Universities

When Early Childhood and Higher Ed Collide

maureen — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 10:52:24 -0500

I spent last Thursday nearly nose-to-nose with an epic dinosaur skeleton in the UW’s Burke Museum. No, I wasn’t taking a day off to soak up history. I was crammed into a meeting of Representatives from the House Higher Education and Early Learning/Children’s Services Committees to discuss preparation programs for early learning professionals and options for legislation in the 2009 session.

Here’s what I found out:

-Early Learning Preparation Programs in Washington are pretty patchwork. Some programs exist as a mishmash of interdisciplinary AA requirements. Some exist as an added emphasis to an education degree. Some exist completely outside of colleges of ed. And frankly, those are just the few I remember from the four-hour meeting. In any case, the most promising program was launched this year by the UW as an undergraduate degree in early childhood education. This degree was separate from the College of Education and added elements of pediatrics and development psychology, which I found impressive.

The UW is also exploring creating a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education Leadership as the next step for individuals who complete their undergrad degrees. However, the UW’s representative added that this was contingent on (you guessed it) funding.

-We’re all still learning what “good” early learning professional preparation means. The meeting was a great chance for early learning professional preparation programs to share what they’re doing and the challenges their students face. What I found encouraging was the amount of emerging early childhood research many schools are incorporating into their programs. This keeps students/childcare providers aligned with cutting edge knowledge and researchers in touch with those in the field. Good all around.

-Coordination is going to be key moving forward. Early learning is such an emerging field, it seems like everyone’s taking the ball and running in different directions (one organization who complained of lack of student scholarships was astonished that another offered them). The legislature is going to really have to drill down and—in a manner similar to K-12—designate who is responsible for what and what bodies govern whom. They’ve done this to some degree with the creation of the Department of Early Learning and Thrive by 5. But no one disagrees that they’ve got a lot more work ahead of them.

Well, there you have it folks. To learn more about Early Learning initiatives throughout Washington state, visit the Early Learning section of our site.

When Math Professors Attack!

maureen — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 13:05:33 -0600

Saw an interesting article in the P-I today that pits 60 math and science professors from the UW—who signed an open letter—against the state’s new math standards. Apparently, many profs complain that college freshmen can’t do basic math, some instructors are dumbing down their classes and Washington math education is to blame.

But not everyone at the UW agrees. Ginger Warfield, a senior lecturer in UW Math Dept. gave a nice rebuttal to the ivory tower crankies.

Mathematicians may mean well, "but they have no clue how to teach math to children," she said. "They know how to teach it at the collegiate level, but it's quite different teaching a first-grader than teaching a freshman."

Touche.

the girls are gonna getcha.

allisonm — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 15:10:41 -0600

No matter where we go, my husband is always looking up.

"So that's how they make it have an Asian feel," he said when we were at MGM Studios at Disneyworld last year. We were standing in line for The Great Movie Ride (one of our favorites, btw) and he was, of course, looking up at the ceiling above us. The attraction is a replica of Grauman's Chinese Theatre and he had an "aha" moment as he examined the way the wood pieces fit together.

When we were in Italy, it was nonstop looking up. In fact, I'm surprised his head didn't get permanently stuck tilted back. Arch after arch, duomo after duomo, we were both amazed at the design of these artistic structures but while I would take pictures of the church as a whole, he'd be taking close-up shots of buttresses counteracting the lateral forces of roofs or walls. This is the life of an engineer's wife.

But while I may sometimes poke fun at it, I must say that I've gained an appreciation for the math and science behind these designs. It is amazing how those concepts I learned in Physics class actually do apply to almost everything in the real world. It makes me think that maybe if I had someone influencing me then like my husband influences me now, would I have pursued a different career path?

Well, two programs out of our higher-ed institutions are working to provide such opportunities. As this column explains, The UW Women's Initiative and SmartGirls (which looks like it's out of SeattleU) prove that the stereotype of engineering being only for guys like my husband is utterly untrue.

