Successes
All of the CAPP teachers and administrators agreed that one of the successes of the program during the first year was the support from the school administration. Two assistant principals coordinated the project at the school site. They provided support to the teachers in the program by setting up opportunities for teachers to meet during the school day, advocating for the program with department chairs, and coordinating the program with CSULB. They also coordinated monthly CAPP team planning meetings.
Teachers cited increased student effort as a result of the CAPP program. Teachers and staff attributed students’ increased efforts to a variety of factors related to the academic support made available to them. Teachers stated that students who took
advantage of tutoring were able to complete their first-year course work successfully and move on to a second year in CAPP. They also stated that the project’s efforts at
increased monitoring and reporting of student progress to parents appear to have motivated students. One teacher notes, “After the field trips and one-on-one talks, [students] paid more attention. More showed up for tutoring.” Another teacher stated, “The students realized that the after school tutoring program was good and they started coming in with a better attitude and higher motivation. I think that there may have been some parental pressure as a result of our progress reports. But the fact is that the students were trying harder.”
Increased teacher collaboration was another area of success highlighted by CAPP teachers and administrators. Teachers worked together to identify and meet with under- performing students. They also met formally and informally to work on alignment of the curriculum with standards. One administrator noted, “Teachers are talking more to one another and focusing on standards-based curriculum. Collaboration extended beyond teachers to include administrators and counselors.” One teacher highlighted the multiple interactions that support the program, “We had support from [the assistant principal], the counselor, and the math department. We talked to each other more about the students and the program. The counselor advises me on what to do with students that I have concerns about.”
Teachers thought tutoring was especially beneficial for students because it led to higher achievement for participating students, especially in Algebra AB. Students in CAPP Algebra AB classes performed better on the common end-of-course exam than students not involved in CAPP.
Obstacles
One major obstacle that CAPP encountered at the beginning of the project was negative parent perception of CAPP. Many parents believed that the program was remedial and that students selected for participation were being labeled negatively. According to staff, the perception was based on the use of the grade point average of 2.0 – 2.9 as the initial criterion for student participation. CAPP responded by balancing the program’s emphasis to include a more visible focus on preparation for college, increased academic support for students, higher expectations through a standards-based curriculum, and partnership with the university. One CAPP administrator noted, “Parents saw CAPP negatively at the beginning. After we introduced the program to them they saw it as a good thing. They learned about the link to college and about tutoring and the math lab”.
The low level of student participation in tutoring before and after school was another obstacle. At first students who were under-performing were required by the
project to attend tutoring. The student response to mandatory tutoring was negative. “Some students who had to did not go to tutoring. They saw math labs as a punishment.” Teachers believe that the lack of participation in tutoring on the part of students had a negative impact on student achievement. “We didn’t meet our goal of getting students to go to tutoring to avoid summer school. About 40% of CAPP students went to summer school in English and math. The CAPP program responded to students’ lack of
motivation to receive tutoring by eliminating it as a requirement for under-performing students and using it as an opportunity for students to make up assignments and improve their skills in English and mathematics. Teachers preferred the smaller groups that participated in tutoring as a result of the modifications.
CAPP teachers and administrators believed that the selection criteria for student participants in the first year of the program had a negative impact on the program. Teachers stated that students with the lowest grade point averages in the selection range did not have the ability or motivation to perform well in the CAPP classes or take advantage of the tutoring.
The CAPP project at Lakewood was not able to enroll 120 students for the cohort as originally planned. The program reached a maximum enrollment of 113 students. The existence of multiple programs at the site serving populations of students similar to CAPP students was cited as an obstacle to full program recruitment, as was the inability to schedule students in CAPP and other programs concurrently due to course scheduling conflicts. The CAPP English class arrangements with 40 students and 2 teachers in one period-was deemed unmanageable by the English teachers. It did not allow for the increased time and opportunities for collaboration that teachers had expected.
Unanticipated outcomes
CAPP teachers expected students in the CAPP program to perform better than the general population of the school. Only 44% of CAPP students received a grade of C or better in English in the second semester, compared to 69% of students not in CAPP. However, 54% of CAPP students received a grade of C or better in Algebra AB in the second semester, compared to 33% of students not in CAPP. Teachers also expected all of the students to complete the first year of CAPP successfully and proceed to the second year of the program. Only 70 of the 113 9th graders that participated in CAPP for the whole year will be in CAPP as 10th graders.
The CAPP team expected parent involvement and concern with student
meetings, field trips, monthly progress reports, counseling meetings) that the CAPP project implemented, the CAPP team believed that parent involvement was still not as extensive as necessary to ensure increased student achievement. The team expressed its interest in continuing its attempts to increase parent involvement.
