Susan, I would like to request a copy - electronic or paper?  Barbara Tondre


 

  _____  

From: assessment-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:assessment-bounces at nifl.gov] On
Behalf Of Susan Kidd
Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 3:35 PM
To: 'The Assessment Discussion List'
Subject: [Assessment 1705] Re: Adult Ed Math & Accuplacer, cont.

 

A couple of years ago a group of ABE math teachers from Washington State
looked at the content of  CASAS Life Skills and Employability, the GED and
both the COMPASS and ASSET Numeracy/Pre-Algebra tests. If anyone would like
to see the crosswalk they created, I'd be glad to send you a copy.

 

 

Susan

 

Susan Kidd

ABE Professional Development Coordinator

State Board for Community & Technical Colleges

office phone: 509-682-6968

cell phone: 509-630-4520

skidd at sbctc.edu

 

 

 

From: assessment-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:assessment-bounces at nifl.gov] On
Behalf Of Joyce Winters
Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 9:50 AM
To: The Assessment Discussion List
Subject: [Assessment 1696] Re: Adult Ed Math & Accuplacer, cont.

 

Thanks so much for your work and offer to share it, Tom.  Has anyone also
done this kind of work with the Compass placement test?

 

 

Joyce Winters, 

Professional Development Specialist

NWRC/Owens Community College

2249 Tracy Road, Room 169

Northwood, Ohio 43619

567-661-7675

joyce_winters at owens.edu




>>> "Mechem, Thompson" <tmechem at doe.mass.edu> 2/5/2009 10:35 AM >>>


Ramsey, et al.---

 

Well, I can tell you what in my amateurish way I have done. For a number of
years part of my job has been to make presentations to GED teachers and
program directors regarding what skill sets are needed for success on the
five parts of the GED tests. As you know, no one can see the GED tests, so
it's hard for teachers to know what to teach or what it means that one of
their students got a 410 on the Writing test, and so on. The GED Testing
Service in Washington provides us with valuable information on the
most-missed questions (based on their analysis of every test taken
world-wide since January 1, 2002); we have the GED Item-Writing Manuals,
which give valuable insights into the philosophy of how the GED questions
are formulated; and we pester the GEDTS at every opportunity for more info.
Teachers have found this to be valuable for the most part.

 

Lately I have focused more on the Math because it is the main reason for GED
failures and it is far and away the main reason that GED grads end up in
developmental courses.

 

Last spring, after it finally sunk in that GED grads were not getting
anywhere near as far as they needed in post-secondary education, that a
great majority  were wallowing in (mostly math) developmental courses, that
poor performance on the ACCUPLACER math test was one of the main reasons for
that, and that there was no correlation between a GED math score and an
ACCUPLACER algebra score, I took the ACCUPLACER Algebra test (something I
recommend everyone interested in this subject to do). And I almost threw up,
not just for myself, trying to battle through it, but for our GED grads,
knowing what it was going to look like to them. So I took the ACCUPLACER
dozens more times and I have put together another presentation for teachers
and program directors which talks about the differences (in philosophy, in
how the test is presented and taken, and in the skills sets needed) and
starts the dialogue as to how we can create a GED math curriculum that
prepares our students to pass the GED tests, do well enough on the
ACCUPLACER to avoid developmental courses, and succeed in college Math
classes.

 

(Here's a brief example: if the GED test wants you to use the formula for
the area of a rectangle, it will create a "real-life" situation in a word
problem, somebody building a patio or whatever, and the answer will be what
our GED students consider an "answer," "460 square feet" or something like
that. On the ACCUPLACER, the rectangle will have a width of "x" and a length
of "x + 3," so the area will be (I can't type the exponent, but...) "x2 +
3x" and all the multiple-choice wrong answers will be in that form, more or
less.)

 

These presentations have been great for me because of the tremendous
enthusiasm and input from the teachers, "Well, here's a difficulty you
present and here's how I address that in my class." And the discussion this
week has been fabulous in that respect as well: so many dedicated people and
so many fantastic ideas I can hardly steal them all.

 

If anyone were to e-mail me off-list, I could send you my PowerPoint
presentation: one man's opinion, a work in progress, but perhaps food for
further thought.

Tom Mechem 
GED State Chief Examiner 
Department of Elementary & Secondary Education 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts 
781-338-6621 
"GED to Ph.D." 

