creating college ready students – tips, strategies, examples and services to ensure student...
DESCRIPTION
Webinar discussing challenges of college student readiness, includes resources to combat the challenge and specific examples of what is working for other schools.TRANSCRIPT
http://www.witc.edu/adult/connections.htm
• Session will be recorded and sent to all participants.
• All lines are muted.• Use question box to type in any questions.• Q&A will be at the end of the presentation.
Creating College Ready Students
Tips, Strategies, Examples and Services to Ensure Student Success.
Dr. Mac Adkins, President, SmarterServices LLC
Terry Arndt, President, College Transition Publishing
Dr. Mac Adkins, SmarterServices, LLC
Dr. Mac Adkins is the President of SmarterServices and for the past 25 years has had a career that has focused on college student success. In addition to holding a Doctor of Education degree in Higher Education Leadership, he has held dean or director level positions in student services, enrollment management, institutional effectiveness, and eLearning leadership at both public and private universities. His passion is now helping students understand their non-cognitive attributes and skills to empower them to achieve educational success. Well, that AND Alabama football, Roll Tide!
Were You Ready For College?
Reflect on your experience as a college student. Which of the following areas would you say was the most difficult for you?Being smart enough – prior content
knowledgeKnowing how to study new materialKnowing how to navigate the college
environmentSelf control – discipline, motivation, etc.Time – how to manage it
Four Dimensions of College Readiness
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2008
Cognitive StrategiesStudents entering college are more likely to succeed if they can:
Formulate, investigate, and propose solutions to non-routine problems;
Understand and analyze conflicting explanations of phenomena or events;
Evaluate the credibility and utility of source material and then integrate sources into a paper or project appropriately;
Think analytically and logically, comparing and contrasting differing philosophies, methods, and positions to understand an issue or concept;
Exercise precision and accuracy as they apply their methods and develop their products.
Learning How To Learn
Content Knowledge
Several independently conducted research efforts have identified the key knowledge and skills students should master to take full advantage of college. Standards for Success (Conley, 2003) systematically polled university
faculty members and analyzed their course documents to determine what these teachers expected of students in entry-level courses.
The American Diploma Project consulted representatives of the business community and postsecondary faculty to define standards in math and English.
ACT and the College Board have released college readiness standards in English and math.
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, under mandate of state law, developed one of the first and most comprehensive sets of state-level college readiness standards.
The Common Core has established standardized, national standards for what students should know at each grade level.
Content Knowledge
These reports are strikingly similar in terms of the content knowledge expectations they outline.
They all identify a manageable set of big ideas, key concepts, and organizing principles that form the structure of each academic subject area, and they emphasize the importance of students making connections among the big ideas.
This focus on the structure of knowledge enables students to scaffold their understandings in a way that postsecondary education can build on.
Knowledge about Postsecondary Education
Choosing a college, applying, securing financial aid, and then adjusting to college life require a tremendous amount of specialized knowledge. Matching personal interests with college majors and programs;
Understanding federal and individual college financial aid programs and how and when to complete appropriate forms;
Registering for, preparing for, and taking required admissions exams;
Applying to college on time and submitting all necessary information;
Understanding how the culture of college is different from that of high school or employment.
Knowledge about PostSecondary Education – Who is at Risk? Students who would be the first in their family to attend
college
Students from low-income families
Students from immigrant families
Students who are members of racial and ethnic minority groups traditionally underrepresented in college
Dropout Rate
Roughly 30% of entering freshmen in the USA are first-generation college students.
24% — 4.5 million — are both first-gens and low income. Nationally, 89% of low-income first-gens leave college within
six years without a degree. More than 25% leave after their first year — four times the
dropout rate of higher-income second-generation students.
USA Today, April, 2010
Self management skills
In college, students must keep track of massive amounts of information and organize themselves to meet competing deadlines and priorities.
They must plan their time carefully to complete these tasks.
They must be able to study independently and in informal and formal study groups.
They must know when to seek help from academic support services and when to cut their losses and drop a course.
These tasks require non-cognitive skills - skills that individuals must develop over time, with considerable practice and trial-and-error.
Non-Cognitive Skills
Why Do Students Drop Out?
A study funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ranked these reasons:
1. Conflict with work schedule
2. Affordability of tuition
3. Lack of support from family – financial and practical support
4. Lack of belief that a college degree is valuable
5. Lack of discipline – too much socializing, not enough studying
http://www.publicagenda.org/pages/with-their-whole-lives-ahead-of-them
Can Non-Cognitive Skills Be Taught?
You can’t change a tiger’s stripes, but you can teach that tiger to hunt in a different environment.
