IMPROVING ACHIEVEMENT AND CLOSING GAPS, Pre-K Through College

IMPROVING ACHIEVEMENT AND CLOSING GAPS, Pre-K Through College
Connecticut State University System Hartford, CT October, 2006

First, some good news. After more than a decade of fairly flat achievement and stagnant or growing gaps, we appear to be turning the corner.

NAEP Reading, 9 Year-Olds: Record Performance for All Groups
Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress

African American-White Gap Narrows to Smallest Size in History NAEP Reading, 9 Year-Olds
26 35 29 Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress

Latino-White Gap Narrows to Smallest Size in History NAEP Reading, 9 Year-Olds

NAEP Math, 9 Year-Olds: Record Performance for All Groups

African American-White Gap Narrows to Smallest Size in History NAEP Math, 9 Year-Olds

Latino-White Gap Narrows to Smallest Size in History NAEP Math, 9 Year-Olds

NAEP Reading, 13 Year-Olds

NAEP Math, 13 Year-Olds: Increases and Record Performance for All Groups

Bottom Line: When We Really Focus on Something, We Make Progress

Clearly, much more remains to be done in elementary and middle school
Too many youngsters still enter high school way behind.

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Reading All Students, Nation
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP Data Explorer,

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Reading by Race/Ethnicity, Nation

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Reading by Family Income, Nation

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Math All Students, Nation

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Math by Race/Ethnicity, Nation

2005 NAEP Grade 8 Math by Family Income, Nation

But at least we have some traction on these problems.

The Same is NOT True of High School

High School

Age 17: Math and Science NAEP Long-Term Trends
Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP Source: NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress and NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress.

Age 17: Reading and Writing NAEP Long-Term Trends
Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP Source: NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress.

Gaps between groups wider today than in 1990

NAEP Reading, 17 Year-Olds
21 29 Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress

NAEP Math, 17 Year-Olds 28 20 Note: Long-Term Trends NAEP
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2004 Trends in Academic Progress

How much learning takes place at each level?

Students Make More Growth Grade 5 to 8 than Grade 9 to 12

Academic Growth Ages 9-13, 13-17
Note: Scale score gains represent the difference between the scale scores of 13-year-olds in 1996 and 9-year-olds in 1992. Source: NCES, Trends in Academic Progress. Data from Long-Term Trend NAEP

Value Added in High School Declined During the Nineties

Value Added Declining in High School Math...
Scale Score Growth, From Age 13 to Age 17 Note: Scale score gains reflect the difference between the scale scores of 17-year-olds and the scale scores of 13-year-olds four years prior. Source: NCES, Trends in Academic Progress. Data from Long Term Trend NAEP

Scale Score Growth, From Grade 8 to Grade 12
... Still Scale Score Growth, From Grade 8 to Grade 12 Note: Scale score gains reflect the difference between the scale scores of 12th Graders and the scale scores of 8th Graders four years prior. Source: NAEP Data Explorer,

Reading: Students Entering High School Better Prepared, But Leaving Worse
Total= 288 Total= 290 Source: NCES, Trends in Academic Progress. Data from Long Term Trend NAEP

Not just a pattern on NAEP. State assessments show similar trends.

Hormones?

Students in Other Countries Gain far More in Secondary School
TIMSS

PISA 2003: US 15 Year-Olds Rank Near The End Of The Pack Among 29 OECD Countries
Source: NCES, 2005, International Outcomes of Learning in Mathematics, Literacy and Problem Solving: 2003 PISA Results. NCES

2003: U.S. Ranked 24th out of 29 OECD Countries in Mathematics
Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), PISA 2003 Results, data available at

Problems are not limited to our high-poverty and high-minority schools . . .

U.S. Ranks Low in the Percent of Students in the Highest Achievement Level (Level 6) in Math

U.S. Ranks 23rd out of 29 OECD Countries in the Math Achievement of the Highest-Performing Students*
* Students at the 95th Percentile Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), PISA 2003 Results, data available at

U.S. Ranks 23rd out of 29 OECD Countries in the Math Achievement of High-SES Students

Problems not limited to math, either.

