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TULSA COMMUNITY COLLEGEACHIEVING THE DREAMFALL 2008 FOCUS GROUPS

Overcoming the Challenges of

Developmental Reading

© 2009 Tulsa Community College Data Team

STUDY YEAR FOCUS GROUPS

2007-08

2008-09

2009-10

Persistence (staying in school)

Developmental reading

Developmental mathematics; African-American male students

Achieving the Dream Calendar

4 – Step Process

• 68% successfully completed Reading I or II in first year

• “Successfully” = grade of “C” or better

What’s wrong?

• Student focus groups in Reading I and II

Why?

• Reading faculty design and implement the intervention

Intervene

• Did it work?• How should it be changed for greater success?

Assess

Reading I & II Student Focus Groups

Trained facilitatorsAll campuses36 groups24 facultyFull-time and part-time facultyReading I and Reading IIDay and evening classesStudents were asked, “What

barriers/challenges have you faced in successfully completing Reading I/II?”

Students named 2 kinds of barriers

Persistence Barriers(staying in school)

Reading I & II Barriers

41%

59%

BARRIER TYPES Frequency %1 Student Personal Issues 173 39%2 Services Issues 39 9%3 Student Academic Issues 38 9%4 Insufficient Reading Skills 25 6%5 Negative Student Attitudes 24 5%6 Amount/Scheduling of Work 21 5%7 Reading Lab work 20 5%8 Level/Intensity of Class Work 19 4%9 Instructor/Instructor Policy

Concerns15 3%

10 Study Habits/Skills 13 3%11 Computers 11 2%12 Instructional Issues 11 2%13 Attention/Focus 9 2%14 Readings/Textbooks 9 2%15 Format/Scheduling of Class Period 8 2%16 Placement in Courses 6 1%

441 100%

Pers

iste

nce

Bar

rier

s

59%

Rea

ding

I &

II

Bar

rier

s 41

%

Persistence Barriers – Then & Now

Student Personal IssuesTop 2 barriers: Balancing school, work, & life Attitudes

Services IssuesTop 2 barriers: Financial Aid Textbook issues

Student Academic IssuesTop 2 barriers: Not academically prepared Meeting academic workload

Instructional IssuesTop 2 barriers: Communication issues with instructors Teaching/learning styles

Top 5 barriers: Adjusting to college Balancing school,

employment, and life Textbook issues Tulsa Achieves

implementation issues Communication issues with

instructors

2007-2008 Student Focus Groups of

First-time Freshmen

2008-2009 Student Focus Groups of

Reading I & II

Similar barriers result from different populations of students.

Now, let’s focus on Reading I & II.

Rea

ding

B

arri

ers

Reading I & II Barriers

Campus

Reading I vs.

Reading II

Full-time vs.

Part-time faculty

Day vs.

Evening classes

No statistically significant differences by …

What works?What Works

? Instructors

… are good teachers

… are helpful

… are good advisers

… are understandin

g

… believe in their students

… make the class

interesting and fun

These are common examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Blackboard

Syllabus

Computers at TCC

for students

Strategies

class

Lab staff

TutorsWhat Works?

These are common examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Reading I & II Barriers

Most of the reading barriers (50%)pertained to

Insufficient reading skillNegative attitudes

Amount/scheduling of work Reading lab work

(Reported on all four campuses)

Learning to readReading

Barriers

Insuf -ficient read-ing

skills14%

Other bar-riers50%

Neg-ative atti-

tudes13%

Amount/

scheduling

of work 12%

Reading lab work11%

Reading I & II BarriersBARRIER TYPE Frequency %

1 Insufficient Reading Skills 25 14%2 Negative Student Attitudes 24 13%3 Amount/Scheduling of Work 21 12%4 Reading Lab work 20 11%5 Level/Intensity of Work 19 11%6 Instructor/Instructor Policy

Concerns15 8%

7 Study Habits/Skills 13 7%8 Computers 11 6%9 Attention/Focus 9 5%10

Readings/Textbooks 9 5%

11

Format/Scheduling of Class Period 8 4%

12

Placement in Courses 6 3%

180 100%

Insufficient reading skill

Reading with

purposeVocabular

y

Other reading

techniquesReading

aloud

Insufficient reading skill

• Make notes while reading• Read more often• Be engaged with your reading• Read to someone else• Get a dictionary

