Addressing Non-Cognitive Issues in a Co-Requisite Classroom Peter Adams Community College of Baltimore County

Longitudinal Study of 1988/89 Cohort in Upper-Level Basic Writing (1993) took 099 1988/1989 863 100% passed 099 490 57% never 373 43% took 101 355 41% took no more writing courses 135 16% passed 101 287 33% never 68 8% failed \

Why Do Students Drop Out?

They told us “none of the above” no concrete examples can’t write a thesis subject-verb agreement sentence fragments They told us “none of the above” when we asked students . . . mla format confusing words

stress becomes too great student doesn’t know how college works changes at work financial problems laid off student loses confidence problems with children affective issues life issues student fears she isn’t “college material” legal problems car trouble student doesn’t know anyone stress becomes too great abusive situation at home student doesn’t feel connected to the college eviction medical problems

non- cognitive issues affective issues life issues college knowledge

non- cognitive issues affective issues life issues college knowledge

These issues are the major reasons students don’t succeed. Most faculty have no preparation for addressing non-cogs. That doesn’t mean we can’t help. Faculty in co-req classes are not the only people on campus with a responsibility for addressing these issues The structure of ALP is designed to address some of these issues. Non-Cognitive Issues

Helping students’ believe they are “college material” Students are in a college course. Backward curriculum design helps avoid a classroom experience the replicates sixth grade. The physical set-up of the room can help. Affective Issues

Helping students feel attachment to the college Faculty design the class to encourage students to get to know each other. The small class size promotes this. Asking students to work in groups facilitates this. Encouraging students to form “study groups” that meet regularly has been an approach of many faculty. Affective Issues

Productive Persistence Affective Issues David Yeager

Encouraging Productive Persistence Dealing with Unfamiliar Words Form students into groups of four or so. Ask each group to make a list of possible strategies for dealing with unfamiliar words that they encounter when they are reading . Affective Issues

Encouraging Productive Persistence Some faculty use an incentive system to encourage student effort. Affective Issues various point systems if everyone brings a draft to class on Friday, I’ll bake cookies for Monday After discussing this slide, Peter turns it back to Sarah.

Encouraging Productive Persistence Short Writing Assignment In a short essay, a page or less, explain why it is that at this point in your life you are in a developmental writing class. Affective Issues

I rushed through the test. I had a hard time paying attention. I didn’t work very hard in high school I didn’t like all the reading I didn’t know some words I had somewhere to go. I was tired. I was bored. I took all three tests in a half hour. I've been out of school a long time I didn't take high school seriously I'm a horrible writer.

I rushed through the test. I had a hard time paying attention. I didn’t work very hard in high school I didn’t like all the reading I didn’t know some words I had somewhere to go. I was tired. I was bored. I took all three tests in a half hour. I've been out of school a long time I didn't take high school seriously My high school was terrible I was sick a lot during high school My parents are not educated I lived in six foster homes when I was growing up Classes in my high school had more than 50 students My parents and friends used terrible grammar We were homeless and it was hard to study My mother never wanted me to go to college I was never asked to write in high school

I rushed through the test. I had a hard time paying attention. I didn’t work very hard in high school I didn’t like all the reading I didn’t know some words I had somewhere to go. I was tired. I was bored. I took all three tests in a half hour. I've been out of school a long time I didn't take high school seriously My high school was terrible I was sick a lot during high school My parents are not educated I lived in six foster homes when I was growing up classes in my high school had more than 50 students My parents and friends used terrible grammar We were homeless and it was hard to study My mother never wanted me to go to college I was never asked to write in high school

Encouraging Productive Persistence Setbacks Every time instructors return papers to students, they ask the students to write a short paper explaining what they learned from writing that paper. Affective Issues After discussing this slide, Peter turns it back to Sarah.

Encouraging Productive Persistence Early in the semester, instructors give low-stakes assignments. Affective Issues After discussing this slide, Peter turns it back to Sarah.

