PREPARING STUDENTS FOR COLLEGE AND THE WORKPLACE:

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PREPARING STUDENTS FOR COLLEGE AND THE
WORKPLACE
ALL

• ITS A PUZZLE?

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OUTCOMES

• Awareness of Threshold Skills for preparing
  students for college and the workplace.
• Better understanding of the connections between
  threshold skills and policies, curriculum,
  assessment and instruction.
• Other

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What are "threshold skills?"

• The competencies and skills that are the doors
• (thresholds) that will open or close
  opportunities for success in the 21st century.

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How are Threshold Skills Determined?

• Work That is Required by Schools SCAN
  (Secretarys Commission Achieving Necessary
  Skills) US Dept of Labor
• FIVE COMPETENCIES
• Foundation Skills and Personal Qualities
• COLLEGE BOARD
• National Commission on Writing 2005
• Gatekeeper Skills Equity 2000 National Ed.
  Project

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SCANS FIVE COMPETENCIES

• RESOURCES
• INTERPERSONAL
• INFORMATION
• UNDERSTANDING SYSTEMS
• TECHNOLOGY

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FOUNDATION SKILLS

• READING
• WRITING
• PERFORMING ARITHMETIC AND MATHMETICAL OPERATIONS
• LISTENING
• SPEAKING
• CRITICAL THINKING

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GATEKEEPER SKILLS and COURSES for COLLEGE

• ABILITY TO PERFORM ARITHMETIC AND MATHMETICAL
  OPERATION
• ALGEBRA I and II
• READING AND WRITING

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The Workplace is CHANGING ! We have entered a
time in our economy when the demand for highly
skilled and knowledgeable workers is strong. In
this decade, 87 of new wage jobs will require
the same skills of a 4- year college. One-third
of the companies will reduce hires with only a
high school diploma. Sixty percent of the
companies will increase hires for a 4-year
college. Skills for college and work are now
converging! U.S. Dept. Of Labor 2006
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What is the TICKET to the FUTURE?

• Increase the percentage of students leaving high
  school ready for college and workplace.
• Of 75 of students enrolling in college, 56 of
  those students took the ACT completed a college
  preparatory curriculum in high school.
• Nearly one-third of students need to take a
  remedial course.
• More than one quarter of first-year students at a
  4-year college and one half of students at a
  community college do not return after two years.
• 1.2 million students fail to graduate
• 51.6 African American

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• The single biggest predictor of college success
  is the quality and intensity of a students high
  school curriculum.
• U.S Dept of Education

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Algebra

• Students entering workplace or college bound need
  the same math skills as a college freshman to be
  successful.
• Prerequisite to all higher-level math courses
  (geometry and algebra II)
• Begin Algebra I in 8th grade
• Curriculum must include basic computations and
  problem solving using a variety of mathematical
  techniques.
• Algebra, Geometry, Number Operation, Data
  Statistics Measurement

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Reading

• GENERAL HIGH LEVEL OF LITERACY
• THE ABILITY TO READ WITH INSIGHT AND JUDGEMENT
• THE ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE COMPLEX IDEAS
  CLEARLY
• Locates and understands and interrupts written
  formation Think, understand and make
  distractions organizing and presenting ideas
  clearly and acquiring a rich vocabulary.
• Workplace prose, manuscripts, manuals, graphs
  and schedules.
• College a variety of literature and
  expository writings.

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National Commission for Writing

• Writing is the threshold skill for hiring and
  promotions among salaried professionals.
• Writing is the ticket out or the ticket in,
  when poorly written job applications are the
  figurative kiss of death.

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Writing

• Writing is a process
• Requires individual student time
• (100 to 1at high school level)
• Ability to communicate clearly thoughts, ideas,
  information in writing
• Ability to create concise documents with
  accuracy, grammar, punctuation, logical,
  well-supported and documented with scientific
  precision.
• Workforce E-mail, correspondence, formal
  reports research, technical reports analyses, and
  Policy Alerts
• Research writing, Expository Writings

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How Do Threshold Skills Connect to Student
Learning?

• Policy Making
• Christian County Policy Graduation
  Requirements
• Math 4 years
• Algebra I ( 8th grade ) exit exam
• Reading requirements
• Writing includes research and technical

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How Do Threshold Skills Connect to Student
Learning?

• Policy Making
• Kentucky Department of Education
• State Standards

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How Do Threshold Skills Connect to Student
Learning?

• Curriculum and Assessment
• Standards are tied to State-mandated assessment
  (CATS)
• Alternative Assessment format writing,
  multi-choice, critical thinking and application
  of facts and knowledge in authentic settings

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How Do Threshold Skills Connect to Student
Learning?

• Instruction
• What gets assessed, gets taught
• Engage student
• Teach to the standards

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TIPS To the Puzzle

• Help students to set goals (ILP) in middle
  school.
• Encourage students to take the right number of
  courses and the right kind of classes in math and
  English (Intense and quality curriculum) for 4
  years.
• Encourage Algebra I for Grade 8.
• Encourage students to be expose to a
• variety of reading materials.
• Begin taking the ACT early.
• Monitor students scores on PLAN and
• EXPLORE.
• Monitor progress
• Homework Does daily work reflect the standards,
  foundation skills, competencies (problem solving
  and thinking) and writing.

janie.tomek_at_christian.kyschools.us 270-887-7016
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• Even if not all high school graduates go on to
  college or the workforce training, EVERY student
  should be prepared to pursue that option with a
  reasonable chance of success. No students
  choices should be limited because of the lack of
  readiness. Every student should leave high school
  with all the puzzle pieces for their future.