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Rider 82 Curriculum
2007 Pilot Report Findings

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Qualitative Findings

To determine the effectiveness of the curricula, both during and after the pilot, conference calls were conducted with teachers, students, and administrators at the five pilot sites. The findings discussed here reflect the qualitative findings from the conference calls teachers participated in during and after the pilot, as well as conference calls students and administrators participated in after the pilot.

Teachers

The findings in this section are from conference calls conducted during and after the pilot. During the pilot, after 50 hours of instruction, each teacher participated in a conference call. After the end of the pilot, an exit interview was conducted with the teachers at each pilot site. A total of 7 teachers participated in conference calls (Mt. Pleasant had 3 teachers piloting the curriculum and they all participated in the conference calls). The average length of time per conference call was approximately one hour.

Pilot
All of the teachers felt that the pilot was a “good” to “great” experience. Problems with the pilot included uncertainty in regard to data collection materials – how to complete the surveys and when to complete the surveys.

Overall it went well. The students really liked it and so did I.

The instructor evaluations were very challenging to complete at first.

Curriculum
When asked about the curriculum, the teachers within all of the industry-related curricula reported that the curricula were easy to follow. To enhance the lessons, some teachers created their own material which provided information beyond the curriculum and had speakers come to class to speak to the students about industry-specific material.

The materials are all very self-explanatory; the lesson plan books are very user-friendly.

The only thing is that the students are asking more questions, so if they have more questions, I go see what else I can find out about the lesson.

Two of the major concerns reported by the teachers were that the curriculum was too advanced for low ESL students and that it was too focused on Mexican citizens, the Hispanic culture, and the Spanish language.

The content was good, but the vocabulary was a little on the high side for level 2-3 students.

This curriculum is focused on the Hispanic community… I had only one Vietnamese student in my class and she wound up leaving the class because she felt totally left out because all of the other students spoke Spanish in class.

Lesson components
When asked about the different components within each of the lessons, the teachers reported that the ESL components were “very good”. The teachers found that the vocabulary in the employability components was too advanced. One teacher explained that in the employability components “there were a lot of words that had to be discussed orally before we could get into the lesson”. Overall the math lessons were reported to be too basic. One teacher stated that the math component was not very challenging for his students. However the teachers mentioned that the students really enjoyed how the math lessons were tied into an industry, “the students really liked that math. It was very well connected to the other lessons”.

All of the teachers felt that the technology component of the lessons were difficult. For some of the teachers the computers in their classroom ran a different operating system then the one described in the curriculum so they could not follow along. Also the students were not very computer-literate, so they needed a lot of independent teaching. One teacher suggested that if the technology components were broken into smaller pieces and incorporated more teacher guidance, the technology components would be more manageable.

Teachers’ perceptions of students
The feedback given by teachers about how the students responded to the curriculum varied. Most of the teachers stated that the students were very excited about learning more about the industry, that the students enjoyed the different components of the curriculum, and that they were meeting their goals. The teachers also reported an increase in student retention.

They are accustomed to having three absences a month, so requiring them to be here everyday was difficult for some. But there were a few who never missed and a few that missed only one day, so it was good.

Several of the teachers stated that a few students would disengage during certain lessons because they had worked in this industry previously, had advanced degrees from their home country, or the lesson material was too advanced for the students.

During class sometimes they looked like they had no idea what was happening.

Students

A total of 26 students participated in five conference calls at the end of the pilot. Table 8 shows the breakdown how many students participated in each conference call per pilot site. The average length of time per conference call was approximately one hour. The information presented in this section of the report comes from these five conference calls with students.

Application of curriculum
The students reported that they believed that by being in this program, they would be able to apply for better jobs. They also reported that they were able to apply what they were learning in class outside the classroom.

