Replicating the Accelerated Learning Program: Preliminary but Promising Findings D C AWN OLEMAN J 2014 ANUARY Prepared in Collaboration with: COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF BALTIMORE COUNTY ACHIEVING THE DREAM Funding for this study was provided by The Kresge Foundation. The findings and opinions in this report are those of the authors and do not represent the opinions of the funder. We are grateful to our colleagues at Community College of Baltimore County and Achieving the Dream for providing helpful feedback on draft versions of this report. In particular, Susan Gabriel, Co-Director of the Accelerated Learning Program at CCBC, was invaluable during the editing process. We would like to thank the many colleges who took the time to respond to our inventory survey, including the following seven colleges who participated in Phase 2 of this study and were kind enough to share data and answer all of our questions as we learned about their programs: College A – Jackson College College B – Lansing Community College College C – Mesa Community College College D – Black River Technical College College E – Gwinnett Technical College College F – North Arkansas College College G – Atlantic Cape Community College Finally, we are especially grateful to the many students, faculty, and administrators at Jackson College and Lansing Community College who shared their time, their opinions and their classrooms with us. Research team: Dawn Coleman, Director, The Center for Applied Research Michelle Wilson, Project Manager, The Center for Applied Research Please address all questions to: Dawn Coleman Director, Center for Applied Research Central Piedmont Community College PO Box 35009 Charlotte, NC 28235 704-330-6702 www.cpcc-cfar.com Email: [email protected] Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 1 PHASE 1: CHARTING THE LANDSCAPE OF ACCELERATED LEARNING PROGRAMS ........... 3 PHASE 2: A CLOSER LOOK AT SEVEN ACCELERATED LEARNING PROGRAMS .................. 12 PHASE 3: A CASE STUDY OF TWO COLLEGES IMPLEMENTING ALP ...................................... 23 SOME FINAL THOUGHTS .................................................................................................................... 32 REFERENCES ......................................................................................................................................... 35 INVENTORY OF ACCELERATED LEARNING PROGRAMS ........................................................... 36 INTRODUCTION In 2007, the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) launched a new innovation in developmental writing. The Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) was designed to accelerate the progress of developmental education students into the college-level writing course by co-enrolling them in the highest level of developmental writing along with the college-level course. Since its inception, ALP has been the subject of several studies by the Community College Research Center (CCRC) that showed a positive impact on student outcomes in both the developmental course and the college-level course. ALP has been highlighted by the Center for Community College Student Engagement (CCCSE) as an example of a high impact educational practice and Complete College America has recommended replacing traditional developmental education and making co-requisite models, which include ALP, the default for students who place into developmental education. MDRC has also pointed to ALP as a successful example of mainstreaming developmental students into college-level courses. In an environment in which policy makers and college administrators are looking for ways to reform the system of developmental education and to improve student outcomes, ALP offers one model of reform that has produced impressive results at CCBC. Under the ALP model, ten students who placed into the upper level of developmental writing are mainstreamed into the college-level writing course along with ten students who placed into college-level writing. The college- level course is not modified to accommodate the developmental writing students; the high standards of the college-level course are maintained. However, the ten developmental students are co-enrolled in the developmental writing course which meets immediately following the college-level course. The same instructor teaches both classes. TRADITIONAL MODEL ALP MODEL Semester 1 Semester 2 Semester 1 Developmental College-Level College-Level ALP Developmental Course Course Course Course The ALP developmental education class is structured to support the college-level course through backwards design. The goals and objectives of the college-level course guide the work done in the ALP developmental course. Under the traditional model of developmental education, students must pass the developmental course before moving on to the college-level course in the following semester. Under ALP, both courses can be completed concurrently, shortening the time spent in developmental education while also eliminating the potential exit point between the developmental course and the college-level course. CCCSE has identified ALP as an example of an accelerated or fast-track approach to developmental education and as one of the models associated with higher benchmark scores on measures of support for learners and 1 engaged learning. Some fast-track models accelerate students by offering compressed courses which allow students to take the developmental course followed by the college level course within the same term. However, while ALP is also clearly designed to reduce time spent in the developmental sequence, the philosophy behind ALP is more focused on the co-requisite aspect of acceleration. Ultimately, the goal of ALP is to increase the proportion of students who succeed in the college-level writing course; the ALP developmental course is just a means of achieving that goal, rather than a stand-alone course. This necessitates enrolling students in the college- level course and designing the ALP developmental course to support the college-level course. In addition to accelerating students into the college-level course, ALP also eliminates the potential exit point between the developmental and college-level course. Early