Contributing factors to academic achievements: from community college to university in Hong Kong

Academic achievement of students transferring from community colleges to 4-year institutions has been a topic of interest to educational researchers globally. However, local empirical evidence remains limited on how transfer students’ learning approaches and the teaching-learning environment relate to their academic achievement in Hong Kong’s universities. The study aims at exploring the relationship between transfer students’ approaches to learning, their perceptions of the teaching-learning environment and academic achievement. The participants were 617 undergraduate students transferring from community colleges to an university in Hong Kong. Students’ approaches to learning and perceptions of the teaching-learning environment were measured using the HowULearn questionnaire. Analyses were carried out using factor analysis, Pearson correlation and linear regression. The results confirmed positive relations between students’ perceptions, approaches and achievement. Students studying in an organised manner achieved better academic performance, whereas those using a surface approach poor performance. Others might also adopt an intermediate approach to learning. The results indicate that promoting awarenesses of choosing and using appropriate learning approaches is important for fostering academic success among students.