Preparing Our Students for College

Literacy in the New Millennium ~New technology inspires a new set of skills -reading purposefully -figure out meanings of unknown words -resolving conflicting content in diff. texts -differentiate fact from opinion -recognize the perspective of the writer***COMPREHEND ~Preparing students for the unknown

What do we need to know? ~What is the EAP? (Early Assessment Program) -CSU Program which determines whether or not student is ready for college-level work -Math AND English test for high school juniors ~What is an EPT? (English Placement Test) -Test given by college to students accepted to that college **(test does not affect acceptance) -Used to determine readiness for college-level classes -Different tests/Different colleges ~ERWC (Expository Reading & Writing Course) -Course designed for Nonfiction preparation

Purpose of the EAP Assessment ~Provides an early signal to students, parents and teachers about a student’s preparedness for college ~Alerts students to what they can & can not do ~Encourages 12 th grade intervention **Can prevent students from being required to take remedial courses in college

What is the EPT Requirement?? ~We must clear the confusion among parents & students regarding the EPT Requirement -EDUCATION & COMMUNICATION  working as a team  working across the curriculum

Meeting the EPT requirement Testing Out: ~SAT I: score of 550 or more ~ACT: score of 24 or more ~AP Lit & Composition: score of 3 or higher ~AP Language & Composition: score of 3 or higher ~Passing the EAP English test **Unless a student meets one of the above criteria, the must take an EPT (English Placement Test)

How can we help?? 1. Introduce students to reading they will do in college. 2. Many students lack successful reading strategies & are not prepared for the demands of college reading. 3. Students need help learning to read difficult texts 4. Do not know how to adjust reading strategies for different purposes (different subjects) -have difficulty understanding the structure of argument and do not understand rhetorical context

What do we need to teach?? ~ stop relying on authority -rely on themselves. ~learn to ask questions ~look to writing to aid understanding ~must understand how analysis works -take apart the whole & explore the individual pieces

Collegiate Writing Expectations I. Amount of Writing: ~Quarter classes -2 short word essays OR one short essay and one long research paper -A midterm exam with short answer essay questions and a longer final exam with longer questions ~Semester Courses -Two midterm exams -Final exam -Long analytical, research paper of at least 8 pages

What students can not do… Only 1/3 of students are prepared for the two most frequently assigned writing tasks: –Analyzing information or arguments –Synthesizing information from several sources

AVHS ERWC Students will…

Learn to write according to collegiate expectations ~This class will teach students to write in a college English, Science, History, Math or Business class.

Learn to take a systematic approach to vocabulary ~Learning to understand words by using context, --as opposed to passing over word and missing the meaning of the sentence. **We don’t memorize vocab. words

Focus ~We will read current event articles that contain content designed to stimulate students—ie. Global warming, steroids in sports, juvenile justice, politics of food, etc.  The goal is to prepare students for the reading and writing demands of their college professors

Nat’l Recommendations ~Direct, Explicit Instruction ~Motivation & Self-directed learning ~Text-based collaborative learning ~Diverse texts & topics ~Intensive writing ~Extended time for Literary Development ~Professional Development ~Teacher Teams ~Comprehensive & Coordinated Literacy plan

Questions??????