Dr. Betty Krohn, AVID Texas Program Manager

1
Raising Academic Performance for Students in the
Middle

• Dr. Betty Krohn, AVID Texas Program Manager
• Ben Solomon, AVID Texas Program Manager

2
Who is in the Middle?
Think about students with whom you have been
associated that you consider to be in the
middle. What is it about these students that
puts them in the middle?
3
Who are they?

• B, C, and D Students
• Falling short of their potential
• Capable of completing rigorous curriculum
• First in family to attend college
• Historically underrepresented in four-year
  colleges
• and universities
• Economically disadvantaged

• Students in the academic middle

4
Challenges and Choices Raising Achievement and
Closing Gaps
5
Underlying Everything Is the Cycle of Low
Expectations
Low Expectations
Poor Test Results
Less Challenging Courses
Low Level Assignments/ Instruction
6
National Rates
National Rates
Race and ethnic graduation rates based on the
Urban Institutes Cumulative Promotion
Index. Disability graduation rate is from
National Council on Disability, 24th Annual
Report to Congress.
Realize the Dream, National Report Card on
Education and Equal Opportunity, accessed
10/3/2005 http//realizethedream.civilrights.org/
scorecards/national.cfm
7
Of 100 Kindergarteners

• U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the
  Census. March Current Population Surveys,
  1971-2001, In The Condition of Education, 2002.

8
College Graduates by Age 24
Young people from High 75 Income
families Young people from Low 9 Income
families

• Tom Mortenson, Postsecondary Educational
  Opportunity.

9
The Reality...

• Nearly 75 of high school graduates enter
  colleges,
• but only 12 of these students have completed a
  significant college-prep curriculum.
• Consequences
• High percentages of students requiring
  remediation
• Low bachelors degree completion rates

• Kati Haycock, Closing the Achievement Gap,
  Educational Leadership, 2007.

10
Students Who Require Remediation Are Less Likely
to Earn a Degree

• Cliff Adelman, Cliff in Crosstalk. Vol. 6 No.3,
  Summer 1998.

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Challenging Curriculum Results in Lower Failure
Rates, Even for Lowest Achievers
Ninth-grade English performance, by high/low
level course, and eighth-grade reading
achievement quartiles

• SREB, Middle Grades to High School Mending a
  Weak Link. Unpublished Draft, 2002.

12
In the end, we have to make different choices.
Achievement and opportunity gaps come from
choices that educators and policymakers make.
Choices about

• How much to spend on whom
• What to expect of different schools and students
• Who teaches whom
• How to organize classrooms and schools

13
Change Sought...
To develop an equitable College-Going Culture
in secondary schools
College by design, not by chance
14
Meeting the Challenge

• To help all students do rigorous work and meet or
  exceed high standards in each content area, we
  must help students
• Develop as readers and writers.
• Develop deep content knowledge.
• Know content specific strategies for reading,
  writing, thinking and talking.
• Develop habits, skills, and behaviors to use
  knowledge and skills.

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Academic Preparation
Transcript Study the single biggest predictor
of college success is the quality and
intensity of students high school curriculum

• Cliff Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box, U.S.
  Department of Education, 1999.

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What is Academic Rigor?
Rigor is the goal of helping students develop the
capacity to understand content that is complex,
ambiguous, provocative, and personally or
emotionally challenging. Taking rigorous
courses opens doors!

• Teaching What Matters Most Standards and
  Strategies for Raising Student Achievement by
  Strong, Silver and Perini, ASCD, 2001.

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What Rigor Looks Like for ALL Students

• qualitatively different academic environments
• no predetermined limits
• development of deep understanding
• consistent engagement in sophisticated
• investigations
• building inquiry-based learning communities

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What Rigor Looks Like for ALL Students

• building upon interests, strengths and personal
  goals
• teachers and students as risk-takers
• creation of life-long learners and thinkers
• encouragement of independent investigation
• acceptance of responsibility

19
Academic Preparation
Academically well-prepared students are likely to
graduate from college regardless of their social
background. Unprepared students of all
backgrounds are not likely to do so.
Adelman, 1999 American Educator, 2004
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AP and College Success
Students who take AP courses and exams are much
more likely than their peers to complete a
bachelors degree in four years or less.

• Camara, Wayne (2003). College Persistence,
  Graduation, and Remediation. College Board
  Research Notes (RN-19). New York, NY College
  Board.