PISA 2003: Problem-Solving, US Ranks 24th Out of 29 OECD Countries
Source: NCES, 2005, International Outcomes of Learning in Mathematics, Literacy and Problem Solving: 2003 PISA Results. NCES

More than half of our 15 year olds at problem-solving level 1 or below.
Source: OECD Problem Solving for Tomorrow’s World

One measure on which we rank high? Inequality!

PISA 2003: Gaps in Performance Of U. S
PISA 2003: Gaps in Performance Of U.S.15 Year-Olds Are Among the Largest of OECD Countries *Of 29 OECD countries, based on scores of students at the 5th and 95th percentiles. Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), PISA 2003 Results, data available at

These gaps begin before children arrive at the schoolhouse door.
But, rather than organizing our educational system to ameliorate this problem, we organize it to exacerbate the problem.

By giving students who arrive with less, less in school, too.
How? By giving students who arrive with less, less in school, too.

Some of these “lesses” are a result of choices that policymakers make.

Nation: Inequities in State and Local Revenue Per Student
Gap High Poverty vs. Low Poverty Districts -$907 per student High Minority vs. Low Minority Districts -$614 per student Source: The Education Trust, The Funding Gap Data are for 2003

Not Just K-12: In higher education, we spend less per student in the institutions where most low-income students start. Expenditures per student 2 Year Colleges $9,183 4 Year Colleges $27,973 Source: NCES Digest of Education Statistics, 2003

But some of the “lesses” –indeed, perhaps the most devastating ones— are a function of choices that educators make.

Choices we make about what to expect of whom…

Students in Poor Schools Receive ‘A’s for Work That Would Earn ‘Cs’ in Affluent Schools
Source: Prospects (ABT Associates, 1993), in “Prospects: Final Report on Student Outcomes”, PES, DOE, 1997.

Choices we make about what to teach whom…

Fewer Latino students are enrolled in Algebra 1 in Grade 8
Source: CCSSO, State Indicators of Science and Mathematics Education, 2005

Fewer Latino students are enrolled in Algebra 2
Source: CCSSO, State Indicators of Science and Mathematics Education, 2001

And choices we make about Who teaches whom…

More Classes in High-Poverty, High-Minority Schools Taught By Out-of-Field Teachers
In addition, when Richard Ingersoll analyzed the SAS data, he found that these same schls are more likely to have a higher percentage of classes being taught by tchrs without a major or minor in the field for which they are teaching. The results are particularly striking in high poverty schls where there is a difference of 13 percentage points. Definitions High Poverty-A school where 50% or more of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch Low-poverty-A school where 15% or fewer of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch High-minority-A school where 50% or more of the students are nonwhite. Low-minority-A school where 15% or fewer of the students are nonwhite. High poverty Low poverty High minority Low minority Note: High Poverty school-50% or more of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low-poverty school -15% or fewer of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High-minority school - 50% or more of the students are nonwhite. Low-minority school- 15% or fewer of the students are nonwhite. *Teachers lacking a college major or minor in the field. Data for secondary-level core academic classes. Source: Richard M. Ingersoll, University of Pennsylvania. Original analysis for the Ed Trust of Schools and Staffing Survey.

Poor and Minority Students Get More Inexperienced* Teachers
Schls with higher proportions of poor and minority students have more inexperienced tchrs. If we take a look at the graph, we see that in high poverty schls almost double the amount of tchrs have less than three years of experience. The same is also true for high minority schls. High poverty-top quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low poverty-bottom quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High minority-top quartile; those schools with the highest concentrations of minority students. Low minority-bottom quartile of schools with the lowest concentrations of minority students High poverty Low poverty High minority Low minority *Teachers with 3 or fewer years of experience. Note: High poverty refers to the top quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low poverty-bottom quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High minority-top quartile; those schools with the highest concentrations of minority students. Low minority-bottom quartile of schools with the lowest concentrations of minority students Source: National Center for Education Statistics, “Monitoring Quality: An Indicators Report,” December 2000.

Results are devastating.
Kids who come in a little behind, leave a lot behind.

By the end of high school?

African American and Latino 17 Year-Olds Do Math at Same Levels As White 13 Year-Olds

African American and Latino 17 Year-Olds Read at Same Levels As White 13 Year-Olds

And these are the students who remain in high school.
What do those numbers look like?

