Title: RELATIONSHIP OF TECH PREP PARTICIPATION AND ACADEMIC RESOURCES TO COLLEGE READINESS AT TWO SELECTED TECH PREP CONSORTIA

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between Tech Prep participation and high school academic resources and college readiness in two Tech Prep consortia, each in Illinois and Texas, utilizing the mixed method research design, including an ex post facto casual comparative design. Qualitative methods were used to examine the context of remedial education policies in two community colleges and subsequently to create college readiness variables. Quantitative methods were used to address the theoretical framework proposed for this study. The sample was composed of high school graduates who took placement tests in the two community colleges, drawn from the Community College and Beyond study. The sample was further divided into Tech Prep and non-Tech Prep participants.

College readiness in mathematics and English was determined by general education requirements and remedial education policies, and the standards for college readiness for transfer programs and career and technical education differed. There was no difference in college readiness in mathematics between Tech Prep and non-Tech Prep participants in both consortia, but in Texas, an interaction was found between Tech Prep participation and race/ethnicity. There was no difference in college readiness in English between Tech Prep and non-Tech Prep participants in both consortia, except that Tech Prep participants had lower reading test scores than non-Tech Prep participants in Illinois.

This study defined academic resources as composites of student exposure to differential course work and performance in those courses. The two consortia showed contrasting profiles of academic resources for Tech Prep and non-Tech Prep participants. In both consortia, mathematics and science academic resources were related to college readiness in mathematics. In Illinois, foreign language academic resources were related to reading and writing test scores and the odds of being college-ready in English. In both consortia, social studies academic resources were related to writing test scores. In Texas, English academic resources were related to reading test scores and the odds of being college-ready in English. Tech Prep participants took significantly more articulated courses than non-Tech Prep participants in both consortia.

Finally, in Illinois, mathematics and science academic resources were significant predictors of the odds of being college-ready in mathematics, whereas gender, GPA9, and mathematics academic resources were significant predictors of the odds of being college-ready in mathematics in Texas. In Illinois, GPA9 and foreign language academic resources were significant predictors of the odds of being college-ready in English. In contrast, race/ethnicity and English academic resources were significant predictors in Texas. This study concluded with recommendations to increase academic resources of Tech Prep participants to better prepare for a college education.