Transcript Today’s College Student and How to Reach Them

Student Success in College
and Technology
Michael Sullivan
[email protected]
www.jjc.edu/dept/math/sullivan
February 7, 2008
“Fortune favors the prepared mind.”
-- Louis Pasteur
“The advancement and perfection of
mathematics are intimately connected
with the prosperity of the state.”
-- Napoleon
“The Illiterate of the future will not be
someone who cannot read, it will be
someone who does not know how to
learn.
-- Alvin Toffler
The Learning Pyramid
Lecture
5%
Reading
10%
Audio Visual
20%
Demonstration
30%
Discussion Group
50%
Practice by Doing
75%
Teach Others/Immediate Use
80%
Adapted from The Learning Triangle: National Training Laboratories, Bethel Maine
©mindServegroup 2005
Advantages of Personal Response
Systems
Increased attention
 Increased attendance
 Increased retention


Draper and Brown

Students are twice as likely to attempt to
construct an answer to a question using a
PRS compared to a question that required
them to raise their hand.
PRS Transmitter

True or False: I have used personal
response systems in my classroom.
Outline
Why Do Students Need Postsecondary
Education?
Are Our Students Ready for
Postsecondary Education?
How Can We Help to Increase the
Proportion of Our Students Who Attain
a Postsecondary Education?
I.
II.
III.
I.
II.
Through Curriculum
Through Techniques
Why Do Students Need
Postsecondary Education?
In 1950, 80% of jobs were classified as
“unskilled”. Now, an estimated 85% of jobs
are classified as “skilled,” requiring education
beyond high school. At the same time, 60%
of future jobs will require training that only
20% of today’s workers possess.
-- Business-Higher Education Forum
Source: Education Pays, The College Board
Put the following in order, from highest
to lowest, as to which education level
pays the most taxes.
(a) High School Diploma
(b) Master’s Degree
(c) Professional Degree
(d) Associate’s Degree
SOURCE: U.S.
Department of Education,
National Center for
Education Statistics.
(2006). The Condition of
Education 2006 (NCES
2006–071), Table 22-1.
Unemployment Rates by Level of
Education
Percent of the Population Living in Poverty by Level of
Education and Household Type
Percentage of the Population Aged 25 Years or Older
Reporting Excellent or Good Health by Income and Level of
Education
Source: General Social Survey
Source: General Social Survey
High School Factors Related to
Attaining a Bachelor’s Degree
Who’s Ready for College?
2007 ACT Scores Reflecting College Preparedness
Source: ACT High School Profile Report, 2007
Who’s Ready for College?
College Readiness by Gender Based on 2007 ACT Exam
Source: ACT High School Profile Report, 2007
ACT Core Curriculum
ACT core curriculum is
• 4 years of English
• 3 years of Math
• 3 years of science
• 3 years of social science
Source: ACT, Crisis at the
Core
Average ACT Mathematics Scores by Course Pattern, 2007
Average ACT Mathematics Score
30
24.8
25
22.4
20.4
20
18.3
20.5
17.9
15
10
5
0
Less than 3
Years of Math
Alg 1, Alg 2, &
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom (Min Core) Geom, & Other
Adv Math
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, & Trig
Course Pattern
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, Trig, &
Other Adv Math
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, Trig, &
Calc
ACT Science Score by Course Pattern
Average ACT Science Score
25
20
23.4
22.4
20.2
19.1
15
10
5
0
Less than 3 Years of
Natural Science
Gen Sci, Bio, Chem (Min
Core)
Bio, Chem, Phys
Course Pattern
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Gen Sci, Bio, Chem, &
Phys
Percent Meeting College Readiness Benchmark by Course Pattern, 2007
Percent Meeting Benchmark
80
75
70
58
60
50
30
40
38
40
21
20
15
10
0
Less than 3
Years of Math
Alg 1, Alg 2, &
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom (Min Core) Geom, & Other
Adv Math
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, & Trig
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, Trig, &
Other Adv Math
Alg 1, Alg 2,
Geom, Trig, &
Calc
Course Pattern
College Readiness in Mathematics means that there is a 75% probability the
student will earn a C or better in College Algebra.
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Percent Meeting College Readiness Benchmark by Course Pattern
Percent Meeting Benchmark
60
48
50
40
40
30
20
20
15
10
0
Less than 3 Years of
Natural Science
Gen Sci, Bio, Chem (Min
Core)
Bio, Chem, Phys
Gen Sci, Bio, Chem, &
Phys
Course Pattern
College Readiness in Science means that there is a 75% probability the student
will earn a C or better in College Biology.
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Source: ACT, Crisis at the Core
Source: Adelman, The Toobox Revisited
Source: Adelman, The Toobox Revisited
