Building Bridge Programs

1. Building Bridge Programs Mandy Williams Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute mwilliams@cccti.edu 828.726.2274

2. Workshop Objectives • Learn about CCCTI’s College Placement Test (CPT) Preparation course and design • Become more familiar with the Accuplacertest • Learn about the impact of the CPT Preparation course on student Accuplacerscores • Brainstorm and share ideas about how workshop content may be used in your own classes and programs

3. Icebreaker Which Placement Test Does Your College Use? • ACCUPLACER • COMPASS • ASSET • Other

4. The Problem • GED and Adult High School Diploma (AHSD) graduates were taking the College Placement Test (Accuplacer) and placing into developmental courses. • Students were unfamiliar with the Accuplacer and were not reviewing or practicing before taking it. • Studies indicate that less than 25 % of community college students in developmental education earn a degree within eight years.

5. Our Solution • Created Transitions Work Group with college-wide representation and input • Designed the College Placement Test Preparation Course which included transition components • Offered the course to currently enrolled GED/AHSD students and recent graduates • During the summer, offered the course to local high school graduates who scored into developmental courses when taking the Accuplacer

6. Accuplacer Results • 96 % increased their scores in at least one subject area • 81 % placed out of at least one developmental course • 39 % placed completely out of all developmental courses

7. Results by Subject Area • Reading: • 84 % placed out of at least one developmental level • 61 % placed out of all developmental reading • Sentence Skills: • 86 % placed out of at least one developmental level • 65 % placed out of all developmental English • Arithmetic: • 79 % placed out of at least one developmental level • 74 % placed out of all developmental arithmetic • Algebra: • 58 % placed out of at least one developmental level • 48 % placed out of developmental Algebra

8. More Results Accuplacer (Out of those pre-tested) • Greatest individual gain – 52 points • Average gain – 20 points TABE • 70 % increased on TABE • Greatest TABE gain – 3.5 grade levels • Average TABE gain – 2.2 grade levels

9. Student Comments • “In my opinion this class has helped me throughout these last couple weeks.  Mrs. Williams taking the time to actually sit down and discuss my problem areas with me has helped me place out of my math class.  I am very thankful that I received the opportunity to take this class.  I think it will help me in my college career.” • “I'm feeling very good about this class. It has really helped me review all I need for math. I had forgotten how to do math without a calculator, which is really bad!” • “Thanks to this class I’ve been able to go from a basic understanding of the subject areas to a deeper understanding. I was able to pass all of my placement tests!”

10. Design of CPT Preparation Course • 30 – 60 contact hours • Face-to-face instruction in reading, sentence skills, arithmetic, algebra, and test-taking strategies • Guest speakers and information about college resources (Financial Aid, TRIO SSS, Academic Support, Learning Resource Center, Early Advising and Registration) • Computerized instruction • ITTS (Instruction Targeted for TABE Success, Level A) • PLATO • Various online resources including practice CPT

11. CPT Preparation Course Objectives • Improve reading comprehension • Determine relationships between sentences • Understand correct sentence structure • Rewrite sentences according to specified criteria • Perform basic arithmetic operations • Solve relevant, multi-step mathematical problems • Perform algebraic operations • Apply algebraic concepts in problem solving • Become more familiar with college resources

12. ACCUPLACER (CPT) Test • Reading Comprehension • Sentence Skills • Arithmetic • Algebra

13. Reading Comprehension

14. Passage-Based Reading Selections • Short reading passages followed by questions based on the reading selection. • These questions check understanding of • Main idea • Supporting details • Inference • Purpose • Tone • Persuasive strategies

15. Sentence Relationships • Two sentences followed by a question asking how the sentences are related • Relationships include • Support • Detail • Contradiction • Repetition • Cause • Effect • Comparison • Contrast • Exception

16. 12 Powerful Words • Analyze • Infer • Evaluate • Describe • Support • Explain • Summarize • Compare • Contrast • Predict • Formulate • Trace

17. Ten Steps to Building College Reading Skills This book covers the following ten key reading skills: • Dictionary Use • Vocabulary in Context • Main Ideas • Supporting Details • Locations of Main Ideas • Relationships that involve addition and time • Relationships that involve examples, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect • Inferences • Implied Main Ideas • The Basics of Argument

18. Sentence Skills Test The Sentence Skills section of the Accuplacer placement test has two types of multiple-choice questions. • Sentence Correction – These questions require an understanding of sentence structure and ask you to choose the most appropriate word or phrase for the underlined portion of the sentence. • Construction Shift – These questions ask that a sentence be rewritten according to the criteria shown while maintaining essentially the same meaning as the original sentence.

19. Sentence Skills Questions These questions test one’s ability to recognize correct sentences in written English. • Pronoun-antecedent agreement • Subject-verb agreement and verb tense • Misplaced and dangling modifiers • Diction and logic • Sentence structure (fragments, subordination/coordination, and parallelism) • Comma splices and run-on sentences

20. Construction Shift Tips • When you have to rewrite a portion of a sentence or a whole sentence, never make a choice without reading all of the options. A sentence with a mechanical error will often sound okay until you have read the other choices. • Finally, since there are two types of construction shifts, be very careful to note how you are being asked to rewrite a sentence. The phrasing is usually: • The next words will be or • The new sentence will include

21. Arithmetic Test The Arithmetic section of the Accuplacer placement test measures your ability to perform basic arithmetic operations and to solve problems that involve fundamental arithmetic concepts. There are 17 questions on the Arithmetic test divided into three topic areas. • Operations with whole numbers and fractions • Operations with decimals and percents • Applications and problem solving

22. Arithmetic Topics • Whole Numbers and Fractions • Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division • Equivalent fractions and mixed numbers • Estimation • Decimals and Percents • Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division • Percent problems • Recognition of decimals, fraction, and percent equivalencies • Estimation • Applications and Problem Solving • Rate, percent, and measurement problems • Simple geometry problems • Distribution of a quantity into its fractional parts

23. Algebra Test The Algebra section of the Accuplacer placement test measures your ability to perform algebraic operations and to solve problems that involve algebraic concepts. There are 12 questions on the Algebra test divided into three topic areas. • Operations with integers and rational numbers • Operations with algebraic expressions • Translating written phrases into algebraic expressions and solving equations, inequalities, and word problems

24. Algebra Topics • Integers and Rational Numbers • Exponents and Square Roots • Absolute Value • Order of Operations • Simplifying Expressions • Evaluating Expressions • Solving Equations and Inequalities • Multiplying Polynomials and Factoring • Algebraic and Complex Fractions • Radicals

25. Websites • http://abspd.appstate.edu/training-resources/online-professional-development • http://www.readtheory.org • http://www.chompchomp.com • http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ • http://www.khanacademy.org/ • http://www.testprepreview.com/accuplacer_practice.htm • http://wcb.neit.edu/asc/prctctst.htm

26. How do you think you will use the workshop content in your class or program? Group Activity

27. Mandy Williams Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute mwilliams@cccti.edu 828.726.2274 Questions