English 255 Acceleration
Flex Workshop
Friday, Feb. 1, 2013
12:30-3:00pm
Introduction/Overview
• State Legislature, Basic Skills Initiative
• Repeatability, 3 Strikes
• Financial Aid Considerations
– BS Credit Limit, Pell Grant, Fee Increases, etc.
• Academy for College Excellence
• Equity
What is Acceleration?
The two meanings of acceleration:
1. The process we have at Cabrillo whereby an English 255
student may skip English 100 and enroll in English 1A.
2. The instructional materials, methods, assignments, and
readings the instructor employs to insure that the
“accelerated” student will be prepared for transfer-level
composition and that the class as a whole is introduced to
higher level tasks and expectations while providing an
appropriate level of instruction for the basic skills student.
Benefits of Acceleration
1.
2.
3.
Whether students are misplaced or simply rise to the
occasion, acceleration provides the following benefits:
It saves money for the student and the system
It frees up seats for those who most need English 100
It means the student has a shorter sequence and fewer
opportunities to drop out. This translates to greater student
success rates both in terms of getting through the comp
sequence and in completing certificate and degree
programs.
How Do I Identify Students for Acceleration?
• Writing Skills
• “Soft” Skills, Self-efficacy
What Is the Procedure?
• How Do I Present to Students?
• 255 Statement
• Students Who Self-select (vs. Instructor
Nomination)
• Timeline
• Provisional Pass
• 100-level Writing/Portfolio Requirements
Meeting the Portfolio Challenge
• The 100 & 255 Rubrics
– 255 acceleration portfolios are scored using the
100 rubric.
– Textual analysis mandatory.
• Norming/Reading
– 255 acceleration portfolios are scored during the
100 norming session; nominating instructors need
to attend both 255 & 100 portfolio sessions.
Meeting the Portfolio Challenge
• Students Who Accelerate/Don’t Accelerate
– Use the 255 statement and place in your syllabus.
– Failure is not associate with not accelerating—students have done an
outstanding job just being nominated and/or by compiling the
portfolio.
– One-to-one conference strongly recommended.
• Documentation & Record Keeping
– Joseph Carter will maintain a roster of students that accelerate.
Sharing Best Practices
• Winnie Baer
• Adela Najarro
• Joseph Carter
Sharing Best Practices:
Adela Najarro
• The Personal Response
– My suggestion for incorporating textual analysis
builds on the second SLO for 255: “Comment on
ideas and writing strategies in reading
assignments.”
– How they comment indicates 255 or 100 level
strategies in regards to textual analysis.
Sharing Best Practices:
Adela Najarro
• The Personal Response
– The idea is very simple: have students write a personal
response to any assigned reading and integrate this
response into an essay.
– A 255 student may simply summarize or go off and relate a
personal example, while those who are candidates for
acceleration can do the same while incorporating MLA
citation for sources and using quotes.
Sharing Best Practices:
Adela Najarro
• The Personal Response
– Same assignment completed at different levels of
complexity—that is the key for meeting 255
course objectives while creating the possibility for
acceleration.
– Let’s review my handout.
Sharing Best Practices:
Joseph Carter
Acceleration challenge: Preparing the basic skills student to
analyze longer texts
• What level of engagement with reading material do we see in
our basic skills students?
• What counts as a “long” text in English 255? What is typical in
1A?
• How does the length of a reading challenge the underprepared student?
Example assignment: “Prison Without Walls” Essay Assignment
Group Discussion/
Questions