Welcome to the
Washington State I-BEST Resource Web Site!
Our intention for this Web site is to create a resource for I-BEST
instructors throughout the state of Washington.
Since this is a new type of program, we are producing this site so that
we can share our experiences, ask for or give advice, and exchange
ideas.
If you are interested in contributing or have questions, please
contact us!
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)
|
