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SJRCC Press Release
August 2009
Testing proves helpful in "college readiness" efforts
For many freshmen, college is anticipated as a time to excel, where students eagerly prepare themselves for success, said St. Johns River Community College counselor Sally Myers. The last thing students want to hear during registration is that their collegiate journey will be delayed by a remedial detour; however, Myers said approximately 70% of students entering community colleges statewide are not considered "college ready" in at least one of the three crucial subject areas - reading, writing and mathematics.
"It's often an unexpected setback. About half of the students who need college preparatory classes considered themselves ready for college and were not even aware that those classes existed until they were required to take them," Myers said. "Being eligible for college and being prepared for college courses are not the same thing."
So how do colleges define "college ready?" SJRCC Open Campus Provost Melanie Brown explained that to be considered college ready, students must meet a specific level of proficiency in reading, writing and mathematics that are well above the levels of proficiency to pass the FCAT or the levels to earn a high school diploma.
SJRCC President Joe Pickens said the College has taken its first step in helping school districts improve those statistics after the passing of Senate Bill 1908. The College and Career Readiness Initiative requires both secondary and postsecondary schools to combine efforts in providing better access to testing and remediation classes before students graduate from high school. Following the Bill's requirements, SJRCC - in cooperation with local high schools - offered a free College Placement Test (CPT) earlier this year to targeted high school juniors. Students volunteering for the test met two criteria: 10th grade FCAT scores indicating a probability for remediation and an interest in attending college.
The test results revealed that a vast majority of the targeted students need remediation in at least one area. Brown said while the local CPT scores support the statewide statistics, the College's objective has been met - the testing process identified the students who need remedial classes. "The test brings to the students' attention that they are not college ready, but also gives them a whole year to take advantage of the remedial classes," Brown said. "They aren't behind yet."
"Those students will have the option of taking remedial classes during their senior year with the premise that they will be able to avoid the costly preparatory classes in college," Brown said. The need for remediation increases costs for both the state and students. "A student who waits until college to take prep classes in all three areas could pay more than $700," she said, adding that prep classes do not count toward the graduation degree requirement.
Pickens, who spearheaded the bill while serving in the Legislature, has made college readiness a priority this summer, by meeting with educators throughout the state and in Washington, D.C. "It would be short sighted of me to think that because I'm now the president of a college, what goes on in the high schools really doesn't matter," Pickens said. "What goes on in the high schools is of the utmost importance to the College."
Pickens recently met with the Southern Regional Education Board, an organization serving 16 states and includes Governor Charlie Crist, Chancellor of Public Schools Frances Haithcock, and Commissioner of Education Eric Smith. Pickens, who heads the Florida Board, said his mission was to help lawmakers and educators better understand that college readiness means more than a score on a test. "We're working with this large, respected regional organization on issues that will have a direct impact of the citizens of our service area, especially students coming up through the middle grades and then coming to us," Pickens said. "We're all thinking of the big picture."
District school counselor Renee Hough, who spearheaded the testing in Putnam County, said she was pleased with the cooperation between the schools and the College in its efforts to proctor the test and that the results could help students realize there is still time to become college ready. "It let them see that a rigorous schedule could help them become ready for that next step," Hough said. "We have very smart, very bright students who need that little bit of a challenge. They still have time to redeem themselves, to get in there and take that extra math or read a little more."
Hough said that while students endure many tests throughout the year, she encourages juniors to take advantage of the CPT. "I want the parents, students and counselors to see it as a positive step," she said, adding that some students are pleasantly surprised with their test scores and are later motivated to take the ACT.
Meredith Strickland, the senior director for curriculum and instructional services for the St. Johns County School District, said they are being proactive in finding out the strengths and weaknesses of students. "The students who tested poorly on the test are not poor students," she said. "We are being proactive in addressing those findings early so they will be prime candidates for success their freshman year in college."
Strickland said approximately 228 St. Johns County seniors are enrolled this fall to take math for college readiness, while the reading and writing portion will be incorporated into senior English.
SJRCC will administer the test again this fall at local high schools to eligible juniors. Interested high school juniors should contact their guidance counselor for a test application and test dates.
Return to SJRCC home page.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Susan Kessler
SJRCC Director of Public Relations and Publications
5001 St. Johns Avenue
Palatka, FL 32177
(386) 312-4020
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