The Evolution of Attitudes and Perceptions of First-Year Theatre Students
Disciplines
Theatre and Performance Studies
Abstract (300 words maximum)
First-year theatre students face challenges as they adjust to their first semester of college. Time management, navigating academic expectations, and building a sense of community are key factors that influence their academic and personal growth. The purpose of this study is to explore how attitudes and perceptions of first-year theatre students evolve as they progress through their first semester of college. The study strives to analyze how they manage these demands and how their experiences contribute to their overall academic success and growth. The methods used were a combination of data collection including collecting and organizing data from multiple surveys, interpretation, and visualization. The data comes from Dr. Jim Davis and all of his previous students in the fall semester of the years; 2022, 2023, and 2024. Three surveys were administered by Dr. Jim Davis to his fall semester first year students, sample size was around 17-20 students.The results showed most students were worried about having enough confidence to put themselves out there, mainly all the students talked about how hard it was to balance their academic and creative responsibilities. By the end of the semester, many shared a similar recognition of the importance of effective time management and finding support from peers and faculty. When asked what three things they were told about college, most of the students said college will be the best years of their life or the most challenging years, the students reflected on the duality of the college experiences either being the best or most challenging. Students also realized the importance of effective time management, becoming more academically successful overall. Many students also noted the value of finding support from peers and faculty throughout the semester. A sense of community appears to be essential not only for emotional support but also for academic success.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
COTA - Theatre and Performance Studies
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
James Davis
The Evolution of Attitudes and Perceptions of First-Year Theatre Students
First-year theatre students face challenges as they adjust to their first semester of college. Time management, navigating academic expectations, and building a sense of community are key factors that influence their academic and personal growth. The purpose of this study is to explore how attitudes and perceptions of first-year theatre students evolve as they progress through their first semester of college. The study strives to analyze how they manage these demands and how their experiences contribute to their overall academic success and growth. The methods used were a combination of data collection including collecting and organizing data from multiple surveys, interpretation, and visualization. The data comes from Dr. Jim Davis and all of his previous students in the fall semester of the years; 2022, 2023, and 2024. Three surveys were administered by Dr. Jim Davis to his fall semester first year students, sample size was around 17-20 students.The results showed most students were worried about having enough confidence to put themselves out there, mainly all the students talked about how hard it was to balance their academic and creative responsibilities. By the end of the semester, many shared a similar recognition of the importance of effective time management and finding support from peers and faculty. When asked what three things they were told about college, most of the students said college will be the best years of their life or the most challenging years, the students reflected on the duality of the college experiences either being the best or most challenging. Students also realized the importance of effective time management, becoming more academically successful overall. Many students also noted the value of finding support from peers and faculty throughout the semester. A sense of community appears to be essential not only for emotional support but also for academic success.