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Jump Start Your Students with a Summer Bridge Program. Dr. Anne E. Edlin [email protected] Patty Voigt [email protected] Cecil College, MD. Background. Cecil College is a small rural community college located in the upper eastern shore of Maryland - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Jump Start Your Students with a Summer Bridge
ProgramDr. Anne E. Edlin [email protected]
Patty Voigt [email protected]
Cecil College, MD
BackgroundCecil College is a small rural community college located in the upper eastern shore of MarylandWe serve more than 2,800 credit students and 6,500 continuing education studentsWe offer more than 100 degrees and certificates
As per Maryland’s requirements students must pass Intermediate Algebra before entering a college-level math class
Developmental Math is broken into 3 levels Math 91 – Basic Mathematics Math 92 – Introductory Algebra Math 93 – Intermediate Algebra
Cecil’s Math Sequence
All students are required to take a Skills Assessment in Math and English unless they have alternate credit such as AP scores, CLEP, Dantes or transfer credit
Some students chose not to take the test and just start in the lowest level of developmental math
In 2009 of the students who took the Skills Assessment 9% placed in college-level math 15% placed in our highest level of developmental math 42% placed in our mid-level developmental math 34% placed in the lowest level of math
Math Placement
Within 3 semesters only 43% of students who attempted math 91 had passed
For math 92 we were at 35% For math 93 we were at 59%
In addition some students avoid taking any math class for as long as they possibly can
Basically we needed to improve participation and our pass rates, or they would never get out of here
Problem
In Fall 2010 we obtained a grant from National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT) to implement an Emporium Model redesign on our Developmental Math Sequence
All courses were moved to a semi-self paced modular system using MyMathLab
Students could start a course where they left off, or complete more than one course in a semester
First Step to Solution - NCAT
All three levels are together in the same computer classroom
Each of the three courses is broken down into 4 modules
There is a recommended schedule for completion, but students may work through the material at their own pace (slower or faster)
Instructors and tutors are on hand to provide help
Redesign implementation
Students were able to go faster through material they were comfortable with. It became clear that many students really did just need a quick review to get them back up to speed
After seeing several presentations at AMATYC 2011 on Math Boot Camps and other summer intervention programs we were inspired to create our own
What we saw
We presented the idea of a Math Boot camp to our fellow faculty in December of 2011
We were invited to work with our English faculty on their plans for a Summer Bridge Program
The program would include Study Skills and a choice of a Math or English track, both at the developmental level
Summer Bridge
Cecil College obtained a grant from the Maryland Higher Education Committee to create and implement our Summer Bridge Program
The program was free to eligible students and it allowed them to receive credit for our College Success Seminar
The first week dealt with study skills and the second week would be concentrated on either Math or English
Solution Part 2 - MHEC
Students were given a packet containing formulas and examples of key concepts
In addition, after completing the program, they could retake the Skills Assessment and hopefully improve their placement
Our colleague, Joe Kupresanin, created a Pep Talk video with interviews of students who had successfully completed their developmental math sequence
Math Boot Camp
17 % of Students were moved up one or modules in their current developmental math course
28 % of students moved up one course 11 % of students in the Math track moved up 2
courses after Summer Bridge Overall 56% of students reduced the amount of
math they had to take to graduate
Success for Math
In January we decided to offer an abbreviated version of our Summer Bridge Math Program
Math Jump Start was born This two day (8 hours total) program provided
students with math specific study skills, mini math lectures and additional time to work on their course materials
Day and evening sections were offered
Keeping the program moving
The program was open to all developmental math students both new and continuing
Those who had been unsuccessful in the Fall semester were especially encouraged to attend
Students were given a copy of Math Study Skills by Alan Bass (courtesy of our MHEC grant)
We also updated and expanded on our handouts from Summer Bridge
Math Jump Start
How Summer Bridge and Jump Start Differed
Summer Bridge
One week of study skills followed by one week of mathematics for 4 hours a day
We used MyMathTest to allow students to evaluate where they were and then focus on problem areas
Jump Start
Two days with 1 hour of study skills and 3 hours of math each day
We used MyMathLab so students could complete work for their specific course
During Math Jump Start we used the analogy of a road trip
We talked about Getting organized for your trip Starting off on the right road Traffic jams, detours and flat tires What to do when a cop pulls you over (Test time)
Our handouts became the Comprehensive Algebra Review (CAR).
Crazy Analogy Time
The following slides are samples from the CAR.
Comprehensive Algebra Review
Kiss Her DadMeter Liter Gram
Dead Cows Moo
Kilo- Hecto-
Deka-
Meter
Liter
Gram
Deci-
Centi-
Milli-
1000m=1km 100m=1hm 10m=1dam 1m .1m=1dm .01m=1cm .001m=1mm
The Metric System
Greatest Common Divisor
Method 2: The Ladder MethodWe look for each prime factor of the numbers and divide it out, if possible. If a factor does not divide evenly into a number then it remains unchanged. We circle any number that goes into all the numbers. We repeat until the value in all the columns is 1. Finally we take the product of all the circled factors when we are done.