Students Graduate From High School At Different Rates
Students Graduate From High School At Different Rates * 4-Year Graduation Rates Data is for the class of 2003. Source: Jay P. Greene and Marcus A. Winters, The Manhattan Institute, Leaving Boys Behind: Public High School Graduation Rates.

True, Among High School Graduates, College-Going is Increasing

But Gains In College Completion Are Not Proportionate With Gains In College Attendance

College Going vs. Completion of BA or Higher, Whites
19 10 Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, October Current Population Surveys, , in US DOE, NCES, The Condition of Education 2002, p.166 and 174.

College Going vs. Completion of BA or Higher, Blacks
21 7 Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, October Current Population Surveys, , in US DOE, NCES, The Condition of Education 2002, p.166 and 174.

College Going vs. Completion of BA or Higher, Hispanics
?? ##!!! Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, October Current Population Surveys, , in US DOE, NCES, The Condition of Education 2002, p.166 and 174.

ADD IT ALL UP...

Of Every 100 White Kindergartners:
(25-to 29-Year-Olds) Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. March Current Population Surveys, , in The Condition of Education

Of Every 100 African American Kindergartners:

Of Every 100 Latino Kindergartners:

Of Every 100 American Indian/Alaskan Native Kindergartners:
(25 Years Old and Older) Source: U.S. Census Bureau, We the People: American Indians and Alaska Natives in the United States. Data source: Census 2000,

College Graduates by Age 24
Source: Tom Mortenson, Postsecondary Educational Opportunity..

So What Can We Do?

Many educators have concluded that we can’t do much.

What We Hear Many Educators Say:
They’re poor; Their parents don’t care; They come to schools without breakfast; Not enough books Not enough parents . . .

But if they are right, why are low-income students and students of color performing so high in some schools…

George Mason Elementary, Richmond City Public Schools
319 Students PK-Grade 5 99.7% African American 75% Low-Income Made AYP in 2005 Source: School Matters,

George Mason Gains in Grade 5 Reading
Source: School Matters,

George Mason Gains in Grade 5 Math
Source: School Matters,

Centennial Place Elementary School Atlanta, Georgia
528 students in grades K-5 92% African American 62% Low-Income Source: School Information Partnership,

Centennial Place High Achievement for All Students Grade 5 Math, 2005
Source: School Information Partnership,

Centennial Place High Achievement for All Students Grade 5 Reading, 2005
Source: School Information Partnership,

Elmont Memorial Junior-Senior High Elmont, New York
75% African American 12% Latino 11% Asian/Pacific Islander/American Ind. 3% White 24% Low-Income Source:

Elmont Memorial High Achievement in Mathematics
Source:

Elmont Memorial High Achievement in English
Source:

University Park High School Worcester, MA
Grades 7-12; 70+% poverty; 50% ELL; Most students enter at least two grade levels behind.

University Park Results: 2004
100% of 10th graders passed MA high school exit exam on first attempt. 87% passed at advanced or proficient level. Fifth most successful school in the state, surpassing many schools serving wealthy students.

Guess What? Also very big differences in college results…even among those who serve “same” kinds of students.

Higher education institutions graduation rates

Some of these differences are clearly attributable to differences in student preparation and/or institutional mission. But not all…

Some colleges are far more successful than their students’ “stats” would suggest.

Doc/Research Institutions With Similar Students Getting Different Results
Median SAT Size % Pell Overall 6 Yr-Grad Rate White/URM Grad Rate Gap Penn State 1195 33,975 19% 83% -14% Univ of Wisconsin 1240 27,711 12% 76% -21% Texas A & M 1185 33,901 14% 75% -9% Univ of Washington 25,059 21% 71% -11% Univ of Minnesota 1145 28,273 16% 54% -19%

Masters Level Institutions With Similar Students Getting Different Results
Median SAT Size % Pell Overall 6 Yr-Grad Rate URM 6-Yr Grad Rate Millersville U of PA 1055 6369 19% 66% 46% SUNY at Plattsburgh 1045 5130 33% 59% 52% NW MO State 1010 5043 27% 53% 44% Northern Michigan U 7831 32% 45% 38%

Bac General/Masters Institutions With Similar Students Getting Different Results
Median SAT Size % Pell Overall 6 Yr-Grad Rate URM 6-Yr Grad Rate Elizabeth City (NC) 810 2039 60% 51% 54% Kentucky State 825 1827 49% 39% 44% Fayetteville State (NC) 865 3820 55% 38% U of Ark Pine Bluff 775 2918 68% 31% Coppin State (MD) 875 2691 57% 22%

College Results Online

Bottom Line: At Every Level of Education, What We Do Matters A Lot!

