education and Human Ecology at the Ohio State University. “I think it’s pretty jarring that my hypothesis was correct. Even when you take Black men in college who have similar GPAs in high school and similar test scores, those who are grittier — who persevere despite setbacks and pursue their own goals despite barriers — are more likely to succeed.”
Data released in the U.S. Department of Education’s Condition of Education shows that 14 percent of the students in the 4,400 postsecondary schools across the country are Black. Of those, about one-third are males. And when they enroll, they are more likely to attend two-year institutions, enroll part time or earn low grades, putting them at risk for being kicked out.
A survey to students in the study of grit asked students about their lives, academic history and included the grit scale, which looks at things such as student self-efficacy, self-esteem, academic achievement and whether a subject feels like they have control over an outcome in his or her life. In reporting their grit level, students were asked to answer things such as: “I finish whatever I begin” and “I have overcome setbacks.”
In the article, Strayhorn says he found that grit, as well as background traits and academic factors explain nearly a quarter of the difference in grades received by Black male students in college. That’s a good thing, he said.