Encouraging Productive Persistence Goal Setting Workshops First ask students, working individually, to write a paragraph describing where they would like to be in five years. Then ask them to list three things they need to accomplish this year in order to reach where they would like to be in five years. Then form them into groups of about four and ask them to discuss each other’s lists of goals for the year. Affective Issues After discussing this slide, Peter turns it back to Sarah.

Students believe that what they are learning has value. Affective Issues

Earnings and Unemployment Rates by Educational Attainment Unemployment rate in 2013 (%) Median weekly earnings in 2013 ($) doctoral degree professional degree master’s degree bachelor’s degree associate’s degree some college, no degree high school diploma less than diploma 2.2 11.0 7.5 7.0 5.4 4.0 3.4 2.3 1623 1714 1329 1108 777 727 651 472 Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey

Ask students, working in groups of four, to brainstorm a list of benefits of a college education that are not related to jobs or income. Compare the lists from the groups. Affective Issues

Benefits of a college education that are not related to jobs or income help my kids with their homework avoid feeling dumb around my husband's parents win money on Jeopardy understand what I read in the paper avoid grammar mistakes be able to vote intelligently in elections be able to win arguments with my co-workers enjoy reading book Affective Issues

Faculty strive to create a classroom atmosphere in which students feel comfortable talking about issues they are experiencing. Sometimes these discussions with the entire class are what a student feels most comfortable with. Life Issues Sometimes a one-on-one discussion with a student is the preferable format for discussing these issues.

What Are You Worried About?   Write down one thing you are worried about on a piece of paper and hand it to your instructor. Don’t put your name on it. Anything you are worried about is okay—something about school or work or your relationships or your family or the country or the world. Anything you are worried about. Your instructor will read many of these to the entire class so they can discuss them. Life Issues

Early intervention is sometimes necessary to prevent students from giving up. Life Issues

Phone a friend Life Issues

Life Issues Activity Log Name ______________________________________ Day Time Activity Priority   Life Issues

Working in your group, look at the members’ activity logs, one at a time, and then answer the following questions:   Are there any surprises in your activity log? Are you spending more time than you thought you were on some tasks? Less time on others? Are there times of the day when you are most productive? Are you working on low-priority activities in these high-productivity times? Are there little stretches of time that you could use to squeeze in small tasks? Are you spending lots of time on low-priority tasks? Doing so can be a sign that you are procrastinating. Are there things you are doing that don’t need to be done? Things that can be delayed or cancelled or even done by someone else? Is it possible to do everything you have committed to doing? If so, great. If not, what can you change to make it possible to accomplish everything you need to do? Life Issues

Plan B Life Issues

Mini-Research Paper on Personal Finances Choose one of the following topics. Search the web for information about one of the following topics. After you’ve gathered some information, think about the topic until you arrive at a point you could argue to your classmates about the topic. Write a one-pager in which you attempt to convince your classmates to agree with you. Possible topics: the new Pell Grant rules the pros and cons of taking out a student loan the pros and cons of taking out a payday loan the pros and cons of getting a credit card is making a budget worth the time it takes? any other topic dealing with personal finance Life Issues

Students who need help are the least likely to seek it. Sometimes faculty can contrive an opportunity for a conversation. College Knowledge

A Scavenger Hunt for College Resources For each of the following find the name of the office, the building it is in, the room number, and the hours it is open. The office you would go to for an emergency book loan. The place where you could get help with test preparation. The office where a veteran can get assistance. The office where you can appeal a parking ticket. College Knowledge

Students master college behavior Faculty development for ALP faculty should include familiarizing everyone with campus resources. A roster of campus resources is a great idea. College Knowledge

College Knowledge

College Knowledge syllabus withdrawal bursar office hours registration transfer major program school department dean appeal GPA incomplete plagiarism FAFSA incomplete books on reserve probation pre-requisite certificate AA degree tutoring writing center composition essay paper WebCT College Knowledge

padams2@ccbcmd.edu The Accelerated Learning Program The Community College of Baltimore County