increasing access to postsecondary education: learning what works in canada

Increasing Access to Postsecondary Education: Learning What Works in CanadaReuben Ford 17 April 2009 at American Educational Research Association annual meeting

Key messages Future to Discover (FTD) tests an early financial incentive, called

Learning Accounts, worth $8,000 towards the cost of post-secondary education and an enhanced career education intervention called Explore Your Horizons.

Evaluation found both interventions were implemented consistently and with fidelity to original design.

Those in receipt of interventions reported the interventions would likely make a difference to their access to PSE. No access data yet.

Impact analysis so far provides inconsistent evidence that the interventions influence access to PSE via the hypothesized logic model, possibly stronger for key subgroups. More evidence in line with the logic model when the interventions are combined.

The policy problem

High school students who could go on to access PSE are not doing so: 20-30 percent overall and higher among key sub-groups.

Problem could be due to:• anticipated unaffordability of PSE• lack of information about careers and relative benefits and costs

of PSE• inaccurate information• inadequate preparation/ability to use information

Interventions:• Learning Accounts - Early guarantee of $8000 financial support to

pursue PSE for NB students with family income below median• Explore Your Horizons - Enhanced early career education that

includes PSE as part of post-secondary planning in Grades 10,11,12 in MB and NB

Research questions

Do these interventions increase access to PSE • Overall?• For key subgroups (lower income, lower education background)• Is one or other or a combination of the two more effective?

Program logic models: Do interventions change whether, when and how students think about and plan for life after high school?

• Some answers now

Principal Outcome: Does FTD result in more students accessing PSE than existing school programming alone?

• Answers to come

Learning Accounts

Grade/Year

LA Instalments LA StatementsLA Payments for

PSE program lasting 2+ years

LA Payments for PSE program of =< 1 year

10 $2000 at end of Grade 10

Mailed upon completion of Grade 10


Mailed upon completion of Grade 11


Mailed upon completion of Grade 12/ Graduation along with “Request for Payment” package

Post-secondary

year 1

$2000 with confirmation of PSE enrolment; $2000 at start of winter term

$2000 with confirmation of PSE enrolment; $2000 at start of winter term

Post-secondary

year 2

$2000 at start of fall term; $2000 at start of winter term

Explore Your Horizons

Offered to cross-section of all students. Six career education components:

Career Focusing (G10) Lasting Gifts (G11) Future in Focus (G12) Post-secondary Ambassadors (G10-G12) F2D Magazine (G10-G12) Exclusive (members only) Web site (G10-G12)

20 workshops totaling 40 hours over 3 years Ordered by developmental sequence

Results from implementation 2004-20082003-4 2004-5 2005-6 2006-7 2007-8 2008-9 2009-10

NB 1

n=2287

Recruit

Grade 9

Year 1

Grade 10

Year 2

Grade 11

Year 3

Grade 12

PSE 1 PSE 2 PSE 3

NB 2

n=1998

Recruit

Grade 9

Year 1

Grade 10

Year 2

Grade 11

Year 3

Grade 12

PSE 1 PSE 2

MB

n=1044

Recruit

Grade 9

Year 1

Grade 10

Year 2

Grade 11

Year 3

Grade 12

PSE 1 PSE 2

Early Implementation Report

Interim Impacts Report

Final Report

Recruitment and random assignment

Project Participants

in 51 schools

New Brunswick participants, Learning

Accounts eligible

New Brunswick participants, Learning

Accounts ineligible, and Manitoba participants

Random Assignment

Comparison Group

Learning Accounts

only


plus Learning Accounts


only

Random Assignment


onlyComparison

group

Learning Accounts implementation during high school (New Brunswick)

Participant and parent were notified by mail, supplemented by telephone if required, about the eligibility rules for accumulating instalments.

Notification took place early in Grade 10 in order for the long-term effects of the Learning Accounts offer to be fully tested

Adequate time and Future to Discover office support was offered to participants to enable them to take part in the intervention. 93 per cent of group signed declarations.

Eligibility for each instalment was verified. 92 per cent of cohort 1 group qualified for three instalments.

Notifications of Account balances were sent at the end of each year, along with reminders of ongoing eligibility status and withdrawal packages in Grade 12.

Learning Accounts awareness during Grade 12

Low awareness of holding a “Learning Account” in the anglophone sector (38.6 per cent) and the francophone sector (58.4 per cent).

Among those Learning Accounts participants who recalled that they had a Learning Account:• The total amount of $8,000 was recalled correctly by the

majority both of francophone (82.9 per cent) and anglophone participants (77.3 per cent).

• Three-quarters (76.6 per cent of Francophone participants, and 78.4 per cent of Anglophone participants) either agreed or strongly agreed with the statement: “I am more likely to get more education after high school because I have a Learning Account.”

Combining EYH and LA (New Brunswick) Adding EYH significantly increased awareness of Learning

Accounts (by 10-25 percentage points) Adding LA significantly increased average number of EYH

workshops attended:

Adding LA significantly increased ever-attended EYH sessions (from 77-79 EYH only to 88-91 per cent EYH+LA)

Adding LA significantly increased the proportions reporting each type of EYH session was found very useful (by up to 15 percentage points) and reporting positive benefits from EYH (Agreeing “EYH made a difference in my life” by 23 percentage points)

EYH+LA EYH Impact

Anglophone 10.7 7.8 3.1***

Francophone 11.8 7.4 4.4***

Interim impact analysisLogic model for interventions: Increased orientation towards future activities Increased awareness of post-secondary options Increased aspirations to pursue PSE Altered expectations about role of PSE Increase in school attendance; lower school drop out rates Change in peer groups Increased graduation from high school Change in perceived worth of PSE Improved knowledge of PSE costs and financing Increased certainty of meeting costs of PSE Greater parent saving for PSE

