How To Support Adjunct Professors To Increase Effective Teaching

The idea that providing more support for non-tenure-track faculty (NTTFs) is prohibitively expensive is a myth, argue the authors. They back up their argument with suggestions, among them: include NTTFs in academic freedom statements, provide access to instructional materials, provide access to professional development, extend opportunities to participate in departmental meetings and curriculum design, and facilitate opportunities for faculty mentoring. (The Delphi project on the Changing Faculty and Student Success)- Source-ECS

Latinos Lag Behind in College Graduation, But Some Policies Help Them Succeed

Kathryn Baron, Edsource

Latinos are the fastest growing population of the state’s students, but they have the lowest college graduation rates, according a new report by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Campaign for College Opportunity.

In California, Latinos lag behind all other ethnic groups in college completion, according to the report: 11 percent of Latino adults have earned at least a bachelor’s degree, compared to 39 percent of whites and 23 percent of African Americans.

“We are on track to produce a generation of young people less educated than our older population,” the report’s authors wrote.

That has serious economic consequences for the state and for the students. California receives $4.80 for each dollar it invests in putting a student through college, according to the report, because a college degree fetches a higher salary and therefore more income tax revenue for the state.

“We consider this to be an economic justice issue,” said Rob Lapsley, president of the California Business Roundtable, an organization of business executives.

The irony is that Latino high school graduates are enrolling in college in record numbers compared to past generations of Latinos, said Michele Siqueiros, executive director of the Campaign, during a webinar Tuesday morning to discuss the report.

There are other hopeful signs, too. Latino children, especially those born in the United States, “have high aspirations” and their parents’ support, Siqueiros said. More than 90 percent of Latino parents believe that college is very important for their children, according to a survey by the Public Policy Institute of California.

For now, however, the challenges have the upper hand.

Roadblocks

“Latinos are less likely to enroll in a four-year university, less likely to attend a selective college, less likely to enroll (in college) full time and less likely to complete a certificate or bachelor’s degree,”

Siqueiros said.

Seven out of 10 Latino high school graduates who go on to college, including those who attended top-performing high schools, enroll in community college, the report said. Still, they represent less than 40 percent of all community college students, and they’re less likely to obtain degrees or certificates. They’re also underrepresented at California State University and the University of California, and in private colleges and universities.

One huge reason for these dismal statistics is what doesn’t happen in high school. Only three in 10 Latino high school students complete the prerequisites, known as A to G courses, required for admission to Cal State and UC. Once accepted to college, most Latino students aren’t ready for college-level math and English and are placed in remedial classes; many students who require remedial coursework ultimately drop out of college.

The Campaign offers five recommendations for improving college success for Latino students, many of which have been suggested before. The report calls on the governor and Legislature to develop a statewide plan to increase college completion rates; to implement better coordination between the K-12 and higher education systems to ensure students enter college prepared for higher-level studies; to improve the college counseling and advising systems; and do a better job of helping students apply for financial aid.

The fifth recommendation calls for increasing funding for higher education, and providing financial incentives for colleges to improve graduation rates of underrepresented minorities, essentially a form of performance-based funding that has many critics in California.

The report estimates that by closing the gaps in enrollment and graduation, another 790,000 Californians could earn their bachelor’s degrees. What we’re seeing now, Siqueiros said, is “our campuses are welcoming students, but unfortunately they’re dropping off.”

States Struggle With Definition Of Career Ready

A new report from the Center on Education Policy offers a broad overview of state policies for defining career readiness and assessing technical skills since adoption of the Common Core. While 45 states report that they or their districts assess students for career readiness, just 14 states have established a definition of what it means to be career- or work-ready: Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, and Virginia. Another 20 states are in the process of developing a definition. Survey respondents in just 11 states reported career-readiness assessments have been or are being aligned with the Common Core. Twenty states said it was too soon to know whether or how their career and technical assessments might change in response to the standards. Thirty-eight of responding states reported using these assessment results to meet federal accountability requirements for the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act; 21 survey states use them for school accountability, and 19 use them for student accountability. Only four states permit students to substitute scores on career and technical assessments for scores on high school exit exams required for a diploma.  More From Public Education Newsblast

Quest For Perfect Data Hinders Finding Worst Colleges

COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM CAN HAPPEN RIGHT NOW, stresses New America’s Clare McCann. Setting a floor for institutions to meet minimal requirements based on data the Department of Education already collects would help weed out the “worst of the worst.” Read more on why waiting for perfect data is hurting accountability efforts in the present at EdCentral.

