Getting Started with IBEST
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Subject: [ProfessionalDevelopment 3087] Getting started with I-BEST
From: Jackie A. Taylor jackie at jataylor.net
Date: Tue Feb 24 08:50:48 EST 2009
Hello Tina, Leslie, Kim,
Thanks for sharing what I-BEST looks like in your programs and the
funding details. One question many folks may have is 'how in the world
do I get started with something like I-BEST?' So it would be helpful, I
think, if you shared with us details from your experience:
How did I-BEST get started in Washington State and what kind of
information or data did you collect to document that it worked?
What is this tipping point phrase we keep hearing about in relation to
I-BEST?
Thanks so much,
Jackie
Jackie Taylor, Professional Development List Moderator,
jackie at jataylor.net
National Institute for Literacy www.nifl.gov <http://www.nifl.gov/> Association of Adult Literacy Professional Developers www.aalpd.org <http://www.aalpd.org/>
Subject: [ProfessionalDevelopment 3095] Re: Getting started with I-BEST at TCC
From: Ward, Kim kward at tacomacc.edu
Date: Tue Feb 24 13:41:15 EST 2009
Greetings; I will respond to how we got started at TCC, with a bit of
history at the state level.
The integrated model was happening in Washington State long before the
birth of I-BEST. Several colleges had program models that ranged from
the traditional VESL model, to something similar to what I-BEST looks
like today. If my memory serves me correctly, many of these programs
targeted the TANF populations / programs on our campuses.
I believe our state office was interested in the various models out
there and wanted to take a closer look at these how they worked.
Recognizing the changing demographics in our community and the need to
look at ways to move our populations in to training opportunities that
lead to better paying jobs ,The State Board for Community and Technical
Colleges put out an RFP for pilot projects to explore, develop, and
document various integrated models. The RFP called for a joint
partnership / collaboration between basic skills and workforce
departments on each campus. TCC was chosen as one of 10 pilot projects.
At TCC, we started small, choosing a certificate that included only 9
credits, but also enabled students to continue on. The certificate we
chose was a Child Development Associate, a nationally recognized
certificate that on our campus could count toward 9 credits in our
Paraeducator program. This was the beginning of our first "pathway" that
started at the basic skills level. The program we worked with had an
experienced faculty member/program chair who had a long history of
working with underprepared students. Her program was one that didn't
have strict entry requirements, so she often had students who struggled
with basic skills. The idea of this model was very appealing to her, so
she became our first "champion".
I will let Tina respond to the question about the data collected and the
tipping point research.
Kim Ward
Tacoma Community College
kward at tacomacc.edu
253.566.6048
Subject: [ProfessionalDevelopment 3097] Re: Getting started with I-BEST at TCC
From: Tina Bloomer tbloomer at sbctc.edu
Date: Tue Feb 24 14:30:39 EST 2009
Hello all,
Kim did a great job of responding. I'll give a bit of the state-level perspective.
How did I-BEST get started in Washington State and what kind of information or data did you collect to document that it worked?
The state board staff began to recognize a significant demographic shift in the students attending Adult Basic Education programs. English as a Second Language (ESL) was growing and the system data indicated the students were coming to prepare themselves for work. College faculty and staff at some of the system colleges were beginning to combine workforce education and adult basic education programming in new ways to address the needs of the students. Staff to begin to look for national research around combining these program areas and found there was not much available. Research was limited and primarily focused on using ESL to teach workplace vocabulary not skills training. SBCTC became particularly interested in some programs with potential in this area being delivered at some of the Washington system colleges.
Concurrently, there was an increasing focus on economic development and the role community and technical colleges played in providing a workforce training based on a sectoral approach. The board had been working on a number of system initiatives to address the needs of the workforce system in Washington state.
To document that I-BEST worked, we utilized our system data to look at progression of the students in terms of accumulation of college level credits and basic skills gains. We published the results in one of the research reports provided by Jackie as background reading. Colleges also tracked their own data. One of the pilot colleges also tracked the students using a comparison group of traditional workforce students and saw excellent results in terms of GPA and basic skills gains.
Washington has implemented a new performance measurement system since I-BEST started. We are now measuring the students in terms of the achievement points (milestones) developed in that system. The results for I-BEST continue to hold up. We have written a research report on these results as well (also available with the background material).
Here is summary of the results of the first full implementation year of I-BEST:
- Twenty-four (24) colleges offered I-BEST programs and reported 900 student enrollments (273 ESL and 627 ABE/GED). This represents an increase by 55 percent in these colleges (65 percent for ESL students and 50 percent for ABE/GED) of students who were able to enroll in college-level course work during the same year they enrolled in basic skills.
- In the programs studied in this report, both I-BEST students and other students were more likely to attempt college-level work when they reached ABE level 4, GED levels 1-2 and ESL levels 5 and 6 than students from lower levels.
- While increasing their basic skills is essential to getting ready for college-level work, students do not gather college momentum until they transition into college-level courses. There is evidence in the programs studied that I-BEST helps students build first year momentum for earning college credits and thereby increases their preparation and possibilities for going even further. The percentages of I-BEST students who earn their first 15 college credits is substantially higher than in cases when basic skills students attempt college coursework in other ways (53 percent versus 11 percent for ESL and 61 percent versus 26 percent for ABE/GED students). This momentum point for all students is significant for providing a solid start on a college-level pathway to the "tipping point" as tested in the achievement initiative and found in other research. Furthermore, I-BEST students maintain momentum better by completing 30 or more credits at a higher rate than ABE/GED students enrolled in college courses in other ways (32 percent for I-BEST students compared to 11 percent for other students).
What is this tipping point phrase we keep hearing about in relation to I-BEST?
The "tipping point" refers to an educational tipping point identified by state board research on our state-wide system data. The study was written by David Prince and Davis Jenkins titled, Building Pathways to Success for Low-Skill Adult Students: Lessons for Community College Policy and Practice from a Longitudinal Student Tracking Study. The study set out to look at "the unique experiences and the educational and employment outcomes of adults who enter community college with limited education" knowing that their experiences and outcomes differ from those of traditional college-aged students. The study examined educational attainment and earnings of approximately 35,000 students who were either first-time college students who were adults age 25 or older with a high school education or less and who started in 1996-97 or in 1997-98. Also included in the cohorts were 18- to 24-year-old, first time students who lacked a high school diploma or GED.
The study found that "Nearly 30 percent of the students who started with a GED, and 35 percent of those who started with a high school diploma, earned at least 45 credits or a credential in five years. Fourteen percent of the students who started with a GED, and 18 percent of students who started with a high school diploma, earned an advanced certificate or an associate degree in five years.
Not surprisingly, the higher students' educational attainment after five years, the higher the wages they earned on average. Compared with students who earned fewer than ten college credits, those who took at least one year's worth of college-credit courses and earned a credential had an average annual earnings advantage: $7,000 for students who started in ESL; $8,500 for those who started in ABE or GED; and $2,700 and $1,700 for those entering with a GED or high school diploma, respectively."
Based on this information, our system's thinking changed. We realized the importance of designing programs and pathways that got students to at least forty-five college level credits (Washington is on the quarter system) and a meaningful credential. At that point students had a good foothold in their educational experience and were much more likely to earn better wages and also get to the next educational level.
That's a bit long to say, so we just call it the tipping point.
Tina
