| |
Introduction
Minutes
Members
|
|
|
Minutes
of ESL Assessment Committee Meeting
October 13, 2004
The meeting was called to order at 1:30 p.m. in B 159.
1. Pam Rogers
discussed the committee’s current state of affairs: We have
completed the blueprint required by the NCA, although corrections
or changes may still be made.
2. Pam showed
us the results of assessment testing from Fall
2002 to Spring 2004. After some discussion, the following conclusions
were reached by the committee:
a) ESL
040:
1) Post-test
results indicate that students improve in all areas (Mechanics,
Organization, Holistic) during the semester,
however Mechanics shows the least improvement.
2) Students
improve the most in Organization.
3) Students
complete ESL 040 with an average of 3 (out of 4) on their writing
ability.
4) Since
confounding variables cannot be controlled between semesters,
data will only be analyzed within each semester, not across
semesters.
b) ESL
030
1) Students
improved in every area except Compound Sentences and Subject/Verb
Agreement.
2) Students
scored above 92% correct on both the pretest and post-test in
Compound Sentences, indicating that the lack of improvement
was due to either the students’ prior mastery of the skill
or the questions’ lack of sufficient challenge.
3) Students
scored approximately 50% on both the pretest and post-test in
Subject/Verb Agreement, indicating that students are not making
adequate progress in this area during the semester.
4) At
this point in the discussion, the question was raised: “What
should it take for a student to advance to the next level?”
It was pointed out that:
- NCA requires standard advancement
criteria.
- after
Level 4, students must pass the Asset to advance to ENG 107.
- the
English Dept.’s de facto criterion for all other levels
is a grade of C or better in each course in order to advance
to the next level.
c) ESL
020
Students
improved in all areas except Subject/Verb Agreement.
d) Conclusions:
- More writing
practice is needed at all levels and in all courses.
- The new
textbooks for ESL 010 and 020 should contribute to the achievement
of this goal since they replace grammar exercises with writing
exercises.
3. Subcommittees
a) OPI
Training – Nancy Meyers
1) A
Learning Grant is being written for PC and GWC to share OPI
training.
2) Nancy
met with the Associate Dean of Instruction to discuss funding
for OPI training. She reported that the Dean responded positively,
but did not make any commitments at that time.
3) The
earliest date for the training would be January 2006.
4) There
is an enrollment cap of ten participants for the training.
b) ESL
030 – Ginny Simmons
Ginny distributed
a packet of writing exercises she developed for this course.
c) ESL
067 – Pam Rogers
1) The
research has not been completed on this course.
2) Instructors
need to encourage more ESL students to take this course.
3) Nancy
Matte has agreed to open more sections.
4) Mary
Lou Gomez asked about the differences between ESL 067 and ENG
061. Discussion followed, after which it was decided that the
course description needs to be revised to clarify the differences.
4. Next meeting
a) November 10, 2004 at 1:30 p.m.
b) A
plan will be developed for the ESL 040 essay critical evaluation.
Meeting was adjourned
at 2:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Cristie
Roe
|
|
|
