In 2017, Equal Measure visited five campuses representing four of the initial seven STEM Active Learning Networks to delve into site-level changes supporting progress toward network goals. In this vignette, we discuss our one-day site visit to Pasadena City College (PCC) Main Campus, where explored how more effective teaching practices can be adopted through the implementation of the Reading Apprenticeship model.
A key component of WestEd’s Strategic Literacy Initiative (SLI), the Reading Apprenticeship model integrates four dimensions (social, personal, cognitive, and knowledge-building) and is rooted in an understanding of how students learn and how to empower them to become independent learners. Instructors model metacognitive thinking related to discipline-specific literacy, and use scaffolding techniques (e.g., “talking to the text,” “chunking,” and “think-pair-share”) to support student learning.
In this vignette, we discuss how Pasadena City College integrated Reading Apprenticeship through various strands of work on campus, its large size and ability to scale pilots, and the role its leadership played at multiple levels in adopting an active learning strategy to improve the quality of teaching and learning.
