Skills Required for College Success

Leadership Strand of the 2008 ISA Summer Institute

According to David Conley and Fred Newmann as well as other scholars, students need to do far more beyond reading the text and answeringthe homework questions in order to succeed in college: here is the skill set or habits of mind and work that these scholars identify as necessary for students to succeed in college:

  • Intellectual openness
  • Inquisitiveness
  • Inquiry
  • Analysis
  • Reasoning, argumentation, proof
  • Interpretation
  • Precision and accuracy
  • Hypothesizing
  • Generalizing
  • Explaining
  • Drawing Conclusions
  • Production of new meanings and understandings
  • Use of ideas, theories, or perspectives considered central to a discipline
  • Use methods of research or communication characteristic of a discipline
  • Writing
  • Research
  • Self-monitoring ability
  • Self-confidence
  • Studyskills

What evidence do we have from classroom observations, reviews of teacher lessons, and samples of student work that our students have opportunitiesto learn, practice and apply these skills? What evidence do we have that our school is demanding them and supporting students to acquire them?

Conley’s Explanation of College Ready Knowledge, Habits, & Skills

  1. Intellectual Habits of Mind students need to succeed in college:

Intellectual openness: helps students understand the ways inwhich knowledge is constructed, broadenspersonal perspectives and helps studentsdeal with the novelty and ambiguity oftenencountered in the study of new subjectsand new materials. Indicators of intellectual openness include these student behaviors:

  • curiosity and a thirst for deeperunderstanding,
  • questions the views ofothers when those views are not logicallysupported,
  • accepts constructive criticism,
  • changes personal views if warrantedby the evidence

Inquisitiveness: Indicators of inquisitiveness: The student

  • engages in activeinquiry [asks questions] and dialogue about subject matterand research questions
  • seeks evidenceto defend arguments, explanations, orlines of reasoning
  • does notsimply accept as given any assertion thatis presented or conclusion that is reached,but asks why things are so

Analysis: Indicators of analysis: The student

  • breaks down ideas, concepts, texts, etc. into their component parts
  • identifies and evaluatesdata, material, and sources for quality ofcontent, validity, credibility, and relevance
  • compares and contrasts sourcesand findings
  • generates explanations of source materials

Reasoning, argumentation, proof: Indicators of reasoning, argumentation, proof: The student:

  • constructs logical arguments orproofs to explain phenomena or issues;
  • shows how the different points of the argument are connected
  • utilizes recognized forms of reasoning toconstruct an argument and defend a pointof view or conclusion
  • utilizes evidence from multiple sources to support point of view or conclusion
  • accepts critiques ofor challenges to assertions
  • addressescritiques and challenges by providinga logical explanation or refutation, orby acknowledging the accuracy of thecritique or challenge

Interpretation: Indicators of interpretation: The student:

  • tries to make sense of what he/she is reading or listening to
  • analyzescompeting and conflicting descriptionsof an event or issue to determine thestrengths and flaws in each descriptionand any commonalities among ordistinctions between them;
  • synthesizesthe results of an analysis of competingor conflicting descriptions of an eventor issue or phenomenon into a coherent explanation states the interpretation thatis most likely correct or is most reasonable,based on the available evidence
  • presents orally or in writing an extendeddescriptionand evaluation ofvaried perspectives and conflicting pointsof view on a topic or issue

Precision and accuracy: Indicators of precision and accuracy: The student

  • knowswhat type of precision is appropriate tothe task and the subject area
  • is able toincrease precision and accuracy throughsuccessive approximations generatedfrom a task or process that is repeated,
  • uses precision appropriately to reachcorrect conclusions in the context of thetask or subject area at hand

Problem solving: Indicators of problem solving: The student

  • develops andapplies multiple strategies to solve routineproblems,
  • generate strategies to solve non-routineproblems,
  • applies methodsof problem solving to complex problemsrequiring method-based problem solving
  1. Skills students need to succeed in college

Writing:

  • Students are expected to write a lot in college and to do so in relatively short periods of time
  • Writing is the means by whichstudents are evaluated at least to somedegree in nearly every postsecondarycourse
  • Most important forms of writing in college:
  • Expository,
  • Descriptive, and
  • Persuasive writing
  • Writing skills students need to have and be able to do are:
  • how to pre-write,
  • how to edit,
  • howto re-write a piece before it is submitted
  • howto re-write a piece after it has been submittedonce and feedback has been provided
  • how to present arguments clearly
  • how substantiateeach point,
  • utilize the basics of astyle manual when constructing a paper

Research: College courses increasingly requirestudents to be able to identify and utilizeappropriate strategies and methodologiesto explore and answer problems and to conduct research on a range of questions.

  • Skills students need to have in order to do research are:
  • ability to evaluate the appropriateness of a varietyof source material
  • ability to synthesize the material into a paperor report
  • ability to and incorporate the material into a paperor report
  • ability to access a variety of types of informationfrom a range of locations, formats, andsource environments.
  1. Habits of Work students need to succeed in college:

The nature of college learning requires students to devote significant amounts of time to learning outside in order for them to achieve success in class. Students must have the following study skills or habits of work in order to succeed in college classes:

  • Taking classnotes
  • Using information resources
  • Communicating with teachers andadvisors
  • Revising drafts before submitting a final version of a paper or product
  • Time management,
  • preparing for and taking examinations
  • accurately estimating how much time it takesto complete all outstanding and anticipatedtasks
  • allocating sufficient time to completethe tasks
  • using calendars and creating “todo” lists to organize studying into productivechunks of time
  • prioritizingstudy time in relation to competing demandssuch as work and socializing
  • Ability to participatesuccessfully in a study group
  • Ability to recognize thecritical importance of study groups to success
  • Locating and utilizing settingsconducive to proper study
  • Perseverance: strategies for staying with a task to its completion and not giving up when feeling frustrated or overwhelmed
  • Self-monitoring:
  • metacognition,the ability to think about how one is thinking
  • awareness of one’s current level of masteryof a subject
  • awareness of one’s understanding of keymisunderstandings and blind spots
  • the abilityto reflect on what worked and what neededimprovement in any particular academic task
  • the ability to persist when presented with anovel, difficult, or ambiguous task
  • the ability to identify and systematically select among andemploy a range of learning strategies
  • the ability to transfer learning and strategiesfrom familiar settings and situations to newones
  • Self-confidence

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2008, Ancess, NCREST-ISA