What students could do

• Give comprehension tests and play comprehension games

• Give assignment previews• Assign reading that students enjoy• Let students choose what they read• Have class discussions

What instructors could do

•Provide tutorsWhat TCC could do

These are just a few examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Negative attitudes

Don’t like the reading class

No college credit for zero-level class

Don’t like to read

Don’t want to take a developmental reading

class

Negative attitudes

• Find out why you have to take the class• Read interesting things• Make reading a habit• Go to class and be on time• Ask for help from instructor, lab staff• Retake the placement test

What students could do

• Make the class more interactive• Offer interesting activities• Put more information on Blackboard• Have background music

What instructors could do

•Give college creditWhat TCC could do

These are just a few examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Amount/scheduling of work

Too much schoolwork

Hard to schedule time for

assignments

Amount/scheduling of work

• Manage your time; make a schedule• Know the importance of each assignment• Get a tutor; go to Reading Center• Do the homework; be prepared• Read the syllabus• Break up work into smaller amounts• Set a time for schoolwork• Work in a calm setting

What students could do

• Give shorter reading assignments• Offer extra credit• Schedule textbook and vocabulary on

different days• Fewer assignments• More varied assignments• Give more time

What instructorscould do

These are just a few examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Reading lab work

Lab instructions are confusing

Lab is uninteresting, a waste of

time

Doing lab work outside of class

Reading lab work

• Don’t put it off• Schedule your lab time• Know what is required• Pace yourself• Ask questions

What students could do

• Reduce the lab requirement• Let students do lab work in class• Give extra credit• Let students do lab work at home or

online

What instructors could do

•Open the lab on weekendsWhat TCC could do

These are just a few examples from the Complete Reading Focus Group Data – Fall 2008

Want more information?

Reading Barriers by Frequency, April 8, 2009Complete Reading Data – Student Focus

Groups, Fall 2008Reading Focus Group Data Report, April 8,

2009Overcoming the Challenges of Developmental

Reading, TCC video streamAchieving the Dream Fast Facts

Now, let’s focus on Reading Faculty.

Rea

ding

B

arri

ers

Reading I & II Faculty/Staff Focus Groups

Trained facilitatorsAll campuses represented1 groupAll full-time facultySeveral part-time faculty/staffReading I and Reading IIFaculty were asked, “What

barriers/challenges have you faced in helping students successfully complete Reading I/II?”?”

Faculty Barriers: Reading I & IIFACULTY BARRIERS/CHALLENGES Estimated %

Students’ poor study skills 100%Faculty not knowing all new disabilities

categories and terminology80-90%

Underprepared students to improve reading levels

60%

Students from background not valuing education

50-60%

Students’ very limited vocabulary 50%50% of students have vision problems 50%

Students not able to see well enough to read 50%Students not mature and responsible 40-50%

Teaching students with low self-esteem 50%Students with disabilities; students self-

handicappingRI 50% RII 5%

Faculty Suggestions: Academically Unprepared Students

• Teach study skills and put in syllabus

• Require Strategies for Academic Success

• Give several reading diagnostics• Vary instructional strategies by

abilities and disabilities• Use articulation with high schools to

let them know what TCC needs• Have more than one Instructional

Specialist per campus• Reading Instructional Specialists

need Reading Specialist Certificate/Special Needs/Elementary or Middle School background

What TCC could do

Faculty Suggestions: Disabilities

• Provide professional development for faculty (reading conferences; learning disabilities conferences)

• Instructor give extra credit or lab assignment for vision screening by campus nurse

• Use Level 4 nursing students to conduct vision screenings

What TCC could do

Faculty Suggestions: Student Attitudes

• Praise what students do well• Start with confidence-building work• Don’t take late work• Include contract in syllabus• Use group work• Remove $13.00 developmental fee

What TCC could do

© 2009 Tulsa Community College Data Team