The program is very good for us. Find a good job. This program has helped me to speak more and when go looking for jobs. Before someone would go with me when filling out applications, now I can do it myself. (Student from the Manufacturing pilot)

Learning the English will help me get a better job. (Student from the Sales and Service pilot)

It is an opportunity of a lifetime… it prepares you for what you will need to have in this country, prepare you for society. (Student from the Sales and Service pilot)

Because we learn about healthcare, we can help others such as family or friends. (Student from the healthcare pilot)

Improvements
The students reported that their English speaking skills, knowledge of math, and knowledge of technology had improved as a result of this pilot. They also learned more about certain industries.

It [English] has improved quite a lot. I don’t stutter as much, there are words I can say without second guessing myself. I understand what people are telling me now. I feel more confident speaking. (Student from the Healthcare pilot)

I learn math; percentage, how to do an invoice, purchase orders, and packing slips… I have an increased ability in math. (Student from the Sales and Service pilot)

When I started this program I didn’t know reading, writing, and how to turn on the computer. I didn’t know anything about the computer. (Student from the Manufacturing pilot)

This program helped me with understanding how to work machines in manufacturing and speak English with co-workers. (Student from the Manufacturing pilot)

It [the curriculum] is the first steps towards a career in health care. (Student from the Healthcare pilot)

Lessons
Most of the students reported that the lessons were appropriate for their level of comprehension.

The lessons are not easy, especially the technology of the new words. It’s not too hard, but not too easy…everything was very good and very interesting. (Student from the Healthcare pilot)

The lessons were good for my level. The lessons were adequate for my level since learn English slowly. (Student from Sales and Service pilot)

The lessons were in the middle. (Student from the Manufacturing pilot)

However about 25% of the students responded that the lessons were too easy. These students usually had previous experience in this industry or had an advanced degree from their home country.

For me the lessons were too simple. The lessons were very easy and understandable. The math lessons were very easy. (Student from the Healthcare pilot).

The manufacturing is easy for me because of my country I had a job there...The program is very easy for me because I am working in manufacturing. (Student from Manufacturing pilot)

They were simple for my level. They were simple enough to understand for sales. I was a stocker in a store. (Student from Sales and Service pilot).

Administrators

A total of 5 administrators participated in five conference calls at the end of the pilot. The average length of time per conference call was approximately 20 minutes. The information presented in this section of the report comes from these five conference calls with administrators.

Pilot
The administrators reported that they felt the pilot was a “good experience” and “very positive”.

It was a very enriching experience for her [the teacher], even as long as she has taught ESL. She felt like she learned a lot as well.

Curriculum
In general the administrators said that the curriculum in all three industry clusters was a challenge for the students because it was too advanced, while at the same time the information that the curriculum contained was helpful for students.

The initial concern was that the curriculum was written at a higher level than the students were. It was a struggle to get to that level.

The curriculum challenged their maturity and their interest. A teacher can always do this by they way they facilitate the classroom, but this curriculum can change the students. The students responded very well to it.

Several of the administrators mentioned that it might be beneficial to add more phonics and grammar to the curriculum, add cognates to other sections outside of ESL components, and have a bank of supplemental materials for teachers to use when students want more information about a specific topic.

Lesson components
The only lesson component that was mentioned during the conference calls with the administrators was the technology component. They reported the students learned a lot from the technology components, even though the students were usually at different computer functioning levels.

When you look at the NRS levels of curriculum, low to advanced, we have a good variation. But when it comes to technology, our students were all over the place.

They [students] really loved the computer section, the lab. For many of them, this was the first time to create an Excel spreadsheet. Now they know it is crucial to know the keyboard.

One administrator suggested that it would be a good idea to add an online job application form to this component.

Administrators’ perceptions of students
The administrators stated that they perceived the students have an increased self-confidence and improvement in their English. They also stated that they saw an increase in retention and that the students were very eager to continue with this curriculum. One group of students was very interested in a transition program. The administrators also mentioned that they felt the students were able to apply the knowledge they were learning outside of the classroom

I was happy to see that the retention rate was so high. The class started with 21 and ended up with 18.

The students that are currently working in that field, it [the curriculum] really helped them understand better things about their job. For those that are not employed, one student is a health service student and she alluded to the health service curriculum. It helped her converse more with the doctor.

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