-----Original Message-----
From: assessment-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:assessment-bounces at nifl.gov]On
Behalf Of Ramsey Ludlow
Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 8:50 AM
To: The Assessment Discussion List
Subject: [Assessment 1684] Re: Adult Ed Math & Accuplacer, cont.

Very interesting, Donna. You refer to Tom Mechem's  identification of the
math that is tested on the Accuplacer. What are those, and how do we get
that info? 

Thanks,

Ramsey Ludlow
Oxford / Buckfield Hills Adult Education
South Paris, Maine 04281

Donna Chambers wrote: 

Jessie,

 

Thank you for bringing up the issue of the less rigorous current NEDP math
requirements.  As you mentioned, CASAS is in the process of revalidating the
competencies, but we cannot wait for this work to be completed.  Here is how
we are planning to address this in RI to be fare to the NEDP graduates who
are planning to move on to college or other post-secondary programs through
our Transitions program.

 

All NEDP candidates are informed when they first enter the program that by
fulfilling the national requirements they will still need further work to
meet the demands of most post-secondary programs.   Since our pilot will
blend both TTC and NEDP, candidates will fulfill the NEDP math requirements
as a first step and a base.  This math is basic arithmetic.  Our combined
National External Diploma Program/Transitions to College Program will have
the additional requirements of learning, practicing and being assessed in
the math that is being tested on the Accuplacer (which my good buddy, Tom
Mechem, has so painstakingly identified.)   This is targeted scaffold
instruction that requires competency-based assessment (no one gets by
without demonstrating understanding).  You might call this NEDP Plus,  since
these participants will be going beyond the NEDP competencies to earn their
diploma. The reading and writing will also have increased rigor.  What we
will be doing is adding RI Transitions to College requirements to the NEDP
requirements.  This work does not change the existing NEDP requirements, but
offers additional activities beyond for our Rhode Islanders.

 

Massachusetts Adult Diploma Program has a similar process in that all
diploma participants must meet the state MCAS rcompetency determination
before a diploma can be awarded.  In many ways, these graduates are more
ready academically to transition into college because they are required to
demonstrate understanding. 

 

I hope this helps. 

Donna Chambers

 

 

 

  ----- Original Message ----- 

From: Jessie Stadd <mailto:jstadd at gmail.com>  

To: Assessment at nifl.gov 

Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2009 7:13 PM

Subject: [Assessment 1677] Adult Ed Math & Accuplacer, cont.

 

Hi All,

I am the Program Coordinator for Academy of Hope and Beyond Talent's
Pathways College Preparation Program, currently Washington D.C.'s only
college prep program for adult learners.  Unlike states where adult ed
programs are housed in community colleges or public schools, the district
relies on community-based non-profit organizations such as ours. In addition
to Pathways, Academy of Hope offers ABE/GED classes and Beyond Talent offers
peer-mentoring to non-traditional graduates.

 

Pathways follows the College Prep model and is comprised of three month-long
modules: writing, math, and college prep & career development (applications,
financial aid documents, etc.).  Our Pathways students are primarily GED or
EDP graduates, although we have had several high school graduates in the
program. All enter the program with generally weak math skills. Most will
attend our local university, UDC, or neighboring community colleges in
Virginia or Maryland, all of which use the Accuplacer. Prior to starting,
most of our GED and EDP graduates placed into remedial math classes. 

 

To address your point, Donna, while all of our students need extra work in
math, we have found that GED graduates generally have higher math skills
than our EDP graduates. Our GED graduates have some understanding of algebra
(at least of its existence!) but that is not the case for the EDP grads. EDP
learners entering the program scored in the 210s and 220s on the B level
math CASAS. As a GED instructor, I had always felt that the less rigorous
math requirements of EDP were a benefit and allowed students to earn a
credential who otherwise might not. However, as a college prep program
coordinator, EDP is doing a disservice to its students who believe that
since they earned an actual high school diploma they are prepared for
college. I understand that EDP is now in the process of revamping their
competencies to increase the amount of math required. For those students who
are interested in pursuing higher education, I do believe this is a positive
step.

 

Thank you,

Jessie Stadd

AoH Program Coordinator, Pathways College Preparation Program

Lifelong Learning Coach, Academy of Hope/Beyond Talent


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