Foundational Issues for Course Redesign and Alignment

Marsha Dowell, PhD, Senior Vice ChancellorWarren Carson, PhD, Associate Vice Chancellor

Deryle Hope, PhD, Associate Director, International StudiesCherie Pressley, Director , Upstate Regional Education Center

Freshman Course Redesign at USC Upstate

An Evolutionary Process

BeginningsFall 2004—Freshman CompositionAppointment of a Director of CompositionReview of Institutional Assessment DataAnecdotal evidence—the degree of success in

English 101 and English 102

Emerging ConcernsWhy aren’t students performing better?Are we really teaching them what they need?

Strategies for Course RevisionCourse Audit—30 sections of English 101,

taught by 15 different instructors, using 15 different course syllabi of varying quality (AP)

Development of claims and evidence (AP; NAEP)

Formalized conversations and work sessions with English faculty from the largest feeder high schools

Strategies, continuedEfforts to align courses (EPIC), thereby

helping to remove the disconnect between HS achievement and college success

Mandatory professional development retreats each semester for ALL composition faculty

OutcomesBetter sense of where HS curriculum ends

and where the University curriculum beginsA collaborative spirit among HS and

University faculty members that focuses on transition to college and student success

A shift away from a teaching-focused approach to a more learning-focused approach to writing instruction

Outcomes, continuedA common course syllabus for the English

101-102 sequenceA scoring rubric to encourage more

consistent gradingGreater focus on best practices in writing

assessmentNew placement model

Outcomes, continuedReduction in the percentage of DFW grades

in English 101-102Pilot dual enrollment courses in English 101-

102

A CollaborativePartnership between 7 Spartanburg School Districts and USC Upstate

What is the Scholars Academy?

An accelerated high school option located on the USC Upstate campus

Open to rising 9th graders in all Spartanburg school districts

Students remain as home high school students but spend half-day at the university

Students can earn up 60-70 college credits in 4 years along with a HS diploma

SC SCHOOL DISTRICT MAP

Daily Schedule8:30 a.m.—12:30 p.m.

3 classes each day MWF, T Th

Honors/AP/Dual Credit

(college credit)

12-12:30 p.m. Lunch at USC Upstate

12:30 p.m. Return to home schoolTake at least one class

there.Participate in extra-

curriculars.

RequirementsMaintain As & Bs in all coursesBegin as a ninth grade studentCommit to graduate the program Be self-motivated, academically giftedHave parent support

Campus Location Library Building

Current Facts

Cohort 1: graduated 20 studentsCohort 2: 11 rising seniorsCohort 3: 24 rising juniorsCohort 4: 32 rising sophomoresCohort 5: 40 rising freshmen

Experience with 127 students in a variety of courses

FallAlgebra II Honors/Geometry

HonorsEnglish II Honors (yr.-long)US History 105 (dual credit)

Freshman Seminar (CP elective yr.-long)

SpringGeometry Honors/Precalculus

126English II HonorsUS History106 (dual credit) Physical Science 101 (dual

credit)Freshman Seminar

Freshman

FallPrecalculus 126/127 (dual credit)Biology 101 (dual credit)English III HonorsSophomore Seminar

SpringPrecalculus 127/Calculus 141(dual

credit)World History 101(dual credit)AP English Language and

Composition Sophomore Seminar

Sophomore

FallEnglish 102 (dual credit)

Calculus 141 or AP Calculus (dual credit)Chemistry 111 or Astronomy 111 (dual credit)

German 101 (dual credit)University Singers (dual credit) SpringAP English LiteratureCalculus 142 or AP Calculus (dual credit)

Biology 102 or Chemistry 106 (dual credit)Foreign Language or Economics (dual credit)University Singers (dual credit

Juniors

Students are generally unprepared

Students need interventions:Study sessions with designated Cohort partners and upper class Academy peer coachesPeer tutoring from university studentsGroup help/study sessions provided by professorsExtra coaching provided by Academy instructorsMath lab/writing lab access

Findings

Interventions are most effective after an “awakening”:

First failing grade on a test or paperProbationary status or loss of scholarship/ program status

Findings, continued

Principles for improving the transition from high

school to college Academic

Shift from memorization to understanding

Focus on critical thinking Higher standards of

acceptable work Students assume

responsibility to learn from written texts

Develop metacognitive strategies

Student engagement Technology On-going research activities

Socio - emotional Realistic self-awareness of

what it takes to be successful in college

Set priorities Self-discipline Be intellectually curious Take initiative Persevere and be resilient Need support systems Be flexible and adaptable Overcome fear and doubt Need a sense of

accomplishment Need validation and sense of

belonging

• Motivated students who take advantage of interventions improve.

• Students who understand consequences tend to improve.

•Certain course parameters facilitate success.

•Early student success breeds success.

Observations

Crescat scientia, vita excolatur“Let knowledge increase, let life be perfected.”