By the way, in case you’re not sure that these problems apply to Connecticut, take a look….

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Reading, Overall Scale Scores
Connecticut Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP Data Explorer,

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Reading, African American Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Reading, Latino Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Reading, Low-Income Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Math, Overall Scale Scores
Connecticut Source: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP Data Explorer,

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Math, African American Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Math, Latino Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 4 Math, Low-Income Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Reading, Overall Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Reading, African American Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Reading, Latino Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Reading, Low-Income Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Math, Overall Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Math, African American Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Math, Latino Scale Scores

NAEP 2005 Grade 8 Math, Low-Income Scale Scores

MOVING FORWARD

#1. Don’t be bashful about pressing for all students to graduate high school “college ready.”
High impact schools aim high for all students. Even when they start with high dropout rates, they aim students toward college and careers.

That’s Good, Because Education Pays: 2000 U.S. Median Earnings
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 Public Use Microdata Samples (based on the 2000 Decennial Census)

Growing Need for Higher Levels of Education: Projections of Education Shortages and Surpluses in 2012 Shortage Surplus Bachelor’s Degree Associates Degree Some College Source: Analysis by Anthony Carnevale, of Current Population Survey ( ) and Census Population Projection Estimates

NEW STUDY FROM ACT: College ready, workforce training ready=same thing

#2. Add your voice to the movement to make the “college prep” curriculum the default curriculum for all students.

Single biggest predictor post-high school success is QUALITY AND INTENSITY OF HIGH SCHOOL CURRICULUM
Source: Cliff Adelman, 2006, The Toolbox Revisited, U.S. Department of Education.

College prep curriculum has benefits far beyond college.

Students of all sorts will learn more...

Low Quartile Students Gain More From College Prep Courses*
*Grade 8-grade 12 test score gains based on 8th grade achievement. Source: USDOE, NCES, Vocational Education in the United States: Toward the Year 2000, in Issue Brief: Students Who Prepare for College and Vocation

They will also fail less often...

Challenging Curriculum Results in Lower Failure Rates, Even for Lowest Achievers
Ninth-grade English performance, by high/low level course, and eighth-grade reading achievement quartiles Source: SREB, “Middle Grades to High School: Mending a Weak Link”. Unpublished Draft, 2002.

And they’ll be better prepared for the workplace.

Leading districts, states making college prep the default curriculum.
Texas, Indiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Kansas.

#3. Getting All Students in Courses With the Right Labels Isn’t Enough
#3. Getting All Students in Courses With the Right Labels Isn’t Enough. Higher education can be strong partner in quality assurance strategies.

Historically, most of the really important decisions about what students should learn and what kind of work was “good enough” left to individual teachers.

Result? A System That: Doesn’t expect very much from MOST students; and, Expects much less from some types of students than others.

Students can do no better than the assignments they are given...

Grade 10 Writing Assignment
A frequent theme in literature is the conflict between the individual and society. From literature you have read, select a character who struggled with society. In a well-developed essay, identify the character and explain why this character’s conflict with society is important.

Grade 10 Writing Assignment
Write a composition of at least 4 paragraphs on Martin Luther King’s most important contribution to this society. Illustrate your work with a neat cover page. Neatness counts.

The Odyssey Ninth Grade High-level Assignment
Comparison/Contrast Paper Between Homer's Epic Poem, The Odyssey and the Movie "0 Brother Where Art Thou" By nature, humans compare and contrast all elements of their world. Why? Because in the juxtaposition of two different things, one can learn more about each individual thing as well as something about the universal nature of the things being compared. For this 2-3 page paper you will want to ask yourself the following questions: what larger ideas do you see working in The Odyssey and "0 Brother Where Art Thou"? Do both works treat these issues in the same way? What do the similarities and differences between the works reveal about the underlying nature of the larger idea?

The Odyssey Ninth Grade
Low-level Assignment Divide class into 3 groups: Group 1 designs a brochure titled "Odyssey Cruises". The students listen to the story and write down all the places Odysseus visited in his adventures, and list the cost to travel from place to place. Group 2 draws pictures of each adventure. Group 3 takes the names of the characters in the story and gods and goddesses in the story and designs a crossword puzzle.

