2001-2011: Longitudinal Data

First Graders, Then Juniors, Now Jan Clinard, Ed.D.

College Access: A Chance of Success

    In 1995, the BOR approved Proficiency Admission Requirements and Developmental Education in the MUS, requiring “a uniform assessment tool to be used in determining if students have the basic proficiencies in math and English to provide them a reasonable chance of success in postsecondary education.” In July 2000, the BOR moved to begin implementing a proficiency standard in writing by field testing a writing assessment with assistance from ACT. In October 2000, Dr. Jan Clinard was hired to direct the Writing Proficiency Program and other Academic Initiatives. In January 2004, the BOR adopted the Montana University System Writing Assessment as one measure of Writing Proficiency and voted to fund the program.

2001

 3,365 students tested  73 high schools  96 scorers  3 regional sites  3.0 average score  0.6% earned “6”  37.8% scored college-ready  100% of tests handwritten

2011

• • • • • • • • 7,685 students tested 138 high schools 320 scorers 8 regional sites 3.9 average score 1.7% earned “6” 75% scored college-ready 77% of tests word processed and submitted online (2% handwritten)

30 60 70 80

Percentage of Students Producing Proficient Essays Increasing

75 71 73,5 65,6 57 54,7 57 50 40 37,8 42,7 51,1 52,4 20 10 0 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 This graph includes data on ALL students, not just those with college aspirations.

2010 2011

Distribution of MUSWA Scores Over Eleven Years

35 10 5 0 30 25 20 15 1,0 1,5 2,0 2,5 3,0 3,5

Scores

4,0 4,5 5,0 5,5 6,0 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 A score of 3 is considered “not college ready,” whereas a score of 4 is “Proficient” or Ready. In addition to considering the five traits of writing described in the rubric, scorers predict whether or not the writer will be ready for college composition. This explains the dip in the middle of this otherwise bell curve.

8% 10% 12% 14% 16%

Actual Placements into Developmental Composition

15% 14% 12% 12% 11% 10% 6% 4% 2% 0% Fall 05 Fall 06 Fall 07 Fall 08 Fall 09 Fall 10

Reducing Remediation: The National Experience

 34% of all new entering college students require at least one remedial course.

 “States are often stymied in their efforts to address the readiness gap by a set of intractable issues…”  only 17% of HS graduates requiring at least one remedial course earn a bachelor’s degree.

 “….to help high school teachers learn how well students are attaining readiness skills, the assessments must directly measure student performance on readiness standards.” (Beyond the Rhetoric, SREB June 2010)

6,361 Students Have College Plans

Military 4% Home 0% Other 7% Job 5%

Plans After HS

MT College/U 51% OS College/U 33%

3,844 Hope to Attend a Montana College

In-state College Plans

Priv 4-yr 5% Tribal 2% CC 8% COT 16% Pub 4-yr 69%

Eliminate Bias: Score Test “Blind”

 Reduce prejudices about race, gender, school  Eliminate preconceptions about background, behaviors, appearance  Eliminate influences regarding past performances, grades, attitude  Eliminate biases introduced by handwriting and/or visual revisions

American Indian Students Achieve

• Poplar High School Won Awards of Merit in 2009 and 2010 and honored Dr. Clinard with a Star Quilt.

• 12 High Schools on Reservations participated in 2011; 5 of which earned average scores of 3.9 and above, representing about 100 AI students.

• By 2011, 31% of the self-identified American Indian students earned scores of 4 or above, compared to 6.2% in 2001.

• In 2011, nine American Indian students received Letters of Recognition for earning scores of 5.5 or 6.

MUSWA Assesses College and Career Readiness Standards (Common Core)  Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

  2011 MUSWA training used the term “claim” instead of “position” 2011 MUSWA training explored the concept of “sufficient”  Use technology, including the internet, to produce writing products.

 77% of all tests were word-processed and submitted online   Only 181 (2%) essays were handwritten (ACT and SAT still rely on handwritten essay)

20,0% 18,0% 16,0% 14,0% 12,0% 10,0% 8,0% 6,0% 4,0% 2,0% 0,0%

Students from Participating Schools Are Better Prepared for College

Writing Remediation Rates: MUSWA vs. Non-MUSWA Schools

15,8% 14,2% 14,6% 13,2% 13,6% 10,6% 12,6% 12,5% 12,0% 10,4% 2005 2006 Non-participating 2007 2008 Participating 2009

Schools are Rewarded

 Awards of Merit for Schools in Top Quartile  Letters of Recognition  157 students with “6” hand-signed  275 students with “5.5” electronic signatures  Individual memos to parents explaining score  Transcript labels, data, charts, graphs  ONLINE website for score retrieval: muswa.com

 Dependable, longitudinal data about the college readiness levels of ALL students

Participants Find Value

 300 to 370 workshop participants give two days to MUSWA each year. (2.7 FTE!)  40-50 Trainers give two days to preparation and two days to workshops each year.  Why?

 “MUSWA is by far the single most effective program I have ever used.”  Collaboration, effectiveness, rigor  Something new every year: the new prompt(s) and the controversial essay(s)

MUSWA Accomplishments

 Defined College Readiness in Writing  Provided high school students with information about placement into college-level or developmental courses  Provided feedback to HS staff on curriculum and instruction for the transition to college  Established a forum for K-12/Higher Ed collaboration  Provided ongoing professional development in writing  Gave students & high schools an avenue for celebrating student success in writing

MUSWA’s New Home: UM HELENA COT

Directed from a campus, collaborating with two-year and four-year campuses and school districts throughout Montana; and fulfilling the College!Now Strategy of supporting student transitions from high school to college.