data from ALP demonstrated impressive results showing that more than twice as many ALP students passed the college-level course compared to students who followed the traditional developmental sequence. More extensive studies by CCRC have shown that, compared to traditional developmental students, ALP students have higher success rates in both the first and second college-level writing course, earn more credits, and are retained at higher rates. ALP has also been shown to be more cost-effective in terms of the cost per successful student. Other colleges have begun replicating the CCBC ALP model. In particular, Arkansas, Indiana, Michigan, Colorado, Virginia, and Connecticut have begun large-scale implementation of ALP. However, most of these programs are still in their infancy and have not been studied extensively. This study is intended as the first of many studies examining the implementation of ALP at institutions other than CCBC. The goal is to begin assessing the extent to which ALP can be replicated by other institutions and still achieve the level of success achieved at CCBC. Many colleges have found it necessary to modify the model to fit their own environments, and we hope to examine those modifications in order to determine which characteristics of ALP are critical for its success and which allow for more flexibility. This study was conceived of as a funnel, beginning with a broad survey of the landscape of the implementation of ALPs around the country and an examination of college and programmatic level data. This phase of the study was followed by an examination of student-level data from a sample of seven colleges to compare the outcomes of ALP students to traditional developmental students. The third phase was a qualitative case study of the implementation of ALP at two colleges. In this report, a chapter is devoted to each phase of the study. Finally, we offer some thoughts about how our findings may begin answering the question of which characteristics of ALP are critical to its success and some thoughts about future areas of study. This study was designed to be exploratory, and consequently it raises more questions than it answers, but we hope that this study will be the first of many and that it provides preliminary information that will be helpful to other colleges considering implementing ALP. 2 PHASE 1: CHARTING THE LANDSCAPE OF ACCELERATED LEARNING PROGRAMS In order to assess the landscape of ALPs across the country, we reached out to colleges known to have implemented some version of the CCBC ALP model, asked them to complete a survey, and requested that they also forward the survey to other colleges with an accelerated learning program. Our starting point was the information contained on the Accelerated Learning Program website (www.alp-deved.org). The survey was designed to build upon the inventory on the ALP site, created by CCBC and populated by colleges who submit their information. In addition to the data currently being gathered on the ALP website, we added open-ended questions asking about changes in teaching and course content, non-cognitive issues, faculty development and training, and challenges faced. A total of 70 programs completed the inventory survey. However, because the focus of this study is specifically on the replication of the CCBC ALP model, seven programs which were not using ALP as their model were removed from the analysis, resulting in a total of 63 programs in this inventory. Almost all of the colleges included in this study are using the ALP model as it was developed by CCBC. However, six colleges have replicated the model with significant modifications. Two of the colleges offer some combination of individualized tutoring, a workshop hour, and a student success course to developmental students taking the college-level writing course. One obstacle to implementing ALP is the small class size of the ALP course. CCBC recommends having no more than 12 students in this cohort which can be prohibitive for some colleges. Because of this issue, four colleges are using the Triangle Model in which students from two college- level classes populate a single ALP developmental class. TRIANGLE MODEL ALP Model College-Level Course ALP Developmental Course 100% 90.5% 80% 60% 40% 20% 6.3% 3.2% 0% CCBC ALP Triangle Other Model Model Modification Accelerated Learning Programs Have Been Implemented in Varied Environments Programs from 26 states are represented in the inventory. Fifteen states have more than one program in the inventory. 3 In addition to being geographically diverse, the ALPs in this analysis represent a variety of sizes. Approximately two-thirds of the colleges in the inventory have fewer than 10,000 credit students. They also vary in terms of the percentage of students who are placed into developmental writing, with that percentage ranging from 2.0% to 95.0%, with a mean of 44.9%. Credit Students 100% 80% 60% 36.5% 40% 27.0% 23.8% 12.7% 20% 0% 1-4,999 5,000-9,999 10,000-19,999 20,000+ Colleges offering ALPs have between one and four levels of developmental writing. While a slight majority (52.4%) have two levels of developmental writing, almost one-fourth of the colleges (23.8%) have three or even four levels of developmental writing that students must navigate as part of the developmental writing sequence. At the majority of colleges (67.7%), developmental writing courses are housed in the English Department, while almost one-fourth of the colleges have a separate developmental studies department which can have ramifications for the implementation of ALPs if the developmental class is located in the developmental studies department and the college-level course is housed in the English department. Levels of Developmental Writing Location of Developmental Writing 100% 100% 80% 80% 67.7% 52.4% 60% 60% 40% 23.8% 20.6% 40% 22.6% 20% 3.2% 20% 9.7% 0% 0% 1 2 3 4 English Developmental Both Departments Studies Accelerated Learning Programs are Young and Diverse Most of the ALPs in the inventory are in their infancy: 82.5% have only been in operation since Fall 2011. Most of the colleges started small, offering one to nine sections, with a mean of three sections and scale-up has been minimal. Ten of the colleges are still offering only one ALP section