The House and the Bridge: Underlying Aims of College Readiness Supports, a Statewide Longitudinal Study

• In Event: Students' Pathways and Supports Toward College Readiness: Results From a Statewide Longitudinal Mixed-Methods Study

Abstract

Researchers have documented the need to better prepare incoming college students for college persistence and graduation (Attewell et al. 2006; Henry & Stahl, 2017). For instance, the ACT reported that in 2019, 36% of high school graduates showed “little preparedness for college coursework,” as measured by scores on ACT exams and that readiness in core subjects such as English and math have declined for years (ACT, 2019). This suggests that many college-bound graduates are beginning post-secondary education programs without the skills and knowledge necessary to be considered “college ready.” Many schools implement strategies, programs, and practices meant to make students more college ready, such as strong teacher-student relationships at the classroom level and multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) (NYU, 2022) and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) programs (Horrillo et al., 2021) at the school level.

In this presentation, we identify three emergent themes among high schools’ approaches to supporting students’ college readiness that surfaced in interviews with school administrators from across one Mid-Atlantic state. These themes are then considered in light of literature related to preparing students for postsecondary education, including a discussion of the potential effectiveness and limitations of these strategies for supporting college readiness.

The current study’s design included interviews to capture data on the primary mediators and moderators in the study’s theory of change (see below). Interview data were collected from 15 schools in videoconference interviews with principals, counselors, and assistant principals. These school administrators identified themselves as the most knowledgeable and best positioned to discuss their schools’ college readiness supports. Interviews were approximately one hour and collected administrators’ descriptions of their school’s college readiness supports.

Interviews were recorded and transcribed. A grounded theory approach (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) was used to analyze interview data. A grounded theory approach allowed the researchers to analyze qualitative data without a preconceived theory; instead, the theory emerged from the data. Transcriptions were read and codes were developed based on interviewees’ statements about schools’ resources, programs, and supports for college readiness. Some examples of codes were “AVID program,” “teacher support,” and “encourage confidence.” These codes were then applied across interviews to identify how frequently these supports were used. The codes themselves were subsequently categorized to three broad themes that undergird schools’ aims to support college readiness: 1) Treat high school like college; 2) Construct and identify “college ready” abilities among students, then encourage more rigor; and 3) Boost morale, confidence, and perceptions of self-efficacy among students. Schools mostly rely on the “treat high school like college” approach. The approaches speak to college readiness support as academic and social enrichment for immediate success in high school (i.e. “the house”) and as preparation for college in future (i.e. “the bridge”). These findings contribute to discussions pertaining to effective strategies for instilling college readiness, theories that underlie these strategies, and potential for policy interventions to enhance or improve these strategies.

Authors

• Katrina K. Morrison, University of Delaware
  Presenting Author

• Marcia Gail Headley, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author

• Henry May, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jeffrey Robert Klein, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author

• Roderick L. Carey, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author