Factor 24 60 300 2 12 30 150 2 6 15 75 2 3 15 75 3 1 5 25 5 1 1 5 5 1 1 1
GCD=2 2 3 12 GCD=2×2×3=12
Interval Notation
When the solution to an inequality is a set of numbers we often give the answer in the form of interval notation. All the examples to the right show the same sets described with an inequality and with interval notation.
1 3x 1,3
2 4x 2,4
7 15x 7,15
10 3x 10, 3
3x ,3
5 x 5,
9x , 9
52x 52,
2x , 2 2,
The Comprehensive Algebra Review is now used in most of our classes They are handed out in all Developmental Math
Courses Most Pre-calculus instructors give their students a copy My Calculus I students almost all wanted a copy when
offered The Continuing Education Division is now also using the
CAR as a supplement in their classes
CAR goes far
The following slides are from our the study skills portion of our Jump Start materials
Teaching Study Skills
Meeting the time requirement
Prioritize your Life To succeed in college, studying often must be a top
priority. You must schedule study time Use a Day Planner or Organizer
Getting organized for your trip
Where will you write out your work for problems? How will you label it so you can find it again easily? Are you using the resources you will be allowed on
tests? Set yourself a goal (1 hour a day is generally better
than 1 unit a day)
When things don’t go as planned
Traffic jams, detours, flat tires…
The Challenge
“I have never been good at math” “Math has never been a subject I have really
excelled at” “Math is my worst subject”
The Solution
I am no good at basketball I’ve played one game my whole life And that was 20 years ago
How could I get good (not brilliant, just good) Set up a hoop in my back yard Find someone who is willing to play with a beginner Practice every day
Persistence is key
The Challenge
“I procrastinate” “I fall behind” “Math is such a challenge I don’t feel like dealing
with it”
The Solution
Mentally commit, in your head, to pass your math classes – that means doing what it take to sufficiently learn the material
Take your math courses when you’re most focused – early, mid, or late in the day
Block out time in your weekly schedule to work on math – 1 to 2 hour chunks, that’s it
Work on math every (almost) day
A learned behavior from the expectations of parents, teachers, others
An association of grades with your own self-worth Fear of being alienated by parents, friends due to poor grades Lack of control or an inability to change your life situation Being embarrassed by the teacher or others when trying to do
math Timed tests & not being able to finish Being put into math courses above your level
Math Test Anxiety
Students are born with math anxiety Math anxiety is a mental illness Math anxiety cannot be reduced Any level of anxiety is a problem Students with math anxiety cannot learn math Very intelligent students do not have math anxiety Doing nothing about math anxiety will make it go
away
Myths
A cop just pulled you over“I wasn’t doing anything wrong officer.”
Test Taking Skills
Homework and Quizzes Brain Pencil and eraser Textbook Notes Help me solve this View an example Instructor Tutor Calculator Formula Sheet Comprehensive Algebra Review
handout Your friends/class mates Instant feedback for homework
Test Brain Pencil and eraser Calculator Formula Sheet
Results from January 2013 Jump Start
13% of students went up one course or more
6% of students moved up two courses
Jump Start Success
We applied for an MHEC grant again for Summer Bridge 2013, but sadly did not receive one
As we wished to keep the program free to students we could not afford the full program without a grant
We decided to run another session of Math Jump Start instead
Cecil College Academic Programs agreed to fund our two day program
Our bump in the road
We found that 4 hours was too long, so we cut the program down to 3 hours each day
We ran a day and evening session We switched from Monday/Wednesday to
Tuesday/Thursday so it was easier to remind students they had signed up
Still free to students
Jump Start Round 2
During this time we have continued to improve and refine our developmental sequence
One big change was adding Diagnostic Tests to each Module Topics successfully completed in the diagnostic were
eliminated from the required homework Students who did well on a diagnostic were
encouraged to test out of the corresponding Module
Improvements to Our Courses
Each day we gave two math lectures one aimed at the lower levels of Dev. Ed. and one for our more advanced students
The topics were based on the most common trouble spots for students
Students could pick which one to attend
Math Lectures
Day 1 Solving Linear equations and words to symbols Equation of a Line
Day 2 Fractions, decimals and percentages Systems of equations
Lecture topics
7% moved up from Math 92 to College Level 13% moved up from Math 91 to Math 92
20% of students moved up one or more courses
One of our Jump Start Students completed their entire Math 91 course in under 1 month
Data from Aug 2013
43% feel less anxious about math 71% feel more confident in their math ability 85% felt they had a head start on their Fall 2013
math class 86% felt their study skills had improved
Student’s view of the program
A little help goes a long way
Free isn’t always a good thing The weather is a pain in the neck
Lessons learned
Our plans for January 2014’s Jump Start Program Charge the students a small fee to attend Students who complete the program receive a
voucher for the book store in the amount of the fee that was charged
Continue with 3 hours per day for two days Make the study skills more interactive so the students
connect more with each other
Jump Start Round 3
NCAT MHEC Cecil College Joe Kupresanin (fellow instructor) Shawn Berkeridge (tutor) Math Department English Department Academic Advising
Thanks