Career schools
Since many of the career schools do not have entrance exam or any pre-test to measure students enrolled, it is critical to find out background level of the students. You get some general ideas during introduction by asking them the right questions. As an IT instructor, it is critical to know who is advanced students and who isn't since we have to manage the class and the flow of the classroom.
Our school has entrance exams in math, English, and keyboarding. If they do not pass these exams they are placed in prep classes. One problem in these classes is the student may have missed the cutoff by just a few points or they may have missed it by "a lot" but they are in the same class. The ones who know a topic tend to be bored and call out answers before anyone else can complete the assignment. This frustrates the others who feel stupid because they didn't get it right away. I try to caution my students to wait for others to finish.
In the more advanced classes I have usually had the student in another class and know what they know.
One problem is the student who doesn't feel it is necessary to learn a skill. For example, in Prep Math they learn to balance a checkbook. I know there is a problem like that on the standardized final exam. When I start that section one student said "I don't need to know that because the bank texts me my balance every time I swipe my card." I tried "How do you know the bank is right?" and was met with "I trust my bank. I then worked through a problem with them where the bank was wrong. This particular student is always balking at learning a skill she doesn't already know.
As relatively new to the career college setting, I see the wide variance in academic backgrounds and capabilities among my students. The school gives some kind of aptitude exam to incoming students and provides an effective range of tutoring and supports for students who need extra melp with academics. Active collaboration between me as the instructor, the Learning Resources people and individual students has been effective in my experience.
Hi Laura:
One consideration to make is this: if we work at an organization that doesn't use pretests, we as instructors can create our own.
Regards, Barry
Sonny, we are in agreement. I lke to get the student's background and if they have previous experience or knowledge of the subject matter we are studying at that time ,I tend to put a strong student(one with knowledge of the topic) with a group of students who have less or no previos experience.
Hi Erica:
Career schools emphaisize job preparation as much as academic instruction. There is likely to be an imbalance between getting students in who want to prepare for jobs, and their academic ability to be successful at it.
Regards, Barry
We have entrance exams also the students pass that exam but other exams are ok some are not depending on how student apply themselves
Hi Stacey:
This model has been around for decades. It's problematic but the shortest distance between two points and maximises student enrollment.
I take my hat off to teachers required to work with this model because it is YOU that makes it work (with the help of some senior students, perhaps).
Regards, Barry
Our students have to take an entrance exam as well. Our school also constantly has students rotating into classes. So, this is a constant challenge for me. I may have had them 3 terms or this could be their 1st term for me. So, it is hard to constantly remember who knows what and who has had what.
I am an Instructor in a career school and the students do have to take an entrance exam, but they have 3 chances to do it. We have a lot of bilingual students who struggle with the verbal and comprehensive part of things. But we have a great LRC to help them.
Hey Roger:
I liked your comment to Sonny about the use of students "TA's". I think peer instruction is a great way for both the stronger and weaker student, mutually beneficial to both.
Regards, Barry
Sonny I agree. In the career schools you get a mixture of computer skilled studnets and others who have not touched a computer. It's necessary to give a pretest so that you know what the class needs and to whom you need to give a little more help.
I also like to use some of the more experienced computer students to help with the less experienced students. Using these students as assistants adds another dynamic too. I have to watch them to make sure they are helping and not doing the other student's projects.
Roger
