Transcript Accuplacer Reading Comprehension Test

Empowering Students to Succeed
Through Accuplacer Preparation
Mandy Williams
Caldwell Community College
and Technical Institute
[email protected]
828.726.2274
Workshop Objectives
• Become more familiar with the Accuplacer test
• Learn about the College Placement Test (CPT)
Preparation course design
• Learn about the impact of the CPT Preparation
course on student Accuplacer scores
• Be provided with CPT resources
• Brainstorm and share ideas about how workshop
content may be used in your own classes and
programs
Icebreaker
Which Placement Test Does Your College Use?
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ACCUPLACER
COMPASS
ASSET
Other
The Problem
• GED and Adult High School Diploma (AHSD) graduates were
taking the College Placement Test (Accuplacer) and placing
into developmental courses.
• Students were unfamiliar with the Accuplacer and were not
reviewing or practicing before taking it.
• Studies indicate that less than 25 % of community college
students in developmental education earn a degree within
eight years.
Our Solution
• Designed the College Placement Test Preparation Course
• Offered the course to currently enrolled GED/AHSD students
and recent graduates
• During the summer, offered the course to local high school
graduates who scored into developmental courses when
taking the Accuplacer
Overall Results
• 96 % increased their scores in at least one subject area
• 81 % placed out of at least one developmental course
• 39 % placed completely out of all developmental courses
Results by Subject Area
• Reading:
• 84 % placed out of at least one developmental level
• 61 % placed out of all developmental reading
• Sentence Skills:
• 86 % placed out of at least one developmental level
• 65 % placed out of all developmental English
• Arithmetic:
• 79 % placed out of at least one developmental level
• 74 % placed out of all developmental arithmetic
• Algebra:
• 58 % placed out of at least one developmental level
• 48 % placed out of developmental Algebra
More Results
Accuplacer (Out of those pre-tested)
• Greatest individual gain – 52 points
• Average gain – 20 points
TABE
• 70 % increased on TABE
• Greatest TABE gain – 3.5 grade levels
• Average TABE gain – 2.2 grade levels
Student Comments
• “In my opinion this class has helped me throughout these last
couple weeks. Mrs. Williams taking the time to actually
sit down and discuss my problem areas with me has helped
me place out of my math class. I am very thankful that I
received the opportunity to take this class. I think it will help
me in my college career.”
• “I'm feeling very good about this class. It has really helped me
review all I need for math. I had forgotten how to do math
without a calculator, which is really bad!”
• “Thanks to this class I’ve been able to go from a basic
understanding of the subject areas to a deeper understanding.
I was able to pass all of my placement tests!”
Design of CPT Preparation Course
• 30 – 60 contact hours
• Face-to-face instruction in reading, sentence skills,
arithmetic, algebra, and test-taking strategies
• Computerized instruction
• ITTS (Instruction Targeted for TABE Success, Level A)
• Various online resources including practice CPT
CPT Preparation Course Objectives
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Improve reading comprehension
Determine relationships between sentences
Understand correct sentence structure
Rewrite sentences according to specified criteria
Perform basic arithmetic operations
Solve relevant, multi-step mathematical problems
Perform algebraic operations
Apply algebraic concepts in problem solving
ACCUPLACER (CPT) Test
• Reading Comprehension
• Sentence Skills
• Arithmetic
• Algebra
Reading Comprehension
Passage-Based Reading Selections
• Short reading passages followed by questions based on the
reading selection.
• These questions check understanding of
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Main idea
Supporting details
Inference
Purpose
Tone
Persuasive strategies
Sentence Relationships
• Two sentences followed by a question asking how the sentences are
related
• Relationships include
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Support
Detail
Contradiction
Repetition
Cause
Effect
Comparison
Contrast
Exception
12 Powerful Words
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Analyze
Infer
Evaluate
Describe
Support
Explain
Summarize
Compare
Contrast
Predict
Formulate
Trace
Ten Steps to Building College Reading Skills
This book covers the following ten key reading skills:
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Dictionary Use
Vocabulary in Context
Main Ideas
Supporting Details
Locations of Main Ideas
Relationships that involve addition and time
Relationships that involve examples, comparison/contrast,
and cause/effect
8. Inferences
9. Implied Main Ideas
10. The Basics of Argument
Reading Sample Question: Inferring Information
Cheating is the ultimate trick a student plays on him or herself.
Aside from the primary point of making an absolute mockery
of the purpose of a college education, there is also the fact
that there is no way a student can avoid being found out there is at least one person who will always know about it.
With which of the following statements would the author agree?
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b.
c.
Students should not cheat because someone will find out
and report it.
Cheating really hurts the cheater.
Professors should expect students to cheat.
Answer: B
Reading Sample Question: Main Idea
Many college students do not want to take a math class.
When they learn that math is a requirement, these students
hope for a way to avoid it. These students may be suffering
from math anxiety, an overwhelming fear of the subject,
rather than an intellectual impairment.
