Student Aspirations and Readiness for College

1
Student Aspirations and Readiness for College

• Lynne Miller
• Professor of Educational Leadership
• Russell Chair in Philosophy and Education
• University of Southern Maine
• January, 2007

2
What We Know About Maine Kids

• 80 of Maine eighth graders say they want to go
  to college
• 74-78 of students who begin high school
  graduate

3
Maine Kids

• Of the 74-78 who managed to graduate from Maine
  public schools in 2005
• 65-70 took the SAT
• 65 were accepted to college
• 51-53 attended a two or four year college in
  the fall
• about 30 will earn a bachelors degree
• Less than 50 of students who matriculated at
  Maines public universities graduated within six
  years

4
Graduation Rates at Maine Public Universities
5
What is the Problem?

• Is it an aspirations problem ?
  80 of eighth graders aspire to college
• Or is it a disconnect between aspirations and
  readiness? More than 50 of students
  who want to go to college are not prepared to be
  admitted and 25 are admitted but are not ready
  for college work

6
Two Aspirations/Readiness Disconnects

• Disconnect 1 High School Graduation ?College
  Admission
• Disconnect 2 College Admission ? Placement
  into College Level Courses

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Disconnect 1High School Graduation ?
College Admission

• A high school diploma is not sufficient to gain
  admission to college

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HS Graduation vs. College Admission Requirements

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Disconnect 2 College Admission ? Placement
into College Level Courses
Preparatory course of study in

• Completion of a College Prep high school
  curriculum is not sufficient to enter and pass
  100 level courses

10
ACT Study Results
Source (2005) ACT, Inc.
11
What Happens to Students whoare Admitted but Not
Prepared

• They are placed in developmental courses before
  they can proceed to college level courses
• They pay tuition for these courses but do not
  earn credit toward graduation
• Note Placement is based first on SAT scores.
  Those who do not make the cut-off take campus
  placement tests for final placement decisions

12
Enrollment in Remedial Courses

• Nationally 50 of entering students
• UMaine campuses about 25
• Over 700 students are enrolled in remedial or
  developmental writing courses each fall
• Over 1500 are enrolled in remedial or
  developmental math courses each fall
  

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At Maine Community Colleges 37 of incoming
Students Take Remedial Courses
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Remediation And Graduation
Source Kirst, M. (2004). The high
school/college disconnect. Educational
Leadership, 62(3), 51-55.
15
Who is Most Affected Children Growing up in Low
Income Families

• gt90,000 1 in 2
  graduate
• 35,000 to 61,000 1 in 10 graduate
• lt 35,000 1 in 17
  graduate
• Source Ross Douthat, R. (2005). Privilege
  Harvard and the Education of the Ruling Class.
  New York Hyperion.

16
Graduation/Pell Rates at Maine Publics First
time/full time (2004)
17
Maine Elite Private Colleges Six Year
Graduation Rates/ Pell

• 6 YR GRAD PELL
• Bowdoin 89.1 12.8
• Colby 84.6 8.5
• Bates 84.0 9.1

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The High School Course of Study Changes the Odds

• Reading above grade level prepares students for
  accessing college texts
• Writing expository and analytic essays prepares
  students for writing in college courses
• Mastering the algebra-geometry-algebra sequence
  prepares students for the quantitative demands of
  college
• One math course beyond Algebra 2 doubles the odds
  of earning a degree

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Connecting Aspirations to Readiness

• Ensure that Maine students who aspire to college
  have access to a course of study that adequately
  prepares them for college level work without
  remediation.
• Ensure that those who dont aspire will have
  assistance in changing their aspirations and how
  they think about their futures
• Ensure that more Maine students who enter our
  public universities progress toward a degree in a
  timely fashion

20
Comparing Courses 11th Grade English
Honors
College Prep

• Develop skills in reading, public speaking and
  writing
• Chronological and critical understanding of
  American literature
• Challenging reading load (10 or more novels plus
  short stories and poetry)
• Express understanding in clear, organized manner
  through class discussion and written assignments,
  expository and analytic writing
• Write a research paper, with hypothesis,
  supporting evidence, and conclusion
• Required summer reading list

• Develop skills in grammar, vocabulary, oral
  presentations and speeches
• Surveys American literature
• Studies works from college preparatory anthology
  and selected novels
• Composition focuses on narrative and descriptive
  essays and introduces expository writing
• Research paper required

21
Comparing Courses Algebra 2
College Prep
Honors

• Studies a class of functionsdefinition, graphs,
  properties, and mathematical models.
• Topics covered include
• Linear
• Quadratic
• Exponential
• Logarithmic
• Rational algebraic
• Irrational algebraic
• Higher degree functions
• Conic sections
• Sequences
• Probability
• Statistics

• Extends and reviews concepts learned in Algebra 1
  
• Introduces more advanced subjects
• Logarithms
• Coordinate geometry
• Probability

22
College Readinessin Writing Report to the Field

• Chancellors Committee Report on College
  Readiness in Writing
• Presented to the Board of Trustees of the
  University of Maine System
• (June 2005)
• .

