Mandatory Placement for English as a Second Language (ESL) Courses Academic Governing Council February 9, /3

Team Members  Colleen Becker (ESL Faculty, English)  Ashley Campanali (Faculty, Physical Sciences)  Lori Cook (Director of Enrollment)  Ann Isackson (Director of Financial Aid)  Alyssa Jewell (ESL Adjunct Faculty, English)  Patrick Kamau (Faculty and Counselor, Counseling and Career Center)  Susan Mowers (Faculty, English)  Sue VanderVeen (ESL Adjunct Faculty, English)

Current Concerns (added from table discussion)  Students who place into ESL courses are not mandated to take those courses  Students can enroll in any course despite test scores  Nothing in the system blocks students from taking any course  ESL student success in general population courses is low when they do not follow the recommended path based on their scores  Students can enroll themselves in core classes but not in ESL classes

Current Concerns  Safety concerns in labs  Students “lost” in the system in Counseling  Student place themselves for convenience  Students fail ESL levels but still enroll in regular composition  Students enroll in other 100 and 200 level courses  Failing board or professional exams  Difficulty succeeding in online courses  Failure in early level courses; dismissal from programs  Low retention  Challenging group interactions  Discipline-specific language acquisition difficult

Additional Questions raised  How is this program different from the GRCC Adult Ed Program (non-Credit ESL program) through M-TEC?  M-TEC serves “true beginners who speak, read, or understand no English”  Transition from Adult Ed to credit ESL places students into levels 1 or 2  “By the end of the ESL pre-GED Reading course students will be ready to transition to credit ESL classes on main campus”

Additional Questions raised  Do students need to complete all levels of ESL for every program?  Departments decide level of English proficiency needed for success in their programs  Departments identify classes students can take concurrently with ESL  Will students pay for classes that don’t lead to credit or transfer?  ESL courses are credit-bearing  Can be used as elective credit toward AA or AS with/without MTA/MACRAO

Additional Questions raised  Will mandatory ESL placement bypass potential developmental issues?  Currently, struggling ESL students flagged for additional support services  Implementation phase could explore additional ways to identify and support these students  ESL students who cannot pass level 4 are not prepared for college courses; refer to College Success Center, possible Accuplacer / ALEKS testing  Current policy does not require either ESL or developmental course work; current proposal designed to address ESL needs

ESL Program Overview (see charts on tables) Subject Area Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Next Course Listening and Speaking ES 101 ES 102 ES 103 ES 104 Speaking and listening skills ready for college coursework Writing and Grammar ES 111 ES 112 ES 113 ES 114 Writing and grammar skills ready for EN 100 or 101 (do not need EN 097) Reading and Vocabulary ES 121 ES 122 ES 123 ES 124 Reading and vocabulary skills ready for college coursework (do not need RD 097)

ESL Enrollment and Placement year average Total number of students enrolled in ESL, new and continuing Total number of new students enrolled in ESL Total number of students who placed into ESL Percent of students who placed into ESL, but took no ESL courses 27%32% Percent of students who took each ESL course at the level that they placed into during their first year 22%18% Percent of students who took ESL, but at a different level than they placed into during their first year 20%22%

Retention Of the students who started taking ESL courses in 2010: Completed Level 4 Speaking and Listening 45% Completed Level 4 Writing and Grammar 43% Completed Level 4 Reading and Vocabulary 49%

ESL Student Success Of the students who placed into ESL courses, the following shows success data for those who took some ESL versus no ESL: Some ESL No ESL Last cumulative GPA Percent of students with last cumulative GPA less than %39% Success rate in EN 100/10176%62%

Benchmarking  11 colleges were surveyed, 5 in Michigan and 6 nation wide  Programs at these colleges range from 109 to 2,700 ESL students and consist of 4-7 ESL levels  8 of the 11 colleges have mandatory placement for ESL courses  3 of 11 that do not have mandatory placement have enforced ESL prerequisites on many courses

Benchmarking SchoolMandatory placement? Concurrent classes? GRCCNUnlimited Oakland CCY - international N - other Yes w/upper level ESL Henry Ford CCYYes w/upper level ESL Macomb CCYYes Lansing CCYYes w/upper level ESL Washtenaw CCYNot available Cuyahoga CC, OHYYes w/upper level ESL Sierra College, CANYes City College of SF, CANYes Riverland CC, MNYNo Central Piedmont CC, NCYNo Kansas City, Kansas CCYYes w/upper level ESL

Concurrent ESL and 100- and 200-Level Classes Of the 10 colleges that answered this question: 2Not allowed to take other classes concurrently with ESL 5Allowed only with upper levels of ESL 2Allowed except when restricted by prerequisites 1Allowed

Financial Aid and ESL: Concerns  Students could run out of eligibility for subsidized loans  3 years (AA)  1.5 years (Certificate)  Pell Grant limitations:  12 full semesters

Financial Aid and ESL: Questions raised  Will FA pay for ESL classes?  Yes, if enrolled in an eligible program of study  FA for ESL does not have a 30-credit limit (as does Dev Ed)  What happens to students who run out of FA before completing program?  Case-by-case appeals may be possible: likely granted with successful completion of previous courses

Financial Aid and ESL: Benefits  Mandatory ESL placement will keep students on the path toward Satisfactory Academic Progress  GPA  67% attempted courses completed successfully  Maximum time frame  Promote better understanding of Master Promissory Note  No limitation on # of ESL courses

Barriers to Students Who Don’t Take ESL If a student is in courses he is not prepared for:  Courses dropped can reduce the amount of aid a student is eligible to receive  In some instances, unearned aid must be repaid to the federal government  FA only pays for one repeat of a previously "passed" course (e.g. D- or higher). If repeat doesn't fulfill department pre-req, student must pay for future attempts  Lack of SAP leads to loss of FA, academic probation or suspension

Proposal  GRCC should require and enforce mandatory placement for ESL students.

Questions?

Next Steps  Share findings with your department  Send feedback to Colleen Becker and Susan Mowers by February 23, 2016