college preparatory curriculum for all lessons learned from chicago elaine allensworth with...
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College Preparatory Curriculum for All
Lessons Learned from Chicago
Elaine Allensworth
with TakakoNomi and Nicholas Montgomery at the Consortium on Chicago School Research
and Valerie Leeat the University of Michigan
Funded by the Institute for Education Sciences and the National Science Foundation
Movement for More Rigorous Course Requirements
Criticisms of low high school academic standards
Recognition of need to improve college-readiness
Requires a dramatic change in schooling
Strategy based on research tying coursework to learning
Students in schools with stronger curricula learn more; equity is better
Students in higher tracks perform better than students in lower tracks
Students with advanced coursework do better in intro college courses
But prior research may not be applicable to a universal
mandateStudents selecting higher level classes are different than others
More motivated, with better support
Schools offering higher level classes are qualitatively different than others
More likely to be college-focused in other ways
Mandates are different than bottom-up decisionsIssues of school, teacher and student capacity
Chicago was an early adopter of the core curriculum
Required a college-prep curriculum for all students, beginning in 1997
Three years of math • Algebra in 9th grade, followed by geometry and algebra II• Previously 2 years were required; many students took remedial math
in 9th grade
Four years of English• English I through English IV• Previously many students took remedial English in 9th grade
Three years of social science• World studies, U.S. History and an elective• Previously 3 years required of any social studies course
Three years of lab science • Earth or Environmental Science; Biology; Chemistry or Physics• Previously 1 year required
The Chicago ContextThird largest school system in the U.S.
Over 85% students eligible for free/reduced priced lunch
Racial composition mostly minority50% African-American38% Latino9% White3% Asian
Before the policy:
Graduation rates were at 51%
More than half of entering ninth graders failed at least one course
The policy changed…
• What courses students took– e.g., algebra instead of remedial math
• How many core classes students took– e.g., 3 years of science instead of one
• The composition of students in college prep classes
Study 1.The effects of ending remedial
coursework in ninth grade English and math
Algebra enrollment increased immediately with the policy
Only students with below-average skills were affected
Lowest Low Average High0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
64
88
96 98
9197 99 99
Enrollment in Ninth Grade Algebra by Incoming Math Scores
Pre-Pol-icy
Post-Pol-icy
Incoming Math Test Scores
Pe
rce
nt
of
Stu
de
nts
En
roll
ed
in
Alg
eb
ra
English I enrollment increased with the policyStudents with average-skills and low-skills were affected
Lowest Low Average High0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
45
59
77
9293 94 96 98
Enrollment in Ninth Grade English I by Incoming Reading Scores
Pre-Pol-icy
Post-Pol-icy
Incoming Reading Scores
Pe
rce
nt
of
Stu
de
nts
En
roll
ed
in
En
gli
sh
10
Students Eligible for Special Education Were Most Affected by the Policy
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Pre-Policy(1996)
Post-Policy(2000)
Special education students
Students w/o disabilities
College Prep Course Enrollment, Pre- and Post-Policy
11
Slight racial-ethnic gaps in college-prep coursework diminished with the policy
College-Prep Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity 9th Graders not receiving special education services
English Math
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Pre-Policy(1996)
Post-Policy(2000)
African American Latino White Asian
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Pre-Policy(1996)
Post-Policy(2000)
12
Equity in coursework improved…
What happened to achievement?
13
More students earned credit in Algebra or English Ibut failure rates increased and test scores did not improve
Change in Math Outcomes
Credit in Algebra I or
HigherMath Course
FailureCourse
Absences
Math grades (4 pt.)
Test Scores
Lowest Skilled 8.8% 7.7% 2.24 -0.15 0.63Low Skilled 7.4% 3.6% 2.40 -0.07 0.13Average 1.0% 1.3% 3.14 -0.01 -0.17Highly Skilled -0.4% 1.2% 1.67 0.10 0.50
Change in English Outcomes
Credit in English 1
English Course Failure
Course Absences
English grades (4 pt.)
