January 2014

Orientation to the Class/Purpose for Content Area Literacy

How Does Content Area Literacy Apply to Me Circle Map

Why does the State Board for Educator Certification require this course for all pre-service teachers?

Why is content area literacy an important ingredient for addressing the needs of developmental readers and writers?

The “Readiness Gap”/College & Career Readiness Standards

IDRA Drop Out Rates “Diploma to Nowhere” Study “The Neglected R” Study NAEP Data on Reading and Writing Test Scores

▫ The gap between being fully credentialed and being fully prepared for college or an entry level job. This is a national problem that P-20 initiatives around the country are trying to solve (e.g., the College Board).

▫ “Being ready for college means that a high school graduate has the English and mathematics knowledge and skills necessary to qualify for and succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing college courses without the need for remedial coursework” (Bloom, 2011, p. 8).

▫ There are no “simple answers about how best to create a strong academic climate under difficult conditions where failure has been the historic norm” (Easton, Ponisciak & Luppescu, 2008, p. 21).

Although college and career readiness standards have been adopted in virtually every state in the country, research and theories concerned with how to address this readiness gap are still emerging.

• Accountability in Texas for Student Academic Achievement has been Largely Political Rhetoric predicated on Standardized Testing:▫ TAKS tests targeted minimum proficiency▫ Cut Scores on TAKS tests were set low▫ Curricula predicated on these low expectations for student

achievement (i.e., teaching to the test) further minimized academic expectations for high school students

▫ Since 2002, the U.S. has spent 4.4 billion on standardized testing

• Recent Efforts in Texas Aimed at Addressing the Readiness Gap:▫ College & Career Readiness Standards (please see the CCRS Standards in this

module)▫ STAAR Exam Predicated on CCRS

High school graduates are not prepared for the rigors of a college education or skills for entry-level jobs:

▫ Three in Ten Seniors are “College Ready.”

▫ Four in Ten High School Graduates are “Work Ready.”

▫ 48% of Students in West Texas take Remedial Courses in College.

▫ Nearly Four out of Five College “Remedial” Students had a High School Grade Point Average of 3.0 or Higher.

▫ A Fourth of all First-year Students at Four-year Colleges do not Return for their Second Year.

▫ 11.8% of Developmental Education Students Complete a Degree/Certificate in Texas

Sources: Diploma to Nowhere Study (2008). Strong American Schools.Morales-Vale, S. (2011). Promoting increased student persistence and success: Legislative updates, THECBPittman, K. (2010). College and career readiness. The School Administrator, 67 (6), 10-14.Wise, B. (2011). Adolescent literacy: The cornerstone of student success. The Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 52 (5), 369-375.

“I still remember my first history class I took while attending Texas State university, ‘History of the United States to 1877.’ After the first two weeks in the class I was shocked at how much reading and writing was required for just this freshman level class of college history. Nothing in my high school career had prepared me for what I was being asked to do. Having to critically read and analyze historical text in both primary and secondary source and having to know the differences between them was completely new to me.”

“And, having to write 8-10 page research papers based on both primary and secondary sources, while having to come up with a thesis statement on my own was something I never did in my high school classes or was ever mentioned.”

The statewide attrition rate was 25% for 2012-2013.

The statewide attrition rate was 27% for 2010-11. 

While our high school attrition rate is below 30 percent for the third year in a row – the lowest rate so far – at this rate, Texas will not reach universal high school education for another quarter of a century in 2036. (In 2008-2009 Texas had an Overall Attrition Rate of 31%.)

99,575 students were lost in 2012-2013. 110,804 students were lost from our public high schools in 2010-11.

The racial-ethnic gaps are dramatically higher than 28 years ago. The gap between the attrition rates of White students and Black students has increased from 7 percentage points to 12. The gap between the rates of White students and Hispanic students has increased from 18 percentage points to 19.

Black students and Hispanic students are about two times more likely to leave school without graduating with a diploma than White students.

Texas schools are losing 13 students per hour. More than 3.1 million students have been lost

from Texas high schools since 1986. We stand to lose as many as 2.8 million more students over the next 25 years.

Texas public schools are losing one out of four students.

What happens to these students when they leave high school?

The Diploma to Nowhere StudyThe Diploma to Nowhere Study

“The students who enroll in remedial education include some of the nation’smost motivated students. Our 2008 survey of remedial students found that:

■■ Nearly four out of five remedial students had a high school grade point average of 3.0 or higher.

■■More than half described themselves as good students who worked hard and nearly always completedhigh school assignments.”