Skills that Employer’s Want
National Association of Colleges and Employers Survey of Employers
http://www.unl.edu/svcaa/documents/how_employers_see_candidates.pdf
Outcomes Schools WantElements of Mission Statements From 35 Universities
Michigan State University, 2004
1. Knowledge, learning, mastery of general principles
2. Continuous learning, intellectual interest, curiosity
3. Artistic cultural appreciation 4. Appreciation for diversity5. Leadership6. Interpersonal skills7. Social responsibility, citizenship and
involvement8. Physical and psychosocial health9. Career preparation10.Adaptability and life skills11.Perseverance12.Ethics and integrity
Traits Online Faculty Want
WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies, 2013
2012 National Research Council
COGNITIVEProblem solvingCritical thinkingSystems thinkingStudy skillsAdaptabilityCreativityMeta-cognitive skills
INTERPERSONALCommunicationSocial IntelligenceTeamworkLeadershipCultural sensitivityTolerance for diversity
INTRAPERSONALAnxietySelf-efficacySelf-conceptAttributionsWork ethicPersistenceOrganizationTime managementIntegrityLife-long learning
US Department of Education
“The test score accountability movement and conventional educational approaches tend to focus on intellectual aspects of success, such as content knowledge. However, this is not sufficient. If students are to achieve their full potential, they must have opportunities to engage and develop a much richer set of skills. There is a growing movement to explore the potential of the “noncognitive” factors — attributes, dispositions, social skills, attitudes, and intrapersonal resources, independent of intellectual ability—that high-achieving individuals draw upon to accomplish success.”
Parents Teach It
“Years of schooling predicts labor market outcomes — cognitive skills account for only 20%; therefore 80% of the “years of schooling” benefit is due to noncognitive skills” (Bowles, Gintis, & Osborne, 2001)
http://www.umass.edu/preferen/gintis/jelpap.pdf
Types of Data Used To Predict Learner Success
APTITUDE
ATTITUDE
SITUATION
What Are Non-Cognitive Skills?
Recommended Uses of Non-Cognitive Skills Measures
1.Optic – A lens through which students can view their strengths and opportunities for improvement
2.Student Service – A tool to guide students toward available resources for support
3.Placement – Developmental / remedial course placement
4.Talking Points – A collection of statements which academic advisors can use to advise their students
5.Early Alert – A list of students who are likely to be benefitted by the instructor reaching out to them early in the course.
6.Predictive Analytic - A set of data which can be analyzed at the individual and aggregate level to project student performance
SmarterMeasure Learning Readiness Indicator
The leading student readiness assessment. Based on non-cognitive indicators of success.
Validated assessment and highly configurable assessment engine
Used by over 500 Colleges and Universities. Since 2002 taken by over 2,900,000 students.
What Does The Assessment Measure?INTERNAL
INDIVIDUAL ATTRIBUTES
MotivationProcrastination
Time ManagementHelp Seeking
Locus of Control
LEARNING STYLES
VisualVerbalSocial
SolitaryPhysical
AuralLogical
EXTERNAL
LIFE FACTORS
Availability of TimeDedicated Place
ReasonSupport from
Family
SKILLS
TECHNICAL
Technology UsageLife ApplicationTech Vocabulary
Computing Access
TYPING
RateAccuracy
ON-SCREEN READING
RateRecall
Terry Arndt, College Transition Publishing
Terry Arndt is the founder and President of College Transition Publishing. Over the past 15 years, his company is recognized as the largest independent college publisher in the country. The company produces various college transition products that assist students in achieving academic, financial and career success. And as you will learn later in the program, Terry is a huge fan of bacon!
Poll: What is your current method for assisting students develop their non-cognitive skills?
Orientation Event(s) Required/Optional First Year Success Course Online Assessment Tools Individual Support (Student Support, Advising, Counseling
Centers) No Method Available
Poll: Do You Love Bacon?
YesNo
Repeat results of first poll
The Problem
What Are Non-Cognitive Skills?
Western Iowa Tech Community College
www.WITCC.edu
“We shifted from a process based service model to a relationship based service model”
Student Success is fully engrained in the overall vision of the College, crossing over all departments
Student Success & Completion is intentionally linked to every goal and every investment the College makes
In order to reach our goal all departments MUST work together to achieve our desired outcome
We realize that we must be proactive, rather than reactive. We need to make data-driven decisions, and accurately respond to academic and personal barriers for students.
We also need to meet students where they are in order to help them reach their goals.
Current Programming
Pre-Term Academic Program Orientations Students Matched with An Advising Team Member Developmental Education & Remedial Needs Prior to Entering
College Implemented “The College Experience Course” Life During College Custom Guide and WebApp
Life During College
Current Challenges
Limited StaffGetting Students to Respond/EngageDetermining Best Method to Monitor Students
Gain SupportIdentify BenchmarksEstablish GoalsKPI’s (Key
Performance Indicators)
Analyze Regularly
TRUTH #1:
80% of your business comes from 20% of your customers. Who is your 20%? The 20% group is your roadmap, your key to success.
You MUST cater your services to this group.
College Readine
ss
Understanding of
Postsecondary education
Content Knowledge
Cognitive Skills Action Plan
Self-Management
Skills
Right Tools & Resources
Questions & Answers
Dr. Mac Adkins – [email protected]
Terry Arndt – [email protected]
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