College Readiness Indicators of First-Generation Hispanic High School Students in South Texas

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between first generation Hispanic student participation in an AVID program and college readiness. The dependent variable, college readiness, was measured by passing the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) Reading, Writing, and Math assessment. Predictor variables included Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) elective course participation, Advanced Placement courses taken, Advanced Placement Exams taken, Advanced Placement Exams passed, Dual Enrollment Courses Passed, and ACT Composite score. A factor analysis was performed on the predictor variables, resulting in three independent variables for the study: AVID elective course participation, Average of T-scores for Dual Enrollment and ACT, and Average of T-scores for AP. This is a quantitative study that utilized pre-existing data from four high schools in a large South Texas school district. A logistic regression analysis was used to examine if AVID elective course participation, Advanced Placement courses taken, Advanced Placement Exams taken, Advanced Placement Exams passed, Dual Enrollment Courses Passed, and ACT Composite scores were a function of TSI scores in Reading, Writing, and Math. The null hypothesis for the present study were tested at the .05 level of significance. The review of literature on college readiness provided the theoretic framework for this study. The theoretic framework was based on David Conley’s (2007) Theory of College Readiness. The findings from this study indicated the following: 1) AVID elective course participation in high school is a function of TSI scores in Reading, Writing, and Math, 2) Average of T-scores for Dual Enrollment Courses and ACT scores were a function of TSI scores in Reading, Writing, and Math, 3) Average of T-scores for AP were not a function of TSI scores in Reading, Writing, and Math, 4) AVID elective course participation in middle school was not a function of TSI scores in Reading, Writing, and Math