Transcript Tate Presentation for Third Strategic Plan Dialogue Session

Degree Completion through Prior Learning
Assessment and Competency Based Education
October 31, 2014
Presenter:
Pamela Tate, President & CEO
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning
CAEL’s Overarching Goal:
Meaningful Learning, Credentials,
and Work for Every Adult
CAEL links learning and work – for
nearly 40 years
Who Is CAEL?
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning
A 501(c)(3) non-profit, international organization with nearly
40 years of lifelong learning experience
National leader in PLA best practices, research, and writing
Dedicated to removing barriers to adult learning
Standards for assessing prior learning recognized by regional
accrediting bodies
CAEL’s Unique Integrator Role
Colleges &
universities
Public Policymakers
Corporations
Government,
community and
philanthropic entities
4
Labor unions
Why are Degrees Important? The U.S. Skills Gap
 Approximately 55 million jobs are expected to
open up in the economy by 2020.
 65% of those jobs will require workers to
possess postsecondary credentials.
5
Source: Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce
Some college, no degree
Levels of Education
for the U.S. Population Ages 25-64
12%
Less than high school
13%
High school graduate (or
equivalency)
Some college, no degree
19%
27%
Associate degree
8%
Bachelor's degree
22%
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Source: US Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey
Another Look at the Degree
Completion Gap
Degrees* Produced from
2005 to 2025 with Current
Rate of Production plus
Population Growth
41,860,914
63,127,642
Degrees Needed to Meet
Best Performance** (55%)
0
20
40
60
80
Millions
We need to increase the rate of degree
production in the U.S. by 50.8%.
* Degrees includes both Associates and 4-year degrees.
** Best performance is the average of the top three states.
7
Source: NCHEMS and JFF, Adding it Up, 2007
Illinois Residents with Some
College, No Degree - Percent
Percent - Level of Education for the Illinois Population Ages
25-64
Less than high school
12%
11%
High school graduate (or
equivalency)
Some college, no
25%
22%
degree
Associate degree
Bachelor's degree
8%
22%
Graduate or
professional degree
8
Illinois Residents with Some
College, No Degree - Count
Graduate or
Less than
professional
high school,
degree,
723,833
859,113
High school
Bachelor's
graduate (or
degree,
equivalency),
1,483,173
1,711,321
Some
college, no
Associate
degree,
9
576,024
degree,
1,509,719
The Goal for Illinois
10
Illinois Degree Attainment Goals
11
Data Point
Illinois
Current % of Adults with College Degrees
42.5%
Trend Projected for 2025
49.6%
Lumina Foundation Goal for 2025
60%
Gap
10.4%
Additional Number of Degrees Needed by
2025
713,771
Achieving the Completion Agenda
Outreach to:
 Adults with high school diplomas but
no college
 Adults with some college but no
degree
Success depends on assessing
and accepting prior learning toward
degrees and other credentials, and
being adult learner-friendly
Prior Learning Assessment
Prior Learning Assessment
(PLA) is a process
for evaluating knowledge and skills in order to award
college credit for learning from:
On-the-job
Corporate
learning
training
Independent
study, such
as MOOCs
Military
Volunteer
service
service
Early History: PLA and
Competency-Based Programs
1974
Research Project at ETS
1976-1977
CAEL incorporates as a 501(c)3
1970s
Pioneering colleges began PLA and
competency-based programs for adults
14
The Variety of PLA Methods
Student Portfolios
Evaluated NonCollege Training
Standardized
Tests
Industry Recognized
Certificates
15
•College
Credit,
College
Completion
Key CAEL Standards
Credit is for
LEARNING, not for
experience
Subject matter experts
make credit
recommendations
Any fees are for
assessment, not for
the amount of credit
awarded
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Graduation and Completion of
Adults with PLA Credit
Baccalaureate
students are
2½ times more
likely to persist
to graduation.
Getting to Scale with PLA
 Not enough colleges granting credit for prior learning,
and even when they do, marketing to students is
weak
 Adult learners are not aware of PLA so they often
repeat what they already know
 Need for consistent application of CAEL standards
 Need for a national, accessible online approach
 Can use faculty experts nationwide for portfolio
review using CAEL portfolio assessment rubric
for high quality assessments
18
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Overview of LearningCounts
www.LearningCounts.org
On-line PLA service
Free PLA Credit Predictor
Complimentary student guidance
on all forms of PLA
 Courses to teach students how
to discover and document their
own college-level learning and
build portfolios online




Featured Network
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
LearningCounts becomes college’s PLA Department with student
tracking, reports, administration, and coordination with Registrar’s
office

CAEL provides free webinars and video training for frontline staff and
leadership

LearningCounts course is listed in college’s catalog; student
registers through college’s registration system

Logo and link to college’s website from LearningCounts.org

Annual Fee (plus one-time Implementation Fee)

CAEL Membership required
FEATURED PARTNER
NETWORK
•L E A R N I N G C O U N T S . O R G
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Two choices for scale
Do it yourself
1. Task Force with
faculty representation
2. Departmental
decisions
3. Faculty training
4. Advisor training
5. Hire PLA
Coordinator
6. Define/price process
7. Market PLA service
LearningCounts
1. CAEL-trained faculty
assessors
2. Featured on LearningCounts
website
3. Free training webinars for
advisors
4. Free marketing tools
5. Refer students
6. Receive transcripts
7. Receive data summaries
Competency-Based
Programs
What students know and can do
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Competency-Based Initiatives
 CBE Jumpstart – CAEL and Lumina
The Incubator – Educause and
Gates Foundation
 C-BEN - Public Agenda and Lumina
 Quality Collaboratives and GEMs –
AAC&U and Lumina, Hewlett and
Gates
24
Competency-Based Ed Grows
 Purdue University
 Cross-disciplinary bachelor’s degree
 Contest for departments to propose
three-year degree and competencybased programs
25
Competency-Based Ed Grows
 South Texas College, Texas A&M
University–Commerce
 Flat, seven-week rate and work
through as many courses as their
schedules allow
 Revamped the faculty role,
incorporates individual coaches,
faculty teaching and evaluation
 Student work in e-portfolio
26
What Do Adults Need?
 Career and educational advising
 Expanded online options
 Flexible scheduling of courses and
services
 Have prior learning recognized for
college credit where appropriate
 Affordable options for PSE
27
Becoming Adult-Friendly
 CAEL’s Adult Learning Focused
Institution (ALFI) Self-Assessment
 Adult Student Survey
 Gap Analysis
 Recommendations for Improvement
28
Additional CAEL References
www.cael.org
(Research and Publications)
Questions?
Pamela Tate
President and CEO
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning
(CAEL)
[email protected]