Six Ways to Improve Students’ Preparation For College

Six Ways to Improve

Students’ Preparation for College

By Jill Jenkins

            According to the Center for Public Education, two-fifths of entering college freshmen are not prepared for the academic rigors of college.  In Utah, according to KSL News only 25% of the students graduating from high school are actually prepared for college. The article reveals that 80% of high school students plan to attend college, but only 40% will actually enroll.  Fifty percent of that 40% will drop out after only one year.  Nationally, 35% of the students who enter college will drop out after one year and according to the National Trust, a Washington non-profit. 63% of those who enroll will actually earn a Bachelor Degree.  Preparing students with a more rigorous curriculum of the new Common Core is one step of preparing students to graduate from college, but is there more we should be doing?

#1 Time in the Classroom

            Many middle school and high school teachers complain that schools spend too much time on  activities, assemblies, sport events, and helping students’ who are behind all taking much of their instruction time.  With the increased rigor of the new Common Core Curriculum, teachers need more time to instruct their students.  Because of “No Child Left Behind, activities like Teacher Advisory classes serving only the lowest ten percent of the students have become the focus.  Teaching to the lowest common denominator does not help those with low skills. In fact, everyone's instruction suffers. Identifying why a specific student is struggling and addressing that problem with remedial classes, tutoring or incentives to attend regularly is a better approach.   “Common Core Curriculum preparation and testing is another time-consumer.  Even collaboration time which is important to develop appropriate teaching material depletes the time that teachers so desperately need to prepare students.  The answer is the administration needs to limit the activities and programs, thus giving teaching the academic curriculum priority over activities.  School can be fun, but not at students’ academic expense.

#2 Prepare Students with Learning Skills

     Most colleges expect students to know how to listen to a lecture and take notes, how to read a textbook independently and identify the main points, how to create a coherent composition on demand, to have mastered mathematical skills through basic Algebra and Geometry and to exhibit an ability to manage their time and behavior well enough to study and complete assignments in a timely manner.  Over time, middle school and high school teachers have virtually eliminated lecturing and note-taking because students lack those skills and their academic grades suffer.  Furthermore, lecturing is not the most effective method to deliver instruction.  Students lose interest quickly and fall asleep or play on their cell phones. The teachers are, in turn, badly evaluated when any student fail.  Teachers and administrations need to help students develop note-taking and listening skills by practicing them.  Students need to write and read in every discipline.  They should not be pablum-fed the material, but given independent reading and writing assignments and given specific instruction to improve their ability to read difficult non-fiction materials and respond to questions in well-written, coherent essays.  Students should be encouraged to take college preparatory courses in math, science, history and language arts.   Most importantly students should be given projects where they are encouraged to plan their own time, research, write and present before a class.  Gradually reducing the student’s reliance on the teacher will help the student become a more independent learner.  Students who have language barriers need to have specified training to help them develop the language skills they need to be successful.  In too many situations, schools have cut bi-lingual programs to save money or asked teachers “to do the best you can” with a student with no language skills assigned to a class of 35 to 40 students.  This is unfair to the student developing language skills, the teachers and rest of the class.

#3  Homework

            Yes, there is a new push to eliminate homework from K-12 schools, but if students are going to be successful in college, they need to practice completing homework and studying for tests at home.  Homework shouldn’t be overwhelming, but gradually should grow as the student becomes older.  By the time a student is in middle school, he should be able to complete 20-30 minutes a night for each of his academic classes.  This means he should expect 80 minutes to two hours of homework per night.  This homework should be relevant and meaningful.  Even though having a part-time job teaches responsibility, keep the hours low so the student can invest enough time on his academic career.  Athletics also should be limited to an hour after school to enable the student to complete his academic studies.  Parents who complain need to understand that properly preparing a student for a future will mean he/she will be able to more successfully support himself/herself financially if that student has prepared himself/herself for the rigors of a college education.  It also means that often students will need to select which activities they need to be involved.  No one can do everything.  Still colleges look at the student’s GPA and activities when selecting students, so by no means am I saying that all extra curricular activities should be eliminated.  On the contrary, be selective and choose those that the student excels.  He will be happier.  If he/she is successful, he could earn a scholarship based on his participation.

