The Preparation and Performance of Freshmen in University Honors Programs

Abstract

This study sought to investigate the level of performance exhibited by university honors freshmen and to explore the knowledge and skill demands of advanced higher education programs in order to construct an empirical base for the development of standards for gifted learners in grades K-12. A sample of 145 faculty members from 28 honors programs at flagship universities across the United States participated in the telephone survey conducted during the summer of 1994. The survey asked respondents to assess their students' process skills of critical thinking, creative thinking, problem solving, research, written and oral communication, and leadership. Also, respondents assessed their students' knowledge deficiencies and identified qualities that distinguish exceptional students. Respondents reported moderate satisfaction with student performance of the process skills. Subjects appeared to concur with Renzulli's (1986) construct of task commitment when they identified motivation, attitude, intellectual curiosity, and discipline as important distinguishing factors of outstanding honors students.

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