A new model for college & career readiness

Dayna Jean DeFeo, PhDCommunity & Technical Collegedjdefeo@uaa.alaska.edu907.786.6464

College readiness doom & gloom Low HS graduation

65.8% in AK12

Low college attendance 30.1% in AK enroll

directly out of high school12

AK has lowest college-going rate in nation12

Lots of developmental education 2013 – Nationwide ACT

scores lowest in 5 years6

High college drop out rate 20.6% persist to

sophomore year12

Low graduation rate Poor time to

completion 6.6% graduate in

150% timeframe12

Exorbitant debt upon graduation Average debt $35,2005

Google “college readiness”Ambiguous representations…

ACT Standardized test performance

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation “graduate on-time with the skills

and knowledge they need to succeed beyond high school”

“provide all students—especially low-income and minority students—with the opportunity to realize their full potential”

The College Board Standardized test performance Study habits & skills

CBS News article ACT scores of high school seniors

Extrapolations…

Subtractive Deficit paradigm Focused on low-income or

minority students Narrowly defined

Test scores Academic skills Limited predictive validity

for college success Quantitatively measured Focused on 4-year, liberal

arts education

College readiness as a label Dangerous to label students13

College-Ready/Underprepared* Urban/Rural Low-income First-generation Gifted

Move away from dichotomous classification systems that: Abridge the richness of students’ experience Highlight deficits over strengths Tacitly blame students for systemic shortcomings Create divisions along racial, geographic, or

socioeconomic lines1,2,11

Scholarly perspective

Conley: College Knowledge4

Cognitive strategies Content knowledge Academic skills Contextual skills & awareness

Karp & Bork: Balancing Roles8 Academic habits Balance multiple roles Cultural know-how Help-seeking

McDonald & Farrell: Holistic Approach10

Academic Social Personal preparedness

College & career pathways framework for college and career readiness Holistic Dynamic Strengths-

based Steeped in

literature

College Knowledge

Attitudes

Goal Setting

Habits

Academics

Academics

Quantitative measures Assessments (snapshots)▪ ACCUPLACER, SAT, ACT, others

GPA Rigorous coursework

Honors classes AP or IB classes 4 years of math & English

Focus & intentionality Students contextualize their classes within their

intended career field

Cognitive Strategies

Study habits Study strategies2

Prioritizing Time management

Critical thinking Information literacy3,15

Metacognitive skills Learning style awareness Self-monitoring Help-seeking

Dispositions & Attitudes

Ethical conduct Initiative Resilience (grit) Motivation Leadership Intellectual curiosity

Goal setting

Self-knowledge Aptitudes Interests

Career exploration Planning

Personal Learning and Career Plan (PLCP) Salient goals Major declaration Contextualized learning7,14

College knowledge

Knowledge of institutional culture3,8

Navigate bureaucratic system Understand processes and procedures

Registration Withdrawal Office hours Email etiquette

Ethos of college Academic integrity Scholarship

Difference between high school and college expectations

Resource awareness & access

Complicating the definition…

… Or more accurately representing a concept?

Complications Measurement & analysis▪ Indicators are multiple, qualitative, subjective, and of variable

influence Benefits

More accurate Eliminate the label ▪ The concept applies to all students

Strengths emerge Collaborative effort and responsibility

College & career readiness is everyone’s business

Everyone has a responsibility

Everyone reinforces messages

Shifts onus of responsibility from English and math teachers

Change requires ecological and systemic buy-in1

Student

Parents & families

Teachers

Counselors

Administrators

Postsecondary outreach

Academic advisors

Youth leaders

Coaches

Industry

Discussion

Thoughts? Feedback? Strengths? Weaknesses? Barriers?

References

1. Arnold, K.D., Lu, E.C., & Armstrong, K.J. (2012) The ecology of college readiness. ASHE Higher Education Report 38(5).

2. Conley, D.T. (2005). College knowledge: What is really takes for students to succeed and what we can do to get them ready. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

3. Cox, R. D. (2009). Fear factor: How students and professors misunderstand one another. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

4. Educational Policy Improvement Center. (2009). Toward a more comprehensive conception of college readiness. Portland, OR: Conley, D.T.

5. Ellis, B. (2013, May 17). Class of 2013 grads average $35,200 in loans, credit card debt. CNN Money.

6. Grasgreen, A. (2013, August 21). ACT scores fall to lowest level in 5 years. Inside Higher Ed.

7. Hooley, T., Marriott, J., Sampson, J.P. (2011). Fostering college and career readiness: How career development activities in schools impact on graduation rtes and students’ life success. Derby UK: International Centre for Guidance Studies, University of Derby.

References

8. Karp, M.M. & Bork, R.H. (2012). “They never told me what to expect, so I didn’t know what to do”: Defining and clarifying the role of a community college student. Community College Research Center. Working Paper No. 47.

9. MAPWorks. (2013). Fall 2013 preliminary survey results. University of Alaska Anchorage.

10. McDonald, D., & Farrell, T. (2012). Out of the mouths of babes: Early college high school students’ transformational learning experiences. Journal of Advanced Academics 23(3), 217-248. doi: 10.1177/1932202X12451440

11. Moore, G.W., State, J.R., Edmonson, S.L., Combs, J.P. Bustamente, R., & Onwuegbuzie, A.J. (2011). High school students and their lack of preparedness for college: A statewide study. Education and Urban Society 42(7), 817-838. doi: 10.1177/0013124510379619

12. National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS), Student Pipeline Data: http://www.higheredinfo.org/dbrowser/index.php?submeasure=119&year=2008&level=nation&mode=data&state=0#/-1/

References

13. Popkewitz, T. S. (1998). Struggling for the soul: The politics of schooling and the construction of the teacher. New York: Teacher College Press.

14. Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy. (2011). Student Learning Plans: Supporting Every Student’s Transition to College and Career. Cambridge, MA: Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy.

15. Rose, M. (1989). Lives on the boundary: A moving account of the struggles and achievements of America’s educationally underprepared. New York, NY: Penguin Books.

16. Weis, L., & Fine, M. (2005). Working method: Research and social justice. New York, NY: Routledge.