#4 Financial Investment

            College is not cheap.  The financial burden to an economically strapped family can seem overwhelming.  There is financial aide available: scholarships, loans and grants.  If a student works hard, he can alleviate part of the financial burden by taking Advanced Placement classes, concurrent enrollment (taking college classes while completing high school courses) or completing on-line college classes while still in high school.  Keeping his grade point average high and participating in activities like debate, drama, speech, sports or the arts could help the student qualify for scholarships.  Grants and loans are available for students with low-income.  Many teachers and parents discourage students from applying for loans fearing that if the child does not succeed, he/she will be overburdened with debt in a time when finding employment can be difficult  The New York Times article “Reports Shows Low Graduation Rates at For-Profit Colleges, that the truth is according to “Subprime Opportunity,” only 22% of student enrolled in private for-profit colleges graduate, compared to 55% from public colleges and 65% from private non-profit colleges. This means as a consumer, a student needs to select his college carefully, be prepared and be willing to take a financial risk that might increase his ability to provide his family a pathway out of poverty.   More importantly, never let a dream be deferred.

Harlem

BY LANGSTON HUGHES

What happens to a dream deferred?

      Does it dry up

      like a raisin in the sun?

      Or fester like a sore—

      And then run?

      Does it stink like rotten meat?

      Or crust and sugar over—

      like a syrupy sweet?

      Maybe it just sags

      like a heavy load.

      Or does it explode?

#5 A Map a Pathway to a Future

“Great artists make the roads; good teachers and good companions can point them out. But there ain't no free rides, baby. No hitchhiking. And if you want to strike out in any new direction — you go alone. With a machete in your hand and the fear of God in your heart.”

― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Language of the Night: Essays on Fantasy and Science Fiction

     A good teacher helps students find the roads of their future and show them how they might achieve them.  Many students are just afraid to leave the comfort of high school and move on to college; many students are the first generation to attend college and their parents’ fear of losing their child to a strange world in which they have no experience; and many students lack the motivation to take the first steps to their future.  Whatever problem is holding the child back, the school needs to address.  Workshops for parents to introduce them to the processes of enrolling their child in college should begin in middle school and continue through high school.  Workshops for students about possible career choices and education requirements for those goals should also begin in middle school.  Students who have a goal when they begin their education are more likely to finish it successfully.  Workshops for both students and parents about the financial aide opportunities should also be available early in the process.  Keeping the students and parents informed about the student’s academic process and helping them to select courses to prepare the child for the rigors of college should begin early in the child’s education and continue.  This means that a well-prepared counseling center is essential for a student to become successful.   For some students language barriers may be a deterrent; however, there are resources available and the teacher needs to be aware of these resource and communicate them to the parent. Many parents may believe erroneously that because their father dropped out of school after the 8th grade and supported a family of seven as a welder, there is no need for their child to pursue a college education; however, times have changed.  Most of the jobs that only require a high school education have gone overseas and opportunities for students without any education do not exist.  If a student is going to earn enough money to support a family, he/she needs some form of post-high school education.  If a student is planning on living comfortably, he/she needs a college degree.  To help the parents understand this, schools need to begin communicating this message in elementary school especially in the lower economic neighborhoods.

#6 A Time and a Place

           

Brutus:
 There is a tide in the affairs of men.


Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;


Omitted, all the voyage of their life


Is bound in shallows and in miseries.


On such a full sea are we now afloat,


And we must take the current when it serves,


Or lose our ventures.

Julius Caesar Act 4, scene 3, 218–224

            Finally, this is the tide of affairs in young students’ lives when the decisions they make affect them more than any other time, yet one of greatest distractions for students is the euphoria of youth.  Students love to socialize.  Many times that means alcohol, drugs, unprotected sexual intercourse and any number of nonsensical, dangerous behaviors. This lack of self-control has caused more than one student to drop out after one year of college.  College is an expensive undertaking and students need to understand that many students throughout the world would love to have their place at that college.  They are competing with every other student in the world for an education.  The world has become much smaller.  This means their opportunities could be snatched away by a student more motivated to study than play.  Although they have watched countless movies about teenagers sent to college for a mad romp, they need to understand that those are just movies; they are not real.  The reality is if they settle down and concentrate, if they accept delayed gratification, they can have a richer more prosperous life.

Six Ways To Improve Students’ Writing

Six Ways To Improve Students’ Writing

By Jill Jenkins

#1 Using Data

·      Teachers can use data easily if they are using a computer-based writing program to teach writing.  Most of these programs allow teachers, department chairs and district administrators to access data on each student, each class of students, each grade level, each school and the entire district.  The data shows students’ performance on each writing trait, and specific punctuation and grammar skills.  Identifying students’ weaknesses and strengths can improve instruction.  As a district identify teachers whose classes did well on a trait or a skill where other teachers did poorly.  Ask these instructors to share their successful teaching methods with others in their district.  Not all teacher will use these best practices, but many will; thereby, improving instruction throughout the district or the school.  Administrators who identify teachers whose writing scores continue to be lower than the norm and refuse to use best practices can insist these teachers comply or relieve them of their duties.

