The number of students entering college requiring remediation is one of several strong indicators of the need for improved alignment between high school and college curricula. To address this gap, GNYC developed the Collaborative Curriculum Revision Project (CCRP), implemented via a new collaboration with the Early College Initiative (ECI) for academic year 2017-2018. GNYC and ECI partner with CUNY colleges and NYC DOE high schools to see the CCRP’s goals to fruition, and the project is generously sustained by funding from the Teagle Foundation. Over the course of the academic year, cohorts of high school teachers and college faculty work together with the support of a facilitator to vertically align curricula across the K-12/higher education divide. The project bridges the transition between NYC DOE public high schools and CUNY colleges by building a shared understanding of curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices at the high school and college level.
The following cohorts are rooted in the Decoding the Disciplines framework, a process for identifying bottlenecks that impede student learning, wherein teachers and students are led through the task of breaking down these barriers via an in-depth seven-step process. The CCRP leverages this framework within the alignment context and engages high school teachers and college faculty to adjust their curricula, assignments, and assessments in order to successfully guide students through a more seamless transition from high school to college.
2018-2019 CCRP Cohorts
Borough of Manhattan Community College
The Borough of Manhattan Community College group paired English, sociology, and lingustics faculty from BMCC with English teachers from the Manhattan Early College School for Advertising in an effort to align their respective curricula.
Final Cohort Papers and Presentations
Marci Littlefield, Associate Professor of Sociology, BMCC
- “Reframing the Narrative: The Pedagogy of Teaching Race and Ethnicity Through a Lens of Power and Agency” (PowerPoint presentation)
- “Reframing the Narrative: The Pedagogy of Teaching Race and Ethnicity Through a Lens of Power and Agency” (final paper)
Maureen T. Matarese, Associate Professor of Academic Literacy and Linguistics, BMCC
- “Decoding Forensic Linguistic Analysis” (PowerPoint presentation)
- “Decoding Forensic Linguistic Analysis” (final paper)
Jason Schneiderman, Associate Professor of English, BMCC
- “Jason and the Bottlenecks” (PowerPoint presentation)
- “The Suspension of Judgement: Making Research a Process in Introductory Composition” (final paper)
Todd Stein, English Teacher, Manhattan Early College School for Advertising
- “From Paraphrasing to True Analysis: Revamping the ELA Curriculum”(PowerPoint presentation)
- “From Paraphrasing to True Analysis: Revamping the ELA Curriculum” (final paper)
Hostos Community College
The Hostos Community College group paired math faculty from Hostos with English teachers from Health, Education, and Research Occupations High School (H.E.R.O.), Hostos-Lincoln Academy of Science, and Language and Innovation High School in an effort to align their respective curricula.
Final Cohort Papers and Presentations
Allison Gorr, Lecturer, Department of Mathematics, Hostos Community College
Yoel Rodriguez, Professor, Physical Sciences Unit, Hostos Community College
- “Decoding Literal Equations by Undressing the Process” (PDF of presentation)
- “Decoding Literal Equations by Undressing the Process” (final paper)
LaGuardia Community College
The LaGuardia Community College group paired English faculty from LaGuardia with English teachers from The International High School and Energy Tech High School in an effort to align their respective curricula.
Final Cohort Papers and Presentations
Nilo Bermeo, English Instructor, LaGuardia Community College
Heather Lester, English Teacher, The International High School
- “Bottleneck Junction: Grasping the Etherealness of Analysis” (PowerPoint presentation)
- “Bottleneck Junction: Grasping the Etherealness of Analysis” (final paper)
Julie Edmonds, English Teacher and English Department Head, Energy Tech High School
- “Conceptual Understanding in Writing Bottleneck” (PowerPoint presentation)
- “Bottleneck in High School English; Conceptual Understanding in Writing” (final paper)
Ruth Chasek, English Teacher, The International High School
2017-2018 CCRP Cohorts
Hostos Community College
The Hostos Community College group paired English faculty from Hostos with English teachers from Health, Education, and Research Occupations High School (H.E.R.O.) and Hostos-Lincoln Academy of Science in an effort to align their respective curricula.