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High School vs. College Experience

• I am not asking how you feel about this issue
  Im asking what you think about this issue.   
• College writing is expository or analytical
  (seldom narrative) and moves beyond personal
  experience
• University focus Abstraction
• Argument
• Analysis
• Discussion
• Writing about Texts   

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Major Premise Writing is Essential to
Understanding

• Correct standard written English is assumed
• Creating complex theses is required
• Distinguishing analysis from summary is critical
• Writing goes beyond personal experience puts the
  college in college writing

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College Writing Sample Assignment English 100

• Near the end of her essay, Tompkins writes, What
  this means for the problem Ive been addressing
  is that I piece together the story of European
  Indian relations as best I can, believing this
  version up to a point , that version not at all,
  another almost entirely, according to what seems
  reasonable and plausible given everything I know.
  And this is, as I have shown, what I was already
  doing in the back of my mind without realizing
  it, because there was nothing else I could do

• Please write a four page essay in which you
  consider Tompkinss conclusion. Do you agree with
  her? How do you evaluate evidence that Tompkins
  presents to support her position? Finally, it is
  important that you make clear somewhere in your
  essay what you think Tompkinss conclusion is

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Sample Writing Assignment School and Society

• A 10-15 page research paper
• Cover sheet with title
• Introduction that describes the topic
• A literature review using peer review articles or
  book chapters
• A description of your methods
• A discussion of findings
• Properly and consistently formatted list of
  references, using APA format

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ESP 102/126 Formal Laboratory Reports

• Laboratory reports are your tool for expressing
  what you did, why you did it, and what you
  learned in the process. Even if your
  understanding of the procedure, techniques, and
  results is perfect and your results error-free, a
  poorly written report will suggest that you did
  not understand what you have done. Good writing
  is good writing, be it creative fiction, an
  editorial, journal article, or scientific
  communication. Writing reports is not difficult
  if you remember a few guidelines about writing
  and the structure of a good report.
• Your formal lab report must have the following
  components in the following order.
• Title
• Introduction
• Materials and Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Literature cited

28
Comparing Courses 11th Grade English
Honors
College Prep

• Develop skills in reading, public speaking and
  writing
• Chronological and critical understanding of
  American literature
• Challenging reading load (10 or more novels plus
  short stories and poetry)
• Express understanding in clear, organized manner
  through class discussion and written assignments,
  expository and analytic writing
• Write a research paper, with hypothesis,
  supporting evidence, and conclusion
• Required summer reading list

• Develop skills in grammar, vocabulary, oral
  presentations and speeches
• Surveys American literature
• Studies works from college preparatory anthology
  and selected novels
• Composition focuses on narrative and descriptive
  essays and introduces expository writing
• Research paper required

29
COLLEGE READINESSin Math

• Chancellors Committee Report on College
  Readiness in Math
• Presented to the Board of Trustees of the
  University of Maine System
• (January,2006 Revised March 2006)
• .

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Mathematics is the language of scienceThe
world demands advanced quantitative literacy, and
no matter what a student's postsecondary field of
study ... more than a ceremonial visit to
college-level mathematics is called for."
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System Wide Standards for General Education Math

• Mathematical Reasoning
• Computation
• Algebra
• Geometry
• Data Analysis and Statistics
• www.maine.edu/collegeready

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Preparing Students for College Level Math

• Students who are prepared for college level math
  are able to
• perform mathematical operations and manipulations
  by hand or with a calculator when appropriate
• understand basic concepts and definitions
• apply, interpret and communicate results.

33
ESP 101 assignment

• A typical toilet uses 18-26 liters (5-7 gallons)
  per flush (assume 22 liters per flush). Low-flush
  toilets use 6 liters (1.5 gallons) per flush.
  Assume that each of 10,000 university students
  flushes 5 times per day.
• How many liters of water would be saved in one
  day if all toilets were low flush?
• How many liters could be saved in a year?
• A little over half the students successfully do
  this calculation

34
Comparing Courses Algebra 2
College Prep
Honors

• Studies a class of functionsdefinition, graphs,
  properties, and mathematical models.
• Topics covered include
• Linear
• Quadratic
• Exponential
• Logarithmic
• Rational algebraic
• Irrational algebraic
• Higher degree functions
• Conic sections
• Sequences
• Probability
• Statistics

• Extends and reviews concepts learned in Algebra 1
  
• Introduces more advanced subjects
• Logarithms
• Coordinate geometry
• Probability

35
What College Readiness Means

• Reading and struggling to understand a variety of
  texts
• Writing about texts and data for a variety of
  purposes and a variety of audiences
• Performing calculations, interpreting
  quantitative data, and understanding concepts of
  algebra and quantitative reasoning
• AND mastering time and self management

36
Preparing Students for College Level Writing

• A writing curriculum ( middle through high
  school) that progresses to college ready skills
  and competencies
• A firm foundation in writing grammatically
  correct and increasingly complex sentences and
  paragraphs
• Practice in writing expository and analytic
  essays as well as technical reports
• A senior year writing course for all college
  bound students that stresses writing for diverse
  audiences and purposes
• Integration of writing in disciplines other than
  English
• Provide all students in college prep English
  courses with access to the tools they need for
  successful transitions to college

37
Preparing Students for College Level Math

• A math curriculum ( middle through high school)
  that progresses to college ready skills and
  competencies
• A firm foundation in algebraic and quantitative
  reasoning
• A senior year math course for all college bound
  students this may take the form of
• the completion of the algebra-geometry-algebra
  sequence
• an advanced course in algebraic/quantitative
  reasoning for those not intending to major in a
  math or science field
• pre-calc or calc for those intending to major in
  a math or science field
• Decreased reliance on calculators

38
The Optimal College Ready Curriculum

• Four years of English with emphasis on reading
  varied texts and writing about them
• Four years of math at least through the
  algebra-geometry-algebra sequence
• Three to four years of reading/writing intensive
  history/social science
• Three to four years of lab intensive science
  biology, chemistry, physics content with writing
• At least two years of a language other than
  English

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College Readiness

• Aspirations
• Preparation
• Persistence