| What is I-BEST? Based on the
Tipping Point research, the Washington State Board
of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) has
developed the Integrated Basic Education and Skills
Training (I-BEST) initiative to help underserved
populations achieve a livable wage.
With integrated programming, basic skills students
get the benefit of support from basic skills instructors
while earning credit toward a certificate or degree.
The SBCTC is giving 1.75 FTE for approved I-BEST models
to encourage these programs.
Basic skills (ABE/GED/ESL) students entering academic
and professional programs are often at a disadvantage.
Not only do they lack certain academic skills, but
they’ve often been sheltered in the basic skills
classroom, where instruction is paced to the students'
needs rather than to curriculum goals. These students
often go into the professional/technical classroom with
less vocabulary, struggle to follow lectures, lack
familiarity with
U.S.
academic culture, and often feel isolated from their
peers.
How does I-BEST work?
The first step (after a program is chosen) is
collaboration between the technical and ESL instructors
to work on curricula that integrates basic skills
competencies with those of the technical program. In
order for the program to qualify for the 1.75 FTE, the
state requires a 50% overlap in instructional time. This
means that both content and basic skills instructors
must be present in the classroom for at least half of
the total time of instruction. At other times the
content instructor or the basic skills instructor would
be teaching solo.
How it works specifically in the overlap time depends
on how it’s planned. What works for one integrated team
may not work for another. Please see the links on the
left for information and advice on I-BEST instruction.
How do the students feel about I-BEST?
Take a look at this video to find out! (Real Media
Player required) |