Source:Diploma to Nowhere Study, 2008

College Remediation Rates in TexasCollege Remediation Rates in Texas

Texas Remediation Rates38 percent of students at public two year institutions enrolled in at least one remedial course in the fall of 2006.24 percent of students at public four year institutions enrolled in at least one remedial course in the fall of 2006.

Remediation Costs $184.8 million in state appropriations provided for remedial education in public two and four year ‑institutions in 2002–03.An additional $5.8 million was provided in the state Developmental Education Program Performance Fund in 2002–03.

Policies & InitiativesIn an effort to reduce college remediation, the state has developed

the following initiatives:

1. adopted a P–20 College Readiness and Success Strategic Action Plan to increase student success and2. tried to decrease the number of students enrolling in developmental courses in postsecondary institutions.3. developed college readiness standards.4. established summer higher education bridge programs to provide students who are not college ready with appropriate instruction prior to entering college.5. provided funds for institutions to implement research based or

innovative developmental education initiatives.6. provided financial aid to students who are not college ready.

In 2003 “The Neglected ‘R’” study found no one was teaching writing in K-12 or post-secondary settings beyond a very minimal and poorly designed manner.

“Writing is how students connect the dots in their knowledge. Although many models of effective ways to teach writing exist, both the teaching and practice of writing are increasingly shortchanged throughout the school and college years” (p. 3)

“Very few high school instructors in disciplines such as history, science, or mathematics are exposed to courses in how to teach writing . . . Part of the difficulty is that pre- and in-service teacher professional development rarely offers teachers an opportunity to see themselves as writers—to experience the power and satisfaction of writing as a means of learning and self-expression” (p. 23).

Unfortunately, the findings from this study changed nothing in our educational systems in the U.S.

The NAEP 2007 writing assessment was conducted nationally at grades 8 and 12 and in 45 states and the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools at grade 8 only. Approximately 139,900 students were assessed at grade 8, and 27,900 were assessed at grade 12.

At grade 8 in 2007The average writing score was 3 points higher than in 2002 and 6 points

higher than in 1998. The percentage of students performing at or above the Basic level increased

from 85 percent in 2002 to 88 percent and was also higher than in 1998. The percentage of students performing at or above the Proficient level was higher than in 1998 but showed no significant change since 2002.

At grade 12 in 2007 The average writing score was 5 points higher than in 2002 and 3 points

higher than in 1998.The percentage of students performing at or above the Basic level increased

from 74 percent in 2002 to 82 percent and was also higher than in 1998. The percentage of students performing at or above the Proficient level was

higher than in 1998 but showed no significant change since 2002.

24% of students in both 8th and 12th grade scored at the proficient level.

54% of students in 8th grade scored at the basic level. 52% of students in 12th grade scored at the basic level. 20% of students in 8th grade scored below the basic

level. 21% of students in 12th grade scored below the basic

level. 3% of students in 8th and 12th grade scored at the

advanced level.

1. BASIC denotes partial mastery of prerequisiteknowledge and skills that are fundamental forproficient work at a given grade.

2. PROFICIENT represents solid academic performance.Students reaching this level have demonstratedcompetency over challenging subject matter.

3. ADVANCED represents superior performance.

So, what does this data mean?

We are not preparing most middle and high school level learners for the academic literacy tasks measured on the NAEP writing exam.

Concepts about Content Area Literacy Concepts about Content Area Literacy Guiding This CourseGuiding This Course

Reading and writing (a broad array of texts and sign systems) are ways of thinking.

Reading and writing support students’ conceptual understandings of content matter.

Reading, writing, and discussion are methods that foster students’ participation in classroom learning.

Every discipline utilizes literacy practices in ways that are unique to that discipline.

Teachers are key literacy models for their students especially as experts of disciplinary literacies.

The enjoyment of reading and the expression of ideas through writing can co-exist with content area curriculum.

You do not have to be a “reading or writing teacher” or possess a great deal of experience with literacy to effectively integrate literacy into your instruction.

“Students need lots of rich, literacy-based learning experiences across the school day, and sometimes those experiences require specific instruction in reading, but all have the ultimate goal of learning and thinking” (Ivey & Fisher, 2006, p. xv).

Please consider the following question:

How does content area literacy apply to me?

As we work through the materials for this class, I would like you to think about how you would complete the circles on this circle map.

Your Definition of Content Area

Literacy:

Personal Experiences with

Content Area Literacy I have had

as a Student:

Theories About Content Area

Literacy that Inform My Thinking as a

Teacher:

Please review the syllabus and post questions you have about its contents on the question discussion thread or via email.