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Impact of AP on 5-Year College Graduation Rates

• Chrys Dougherty, Lynn Mellor, and Shuling Jian,
  The Relationship Between Advanced Placement and
  College Graduation (National Center for
  Educational Accountability, 2005)

22
Advancement Via Individual Determination
L. avidus eager for knowledge
23
Superman vs. Batman

• Superman Gifted Talented
• Superman is naturally Gifted Talented.
• He does not need any special help or toys and
  gadgets
• to be successful.
• He just flies and is blessed with powers
  naturally.
• Batman AVID Students
• Batman is just as capable as Superman, but he
  needs
• Alfred the Butler (AVID Teacher),
• Special toys and gadgets (AVID Classroom and
  WICR), and
• Robin (AVID tutors and peers)

24
AVID Program Components

• Classroom curriculum
• Academic instruction
• Instructional tools
• Tutorial support
• Student connections
• Professional development

25
The AVID Elective Curriculum
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Academic Instruction

• WICR
• Writing to learn
• Inquiry
• Collaboration
• Reading to learn
• Study Skills

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Instructional Tools

• Cornell Note Taking
• Planners/Time Management
• Binders/Organizational Skills
• AVID Curriculum Library

28
Tutorial Program

• Collaborative Tutorial
• Socratic method
• Costas levels of questioning
• 1 college tutor for every 7 students

29
Colleges and Universities
AVID Support Staff
Community
Parents
AVID Coordinator (AVID Elective Teacher)
Student
Student
Administration
Tutors
Subject Area Teachers
Counselors
Collaborative Support for the Success of Students
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Student Connections

• Teacher/adult advocate
• Supportive peer groups
• Community service activities
• Extracurricular activities and leadership
  opportunities
• Motivational activities
• Career and college exploration

31
Professional Development

• Summer Institute
• District Director training
• Content area PATH trainings
• Tutor training
• Regional workshops

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Teachers benefit from...

• Involvement in a systemic and curricular
  approach
• Initial in-depth staff development and ongoing
• support in regions and districts
• Focus on results
• Accountability
• Site team work
• Increased leadership

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Effective Instruction by Meta-Analysis
AVID and Classroom Instruction That Works

• examines average effect of 1251 experimental
  studies
• focuses on instructional strategies with high
  probability of
• success for all pupils, K-12, in all subjects
• expresses results as effect size
• (An effect size of 1 34 percentile point
  gain)

Classroom Instruction That Works (2001, ASCD) ,
Marzano, Pickering, Pollock, page 4-7.
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Categories of Instructional Strategies That
Affect Student Achievement

• Identifying similarities and differences
  45
• Summarizing and note-taking 34
• Reinforcing effort providing recognition 29
• Homework and practice 28
• Nonlinguistic representations 27
• Cooperative learning 27
• Setting objectives providing feedback 23
• Generating and testing hypotheses 23
• Questions, cues, advance organizers 22
• Increase in achievement (percentile) of the
  experimental group compared to the control group

• Classroom Instruction That Works (2001, ASCD) ,
  Marzano, Pickering, Pollock, page 7.

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Why AVID Works

• Accelerates under-achieving students into more
  rigorous courses
• Teaches academic skills not targeted in
  other classes
• Provides intensive support with in-class
  tutors and a strong student/teacher relationship
• Creates a positive peer group for students
• Develops a sense of hope for personal
  achievement gained through hard work
  and determination

36
AVID Teaches the Hidden Curriculum

• In AVID students are challenged with rigorous
  curriculum, but they are also taught
• Leadership Skills
• Study Skills
• Organizational Skills
• Goal Setting
• Student Success Skills
• Social Skills

37
AVID Strengthens

• Middle school/high school articulation
• Accountability
• Comprehensive professional development
• A district-wide focus on results

38
How AVID Supports School Wide Change

• Builds Partnerships
• Collaboration with College Board
• Partners in state and federal grants
• Partners with community organizations
• Partners with parents
• Partners with counseling programs
• Collaboration with college outreach programs

39
How AVID Supports School Wide Change

• Creates a College Going Culture
• Site team focused on a college-going culture
• College field trips and research projects
• College tutors as role models
• College going data to guide district plan
• Guest speakers
• Increased AP and Pre-AP participation, especially
  for minority students
• Implements research based, best instructional
  practices for all students in the school

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The success of AVID persists despite differences
in school location school ethnic
distribution school poverty level
41
AVID A students perspective
42
AVID in Texas

• San Antonio ISD implemented AVID in1997.
• In 2008/2009, AVID is in 105 school districts and
  2 charter programs, serving approximately 600
  campuses.
• The Texas AVID program is the second largest in
  the nation.
• AVID is a state approved, innovative elective
  course with PEIMS numbers for AVID I IV.
• AVID Professional Development trainings have been
  approved to receive continuing professional
  development credit by the Texas State Board of
  Educator Certification.

43
AVID Results in Texas

• AVID seniors had a 97.7 graduation rate.
• AVID seniors boasted an SAT and/or ACT taking
  rate of 86.2.
• 91.8 of AVID graduates completed four-year
  college entrance requirements.
• 77.5 of seniors who applied to 4-year college
• and were accepted. (n 1680)

