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I work with students on academic probation and those identified by test scores as under-prepared and needing academic support. I use the proactive (formerly intrusive) academic advising model and I see real academic recovery, as demonstrated by significantly higher average GPAs, the number of units/credits attempted, and the number of units/credits actually completed. Proactive advising has great outcomes, but is incredibly time-consuming. Whenever I find my energy flagging, or I'm feeling overwhelmed by the needs of the many, I'm reminded of the many inspirational true-life stories of educationally marginalized students in Mike Rose's *Lives on the Boundary. *I tell myself that my intervention--my investment in the student, if you will--may be the one act of encouragement that keeps him or her engaged and coming back to class. A college education does not always guarantee a better job, but it grants greater access to work with a sustainable wage. The number of Bill Gates' who can drop out of college and form a successful company are the exception, not the rule; I want to see an expansion of effective academic support systems in colleges, not a lessening of such programs. Investing in our students, especially those who are under-prepared because they come to us from school systems that failed to ready them for the challenges of college, is noble work that I am honored to shoulder. The real challenge is determining what are the best interventions. On Wed, Apr 9, 2014 at 11:04 AM, Aldrich,Charlene < [log in to unmask]> wrote: > Why not place them into actual course rather than the prereq? > > I'm all for either if the student could take the final exam of any prereq > and pass it. > > And I do want each and every person who steps foot on my campus to become > everything that he/she was created to be. I do and will continue to do > everything it takes to support that student's work to that end. > > C > > Let your life speak. > > > Charlene Aldrich, Instructor > Academic Coordinator > Palmer Campus > Trident Technical College > Charleston, SC 29412 > 843.722.5516 > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Open Forum for Learning Assistance Professionals [mailto: > [log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Donna Kim Ballard > Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2014 10:30 AM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: Phys.Org > > Well, because strategies exist that can help some students learn what they > need to learn during the prereq course they may have seemed not qualified > to take, and it's hard to really know if students aren't under-prepared for > a course, despite the convenience of COMPASS and other simple but fairly > ineffective placement tests. I guess the choice of allowing a student into > a prereq depends on each individual student and what the definition of > "underprepared" is and how that label/reality is determined. > > As long as college education = better job and being uplifted out of > poverty or being able to continue to live at the level (or above) of one's > parents or being able to reach a goal one has or being able to feel one is > following a desired path, then many people will be willing to try to teach > students. It's the time of the year for frustration, of course, but I think > I'd let student's lives speak in complex enough ways to allow them to be > given a good chance at success if they want to try, and my job may be > helping them see what's involved in course/goal/college success. The rub is > the "good chance" I'd hope students can hae often translates to > under-budgeted and overworked instruction. So if we had world enough and > time (and money) may be the real rub here, not the students necessarily. > And then we're looking at economics, class, ability definitions and access, > and other social issues . . . . > > Kim > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Charlene Aldrich" <[log in to unmask]> > To: [log in to unmask] > Sent: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 10:14:45 AM > Subject: Re: Phys.Org > > But why would you want to place a student in to the prereq course if they > are underprepared for it? > > Let your life speak. > > > Charlene Aldrich, Instructor > Academic Coordinator > Palmer Campus > Trident Technical College > Charleston, SC 29412 > 843.722.5516 > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Open Forum for Learning Assistance Professionals [mailto: > [log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Larina Warnock > Sent: Tuesday, April 08, 2014 12:55 PM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: Phys.Org > > This is very interesting. I wonder what systemic forces might be at work > at the four-year level and if there is any variation between departments. > It seems that developmental coursework might keep someone out of a prereq > during the term they need it, for example. > > Larina Warnock > Developmental Studies Instructor > WH214 > 541-917-2311 > > We read to know we are not alone. -C.S. Lewis > > > On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 9:28 AM, Nic Voge <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > Intriguing. This makes sense to me: "We need further investigation of > > the ingredients for success at those colleges where taking > > developmental coursework..." > > > > I think these courses should be conceptualized as preparatory > > (prospective) more than remedial (retrospective) in focus. What do > > receiving institutions expect of students seems to me to be a crucial > > question with lots of different answers. > > Nic > > __________________________________ > > Dominic (Nic) J. Voge > > [log in to unmask] > > (609)258-6921 > > http://www.princeton.edu/mcgraw/us/ > > > > Associate Director > > McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning 328C Frist Campus Center > > Princeton University Princeton, NJ 08544 > > > > Individual Appointment Times: > > By request > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Apr 8, 2014, at 11:06 AM, Norman Stahl wrote: > > > > Remedial courses fail bachelor's degree seekers, but boost those in > >> associate's programs > >> April 7th, 2014 in Other Sciences / Social Sciences > >> > >> > >> Taking remedial courses at the four-year college level may hold > >> students back from earning their bachelor's degrees, but at the > >> community college level remedial education can help earn an > >> associate's degree, according to researchers from Boston College's > Lynch School of Education. > >> The role of remedial education has been under scrutiny for years, > >> viewed as an essential tool in efforts to raise rates of degree > >> completion. At the same time, critics question whether the courses > >> are appropriate for institutions of higher education. > >> The answer may not be so simple, according to Lynch School researcher > >> Katherine A. Shields and Associate Professor of Education Laura M. > >> O'Dwyer, who reviewed a federal database of interviews and academic > >> transcript data from more than 10,000 students at 670 two- and > four-year institutions. > >> At four-year colleges, students who took three or more remedial > >> courses struggled to attain a bachelor's degree when compared to > >> similar peers who took no remedial courses, according to the > >> researchers, who presented their findings today at the American > >> Educational Research Association (AERA) annual meeting in Philadelphia. > >> Among students at two-year colleges, taking developmental education > >> courses was associated with better odds of earning an associate's > >> degree but no higher within six years of enrollment, Shields and > >> O'Dwyer discovered, drawing on data collected from college students > >> between 2004 and 2009. > >> When the researchers looked at the relationship of taking remedial > >> courses to the chances of two-year college students ultimately > >> earning a bachelor's degree, the potential benefits of the courses > disappeared. > >> Taking three or more remedial courses at the two-year college level > >> was negatively associated with attaining a bachelor's degree, they > found. > >> Developmental education may divert them from transferring to complete > >> a higher degree. > >> In addition, the results of remedial courses varied from one two-year > >> institution to another, which may reflect the diversity of new > >> developmental course models arising during the period of the study, > >> according to O'Dwyer, a specialist in educational research, > >> measurement, and evaluation. > >> Shields said the results show that remedial education at the two-year > >> level is not a hindrance in the same way as it seems to be at the > >> four-year level, but researchers need to delve into which types of > >> programs are the most effective and why. > >> "We need further investigation of the ingredients for success at > >> those colleges where taking developmental coursework doesn't hold > >> students back from finishing an associate's degree," Shields said. > >> "Are there institutional policies that do a better job of matching > >> students to courses? Are innovations in developmental curriculum > >> paying off? The picture looks a lot more complex than in the four-year > setting." > >> More information: O'Dwyer and Shields will present their paper > >> "College Completion and Remedial Education: Do Institutional > >> Characteristics Make a Difference?" at 8:15 a.m. on Monday, April 7. > >> For more information about the session, please see this link. > >> > >> Provided by Boston College > >> > >> "Remedial courses fail bachelor's degree seekers, but boost those in > >> associate's programs." April 7th, 2014. http://phys.org/news/2014-04- > >> remedial-courses-bachelor-degree-seekers.html > >> > >> > >> Norman Stahl > >> [log in to unmask] > >> > >> > >> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > >> To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > >> subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your > >> web browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > >> > >> To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > >> > > > > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > > To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > > subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web > > browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > > > > To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web > browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > > To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web > browser to > http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > > To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web > browser to > http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > > To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your > subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web > browser to > http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html > > To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask] > -- Christine Kath Ruggeri Writing Center Director, Assistant Director, Center for Academic and Career Engagement 718-420-4080 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To access the LRNASST-L archives or User Guide, or to change your subscription options (including subscribe/unsubscribe), point your web browser to http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/lrnasst-l.html To contact the LRNASST-L owner, email [log in to unmask]