Predicting English composition grades with the Academic Competence Evaluation Scales and the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure at an HBCU

The purpose of this study was to predict paper and course grades of students enrolled in the first English composition course at a state-supported, comprehensive urban university in the Midsouth that is also a Historically Black College/University in the South. Students completed a Demographic Form, Multi-Ethnic Identity Measure (Phinney, 1992), and the Academic Competence Evaluation System (DiPerna & Elliott, 2001). Demographic data were analyzed, producing gender differences in final grades, attitudes, and ACES scores. The professors differed significantly on final grades assigned. Correlations were computed The results of this project established a correlational relationship between the MEIM and the ACES. The results of a stepwise multiple regression revealed only one predictor of final grades for a composition course at an HBCU: high school GPA. The following variables did not contribute statistically to the prediction: the MEIM, the ACES\u27 Academic Skills and Academic Enablers, and ACT scores. This pattern of prediction held true for the entire sample (n = 131), for students of a single professor (n = 62), and for African American students (n = 98)