According to data obtained from the
General Social Survey, the odds of a
man being at least pretty happy in his
marriage is 40:1. The odds of a female
being at least pretty happy in her
marriage is 20:1. What is the odds ratio
of males to females?
Adelman’s Recommendations
• 3.75 Carnegie Units in High School Math
• 2.5 Carnegie Units of science or more than 2.0
Carnegie Units of core laboratory science
Note: A Carnegie Unit is a full year (36 – 40 weeks) in a specific class
meeting four or five times per week for 40 – 50 minutes per class
session.
Current High School Graduation Requirements
in Math and Science
In the state of Illinois, the class of 2010 must
take the following math courses to graduate:
(a) Algebra I, Geometry, and any other math
(b) Algebra I and Geometry only
(c) Three years of any math course
(d) Who needs math anyway!
Parent/Student Attitudes
Toward Math and Science
Source: Reality Check
Percent of Students Who Feel the Following Are Essential Before They're
Done with School
Speaking a foreign language
Understanding and appreciating art and culture
Understanding cultures and religions of other nations
Computer skills
Understanding current events
Understanding math and science
Punctual
Honest and ethical
Personal finance
Being able to write well
0%
Source: Reality Check
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
I’d be really unhappy if I ended up in a job or career that
required doing a lot of math or science.
Don't Know,
2%
Agree, 45%
Disagree, 53%
Source: Reality Check
Factors Contributing to Attainment of
a Bachelor’s Degree While in
College
A proxy for
preparedness
of high school
student
Socioeconomic
Lowstatus
credits
first year. Did
the student
earn less
than 20
First-year
credits in the
gradesfirst year?
dummy
variable (0 or
1). A 1
indicates the
student’s
grades are in
the top two
quintiles.
A proxy for preparedness
of high school student
Socioeconomic status
First-year GPA
Whether one attends
Number
credits
multipleof
schools
earned
in summer
Ever
a part-time
student
Total number
of
school college
math
credits
Were
grades
rising,
falling, or flat over time
Enrolled
continuously?
Did student
repeat or
withdraw from more than
20% of courses?
“You are not here merely to make a
living. You are here to enable the world
to live more amply, with greater vision,
and with a finer spirit of hope and
achievement. You are here to enrich
the world. You impoverish yourself if
you forget this errand.”
--Woodrow Wilson, 28th president of the US
Sources
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ACT High School Profile Report of the Graduating Class of 2007, ACT
Adelman, Clifford. 2004. Principal Indicators of Student Academic Histories in
Postsecondary Education, 1972 – 2000. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of
Education, Institute of Education Sciences
Adelman, Clifford. 1999. Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance
Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department
of Education
Adelman, Clifford. The Toolbox Revisited: Paths to Degree Completion From High
School Through College. Washingon D.C. U.S. Department of Education, 2006.
Cerrito, Patricia B.; Levi, Inessa. An Investigation of Student Habits in Mathematics
Courses. College Student Journal. Dec. 1999, Vol. 33 Issue 4
Crisis at the Core: Preparing All Students for College and Work. ACT
Dounay, Jennifer, Standard Graduation Requirements, Education Commission of
the States
Draper, S. and Brown, M. (2004) Increasing interactivity in lectures using an
electronic voting system. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 20, 81 – 84
Sources
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Geiser, Saul and Santelices, Veronica, The Role of Advanced Placement and
Honors Courses in College Admissions, University of California, Berkeley, 2004
Gonzalez, Eugenio J., O’Connor, Kathleen M. and Miles, Julie A., How Well Do
Advanced Placement Students Perform on the TIMSS Advanced Mathematics
and Physics Tests? International Study Center, Lynch School of Education,
Boston College, June 2001
Treisman, Phillip Michael (Uri) (1985). A study of the mathematics performance of
black students at the University of California, Berkeley. Unpublished doctoral
dissertation, University of California, Berkeley.
U.S. Department of Education, A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U.S.
Higher Education. Washington D.C., 2006
Wirt, J., Choy, S. Rooney, P. Provasnik, S., Sen, A., and Tobin, R. (2004). The
Condition of Education 2004 (NCES 2004-077) U.S. Department of Education,
National Center for Education Statistics. Washington D.C. Government Printing
Office
Zinth, Kyle and Dounay, Jennifer, Mathematics and Science Education in the
States. Education Commision of the States, July, 2006