What was the psychosocial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on first-time college students (FTIC). By answering project questions related to the psychosocial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on first-time college students (FTIC) and the strategies implemented by one university, this research synthesis attempts to address 4 questions posed by existing research . What is known about the psychosocial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on people and especially on young people and traditional college-age individuals.
It should be noted that at the time of this research synthesis, few studies are available on the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on people's mental health. Students may also have experienced adverse psychological impacts from the pandemic when considering future employment opportunities (Wang et al., 2020). When confronted with the experience of transitioning to university and the disruptive nature of the Covid-19 pandemic, it can be said that students are encountering a 'doppelgänger' for the first time at university.
ACHA-NCHA reports highlighting physical and mental health, substance use and student well-being, and NSSE reports highlighting academics, the learning environment and the university experience, were selected to provide insight into the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on various aspects of the student experience of Texas Tech University. Like many colleges and universities, Texas Tech University was forced into crisis management when the pandemic began in March 2020. Texas Tech student responses to NSSE-TTU 2019 and ACHA-NCHA 2020 were considered "pre-treatment" samples as they were collected before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Students Experienced Negative Psychosocial Impact
Additionally, an increase in type I and type II diabetes among students diagnosed with diabetes can also be seen between 2020 and 2022 ACHA-NCHA at the University of Texas at Texas Tech. Texas Tech University students also reported an increase in low or very low uncertainty from 48.6% to 56.5% in 2022. Finally, among students diagnosed with diabetes, a significant increase in type I diabetes and type II was also reported in 2022.
Texas Tech University students also reported an increase from 26.2% to 31.8% in higher levels of perceived stress in the 12 months prior to February 2022, while fewer students, 24.1% to 18.7%, reported that experience low levels of stress. A significant increase can also be seen among Texas Tech University students reporting experiencing stress, with 58.9% reporting stress due to their current financial situation affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The ACHA-NCHA-TTU analysis further revealed an increase in the number of students reporting challenges with their well-being.
Aligning many challenges reported by students at Texas Tech University and the literature published on the effects of the pandemic on student well-being.
Housing and Disseminating Data
Additional programs and services aimed at reducing these stressors are likely to improve student success and students continue to matriculate throughout their educational journey. It was also discussed that better tools for understanding student experience are not the only thing missing. The NSSE-TTU results are reviewed by a wider selection of administrators at the institution and the results are made publicly available on the Office for Planning and Assessment website.
Each of these assessments collects valuable data about student experiences, but the results are stored and disseminated differently. Both tools measure aspects of the student experience, but are administered and analyzed by units in different areas of the institution. A third example that illustrates the disjointed approach to accommodating and disseminating data about the student experience at Texas Tech University is the Covid-19 research he led.
Despite the limited data available for this project, the project found significant opportunity to expand the institutional culture, or lack thereof, for evidence-based decision-making by collecting better data about student experience.
Online Learning Options
An administrator with eLearning and Academic Partnerships reflected the trend in student preferences for courses at Texas Tech University. In many cases, emergency distance learning during the pandemic did not demonstrate the components of high-quality online learning. What happened during the Covid-era emergency distance education was far from carefully or deliberately designed and it happened not only at Texas Tech University, but in colleges and K-12 institutions nationally.
Although the university provided training for faculty and staff members unfamiliar with new technology, apps, and learning platforms such as Blackboard (used around Texas Tech University for many courses), the same intent to prepare students for digital learning experiences did not exist . Like faculty and staff at many educational institutions across the country, Texas Tech University assumed that students were digital natives based on their use of social media, gaming, or entertainment-based technology. Despite a lack of intentionality in the planning and design of emergency distance learning during COVID19, early student learning indicators from NSSE research analysis show.
Although the quality of student learning during COVID19 was beyond the scope of this project, the findings from the NSSE survey analysis suggest that it may be possible to accommodate the course modality preferences of Texas Tech University students while simultaneously meeting learning standards of the university to support.
Disparate Technology Systems
They [THECB] had done a survey and the students had to interact. approximately 70 different e-tools in an academic year between quiz-taking software, e-textbooks, learning management systems, open source learning platforms and more. Another interview layered the experience of navigating different technology systems on top of the experience of being a freshman during the pandemic. You have these students who haven't even really set foot on the Texas Tech campus because we did everything virtually that summer.
And now they're expected to log in and access their classes and know exactly how to use Zoom, Collaborate, Teams, Skype and whatever else someone uses. Students who accessed services through one of the many resources available at the institution, such as the Student Advice Center, had to navigate additional platforms to access that specific support. These challenges of disparate systems were not limited to students at Texas Tech University, but were also experienced by faculty and staff.
Here's how to do it [apply for a consultation], a lot of technical troubleshooting, trying to figure out how to make our forms in a secure way. done with DocuSign and then switched to Adobe Sign. And we had to work out how to get to the remote desktops with our staff. An example related to the introduction of a new technology system, Salesforce, was given in several interviews.
Once fully implemented, this program will bring new features to recruiting, admissions, financial aid and more. This platform will also transform the way many areas of the institution can report and analyze student data at Texas Tech University. This is an example of a feature-rich program (ie it won't serve just one purpose).
From the way it was described in the interviews, the university has been much more intentional about getting buy-in from the entire institution. This project found that the number of different technology systems at Texas Tech University contribute to the challenges experienced by students, faculty, and staff.
Raider Ready Program
This project did not examine the full scope of the first-year experience at Texas Tech University to include other first-year seminars at the institution's academic colleges and schools. The project's findings laid the foundation for four recommendations for two areas at Texas Tech University: Student Life and Academic Innovation and Student Success. Based on the data reviewed as part of this project, students at Texas Tech University experienced hardship as a result of the pandemic.
Based on what we learned during the project, it is difficult to articulate Texas Tech University's strategy for collecting data on the student experience. What resources does Texas Tech University need to develop and implement a student experience data collection strategy? The project found inconsistencies in the language used by Texas Tech University when referring to first-year students.
Texas Tech University does not have a centralized means of storing and disseminating data about student experiences. Similar to other institutions, Texas Tech University was not prepared to turn to online learning or emergency distance learning as required during the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Additional data on faculty and staff experiences with the various technology systems at Texas Tech University should also be evaluated.
How does Texas Tech University ensure that all FTIC students participate in a first-year or transition-related course at the institution. The findings and recommendations for the project were presented to senior leadership for student life, and academic innovation and student success at Texas Tech University on November 28, 2022. 2022).American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment III: Texas Tech University Summary Spring 2022.
2020).American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment III: Texas Tech University Institutional Data Report Spring 2020. 2022).American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment III: Texas Tech University Institutional Data Report Spring 2022. Semi-Structured Interviews will be conducted with members of the ley leadership team from the Office of the Chancellor and the Texas Tech University Student Advising Center.
All interviewees were part of the university's leadership team during COVID19 and are currently part of the faculty and staff of Texas Tech University. Personal, face-to-face interviews will be conducted in private office settings at Texas Tech University. Interviews held in August will be personal, face-to-face interviews at Texas Tech University.
