Social Integration and Student Proactivity: Precursors to Improved Academic Outcomes in a First-Year Experience Basic Communication Course

Based on interactionalist theory, we longitudinally examined first-year experience basic communication courses for students’ social integration and academic outcomes. Participants completed measures of proactivity, instructor rapport, classroom connectedness, participation, self-regulated and peer learning, and likelihood to persist in college. Results reveal that students perceptions of proactivity, instructor rapport, and peer connectedness all increased over the course of a semester. Instructor rapport predicted self-regulated, participation, and likelihood to persist. Connectedness predicted participation. Student proactivity predicted likelihood to persist. Generally, results suggest social integration (i.e., rapport and connectedness) and proactivity are important to student success