Published Research: Using Bloom's Taxonomy in a peer learning program

Aline, F., Zeng, S., & Yu, Y. M. (2012).  Using Bloom’s Taxonomy in a peer-led workshop in probability and statistics. Conference Proceedings of the The Peer-led Team Learning International Society Inaugural Conference, Brooklyn, NY. Retrieved from http://pltlis.org/wp-content/uploads/2012%20Proceedings/Aline-2012.docx

Bloom’s Taxonomy goes hand in hand with the peer-led workshop's methods by providing us as peer leaders with a structured order of the learning levels taken to extend our learning capabilities. We, the Peer Leaders, assist students into progressing to the next level in mathematics by going beyond recalling, understanding and applying (Levels 1-3 of Bloom’s Taxonomy). In our Probability and Statistics I and II workshop, we apply Bloom’s Taxonomy to help the students, especially with the application of comprehension, application, and analysis (Levels 2-4). By proposing questions to the students, we initiate the recollection of the subject at hand. As a result, these questions help the establishment and encouragement of critical thinking for the students, especially in the higher levels. The Analytical level (Level 4) specifically shows that an individual can know whether what he or she is doing allows them to perform well in the subject.

Published Research: Impact on Peer Leaders in Peer Learning Programs

Alberte, J. L., Cruz, A., Rodriguez, N., & Pitzer, T. (2012).  The PLTL leader boost. Conference Proceedings of the The Peer-led Team Learning International Society Inaugural Conference, Brooklyn, NY. Retrieved from http://pltlis.org/wp-content/uploads/2012%20Proceedings/Alberte-3-2012.docx

Qualitative data has demonstrated the impact of PLTL on a Peer Leader’s academic performance. In this paper we quantitatively show the presence of the Peer Leader boost at Florida International University. Just as in any apprenticeship role, Peer Leaders undergo an extensive training program and it is this experience which provides an advantage. Training includes pedagogy, classroom dynamics, science concepts, and critical thinking skills equipping Peer Leaders with the necessary skills to manage a productive active learning environment. Initial observations and feedback indicate that participation as a Peer Leader adds value such as enculturation in the discipline, increased performance in traditionally assessed learning outcomes, and increased retention within the discipline. Preliminary data demonstrates a significant difference in the academic success of Peer Leaders in their own course work. This analysis was performed on large enrollment upper-level courses which indicated up to a letter grade difference between Peer Leaders and non-Peer Leaders.

Published Research: Impact of peer learning with postgraduate students

Zaccagnini, M., & Verenikina, I. (2014). Peer Assisted Study Sessions for postgraduate international students in Australia.  Journal of Peer Learning, 6(1), 86-102. Retrieved from: http://ro.uow.edu.au/ajpl/vol6/iss1/8.

Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS), a peer led academic support program that has multiple documented academic, social, and transition benefits, is increasingly being utilised in Australian instituti ons. Whilst PASS has been evaluated from multiple angles in regard to the undergraduate cohort, there is limited research regarding the benefits of PASS for postgraduate students, particularly international postgraduate students. This specific cohort's perspective is significant as international students constitute a large proportion of postgraduate students in Australian universities. This study investigates the role of PASS in contributing to the experience of international postgraduate coursework students at an Australian university through an investigation of its perceived benefits by this cohort of students.

How ‘Undermatching’ Shapes Students’ College Experience

 “Undermatching,” the phenomenon in which students enroll at less-selective colleges than their academic qualifications suggest they could have attended, is a hot topic in higher-education research. Among the topics studies have examined so far: how common undermatching is, its effect on graduation rates, and a low-cost way to change where high-achieving, low-income students apply to and enroll in college.

A paper scheduled to be presented on Friday at the American Educational Research Association’s annual meeting considers undermatching from a different angle: how it shapes high-achieving students’ experience in their first year of college.  Using data from the National Survey of Student Engagement, the paper compares the self-reported engagement, satisfaction, and gains in knowledge, skills, and personal development for high-achieving, undermatched students and their peers attending “match” institutions.

The undermatched students reported a less-challenging academic environment, lower satisfaction, and fewer gains. Those findings, the paper says, may explain why students who undermatch are less likely to graduate, as other research has found.  But some experiences of undermatched students were more positive than those of their peers at more-selective colleges. The undermatched students reported having more interactions with professors and higher engagement in active and collaborative learning styles.

The paper, “Selectivity and the College Experience: How Undermatching Shapes the College Experience Among High-Achieving Students,” is by Kevin J. Fosnacht, a research analyst at the National Survey of Student Engagement.