Both programs aim at gaining female interest in engineering, particularly with black and Latino girls. Through the UW Women's Initiative, women engineering students present to middle and high school girls. They encourage them to see engineering as a viable path and motivate them to take challenging math and science course in high school. True role models, these women not only show young girls that it can be done but show them in a way that creates relevance.

After a presentation, the program pairs students up for a hands-on experiment such as a bridge-building exercise. And as I can attest to, it's that firsthand learning that that brings those math and science concepts to life.

These programs sound fantastic!! So if anyone out there has been through one or knows more about it, please share!

All I know is, my hubby better watch out. The girls are gonna getcha. :)

A strategic plan for public education

allisonm — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:13:40 -0600

Washington needs top teachers!

maureen — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:28:18 -0600

Educators and administrators across the nation have long debated how to attract top students into careers in teaching, and a new fellowship affiliated with our own University of Washington might just be the ticket.

The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation at Princeton is in the process of creating the "Lenore Annenberg Teaching Fellowship" that will offer 33 individuals $30,000 stipends to attend graduate education programs at top schools like Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Virginia and Washington’s UW.

“Research shows that providing excellent teachers is the single most important way to improve student achievement,” Arthur E. Levine, president of the foundation, told the New York Times. “But the quality of our teaching force today is not as strong as it needs to be, and our teacher preparation programs are too weak. We hope this program will produce significant improvement in both and provide models that the rest of the country will follow.”

So all you students out there, take heed! Applications will be available next year for enrollment in 2009. Stay tuned for more information on this great opportunity!

Mastering WA Higher Ed

maureen — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:13:59 -0600

We’ve posted before about the advancements the HEC Board is making in creating Washington’s new 10-year master plan for higher education, but yesterday I got the inside scoop when HEC Board Chair Bill Grinstein presented it to the College Work Ready Agenda team.

The 41-page plan outlines Washington’s strategy to reverse the trend of low degree attainment in the state (as we’ve previously noted, today’s 25-34 year-olds are actually less educated in terms of college degrees than previous generations) and reduce the number of workers our state is forced to import due to lack of education. To produce the report, the HEC Board collaborated with colleges, educators and community members to make sure the plan truly meets the needs of all of Washington’s economic regions.

I also learned that the master plan includes a set of implementation strategies and goals for state policy, including that, by October 2008, the HEC Board will recommend to the legislature ways to increase access and capacity in Washington colleges and universities. This looks promising as K-12 and the College Work Ready team work to prepare more and more students for a higher education, so stay tuned.

To read the master plan (which was released on Dec. 13) and learn more about the HECB’s policy recommendations for higher education visit their website.

Fixing our leaky pipeline

maureen — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:10:55 -0600

Who says you can never go home again? I recently got back from a terrific meeting held by the Graduate and Professional Student Senate at my good old alma mater, the University of Washington. While I could wax Husky nostalgic, I won’t. Because, in terms of access, entrance and readiness for baccalaureate (and post-grad) institutions in our state, the situation is sobering.

Of 100 Washington students who enter the 9th grade, only 19 actually make it through and complete either a four or a two-year degree. Ann Daley, executive director of Washington’s Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB), presented this statistic as not only a leaky pipeline with students as droplets, but also the tears the system is crying.

But this meeting wasn’t just about our education system’s leaky pipeline leading up to a bachelor’s degree. It was a call to educators, politicians and business leaders to wake up to the fact that—although we talk a lot about the impending deficit of individuals with an undergraduate degrees in our state—we neglect to realize we are operating at a HUGE deficit of individuals with graduate degrees.

This means that companies like Microsoft, Boeing and biotech firms (all represented at the meeting) are increasingly forced to recruit the majority of there highly-skilled researchers and developers from other regions and countries. Though collars were loosened throughout the room, it was wonderful to see the higher ed-heads agree that college-readiness (particularly in math) was a key solution to this issue. Students who are highly prepared for college work, not only finish more reliably, but are more apt to consider and enroll in the graduate programs our state’s top employers so desperately recruit from.