Fertile ground for P-16 work: High quality assignments, lessons, units, end-of-course assessments.

#4. Good teachers matter big time.

Students in Dallas Gain More in Math with Effective Teachers: One Year Growth From 3rd-4th Grade
Source: Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, and Dash Weerasinghe, The Effects of Teachers on Longitudinal Student Achievement, 1997.

Cumulative Teacher Effects On Students’ Math Scores in Dallas (Grades 3-5)
Beginning Grade 3 Percentile Rank= 57 Beginning Grade 3 Percentile Rank= 55 Source: Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, and Dash Weerasinghe, The Effects of Teachers on Longitudinal Student Achievement, 1997.

Good teachers matter a lot.
But some groups of kids don’t get their fair share of quality teachers.

Classes in High Poverty High Schools More Often Taught by Misassigned
Classes in High Poverty High Schools More Often Taught by Misassigned* Teachers *Teachers who lack a major or minor in the field Source: National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future, What Matters Most: Teaching for America’s Future (p.16) 1996.

More Classes in High-Poverty, High-Minority Schools Taught By Out-of-Field Teachers
In addition, when Richard Ingersoll analyzed the SAS data, he found that these same schls are more likely to have a higher percentage of classes being taught by tchrs without a major or minor in the field for which they are teaching. The results are particularly striking in high poverty schls where there is a difference of 13 percentage points. Definitions High Poverty-A school where 50% or more of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch Low-poverty-A school where 15% or fewer of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch High-minority-A school where 50% or more of the students are nonwhite. Low-minority-A school where 15% or fewer of the students are nonwhite. High poverty Low poverty High minority Low minority Note: High Poverty school-50% or more of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low-poverty school -15% or fewer of the students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High-minority school - 50% or more of the students are nonwhite. Low-minority school- 15% or fewer of the students are nonwhite. *Teachers lacking a college major or minor in the field. Data for secondary-level core academic classes. Source: Richard M. Ingersoll, University of Pennsylvania. Original analysis for the Ed Trust of Schools and Staffing Survey.

Poor and Minority Students Get More Inexperienced* Teachers
Schls with higher proportions of poor and minority students have more inexperienced tchrs. If we take a look at the graph, we see that in high poverty schls almost double the amount of tchrs have less than three years of experience. The same is also true for high minority schls. High poverty-top quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low poverty-bottom quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High minority-top quartile; those schools with the highest concentrations of minority students. Low minority-bottom quartile of schools with the lowest concentrations of minority students High poverty Low poverty High minority Low minority *Teachers with 3 or fewer years of experience. Note: High poverty refers to the top quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. Low poverty-bottom quartile of schools with students eligible for free/reduced price lunch. High minority-top quartile; those schools with the highest concentrations of minority students. Low minority-bottom quartile of schools with the lowest concentrations of minority students Source: National Center for Education Statistics, “Monitoring Quality: An Indicators Report,” December 2000.

Teacher Quality in Illinois and Its Impact on College Readiness
Slides are based on an IERC (Illinois Education Research Council) report on college readiness in Illinois. Data is based on ACT scores and information from the ACT questionnaire for the Illinois senior class of Sample size is 113,660 students. Report can be found here:

Teacher Quality Index Illinois Education Research Council
School Level Teacher Characteristics % of Teachers with Emergency/Provisional Certification % of Teachers from More/Most Selective Colleges % of Teachers with < 4 Years Experience % of Teachers Failing Basic Skills Test on First Attempt School Average of Teachers’ ACT Composite and English Scores School Teacher Quality Index (TQI) Sources of Data: State Teacher Service Records and Teacher Certification Information System, ACT Inc, Barron’s Guide, Common Core of Data (NCES) Sample of teachers 140,000 DeAngelis, K., Presley, J. and White, B. (2005). The Distribution of Teacher Quality in Illinois.