Test Scores
Lowest Skilled 35.8% 4.1% 1.15 -0.15 -0.61Low Skilled 28.2% 4.0% 1.46 -0.11 -0.64Average 11.7% 2.1% 2.11 -0.06 -0.54High Skilled -3.2% 2.6% 1.70 -0.07 -1.11
Numbers in bold are significantly different post-policy compared to pre-policy.
What happened to coursework by the end of high school?
Study 2. A close look at science coursework
Science Graduation Requirements• Pre-1997
– 1 year of science– No content specified
• Beginning in the 1997-98 school year– 3 years of science– Content specified:
• Earth or Environmental• Biology/Life science• Chemistry or Physics
The requirements led to a large increase in students completing three years of science
Pre-policy: 25%
Post-policy: 48%
Among graduates:
44%
Among graduates: 86%
But students mostly earned Cs and DsAnd students with low grades show little learning
Pre-policy: 25%
Post-policy: 48%
Among graduates: 44%
Among graduates: 86%
The policy led more students to take chemistry or physics, but fewer to take both
Graduates
Highest level of college-prep science completed by high school graduatesControlling for student background
What happened to high school graduation and college-going?
Graduation rates declined with the policy
Percent of students graduating from high school in 5 years
All students
Policy Year
High school graduates were slightly less likely to go to college with the policy
Percent of graduates in each cohort attending a 4-year college after graduation
Controlling for student background
Policy
College persistence rates did not increase with graduation requirements
Percent of students remaining in college for two years
Policy
Why didn’t we see more positive effects?• The policy focused on WHAT students were exposed
to, but they were poorly engaged in that material• Teachers often lack strategies for engaging students with
weak behavioral skills• Instructional quality and classroom climate matter at least
as much as curriculum
• The curricular policy led schools to change the way they grouped/tracked students, with greater demands on teachers and staffing and students– Required teachers to adjust to teaching mixed-ability
classrooms with more attendance & disciplinary problems
– Schools lacked staff for expanded higher-level science and math; led to a decline in curricular rigor for top students
– More demanding work for students with the weakest skills, including students with disabilities—but no extra support
More recent Chicago policies build on the 1997 requirements…
Double-period algebra for students entering high school with below-average skills
• Low-skill students received twice as much instruction, and their teachers received training and resources
• Concentrated together students with attendance/behavior problems
• Instructional quality improved dramatically• Academic demands did not decline• Test scores improved substantially• Grades did not change
• High-skill students took algebra without low-skill peers, OR with low-skill peers receiving extra instruction
• Academic demand increased• Test scores improved• Grades declined
Better monitoring of students’ grades and attendance for early
intervention• Research shows that– Grades are the best predictors of graduation, learning gains,
college entrance & persistence
– Grades are primarily determined by effort (more so than by skills)
– Attendance is the strongest determinant of course failure
• CPS has responded with– Warning lists based on current grades/attendance
– Guides for using data on student performance
• Teacher teams that look at student grades/attendance across classes
Better monitoring of the path to college
• Lists of FASFA completion• Postsecondary counselors
– Match to schools with better financial aid, fewer part-time students
– Emphasize the importance of high grades, behavioral skills
• Some attention to upper-division courses– Expansion of AP/IB classes in some schools
ConclusionsCurricular reforms affect the content students receive
Coursework is a first step: without the requirements, many students took very little core coursework
Equity in coursework improved with the requirements
Expectations changed
• Increased coursework does not necessarily improve achievement or later outcomesCoursework matters little without engagement: we need to focus on students’ academic behaviors and the quality of instruction
Curricular reforms affect classroom composition and instructional environmentThese changes require school and teacher capacity to respond
Students with low abilities & disabilities and their teachers need support
Students with high and average abilities may be affected by policies that appear to be aimed at low-ability students
• For more information go to:ccsr.uchicago.edu
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