Teachers, administrators, and partners agreed that the project’s goals were to increase student achievement and prepare students for college through the
implementation of a standards-based curriculum. However, teachers identified the additional goals of professional development in standards-based curriculum, evaluation of their ability to teach a standards-based instructional unit and participating in
evaluations by CSULB staff of teacher instruction. Teachers also expressed concern about the lack of communication between themselves and CSULB, especially with regards to college aides’ attendance.
Role of Partners
The CAPP project at Lakewood is co-directed by personnel at CSULB and Lakewood High School. CSULB approached Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) to determine if it was interested in applying for the grant. LBUSD selected Lakewood as a grant applicant based on its determination that the school would benefit by participating in additional partnership activities and increasing its focus on standards implementation. David Dowell, Associate Dean of the School of Humanities, Elizabeth Ambos, Associate Dean of the College of National Sciences and Mathematics, and English Professor Joseph Potts participated the CAPP grant during the first year.
CSULB helped design the project and provided teacher aides, tutors, facilities and resources for field trips to the campus, and university faculty. In CAPP English classes Professor Potts assessed individual student reading skills and planned standards-based lessons and curriculum with the teachers. Dowell and Ambos helped plan and coordinate the program with Elizabeth Polski and Alex Flores, the assistant principals at Lakewood. The proximity of the university to the high school ensured consistent communication between the two partners through monthly meetings.
Structural elements
The CAPP project at Lakewood benefited from several elements at the high school. The principal demonstrated support for the program by assigning two assistant principals to coordinate the program at the school site. The assistant principals served as liaisons to
CSULB, participated in monthly planning meetings with CSULB, and integrated the CAPP program with the overall high school program. As one team member notes, “The school context is very supportive of the CAPP project and activities. The
administration…has put in a great effort to make CAPP successful. The teachers…that I have been working with are very enthused and supportive of the CAPP standards
implementation project.”
District Contexts
The Long Beach Unified School District has curriculum standards and benchmarks and multiple assessments in place for all major subject areas. The Lakewood High School CAPP project has integrated the standards, benchmarks, and assessments into CAPP to support the development of a standards-based curriculum and the measurement of student progress. The Lakewood CAPP project looks to the district for professional development opportunities and assistance in developing a standards-based curriculum. As one team member noted, “The district expects that all schools are using a standards-based curriculum. It has provided all teachers in CAPP with professional development on standards.”
Articulation with the feeder middle schools around the curriculum is not in place. Middle school involvement in the CAPP program was limited to facilitating the selection of students for the program. One CAPP team member stated, “I don’t think there is an [articulated curriculum] unless feeder schools have aligned their curriculum to the standards. That is the only seamless transition to the 9th grade… if 8th grade teachers are following standards. I don’t see a transition, that we know what they taught.” Another team member stated, “CAPP has no role in improving cross-school articulation.”
Teacher Perspectives
During the spring 2000 semester 123 teachers (78% of the teachers at Lakewood) completed a survey on the implementation of standards-based instruction at the school site.
Over 85% of teachers surveyed agree with the following statements about the standards-based instructional practices taking place at Hoover:
• Teachers at this school develop lessons that are clearly aligned with state standards.
• Teachers at this school spend time developing assessments that are clearly aligned to the state standards.
• Our school level assessments are aligned to the state standards.
Over 90% of teachers surveyed agree that their school district, their school
principal, and their department chairs encourage and support standards-based instruction. Eighty-eight percent agree that the teachers in their department encourage and support the use of standards-based instruction among their peers.
Seventy-two percent of teachers responded that they often or always assess student work based on state standards. However, only 54% of teachers responded that they often or always refer to state standards when giving feedback to students on the quality of their work. Less than half of teachers responded that they often or always engage in the
following instructional practices:
• referring to state standards when reporting on student achievement (46%)
• referring to state standards when discussing the quality of a student’s work
with the student (38%)
• referring to state standards when discussing the quality of a student’s work with his or her parents (36%)
Forty-four percent of teachers surveyed agree that there are many obstacles to learning how to implement standards-based instruction. Only 18% of teachers responded that they often or always have time available to plan standards-based instruction
collaboratively with their colleagues.
In summary, at Lakewood the use of standards in lesson planning and in the development of assessments administered at the school appears to be fairly widespread. However, the extent to which teachers collaborate in planning standards-based instruction may be limited by a lack of common planning time. Additionally, teachers do not appear to refer to standards when discussing student achievement and classroom work with students and parents.
Student Perspectives
Eight hundred and fifty-four 9th graders at Lakewood completed a survey regarding their experiences in English and mathematics classes. Ninety of these students were
tables contain a comparison of responses that students both in CAPP and not in CAPP made to select statements in the survey.
Tables 4.1 and 4.2 show that a greater percentage of students in CAPP – compared to students not in CAPP – seem to think that teachers in their mathematics classes noticed if they needed assistance with their work, provided the assistance, and monitored and communicated their progress.