and the mean number of sections being offered is six. Most of the colleges still offer primarily stand-alone traditional developmental writing courses. First Term Offered 100% 80% 60% 41.3% 34.9% 40% 11.1% 20% 3.2% 1.6% 1.6% 6.3% 0% Pre 2007 2007-08 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 4 Most Accelerated Learning Programs Started Small and Have Stayed Small Number of ALP sections Number of ALP sections Number of sections of offered in 1st term currently offered traditional developmental Minimum 1 1 0 Maximum 9 80 100 Mean 3 6 21 The ALPs in the inventory range in class size and the number of hours per week that each course meets. It should be noted that the class sizes indicated below are the planned class sizes for each course at each college, not necessarily the actual class size which can vary due to low enrollment. Data gathered in Phase 2 of the study suggest that low enrollment in ALP classes was a recurring problem for many of the colleges and thus actual enrollment did not always reach the cap size for each course. Among colleges following the CCBC ALP Model, the class sizes for the ALP course ranged from 8 to 16 students, with a mean of 11 students, while the college- level course ranged in size from 20 to 32, with a mean of 24 students. Among colleges using the Triangle Model, the class sizes for the ALP course ranged from 12 to 18 students, with a mean of 16 students, while the college- level course ranged in size from 20 to 25 students, with a mean of 22 students. The colleges in the inventory also offer ALPs of various durations in terms of hours per week which ranged from 1.0 to 5.0 hours per week for the CCBC ALP Model and from 2.5 to 3.0 hours per week for the Triangle Model. ALPs Range in Class Size and Number of Hours per Week Class Size Hours per Week ALP Model Range ALP course college-level course ALP course college-level course Minimum 8 20 1.0 2.5 CCBC ALP Model Maximum 16 32 5.0 5.0 (n=56) Mean 11 24 3.0 3.1 Minimum 12 20 2.5 2.5 Triangle Model Maximum 18 25 3.0 3.0 (n=4) Mean 16 22 2.9 2.9 Minimum 12 22 1.0 2.5 Other Maximum 15 27 2.5 3.0 (n=2) Mean 14 25 1.8 2.8 In terms of faculty, ALPs have been implemented at colleges with both unionized and non-unionized faculty which can have ramifications for teaching load. The issue of teaching load will be discussed more fully in the context of the implementation case study. While CCBC initially paid faculty for two credit hours for its three credit hour developmental course, faculty at almost all of the colleges in the inventory are paid full credits. Only five of the colleges (7.9%) have faculty that are paid partial credits. Almost all of the colleges have programs in which the same faculty member teaches both the developmental course and the college-level course. Faculty Characteristics 92.1% 95.2% 100% 80% 55.6% 60% 40% 20% 0% Faculty are paid full credits Faculty are unionized Same instructor for both courses 5 The Implementation of Accelerated Learning Programs Leads to Changes in Teaching and Course Content Colleges were asked about how the teaching and course content has changed in the ALP developmental course. A common response was that, largely due to the small class size, it was possible to have more discussions and one- on-one conferencing and to incorporate assignments that would not be possible with a larger class. “The small group of the accelerated section allows instructors to teach on a seminar model, generally arranged in a circle in class as opposed to the instructor in front.” “I also have more time for individualized instruction for language usage, syntax, grammar, and punctuation.; One thing that stands out is that due to the small size…I have the time and the ability to ensure I am hearing from everyone.” “Group work occurs in smaller groups, so everyone gets to know each other more. There is more time to focus on individual students, if needed. Students seem more willing to ask for additional help. The instruction is less lecture and includes more discussion or group activities.” “Due to the smaller size, it has allowed me to implement lessons that wouldn't be feasible in a larger course. We do an exercise where the students build something with legos and we discuss how it can serve as a metaphor for the writing process. I bring in some silly putty and we use that to build the outline of a research paper.” The small class size also allows instructors to “be more responsive to the needs of the individual students” and to “let student questions drive the content.” Instructors “have learned to be more flexible and more proactive.” “More time can be spent on individual writing deficiencies as they become apparent through writing samples.” “Instructors find it easier to adjust teaching to meet the needs of particular sections.” “We've learned that the developmental segment of the course works best when instructors are flexible and allow the students to set the agenda for the course itself.” “The course content is more diagnostic-prescriptive to meet the needs of each cohort.” There was also a great deal of emphasis on backwards design and scaffolding and ensuring that course content in the developmental course was focused specifically on supporting the learning outcomes of the college-level course. This has led many colleges to develop new assignments for the ALP class designed to support the work done in the college-level course. “We make sure that everything we do in ALP is beneficial to the student in Comp. I.” “Assignment difficulty has increased in both the readings required and in the critical thinking required for writing assignments. Instructors are using less ‘remedial content.’" “The course content of the ALP developmental course supports the course content of the freshman composition course. Students use the same text but receive more support in reading comprehension and vocabulary acquisition. Grammar, mechanics, punctuation, development, topic sentences, and organization are reviewed constantly.” “I have implemented more checkpoints into the process of drafting. Students discuss their ideas with me and/or get ideas out on paper before moving into a more formalized drafting process. They meet in groups to talk over their progress and practice critical thinking processes.” 6