Dissertation writing help - A grounded theory of high-quality undergraduate honors programs

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Honors education has long enjoyed a reputation for adding something unique to undergraduate education without a clear articulation of that "unique-ness." To date, examination of undergraduate honors education is limited and focused upon administrative concerns such as enrollment or program development rather than program quality and its relationship to students' growth and development. The purpose of this study was to develop a theory of high-quality undergraduate honors programs by inviting and examining the perspectives of stakeholders in undergraduate honors programs. The following question guided all aspects of the research: "What are the attributes of a high-quality honors program?" This study considered three sub-questions to enhance the identification of program attributes. First, what steps or actions do stakeholders take to implement or enact the attribute? Second, in what ways do these actions enhance students' learning experiences? Third, what positive effects, or outcomes, do these learning experiences have on students' growth and development?

The author used a grounded theory approach to inquiry and designed a multicase, multisite study to enhance substantive representativeness at the institutional level. Interviews were conducted (n=58) with students, faculty and administrators in four undergraduate honors programs at two universities. Theoretical sampling was employed as an overall strategy for the selection of participants. The primary sources of data were interview transcripts and documentary evidence and the author conducted data analysis by using the four overlapping stages of the constant comparative method.

The study identified twelve attributes of high-quality undergraduate honors programs that are organized into three clusters: a culture animated by a shared commitment to individual and collaborative teaching and learning; stewardship of resources; and continuous environmental monitoring and adaptation. The environmental theory of high-quality honors programs developed in this study is anchored in the idea that honors programs are microenvironments for teaching and learning in which program participants interact with each other and take specific actions that affect this environment. These actions, in turn, have consequences for students' learning experiences and contribute to students' growth and development. Because the environmental theory advanced in this study examines multiple dimensions of the attributes of high-quality programs, it represents a significant departure from the traditional outcomes approach to quality represented in the literature on honors programs and, more closely, parallels Astin's talent development approach and Haworth and Conrad's engagement theory of high-quality programs.