College Readiness Where do you stand?

Lecture Given to 8 th Grade Parents Dr. Loretta Holloway, Framingham State English Professor and Lecturer If you want to know about her: education/graduate-programs/english/meet-our-faculty.html

Why are good grades not a certain predictor of college readiness? Just because you are admitted into a college or university doesn’t mean you’re ready for it.

Myths Students going into workforce or military do not need same rigorous academic training as other students. Students only need to write in English classes. “Why do I have to write a paper in chemistry?”

Some Facts Pace and quantity of material covered increases in college. ASMAT Test for Military – kids not performing well. Because of need for service people, testing agency has to lower standards % of college freshman do not persist (finish)

More Facts up to 30% of all college freshman have to take remedial courses to get them up to speed academically (0 credit course, still pay for it) 4 out of 5 of those students had a high school GPA of 3.0 or higher (Source: 2004 Diploma to Nowhere) 63.2% who start college degree get a degree within 6 years – not traditional 4 (Source: 2009 Beginning Post Secondary Survey Administration by National Center of Education)

Framingham State Professors “I wish my college freshman would…” Follow directions and make logical deductions Understand and use standard written English Respond to teacher criticism (corrections) and revise work Read better by reading critically and applying what was read to tasks given

Framingham State Professors “I wish my college freshman would…” Exhibit better presentation skills Go beyond the minimum Be critical thinkers who adapt skills to various courses and tasks

Framingham State Professors Behavior Wish List Retain enthusiasm about learning Ask questions Understand the importance of being persistent Learn from errors

Framingham State Professors Behavior Wish List Be mindful of time management Learn to advocate for yourself Understand and utilize good note-taking Understand how YOU learn best and utilize that information

Differences Between High School and College

Typical College Expectations Thesis driven essay of 500 words able to be produced in 1 hour Students should be able to read pages of text an hour Critical Reading – not memorization. Students need to be able to articulate what reading means, not just what it said. Effective Note-taking

All preceding information from: Dr. Loretta Holloway Program Coordinator and Advisor Associate Professor B.A., University of Alaska, Fairbanks; M.A., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Ph.D., University of Kansas, Lawrence Biographical Source: education/graduate-programs/english/meet-our-faculty.html