Short-term and intermediate impacts of Learning Accounts

Short-term & Intermediate Impacts

All sample LILE Parents HS or less

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone


Thinking and planning for the future

Increased orientation toward future activities

Thought about what you will be doing in the near future

+ +++

Strongly agree “At this point in my life, it is important for me to decide what my future career or work will be”

Parents or guardians talk to participant about his/her future education or career options at least a few times each week

-

· Increased awareness of post-secondary options

Strongly agree "I know enough about the different kinds of jobs that exist to make a choice about my future"

Strongly agree "I know my own interest and abilities well enough to decide on a future career or type of work"

Short-term and intermediate impacts of Explore Your Horizons plus Learning Accounts



New Brunswick Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone



Thought about what you will be doing in the near future

+ ++ +++

Strongly agree “At this point in my life, it is important for me to decide what my future career or work will be”

++

Parents or guardians talk to participant about his/her future education or career options at least a few times each week

· Increased awareness of post-secondary options

Strongly agree "I know enough about the different kinds of jobs that exist to make a choice about my future"

Strongly agree "I know my own interest and abilities well enough to decide on a future career or type of work"

+





New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone



· Increased orientation toward future activities

· Change in aspirations to pursue PSE

Aspires to pursue PSE + +++Aspires to pursue community college

Aspires to pursue trade/vocational

Aspires to pursue apprenticeship

Aspires to pursue university

· Change in plans to apply to pursue PSE

Know what type of programs plans to apply to

Will apply to community college - Will apply to trade/vocational ++ + ++ + Will apply for apprenticeship + + ++ Will apply to university + Will apply to "other"

· Altered expectations about PSE

Student strongly agrees "I will need to keep studying after high school to achieve what I want in life"

+ ++ ++

Getting more education after high school is very important to at least one parent + ++ +++




New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone



· Change in aspirations to pursue PSE

Aspires to pursue PSE ++ +++

Aspires to pursue community college -

Aspires to pursue trade/vocational

Aspires to pursue apprenticeship ++

Aspires to pursue university +++ +++

· Change in plans to apply to pursue PSE

Know what type of programs plans to apply to

Will apply to community college - --

Will apply to trade/vocational

Will apply for apprenticeship

Will apply to university +++ +++

Will apply to "other"

· Altered expectations about PSE

Student strongly agrees "I will need to keep studying after high school to achieve what I want in life"

++ +++

Getting more education after high school is very important to at least one parent

++ +++ +++ +





New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

Changing direction in high school

· Increased interest in high school and attendance at high school

Spends less than five hours in total each week on homework and study for all courses

Statement "I am/was interested in what I am/was learning in class" true all of the time

Statement"I do/did as little work as possible; I just want/wanted to get by" never true

Absent from school for 4+ days for any reason, including skipping without permission during this school year

· Decreased rates of early high school leaving/drop-out

Still in high school

· Increased rates of high school graduation

Graduated high school within three years of assignment in province of recruitment

· Change in peer groups (i.e., composition, future orientation, and future expectations)

All friends planning to further their education or training beyond high school

No friends have dropped out of high school without graduating

+

All friends think completing high school is very important





New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

Changing direction in high school

· Increased interest in high school and attendance at high school

Spends less than five hours in total each week on homework and study for all courses

Statement "I am/was interested in what I am/was learning in class" true all of the time

+

Statement"I do/did as little work as possible; I just want/wanted to get by" never true

Absent from school for 4+ days for any reason, including skipping without permission during this school year

· Decreased rates of early high school leaving/drop-out

Still in high school +

· Increased rates of high school graduation

Graduated high school within three years of assignment in province of recruitment

· Change in peer groups (i.e., composition, future orientation, and future expectations)

All friends planning to further their education or training beyond high school

No friends have dropped out of high school without graduating

++

All friends think completing high school is very important





New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

Improved knowledge of PSE costs and financing

· Change in perceived worth of PSE

Thinks that the cost incurred to obtain a PSE is a good long-term investment

· Increased knowledge of PSE costs, and financing

Somewhat or very familiar with student financial aid

+

Perceived university tuition $ --

Perceived college tuition $

· Increased certainty about the ability to cover PSE costs (LA)

Students report facing a financial barrier to PSE aspiration

Intends to borrow to pay for PSE

· Increased saving to meet the costs of PSE

Parents saved for participant's education -- -- --





New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

New Brunswick

Francophone

New Brunswick

Anglophone

Improved knowledge of PSE costs and financing

· Change in perceived worth of PSE

Thinks that the cost incurred to obtain a PSE is a good long-term investment

· Increased knowledge of PSE costs, and financing

Somewhat or very familiar with student financial aid

+++ ++ +

Perceived university tuition $

Perceived college tuition $

· Increased certainty about the ability to cover PSE costs (LA)

Students report facing a financial barrier to PSE aspiration

Intends to borrow to pay for PSE -

· Increased saving to meet the costs of PSE

Parents saved for participant's education

Final Impact analysis

Principal outcome: Successful enrollment and completion of the first year of

chosen PSE program [Program aim] Successful completion of the chosen PSE

program

Questions related to principal outcome: Type and location of PSE? Subgroup differences Increase in PSE-related income? Do students forego other non-PSE incomes?

Reporting process

Final Impacts Report (2011)• Delivery of learning accounts• Final impacts, observed to end of (at most) 2nd post-secondary

year• Benefit-cost analysis

increasing access to postsecondary education: learning what works in canada

Documents

pse program

completion of grade

end of grade

confirmation of pse

early career education

interventions influence

nb students

receipt of interventions