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Policy makers, industry leaders, and educators agree that the importance of pursuing higher education in today’s global economy is greater than ever. Due to the need for high-skilled workers, the roles of the traditional high school and community college have experienced shifts toward college and career readiness. With college- and career-ready skills largely overlapping, educational leaders are tasked with the challenge of preparing students for the great variety of postsecondary pathways (Conley, 2014). Increasing college readiness does not only mean improving academic or study skills or increasing content knowledge but requires educators to

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expand their programs, revisit their approaches, and reform school infrastructures to help students develop essential transition skills.

Many approaches to college readiness at the national, state, and local levels have worked to increase college readiness and prepare students for success at the postsecondary level.

Research indicated that school restructures, national initiatives, national state standards, new placement testing policies and tools, partnerships between secondary and postsecondary institutions, and new courses have helped increase college readiness for many students.

However, an area that has not been addressed in current school reforms is how to better inform students about and help them through the postsecondary transition process.

Although secondary schools provide guidance through college counselors, the ratio of college counselors to students averages near 300 to 1 or greater. High caseloads hinder counselors from individual interaction and access to information about postsecondary

opportunities is often inequitable (Belasco, 2013). School restructures, like charter schools, serve smaller student populations and have helped certain populations experience greater access to higher education. Some school-based programs offer support and seek to close the achievement gap, such as AVID, but small percentages of students participate in AVID or have access to its support system and tools. Despite many national, state, and local attempts to increase college readiness, high remediation rates continue to persist at both four-year and two-year institutions.

In California, the CSU system has worked hard to create programs to address the problem of remediation. Early college readiness screening through the EAP program enables high schools to identify students who need academic support prior to college matriculation. CSU also offers free training for secondary teachers to equip them with strategies and curriculum aligned to college courses to better prepare students for the literacy demands of postsecondary studies. The

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local community college has created several programs that strengthen high school–college partnerships and increase student success. Although these efforts have helped to decrease the need for remediation at the state and local institutions, the surveyed district’s graduating seniors continue to test into community college developmental and remedial courses at high rates despite adoption of the CSU Expository Reading and Writing Course (ERWC).

Student development theory indicates that students grow in stages. Research shows that the earlier students learn about postsecondary opportunities and the more people invested in and supporting the college transition process, the greater chance for student success (Robinson & Roksa, 2016). A few national or state programs or local initiatives are not enough to reach all students nor meet the needs of diverse student populations whose cultural capital varies. The more professional and human capital on a school campus, the more the educators at each school site can create a pervasive college-going culture and prepare students as they transition to

college. The continuing disconnection between secondary and postsecondary institutions and low college completion rates demonstrate a need for greater systemic approaches and stronger

infrastructures at the secondary school level that provide access to postsecondary opportunities, build social and human capital, and increase college readiness.

Due to the high remediation rates across the nation and in local schools, more research needs to be done to investigate the role that the classroom secondary teacher plays in the college- linking process and to assess current high school teacher college knowledge. This quantitative study will allow the researcher to identify gaps in college information, barriers to communication with guidance personnel, levels of teacher awareness and their understanding of issues related to college choices, application process, matriculation/placement, and rigor required in college courses. Additionally, the data and findings from this study can inform this school district, along

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with other districts with high remediation rates, of areas that would benefit from continued professional development. This study seeks to help all stakeholders on campus identify their contribution to the college-going culture at their school site to increase overall school support and access to postsecondary opportunities and reduce remediation rates for all students. This study will highlight areas for increased articulation between secondary guidance personnel and teachers that could help close the achievement gaps and positively impact students’ college transition. Additionally, this study could identify points of articulation between high school teachers and their postsecondary partners to help increase curricular alignment and student postsecondary success.

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Chapter 3: Methodology

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