Outcomes Based College Funding Lacks Political Will, Not Technical Design

What used to be performance funding now is called outcomes-based funding, and while desired outcomes vary from state to state, one universal goal is upping the graduation rate. As more states move to outcomes-based funding, aligning their programs with state goals, more is known about what works in implementation and design. Author Dennis Jones writes the issue now is one of political will, not technical know-how. State examples are provided. (NCHEMS and Complete College America)

Can Any Test Measure College Graduates Learning?

By Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President & CEO, Educational Policy Institute

Last month, Time Magazine and Minnesota Public Radio both interviewed me about the use of the Collegiate Learning Assessment PLUS (CLA+) as a measure of “workforce readiness.” For the uninitiated, the CLA+ is a reuse of the “College Learning Assessment,” created by Rand Corporation with support of several large philanthropies back in the 2000s. I wrote about the CLA in the Swail Letter back on November 18, 2011.

In short, I have never agreed with the premise that a singular test could truly measure what a student—any student—learned while in college. It’s like that Robert Fulghum poem that many of us have had on our walls at one time: “All I Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.” How an organization, let alone a school of researchers, could wither four years of liberal arts, scientific, or other four-year postsecondary education into a number is a little beyond me. It’s one thing to use the SAT or ACT to give an indicator of college readiness (and we know that the correlation is still limited past the first year of college), but something completely else to try and do the same thing to gauge what a student learns in 1,800-plus hours of holistic instruction.

Now the Council for Aid to Education (CAE), the mothership for the CLA+, wants to expand the CLA empire and start charging students and universities to take yet another test at $35 a pop.

Here is what I said to Time Magazine:

“The idea of the CLA+ is to measure learning at various institutions and compare them. I don’t think that’s technically possible with such a diverse system of higher education. That’s based on the fact that all the curriculums are different, textbooks are different, and you’re expecting to get some measure of—in a very generic way across all ­curriculums—how someone learns in one institution compared to another. All institutions are different, and all of their students are different.”

READ MORE OF THIS SWAIL LETTER ON HIGHER EDUCATION

USA Tuition Is High In International Comparison

It is hard to find a tuition comparison that involves many countries so see below

We at Top10onlinecolleges.org published an infographic which we really think will add value to your blog and readers interest, the post “College Tuition Around The World” (http://www.top10onlinecolleges.org/college-tuition/).

Self Regulation As A Key To College Success

How can schools boost students’ self-regulation?
Cecilia Le and Rebecca E. Wolfe, Phi Delta Kappan
In this article, Jobs for the Future authors Le and Wolfe expand on the Students at the Center paper Motivation, Engagement, and Student Voice, finding that research, documentation, commentary, and policy all point to the fact that mastering academic content and skills is not sufficient for today’s youth. In order to fully prepare students for success in college, career, and civic life, education must incorporate additional behaviors, skills, and mindsets, often called metacognitive skills or 21st-century skills. The article profiles three schools and programs serving low-income, off-track youth that have recognized the importance of these metacognitive skills.

Massachusetts Makes Big Bet on Performance Funding

Massachusetts is in the first phases of moving toward performance funding for its community colleges and education leaders hope it will generate a flood of talent to fill local jobs. Massachusetts is setting aside half of its community college funds for that purpose. Tennessee is the only other state that goes that far. Massachusetts also increased its community college funding by $20 million after years of cutbacks. (Governing, 11/01/13)

10 Things To Know About Common Core College Prep

As a rebuttal to critics of Common Core look at the following:

http://msde.state.md.us/cc/pr/22.pdf