The main idea of this passage is:
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b.
c.
Many students are bad at math
Students who are bad at math can avoid taking it.
Students who hope to avoid math may have math anxiety.
Answer: C
Reading Sample Question: Relationship Question –
Comparing Two Sentences
The owning of an automobile allows Americans the opportunity
to explore this vast country.
In failing to develop a national public transportation system the
ability of Americans to travel is severely limited.
The above 2 sentences:
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b.
c.
Contradict each other
The second sentence supports the first
The first sentence introduces the second
Answer: A
Sentence Skills Test
The Sentence Skills section of the Accuplacer placement test has
two types of multiple-choice questions.
• Sentence Correction – These questions require an
understanding of sentence structure and ask you to choose
the most appropriate word or phrase for the underlined
portion of the sentence.
• Construction Shift – These questions ask that a sentence be
rewritten according to the criteria shown while maintaining
essentially the same meaning as the original sentence.
Sentence Skills Questions
These questions test one’s ability to recognize correct sentences
in written English.
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Pronoun-antecedent agreement
Subject-verb agreement and verb tense
Misplaced and dangling modifiers
Diction and logic
Sentence structure (fragments, subordination/coordination,
and parallelism)
• Comma splices and run-on sentences
Sentence Skills Sample Question:
Sentence Correction
Jose wanted to study he tried to keep his roommates quiet; but
he did not succeed.
Select the best version of the underlined part of the sentence
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Jose wanted to study he tried to keep
Jose wanted to study, he tried to keep
Because he wanted to study, Jose tried to keep
Jose wanting to study, and trying to keep
Answer: C
Sentence Skills Sample Question:
Construction Shift
“She thought that advertising should have an immediate,
powerful impact and, as a result of this notion of hers, she made
commercials with a strong emotional content.”
Rewrite this sentence, beginning with
Her new commercials had…
The new sentence will include
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b.
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d.
they resulted from
the result was that
caused by thinking
because she thought
Answer: D
Construction Shift Tips
• When you have to rewrite a portion of a sentence or a
whole sentence, never make a choice without reading all
of the options. A sentence with a mechanical error will
often sound okay until you have read the other choices.
• Finally, since there are two types of construction shifts,
be very careful to note how you are being asked to
rewrite a sentence. The phrasing is usually:
• The next words will be
or
• The new sentence will include
Arithmetic Test
The Arithmetic section of the Accuplacer placement test
measures your ability to perform basic arithmetic
operations and to solve problems that involve fundamental
arithmetic concepts. There are 17 questions on the
Arithmetic test divided into three topic areas.
• Operations with whole numbers and fractions
• Operations with decimals and percents
• Applications and problem solving
Arithmetic Topics
• Whole Numbers and Fractions
• Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
• Equivalent fractions and mixed numbers
• Estimation
• Decimals and Percents
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Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
Percent problems
Recognition of decimals, fraction, and percent equivalencies
Estimation
• Applications and Problem Solving
• Rate, percent, and measurement problems
• Simple geometry problems
• Distribution of a quantity into its fractional parts
Arithmetic Sample Question
All of the following are ways to write 30 percent of N EXCEPT
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0.30 N
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30N/100
c.
3/10 N
d.
30N
Answer: D
Algebra Test
The Algebra section of the Accuplacer placement test
measures your ability to perform algebraic operations and
to solve problems that involve algebraic concepts. There
are 12 questions on the Algebra test divided into three
topic areas.
• Operations with integers and rational numbers
• Operations with algebraic expressions
• Translating written phrases into algebraic expressions and
solving equations, inequalities, and word problems
Algebra Topics
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Integers and Rational Numbers
Exponents and Square Roots
Absolute Value
Order of Operations
Simplifying Expressions
Evaluating Expressions
Solving Equations and Inequalities
Multiplying Polynomials and Factoring
Algebraic and Complex Fractions
Radicals
Algebra Sample Question
1. (3x – 2y) ²
a.
9x² - 4y²
b.
9x² + 4y²
c.
9x² - 12xy + 4y²
d.
9x² - 6xy + 4y²
Answer: C
Websites
• http://english.glendale.cc.ca.us/topic.html
• http://www.gsu.edu/~wwwrtp/instrdg.htm
• http://www.literacyworks.org/learningresources/index.html
• www.chompchomp.com
• http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/
• http://www.testprepreview.com/accuplacer_practice.htm
• http://www.khanacademy.org/
• http://www.themathpage.com/ARITH/arithmetic.htm
• http://www.cpcc.edu/testing_assessment/placementtesting/accuplacer-study-guides/accuplacer-review-videos-coming-soon
• http://wcb.neit.edu/asc/prctctst.htm
Group Activity
How do you think you will use the workshop
content in your class or program?
Questions
Mandy Williams
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute
[email protected]
828.726.2274