I don’t know about you, but as Husky, I sure hope the UW, and other Washington colleges, can band together with those in the K-12 system to set common standards and curriculum, so that patches can be made at all levels of the pipeline and students can make it as far down as they choose.

To learn more about the HECB’s Higher Education Master Plan visit their website.

College Board looks to reduce barriers for low-income students

maureen — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 11:03:31 -0600

This time of year takes on a special meaning for many high school students. No, I’m not talking about the approach of Thanksgiving and Winter break. I’m talking about the period of time I recall with a shiver of remembered stress and anticipation: College Application Season.

Studies show that most students want to pursue education beyond high school and know that a college education is increasingly a necessity for family-wage earning jobs. Unfortunately, due to an extraordinary number of barriers—not the least of which include a financial aid application that makes doing taxes look like a breeze—many low income students are left out in the cold.

The College Board hopes to change this. Known as the arbiters of the PSAT, SAT and AP tests—often viewed as the keys to college entrance—the Board has released a report and initiative entitled the CollegeKeys Compact. The report is a result of a College Board study, which found that nearly one-half of all college-qualified low- and moderate-income high school graduates do not enroll in a four-year college program because of a combination of poor preparation, low expectations and financial barriers. The initiative makes clear the need for a focused effort, on the behalf of all individuals participating in education, to ensure more opportunities for low-income students to attend and then succeed in college.

Among the actions advocated by the College Board: increased communication with parents unfamiliar with higher education; universal application fee waivers for low-income college applicants; a more transparent application process so everyone can understand what is asked for when a student applies to a university; and perhaps most importantly, a more comprehensive process for obtaining financial aid.

We talk lot about the need for students to be ready to succeed in college, but our work means little if students are unable to navigate college entrance. One hopes that this initiative will alert the K-12 and higher education communities to the barriers that keep low-income students behind and the changes needed to allow them to excel.

We’re also interested in learning more about the ways this initiative will soon affect Washington college-applying seniors—especially as the College Board expands it’s $26 million fee waiver-program—and will keep you updated as we learn more.

To view the full report and learn more visit the College Board.

U-CAN find the perfect college!

allisonm — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:59:58 -0500

Remember back in July, I blogged about a website in the works that offers info for students to objectively compare private colleges and universities? Well, it's here!

U-CAN, the University and College Accountability Network (kudos to the marketing staff who came up with that creative acronym) has been launched. Quite useful. Just enter the state or zip code of the area you're thinking of attending college and, tada! A list of schools in your area and beyond comes up. Over 600 private colleges and universities have signed on to participate in the initiative, with over 440 profiles published so far.

Click on the school link of your choice and view a colorful, easy-to-read page with a brief synopsis of the school, charts and graphs of info including enrollment numbers, average GPA and ACT scores of students who attend the college, demographic info, and links to key pages on that school's website. Genius! Good job, U-CAN.

Now, we just have to get the public institutions on board...

Mountain View High School

rosalie — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 11:42:38 -0500

What do we want kids to know? How will we know that they learned it? What do we do as a staff to help those students who don’t get it? At Mountain View High School in the Evergreen School District, these three questions guide all teaching and learning.

Associate Principal Eric Bernstein says the answers aren’t always easy to find, especially to the last question. "But we can’t say, oh well, they’ll get it somewhere else. We need to do everything we can to help students learn what they need to know because we can’t just shift the responsibility." To help the Vancouver-area school’s more than 2,000 students get the skills they need, Mountain View offers:

A daily tutorial period for each ninth-grader.
After-school help: Four days a week, students have access to help in math, writing, reading and science. After-school sessions are primarily for ninth- and 10th-graders but open to all students.
Two-week August program for incoming freshmen to get familiar with the school, learn study skills and jump-start math and literacy skills for the year. Four years ago, 11 students attended the program; this past August, more than 350 students participated.

Bernstein says the state’s school improvement efforts are pushing schools to focus on the achievement of all students, not just some. He believes the WASL has made a difference but would like change how people view the WASL: "It’s not an obstacle but a pathway to success."