• Data gathered in 2008-09 about AVIDs 2009
  seniors.
• n 1680

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AVID Growth in Texas
High Schools Implementing AVID 2008-09 246
Sites
Middle Schools Implementing AVID 2008-09 280
Sites
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AVID Growth in Texas
High Schools Implementing AVID 2008-09 23,547
Students
Middle Schools Implementing AVID 2008-09 18,937
Students
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AVID in Texas (2007-08) with AVID 2008-09
2008-09 AVID 21 62 14
61.5
AVID Student Demographics
State of Texas Demographics
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AVID in Texas TAKS Data
TAKS Performance ( Passing) with Demographic
Comparisons State of Texas vs. AVID in
2007-2008  
  7th Grade 7th Grade 7th Grade 8th Grade 8th Grade 8th Grade 9th Grade 9th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade
  Reading Math Writing Reading Math Social St Reading Math Math English Science Social St Math English Science Social St
State of TX 88 80 93 95 79 91 87 64 66 89 65 89 80 91 81 95
White 94 90 96 98 89 96 96 80 79 94 81 95 89 96 91 98
Hispanic 83 75 90 92 73 87 81 54 57 85 53 85 73 87 73 93
African American 83 69 91 92 67 87 82 48 50 85 48 82 67 87 69 93
Eco Dis 82 72 89 91 71 86 81 52 55 84 51 83 70 85 70 92
                                 
AVID in TX 93 86 96 97 89 95 92 72 74 94 72 95 85 95 84 96
48
TAKS Performance ( Passing) with Demographic
Comparisons State of Texas vs. AVID in
2007-2008  
  7th Grade 7th Grade 7th Grade 8th Grade 8th Grade 8th Grade 9th Grade 9th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 10th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade 11th Grade
  Reading Math Writing Reading Math Social St Reading Math Math English Science Social St Math English Science Social St
State of TX 88 80 93 95 79 91 87 64 66 89 65 89 80 91 81 95
White 94 90 96 98 89 96 96 80 79 94 81 95 89 96 91 98
Hispanic 83 75 90 92 73 87 81 54 57 85 53 85 73 87 73 93
African American 83 69 91 92 67 87 82 48 50 85 48 82 67 87 69 93
Eco Dis 82 72 89 91 71 86 81 52 55 84 51 83 70 85 70 92

AVID in TX 93 86 96 97 89 95 92 72 74 94 72 95 85 95 84 96
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AVID in Texas College Readiness Indicators
Percent of Graduates in 2006-2007
2006-2007 State of Texas
2006-2007 AVID in Texas
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AVID Results in Texas
In August of 2007, Northside ISD, in San
Antonio, implemented AVID at the middle school
level.
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AVID Results in Texas
In just one year, Northside AVID students have
shown tremendous gains in the number of students
scoring Commended on the TAKS Reading Test.
52
AVID Graduates Nationally

• 99 plan to enroll in a college or university
• 69 plan to enroll in a four-year university
• 30 plan to enroll in a two-year college
• 59 of parents had no college level experience

• AVID Center Data Collection System, 2006-2007
• Percentages have been rounded to the nearest
  whole percent

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• Section 39.114 High School Allotment states that
  
• districts and campuses must use funds to
• Implement college readiness programs to prepare
  underachieving students for college
• Implement programs that encourage students toward
  advanced academic opportunities, such as dual
  credit and AP
• Implement programs that give students
  opportunities to take academically rigorous
  course work, including four years of math and
  science

• Using High School Allotment Funds

54

• Section 39.114 High School Allotment states that
  
• districts and campuses must use funds to
• Implement programs that align the curriculum for
  grades 6 through 12 with postsecondary
  curriculum
• Implement other high school completion and
  success initiatives in grades 6 through 12 as
  approved by the commissioner
• AVID meets ALL HB1 requirements

• Using High School Allotment Funds

55
AVID The Cost

• One-time Costs
• AVID Library
• District Director training (over a 2-year period)
• Ongoing Costs
• College tutors
• AVID membership fees
• Summer Institute registration and travel
• Continuing professional development

• See projected AVID program cost handout

56
AVID The Support

• Regional trainings and meetings
• Tutor Trainings
• Coordinator/Elective Teacher Meetings and
  Professional Development
• Administrator/Counselor Meetings and Professional
  Development
• District Director Meetings
• Yearly Curriculum Updates
• State District Director Meetings
• Regional PATH Trainings

• AVID Support

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Texas AVID Research
Watt, Yanez, Cossio (2003) AVID A
Comprehensive School Reform Model for Texas.
National Forum Journal Watt, Powell Mendiola
(2004) Implications of One Comprehensive
School Reform Model for Secondary School
Students Underrepresented in Higher Education.
JESPAR. Watt, Powell, Memdiola Cossio (2006)
School-wide Impact and AVID How Have Selected
Texa High Schools Addressed the New
Accountability Measure? JESPAR. Watt, Huerta
Cossio, 2004. Leadership and Comprehensive
School Reform Implementation of AVID in Four
South Texas Border Schools. The Catalyst.

• All reports are available on the Texas AVID
  Website at http//avid.panam.edu

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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,
committed people can change the world indeed, it
is the only thing that ever has.

• Culture and Commitment, Margaret Mead, 1996

59
Contact InformationEileen Friou State
Director efriou_at_avidcenter.orgPatrick
Briggs Assistant State Director pbriggs_at_avidce
nter.org Dr. Betty Krohn Program
Manager bkrohn_at_avidcenter.orgBen
Solomon Program Manager bsolomon_at_avidcenter.or
g

• AVID Texas State Office Phone [phone]