IERC College Readiness Index
Uses ACT scores and self-reported GPA Five levels Not/least ready Minimally ready Somewhat ready More ready Most ready Index of College Readiness (Figure 1 p. 8) Most ready=GPA 3.5 or greater and at least a 23 on the ACT More ready=GPA of 2.5 or greater and at least a 23 on ACT or GPA of 3.0 or higher and at least a score of 20 on ACT Not/ ready=GPA 2.4 or lower and below at 20 on the ACT Statewide College Readiness for Class of p 13 34% Not/least ready 11% Minimally ready 17% Somewhat ready 17% More ready 20% Most ready Presley, J. and Gong, Y. (2005). The Demographics and Academics of College Readiness in Illinois.

Illinois: Distribution of School TQI by School Percent Minority
Very high percent minority schools are likely to have very low school TQIs. There is little difference in TQI distribution below the highest minority quartile (i.e. below about 60% minority).

Illinois: Distribution of School TQI by School Percent Free or Reduced Lunch
TQI distribution is strongly related to school poverty levels. The differences continue across all four poverty quartiles.

Impact?

Distribution of College Readiness by High School TQI
Figure 8 p 25 Index of College Readiness (Figure 1 p. 8) Most ready=GPA 3.5 or greater and at least a 23 on the ACT More ready=GPA of 2.5 or greater and at least a 23 on ACT or GPA of 3.0 or higher and at least a score of 20 on ACT Minimally ready=GPA ≤2.4 and on ACT or GPA and less than a 20 on ACT Not/Least ready=GPA 2.4 or lower and below at 20 on the ACT Statewide College Readiness for Class of (Table 5 p 13) 34% Not/least ready 11% Minimally ready 17% Somewhat ready 17% More ready 20% Most ready Presley, J. and Gong, Y. (2005). The Demographics and Academics of College Readiness in Illinois.

College Readiness at High Poverty, High Minority Schools by TQI
Table 15 p 27 Could not compare to highest quartile because only one school exists in that quartile. Definitions High poverty ≥50% High minority ≥90% Presley, J. and Gong, Y. (2005). The Demographics and Academics of College Readiness in Illinois.

Percent of Students More/Most Ready by High School TQI and Highest Math Level
Figure 10 p 30 Definitions Most ready=GPA 3.5 or greater and at least a 23 on the ACT More ready=GPA of 2.5 or greater and at least a 23 on ACT or GPA of 3.0 or higher and at least a score of 20 on ACT Presley, J. and Gong, Y. (2005). The Demographics and Academics of College Readiness in Illinois.

Four Concrete Things That Higher Education Can Do To Help
Help build the data systems necessary to understand teacher effectiveness and how it is distributed; Help us understand the practices and characteristics of teachers who produce strong learning gains for students; Produce more teachers with the commitment and skills to teach all students to high levels, and don’t put your stamp of approval on those without the necessary characteristics; and, Join in the effort to make sure that students in high poverty and high minority schools get the teachers they need to succeed.

5. Finally, we’ve got to get serious about success in higher education, too.

Many institutions putting higher priority on access than success.
High Impact Colleges: Focus on success, too. See AASCU and EdTrust reports

Bottom line clear: Leadership Matters
Student success must become a high priority for all academic units.

YOU can help to make this happen by setting stretch goals on student success for each of your institutions, publishing data on results, and rewarding progress.

YOU Can also help by getting work underway on the redesign of key undergraduate courses. (Carol Twigg)

Why Does All This Matter? What’s at Stake?

Nationally, there are 772 colleges where at least 5% of the undergraduates are black.
In 299 of those, the six-year graduation rates for black students are less than 30%; In 164, the six-year graduation rates for black students are less than 20%; In 68, the six-year graduation rates for black students are less than 10%.

In colleges where more than 5% of students are Latino…
25% have 6-year graduation rates for Latinos less than 30%.

Surely we can do better.

There are now about 890,000 African Americans between 25 and 34 who hold BA Degree
If we could simply cut the black-white graduation rate gap in half, the number of black college grads would grow by 10,000 per year.

Over a decade, that would produce 100,000 more African Americans with access to opportunities currently denied.

If we went further, and closed the gap, we could produce 200,000 more African Americans with such access.

Similar improvement for Latino students would mean 20,000 more Latino graduates IN TEXAS ALONE!

The Education Trust Download this Presentation And
REGISTER FOR THE EDUCATION TRUST CONFERENCE, NOV 3-5 IN WASHINGTON Washington, DC: Oakland, CA:

IMPROVING ACHIEVEMENT AND CLOSING GAPS, Pre-K Through College

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