Table 4.1
Percentage of Students Agreeing with Statements Referring to their Mathematics Classes Statements Referring to Mathematics Classes % of CAPP studentsagreeing % of non-CAPP studentsagreeing My teacher thinks it is important that I do well in school 94 83
My teacher believes I can do well in school 92 81
Table 4.2
Percentage of Students Responding “Most” or “All of the Time” to Statements Referring to their Mathematics Classes
Statements Referring to Mathematics Classes responding “most” or% of CAPP students “all of the time”
% of non-CAPP students responding “most” or
“all of the time”
My teacher expects me to improve my work if I did not do
well enough 83 71
I see my teacher as a helper 81 64
I ask my teacher to tell me what I need to do to improve
my work 72 57
My teacher explains my progress to me 72 53
When some of my work is not good enough my teacher
explains what I need to do to improve 71 56 When I have trouble learning something, my teacher
notices 67 52
My teacher explains my progress to my parents 54 29
Tables 4.3 and 4.4 show that a smaller percentage of CAPP students – compared to students not in CAPP – seemed to think that teachers in their English classes noticed if they needed assistance with their work, provided the assistance, and monitored and communicated their progress.
Table 4.3
Percentage of Students Agreeing with Statements Referring to their English Classes Statements Referring to English Classes % of CAPP studentsagreeing % of non-CAPP studentsagreeing I know what kind of work I need to do to get a good grade
on assignments 77 87
I know my strengths and weaknesses in this class 77 87
Table 4.4
Percentage of Students Responding “Most” or “All of the Time” to Statements Referring to their English Classes
Statements Referring to English Classes responding “most” or% of CAPP students “all of the time”
% of non-CAPP students responding “most” or
“all of the time”
I know how well I am doing in this class 57 83
My teacher encourages me to ask questions about how I
am doing and what I need to improve 41 57 My teacher explains my progress to me 41 51
When some of my work is not good enough my teacher
explains what I need to do to improve 50 66 When I have trouble learning something, my teacher
notices 34 50
Table 4.5 below shows that a greater percentage of CAPP students seem to think that English teachers communicate with their parents about their progress than non-CAPP students. They also seem to ask teachers to explain how they can improve their work more often than non-CAPP students.
Table 4.5
Percentage of Students Responding “Most” or “All of the Time” to Statements Referring to their English Classes
Statements Referring to English Classes responding “most” or% of CAPP students “all of the time”
% of non-CAPP students responding “most” or
“all of the time”
I ask my teacher to tell me what I need to do to improve
my work 60 50
My teacher explains my progress to my parents 48 27
The CAPP program at Lakewood seems to be providing more information to students on their progress and ways to improve their performance in CAPP mathematics classes than in the CAPP English class. One possible explanation for the difference is the organization of the CAPP English class into one class period with 40 students and two teachers. The larger class size may have impacted the level of attention students received
from teachers. The CAPP English teachers stated in interviews that the larger class size was unmanageable and that they would be switching to classes of 20 students in the following year. The use of monthly progress reports and regular parent conferences is evident in both CAPP English and mathematics classes.
Student Outcomes
Percentages of graduates enrolling in and completing the A-F course sequence
In 1998-99, 14% of the graduating students at Lakewood completed the A-F course sequence, a significant decrease from the 31% of graduates who did likewise the previous year. The groups showing the greatest percentage decline were white students (from 35% to 11%) and African-American students (from 20% to 4%), although Latino and Filipino completion rates declined significantly as well (from 24% to 12% and from 37% to 18%, respectively). Asian students also experienced a decline (from 44% to 36%).
In 1999-00, 34.5% of the graduating students at Lakewood completed the A-F sequence, a significant increase from the 14.3% of graduates who did likewise the previous year. The groups showing the greatest percentage increase were White and Asian graduates. The percentage of White graduates completing the sequence increased from 11% to 39%, the percentage of Asian graduates completing the sequence increased from 36% to 62%. African-American, Filipino and Latino graduates also experienced increases in the percentage – from 4% to 25%, from 18% to 25%, and from 12% to 24%, respectively.
Percentages of 9th grade students completing English and mathematics classes in the A-F course sequence
At the end of the fall 1999 semester, 62% of students in CAPP completed their English course with a grade of C or better, compared to 67% of students not in CAPP. At the end of the spring 2000 semester, 44% of students in CAPP completed the course with a grade of C or better compared to 67% of students not in CAPP.
At the end of the fall 1999 semester 64% of students in CAPP completed their Algebra AB course with a grade of C or better, compared to 37% of students not in CAPP. At the end of the spring 2000 semester, 54% of students in CAPP completed their Algebra AB course with a grade of C or better, compared to 37% of students not in
SAT results
The percentage of students taking the SAT increased slightly during the first year of CAPP. In 1998-99, 27.5% of 12th graders at Lakewood took the SAT. In 1999-00, 29.2% took the SAT. Scores on the SAT in 1999-00 increased slightly from the previous year. The average combined verbal and math score in 1999-00 was 973, compared to 965 for the previous year.