Final Cohort Papers and Presentations
Tom Barber, Adjunct Lecturer, English, The City University of New York
Samantha Elkaim, English Teacher, Hostos-Lincoln Academy of Science
Judith Nysenholc, English/ESL Teacher, H.E.R.O. High School and The City University of New York
Alexandra Milsom, Associate Professor, English, Hostos Community College
Cameron Yeates, English Teacher, H.E.R.O. High School
New York City College of Technology
The New York City College of Technology (City Tech) group paired math faculty from City Tech with math teachers from Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-Tech) and City Polytechnic High School of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology (City Poly) in an effort to align their respective curricula.
Final Cohort Papers and Presentations
Holly Carley, Professor, Mathematics, New York City College of Technology
K. Andrew Parker, Assistant Professor, Mathematics, New York City College of Technology
From 2014-16 with the support of a grant from the Teagle Foundation, GNYC joined forces with the DOE/CUNY Library Collaborative to expand upon prior work each organization had been doing separately to implement the NYC Collaborative Curriculum Revision Project. Over the course of the 2014-16 grant, four cohorts of high school teachers, college faculty, and librarians worked together with the support of facilitators and documentarians to revise curricula. These groups, called Communities of Practice, met for a two-hour orientation and community building session, followed by five two-hour professional development workshop sessions. The goal of these activities was to create upper-level high school lesson plans that are aligned with college-level coursework and that emphasize student skill development in the areas of critical thinking and analysis, problem solving, and writing with textual evidence. This work has helped campuses bridge the transition between NYC DOE public high schools and CUNY colleges by building an understanding of curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices at the high school and college levels. GNYC is now pursuing funding to enhance and expand this work.
2014-2016 CCRP Cohorts
Borough of Manhattan Community College
With Brooklyn Secondary School for Collaborative Studies
Faculty and librarians from Borough of Manhattan Community College and the Brooklyn Secondary School for Collaborative Studies gathered, developed a shared collection of teaching strategies for preparing students for the college experience and revised a high school ecology curricular unit. To inform revisions to the high school curricular unit, participants engaged in conversations on common teaching goals and challenges, the skills that constitute “college-readiness,” and best teaching practices. In engaging in these conversations, participants developed a community of practice that intends to continue to meet beyond the formal conclusion of this workshop series.
Hostos Community College
With Antonia Pantoja Preparatory Academy
Faculty and librarians from Hostos Community College and the Antonia Pantoja Preparatory Academy (APPA) gathered, developed a shared collection of teaching strategies for preparing students for the college experience and revised a high school ecology curricular unit. To inform revisions to the high school curricular unit, participants engaged in conversations on common teaching goals and challenges, the skills that constitute “college-readiness,” and best teaching practices. In engaging in these conversations, participants developed a community of practice that intends to continue to meet beyond the formal conclusion of this workshop series.
York College
With Queens High School for the Sciences at York College
Faculty and librarians from York College and Queens High School for the Sciences at York College gathered, developed a shared collection of teaching strategies for preparing students for the college experience and revised a high school ecology curricular unit. To inform revisions to the high school curricular unit, participants engaged in conversations on common teaching goals and challenges, the skills that constitute “college-readiness,” and best teaching practices. In engaging in these conversations, participants developed a community of practice that intends to continue to meet beyond the formal conclusion of this workshop series.
New York City College of Technology
With Sunset Park High School
Faculty and librarians from the New York City College of Technology and Sunset Park High School gathered, developed a shared collection of teaching strategies for preparing students for the college experience and revised a high school ecology curricular unit. To inform revisions to the high school curricular unit, participants engaged in conversations on common teaching goals and challenges, the skills that constitute “college-readiness,” and best teaching practices. In engaging in these conversations, participants developed a community of practice that intends to continue to meet beyond the formal conclusion of this workshop series.