·      For many of the writing traits further analysis is needed to improve instruction because the traits are often general encompassing many specific attributes.  Furthermore, different computer products vary in the scope of each of these traits, so it is a good idea to question representatives of the particular product you are using.  For example, My Access, the writing trait “organization” does not only include the structure of the paper, i.e. introductory paragraph, supporting paragraphs and concluding paragraphs, but also the internal structure of each paragraph including the use of transitional words and phrases, and Sentence Fluency (both variety in sentence length and sentence structure).  To improve instructions teachers need to read the students’ papers and identify the particular weaknesses.  If the teachers collaborate and share their findings, they can design and share assignments that will address the students’ weaknesses.

#2 Using Models

·      For students to develop the ability to write coherently, they need to “study” good writing models.  It is best to break the piece down into small bits and look at each piece individually.  For example, begin by showing students what a good “lead” looks like before moving to the other parts of the introductory paragraph.  Find examples of good leads in articles and essays and share them with your students with your document camera.  After a writing assignment reinforces this by selecting papers with excellent “leads’, acceptable “leads” and those with no “leads” or poorly written “leads”.   Present each to your classes and ask pairs of students or trios of students to discuss the quality of each.  By using papers from another class and cutting the students’ names off of them, students will spend less time worrying about whose paper it is and more time concentrating on the quality of the writing.  Even better, if you collaborate with other teachers, you can select papers from another teacher’s classes, cut the names off and students will be less worried about whether their paper will appear as an example.  Using models from both students’ papers and professional writers can help students understand how good writing looks and begin imitating quality writing. Remember show, don't tell applies to teaching as well as writing. 

#3 Peer Editing

“Friends Don’t Let Friends Turn In Bad Papers”

·      Students learn to identify problems in their writing by discovering them in other’s writing.  Since they often are too emotionally connected to spot problems in their own writing, peer editing can be a useful tool.  Most students lack the skill to identify problems on their own, so it is essential to provide them with a detailed rubric.  Without one, they will write meaningless compliments like “nice work” on their friends’ papers and horribly, debilitating insults on students’ paper that they don’t like.  Without a detailed rubric, peer editing can do more harm to insecure writers.  Below is a rubric that I have found useful:

_________________________________________________________________________________

Evaluation of Writing

Content and Organization:

1. Does each paragraph contain 7-10 sentences
2. Is there an introductory paragraph containing
1. A lead (a series of questions, a thought provoking quote, a story, or a startling fact)
2. Three sub-points (reasons)
3. A thesis statement
4. A conclusion?
3. Is there a second paragraph containing:
1. A topic sentence containing sub-point one
2. Three examples or supporting facts
3. Commentary on each example or fact
4. A concluding sentence?
4. Is there a third paragraph containing:
1. A topic sentence containing sub-point two
2. Three examples or supporting facts
3. Commentary on each example or fact
4. A concluding sentence?
5. Is there a fourth paragraph containing:
1. A topic sentence containing sub-point three
2. Three examples or supporting facts
3. Commentary on each example or fact
4. A concluding sentence?
6. Is there a fifth paragraph containing:
1. A refutation
2. Supporting evidence and analysis
7. Is there a sixth paragraph containing:
1. A summary of all three sub-points
2. A restatement of the thesis
3. A strongly worded conclusion
8. Is there transition words or phrases like:
1. First,
2. Second
3. Third
4. For example
5. In another instance
6. In conclusion,
9. Score the paper
1. 5 points Practically Perfect, a Mary Poppins’ paper
2. 4 points Almost there . . .maybe just missing transition words
3. 3 points So-So Its okay, but it could be better
4. 2 points Not even close
5. 1 point Not even in the ballpark

Voice and Word Choice

1. Does the paper use any of the following words: I, Me, We, My or You?
2. Does the paper use any informal language like: kids, mom, dad?
3. Find ten words that are weak words highlight them and offer another choice.
4. Find a passive voice sentence highlight it and revise it to be an active voice sentence.
5. Grade this section:
1. 5 points Practically Perfect, a Mary Poppins’ paper
2. 4 points Almost there . . .
3. 3 points So-So Its okay, but it could be better
4. 2 points Not even close
5. 1 points Not even in the ballpark

Sentence Fluency:

1. Write down the first five words of the first ten sentences:
1. _______________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________________
3. _______________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________________
5. _______________________________________________________________________________
6. _______________________________________________________________________________
7. ________________________________________________________________________________
8. ________________________________________________________________________________
9. _______________________________________________________________________________
10. ________________________________________________________________________________
2. Revise these sentences so they all begin with a different pattern
1. _______________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________________
3. _______________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________________
5. _______________________________________________________________________________
6. _______________________________________________________________________________
7. ________________________________________________________________________________
8. ________________________________________________________________________________
9. _______________________________________________________________________________
10. ________________________________________________________________________________
3. Count the words in each of these sentences. If they are all the same or similar in length, there is a problem.
1. _______________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________________
3. _______________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________________
5. _______________________________________________________________________________
6. _______________________________________________________________________________
7. ________________________________________________________________________________
8. ________________________________________________________________________________
9. _______________________________________________________________________________
10. ________________________________________________________________________________
4. Find examples of a simple sentence._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Find examples of a compound sentence._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6. Find examples of a complex sentence._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. Find examples of a compound-complex sentence sentence._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. Evaluate their Sentence Fluency
1. 5 points Practically Perfect, a Mary Poppins’ paper
2. 4 points Almost there . . .
3. 3 points So-So Its okay, but it could be better
4. 2 points Not even close
5. 1 point Not even in the ballpark

Conventions

1. Proof-read the paper for spelling, grammar, and usage mistakes
2. Grade this section
1. 5 points Practically Perfect, a Mary Poppins’ paper 1-2 errors
2. 4 points Almost there . . . 3-5 errors
3. 3 points So-So Its okay, but it could be better 5-7 errors
4. 2 points Not even close 7-10 errors
5. 1 point Not even in the ballpark more than 10 errors.

Comments

 After our peer editing, I give my students another week to complete their papers. I have debated the time.  If you give them too much time, they simply forget to do it, but if you get them too few days, there parents will be in the office complaining that you’re putting too much pressure on their students. 

________________________________________________________________________________           

·      Second, creating an atmosphere where students perceive peer editing as an opportunity to help each other rather than ridicule each other is imperative. I like to hang a slogan in my room: “Friends Don’t Let Friends Turn In Bad Papers.”  Continual reminders that as an editor, they are looking for what the writer does “right” as well as providing solutions to improve that paper. 

·      What do you do about the students who never write a rough draft?  This was always a problem because some times 50% of the class came unprepared.  To avoid this I have students use an entire class period to write a rough draft that I collect at the end of the period.  The next day, I return their rough drafts and have them type a rough draft into My Access.  At the end of that class period, I again collect the rough drafts.  That evening, I print the students’ My Access essays.  The next day, I return the student’s typed essays to them and the hand-written rough drafts for those who were absent the previous day.  This means I only have about 25% of the students who missed both days.  All of the students who are prepared exchange papers to participate in peer editing.  Those who have no papers, have the entire class period to write a rough draft and earn 75% of the credit.  They are all given a peer editing form to take home.  When they bring it back complete, they can earn the remaining 25% of their credit.  The logic behind this is the only way that students improve their writing is to actually write.  Many students are absent on writing days because they are avoiding something that they don’t feel comfortable doing, writing. 

#4 Sentence Sense

·      Many of my students believe that if they have no run-ons or fragments, then their sentence fluency is perfect.  As a result many students have paragraphs that are five sentences long with seven words in each of their simple sentences. (I don’t know where they heard that five sentences is a well-developed paragraph, but they believe it religiously.)  To alleviate this, when I have them peer edit or when we look at writing samples, I have them count the number of words in each sentence and copy the first five words of each sentence to decipher if the paper has good sentence variety.  Showing student the difference between simple sentences, compound sentences, complex sentences and compound-complex sentences will improve their use of more varied sentence structures.  Second, have them identify each difference sentence structure in sample writings and examples on sentence strips.   Third, have them write examples of their own.  Finally require that they include examples of each sentence structure in their compositions.  Have them highlight and label each sentence structure with a different color.

#5 Revision

·      To improve their writing students need to practice revising their own writing or someone else’s.  One method is to have students rewrite their papers after the peer editing activity.  Glossing: have them highlight each change that they made from their first edition and write comments describing what changes they made and explaining what effect it had on their paper. 

·      Another method is to give students a writing sample and ask them to revise it by combining as many sentences as they can by using as many different sentence structures as they can.

·      A third method is to ask students to move one computer to the left, read the student’s writing and revise it in a different color font.  If you don’t have a computer lab available, simply ask them to pass their papers to the left, read them and revise them using a different color of ink.

#6 Write Often

·      Finally students need to write often in a variety of genres.  The more experience they have, the more confident they feel and the more their writing will improve.  Reading and writing are intricately related so make certain you connect writing to pieces of literature, articles and writing samples.  Keep the experience fun and don’t forget to give every student positive feedback.  People do not like to repeat experiences that are painful and negative, so keep it fun and positive.