What Can Regular-Level Classes

Learn from AP Classes?

Katie E. Klingbeil

Biola School of Education

Buena Park High School

English Learner Students

50.0%

Low Socioeconomic Status Students

74.1 %

Proficient in English/Language

Arts

46%

Percentage of Students in AP

Courses

7.0%

The Problem

O Buena Park High School and Expository Reading and Writing Courses

O ERWC Training Session – Student Panel

Do AP classes know something that regular-level classes don’t?

Are we doing an injustice to regular-level students by not

giving them the same opportunities as their peers?

What is true of AP English classes?

O The AP Effect: (Curry, MacDonald, & Morgan,

1999)

O More likely to major in harder subjects

O More likely to graduate with honors

O More likely to go on to future leadership

O 2x as likely to go on to graduate school

Mission Statements

O College professors say that successful

students must “Think analytically and

creatively, write clearly and persuasively,

and speak with clarity and conviction”

(MacDonald, 1997)

O College Board “About AP”: AP students will

“engage in intense discussions, solve

problems collaboratively, and learn to write

clearly and persuasively.”

AP Teacher Expectations

O Teachers expect gifted/honors students to be “alert, creative, eager, confident, composed, serious, and mature” (Kolb & Jussim, 1994).

O Teachers give higher achieving students more emotional support, more clear and positive feedback, more challenging assignments, more opportunities (Jussim, 1986).

O For the most part, AP teachers expect all of their students to pass the AP exam.

Non-AP Teacher Expectations

O Lower expectations for success

O Belief that regular-level students are less

ambitious

O Lower percentage of higher-level

assignments

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning Creating

Evaluating

Analyzing

Applying

Comprehending

Knowing

AP

Regular

Level

Student Impressions

O Surveyed 97 ERWC students at Buena Park

High School

O Open-ended questions

O Anonymous responses

O Environment of candor and honesty

O These students have not elected for open

enrollment into AP English

What kind of students take AP English?

O “Smart, overachieving students”

O “Nerdy types”

O “College-bound students”

O “Asian and white students only”

O “People who are perfect at reading and writing”

O “People who have high expectations for themselves”

O “People who are going to make something of their lives”

Why have you chosen not to enroll in AP English?

O “It’s too advanced for me.”

O “I don’t have the money to take the test.”

O “I’m not capable of pushing myself.”

O “I don’t have what it takes.”

O “I don’t have that much potential.”

O “I know I’d fail.”

Do you think you are an intelligent person? Why?

O “No, because I have bad grades.”

O “No, because I am a slow learner.”

O “No, because other students are smarter

than me.”

O “No, otherwise I would be in AP.”

O “No, I’ve been told I won’t graduate.”

The Power of Teacher Expectations

O The Pygmalion Effect (Rosenthal &

Jacobsen, 1968)

O Students given an IQ test

O Researchers randomly selected a group of

students as “spurters” and notified teachers

O Spurters experienced the greatest increase in

IQ by the end of the year

The Power of Teacher Expectations

O Teacher expectations of student maturity,

motivation, self-confidence, and behavior

have been shown to correlate to low writing

ability (Mavrogenes & Bezruckzko, 1993)

O Teachers give more criticism and less

reinforcement/attention to students for

whom they have lower expectations.

High-Bias Teachers

O High-bias teachers are more autocratic, rigid, distant, impulsive, preferential, and less trusting than low-bias teachers (Babad & Inbar, 1981).

O High-bias teachers expect better performance from students who have performed well in the past, have a higher social status, and are more physically attractive (Rosenthal & Babad, 1985).

O Deep down, high-bias teachers do not believe that natural ability levels can be altered.

O “High” student failures are situational.

O “Low” student failures are inherent.

It Can Happen to You!

O As human beings, we subconsciously tend to

like people who are similar to us because we

perceive that they have the same values.

O Studies show that there are no

commonalities among high-bias teachers as

far as demographics, personality, and

educational ideology (Babad, Inbar, &

Rosenthal, 1982).

Obstacles to Success

O Increasing class sizes

O Shorter class periods

O More furlough days

O Teaching old dogs new tricks

You don’t have time NOT to do this.

Practical Suggestions

1) Have students word-process their writing

2) Create ways to blind-grade

3) Vocalize your expectations for success

4) Resist the temptation to read the students’ files

5) Be aware of your own nonverbal communication

6) Embrace the power of “yet”

7) Reverse the power of expectations

Questions?

Works Cited Babad, E.Y., Inbar, J., & Rosenthal, R. (1982). Pygmalion, Galatea, and the Golem: Investigations of biased and unbiased teachers. Journal of Educational Psychology 74 (4), 459-474.

Curry, W., MacDonald, W., & Morgan, R. (1999). The advanced placement program: Access to excellence. Journal of Secondary Gifted Education 11 (1).

Jussim, L. (1986). Self-fulfilling prophecies: A theoretical and integrative review. Psychological Review 93 (4), 429-445.

Kolb, K.J., & Jussim, L. (1994). Teacher expectations and understanding gifted children. Roeper Review 17 (1), 26-31.

MacDonald, S.C. (1997). Giving first-year students what they deserve. College Teaching 45 (2).

Mavrogenes, N.A., & Bezruczko, N. (1993). Influences on writing development. Journal of Educational Research 86 (4), 237- 245.

Rosenthal, R. & Babad, E.Y. (1985). Pygmalion in the gymnasium. Educational Leadership 43 (1), 36-39.