Free Interstate College Access Evaluation Project Teleconference

The College and Career Readiness Evaluation Consortium

Please join the free teleconference on Thursday, March 20^th, 2014 at 10:00 am (Central) To register, subscribe to our group mailings here.  You will receive an invitation for the event that includes the telephone number (not toll free) and your unique registration code.  If you would like to receive automatic calendar invites to our group calls, please email us at CollegeAccessAffinityGroup@ed.gov with the address where you would like to receive the notifications.

NOTE: Due to the high volume of calls please dial in 10 minutes prior to the scheduled call time to ensure that you are on the line by 10:00 am (Central).

Join us to learn about an interstate college access evaluation project that is using multi-state data to effectively enhance our work. This effort grew out of project directors wanting to conduct a self-evaluation of the GEAR UP program nationally, partnerships with the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships, ACT, Inc., and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center that have proven invaluable to the project, and a desire to conduct the first large-scale longitudinal GEAR UP evaluation. The first deliverable that the Consortium has accomplished is common definitions for services in GEAR UP/college access programs. Ultimately, this research and evaluation will strengthen the GEAR UP project, as well as inform college access programming in local education agencies outside of GEAR UP—all while working to meet the President’s 2020 goal.

Please cut and paste the link below into your browser to down load the power point presentation for this Affinity Group Call. There you will also find updated information on news and events within the US Department of Education, White House, and much more.   http://www2.ed.gov/news/av/audio/college-access/index.html

Study Links Responsive Teaching to Academic Gains

<Click on this link for the original article from EdWeek online.>

By Alyssa Morones on March 12, 2014 

A  social-emotional teaching approach that focuses on improving teacher effectiveness leads to student achievement gains, according to a study released today. The research-based Responsive Classroom approach emphasizes fostering student autonomy and developing the foundational social and emotional skills that they'll need as they continue into higher learning. It does so by raising teachers' abilities to promote academic engagement, create a positive community, and effectively manage the classroom.

The random-assignment study, conducted by researchers at the University of Virginia and published in the March 2014 American Educational Research Journal, followed 2,094 students and 350 teachers in 24 Virginia schools for three years, from 3rd to 5th grades. Compared with students in the control classrooms, students whose teachers fully implemented the Responsive Classroom program saw significant gains on their reading and math tests, regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds. The association with achievement was especially strong for students who were initially low achievers.

It also positively impacted the classroom environment as a whole, which led to improved classroom organization and emotional support for students and, in mathematics, the Responsive Classroom approach led to increased depth and higher level discussions of the materials.  A key detail of this approach is its holistic approach. The Responsive Classroom provides teachers with practices for teaching their students social and emotional skills such as cooperation, assertiveness, and empathy—traits that lend themselves to higher-level learning—in conjunction with their academic lessons.

Principal support was found to be important to teachers' full use of the approach. Teachers were more likely to use the approach if their principals were encouraging and if they received coaching while implementing their new practices.  The Responsive Classroom approach was developed by the Northeast Foundation for Children, an educational nonprofit that looks to bring together academic and social learning.  This study builds upon the researchers' earlier results, presented in 2012 and reported on by Education Week here, which also indicated student gains in statewide mathematics and reading assessments. 

Kentucky Model for College-Readiness of High School Students

<Click on this link to download the entire 62-page report.>

The purpose of this study was to examine Kentucky high school students’ participation and pass rates in college preparatory transition courses, which are voluntary remedial courses in math and reading offered to grade 12 students in the state. Three groups of students were compared using the population of grade 12 students in Kentucky public schools in school year 2011/12 (n=33,928): students meeting state benchmarks, students approaching state benchmarks (1 to 3 points below), and students performing below state benchmarks (4 or more points below). The courses targeted students who were approaching state benchmarks, but all students were eligible to take them. Results were examined for member school districts of the Southeast/South-Central Educational Cooperative (a research partner with Regional Educational Laboratory Appalachia), a matched comparison group of districts with similar characteristics identified through propensity score matching, and the state as a whole. The study found that most students, even those targeted for the intervention, did not participate in the college preparatory transition courses. Among students who were approaching state benchmarks in math, fewer than one-third (28.1 percent) took transition courses, and among students approaching state benchmarks in reading, fewer than one-tenth (8.0 percent) enrolled in transition courses. Despite the intention of the policy, students from all three groups (meeting, approaching, and below state benchmarks) enrolled in the courses. Statewide pass rates for students who did enroll in transition courses in math or reading were more than 90 percent. Examining participation and pass rates can help schools and districts understand how college preparatory transition courses are used and may be adapted to meet the needs of students targeted for intervention.

<Click on this link to download the entire 62-page report.>