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Dropout As A Function Of Discrepancies Between Expectations and Actual Experiences Of The Classroom Social Environment

Center for Adult Development, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.

William J. Gavin

Division of Adult Education, New Jersey Department of Education, Trenton, NJ.

Prediction and explanation of the dropout phenomenon in adult education have suffered from a lack of theory-based research. In the present inquiry, social environment theory was employed to determine the relation of dropout behavior to the social ecology of the classroom. Research in school settings indicates that discrepancies between students' expectations of a specific classroom environment and their actual experiences in that environment promote dissatisfaction. These findings, coupled with theoretical deduction, suggested the hypothesis that adult dropouts, compared to persisters, would exhibit a greater degree of discrepancy between initial expectations and actual experiences of the classroom environment. Expectations and actual classroom experiences were measured by administering the Classroom Environment Scale to 77 adults enrolled in GED preparation classes. Discrepancy scores were analyzed by t-tests and multiple regression. Dropouts differed significantly from persisters on the subscale of Affiliation. Put briefly, they expected a classroom environment characterized by less social involvement with other students. Twenty-six percent of the variance in drop out behavior was attributed to the CES discrepancy scores

Adult Education Quarterly, Vol. 37, No. 3, 152-163 (1987)
DOI: 10.1177/0001848187037003003


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