College Preparation Partnership

The College Preparation Partnership (CPP) is a collaboration between REL West and the Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum (ERWC) Steering Committee to better prepare high school students for the rigors of college coursework. The ERWC is a grade 11 and grade 12 English curriculum that emphasizes rhetorical analysis of compelling issues and interesting texts, and it has been shown to positively impact students’ English language arts academic achievement. The ERWC was originally developed in 2004 by the California State University, and it has been adopted by over 950 schools in California as of 2017.

Through the CPP, REL West and the ERWC Steering Committee come together to identify and implement ways to 1) improve the curriculum, 2) better support ERWC teachers, and 3) encourage broader implementation of the curriculum. REL West and the ERWC Steering Committee are collaborating to collect and analyze data about curriculum implementation, and the two groups are also gathering and applying evidence about strategies for coaching teachers. The end goal will be fuller implementation of an improved curriculum across the state, thereby leading to improved rates of college readiness among graduating high school students.

Alliance Objectives

With support from REL West:

The ERWC Steering Committee will better understand which students are enrolling in the ERWC and use this information to revise the curriculum to best meet the needs of the students.
Through effective coaching, ERWC teachers will be better prepared to implement the curriculum with high levels of fidelity.
High school students in California will exhibit improved English language arts achievement in grades 11 and 12.

Resources

College Preparation

Audio Interview: The College Preparation Partnership and the Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum
Listen to Nancy Brynelson, the former Co-Director of the Center for the Advancement of Reading and Writing at the CSU Chancellor's Office, describe how the ERWC is designed to develop students' skills in reading and writing to prepare them for college-level coursework. She and REL West's Tony Fong then share what they hope to learn through examination of data related to the ERWC, and they discuss partnership plans to improve support for ERWC teachers.
Report: Adoption of, enrollment in, and teacher workload for the Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum in California high schools
Report from REL West on the implementation of a grade 12 course designed to support college readiness.

Literacy Coaching

Literature Summary on Coaching Strategies: Instructional Coaching in K–12: A Literature Review and Discussion Questions
The REL West team conducted a literature review on instructional coaching in K–12 educational settings. The review includes a summary organized around four themes: goals of coaching; defining a coaching cycle; effective coaching practices; and structural supports for implementation of effective coaching.
Ask A REL Response: Coaching Models for High School Teachers in Literacy
This Ask A REL response includes a list of references on coaching models for high school teachers in literacy.

“The report of coaching models was particularly helpful.”

—ERWC Steering Committee member

Projects

Understanding course adoption, enrollment, and teacher workload for the Expository Reading and Writing Curriculum (ERWC) in California high schools

This REL West study analyzed 2016/17 California data to understand the characteristics of schools that have adopted the ERWC, the demographics of students enrolled in the ERWC, and the workload of ERWC teachers. This information was compared to data on other grade 12 mainstream college preparatory English courses in California. The study results will inform efforts to improve the curriculum and update outreach strategies to make it more accessible to schools and students across the state.

Strengthening ERWC Coaching

This project focused on identifying and applying research-based approaches to increase the consistency and efficacy of coaching for ERWC teachers. In the past, ERWC coaches have expressed a desire for clearer guidance on how to best coach and support ERWC teachers. In response, REL West staff conducted a literature search and summarized existing research around: 1) the goals of coaching, 2) effective coaching cycles, 3) effective coaching practices, and 4) structural supports for implementing effective coaching. In parallel with the literature summary, REL West interviewed current and former ERWC coaches to gather ideas on how to improve the ERWC coaching.

Using the findings from both the literature summary and interviews, REL West and the ERWC Steering Committee co-developed an ERWC coaching protocol that is currently being used by ERWC coaches in their work with teachers. The protocol helps coaches identify strategies to use with teachers in different situations, provides coaches with example questions to assist in the inquiry-based approach to supporting teachers, and outlines the overall structure that the coaching should follow. In addition, REL West helped with the development of a professional learning model for use during the professional learning provided to coaches. The model provides opportunities for ERWC coaches to reflect on challenges and successes encountered and improve their coaching practices by discussing approaches to various scenarios commonly experienced in the classroom. Together, through the use of both the coaching protocol and modifications to the professional learning model, the ERWC coaching is implemented with a more solid foundation of research-based practices.

Partners

The primary partner is the ERWC Steering Committee, which consists of CSU professors, administrators from the CSU Chancellor’s Office, members of the Center for the Advancement of Reading and Writing at the CSU Chancellor’s Office, literacy specialists, literacy coaches, high school administrators, and high school English teachers. Other extended partners include organizations that work with the ERWC Steering Committee on the ERWC, including the CSU’s Early Assessment Program, which provides outreach and information to schools to support the implementation of the ERWC, and the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, which supports the delivery of the ERWC professional learning throughout the state.