Download or read book Exploring the Impact of Learning Communities at a Community College written by Teri A. VonHandorf and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this mixed-methods participatory action research study was to explore the impact of learning communities on students enrolled in the lowest level of developmental math at a two-year college. The learning community consisted of twenty-three students who were enrolled in both a student success course (GEN102) and a developmental math course (MAT055). Quantitative data was collected ex post facto determine if there were differences in the success, retention, and persistence rates of students enrolled in the learning community section versus the non-learning community sections of developmental math. The study used both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics showed a positive difference between learning community participants and non-learning community participants along the dimensions of success and persistence, but a negative difference in retention. These differences were not found to be statistically significant. Qualitative data were analyzed from two independent sources: (1) a focus group interview conducted with 13 learning community participants at the end of the semester, and (2) the researcher's reflective journal. The themes that emerged from both qualitative data sources were used to deepen the understanding of the quantitative data and to inform the recommendations presented in this study to strengthen and scale up the institution's learning community program.

Download or read book High impact Educational Practices written by George D. Kuh and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication¿the latest report from AAC&U¿s Liberal Education and America¿s Promise (LEAP) initiative¿defines a set of educational practices that research has demonstrated have a significant impact on student success. Author George Kuh presents data from the National Survey of Student Engagement about these practices and explains why they benefit all students, but also seem to benefit underserved students even more than their more advantaged peers. The report also presents data that show definitively that underserved students are the least likely students, on average, to have access to these practices.

Download or read book Building Synergy for High Impact Educational Initiatives written by Janine Graziano and published by The National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience. This book was released on 2016-05-17 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Published in partnership with the Washington Center for Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Education First-year seminars and learning communities are two of the most commonly offered high-impact practices on U.S. campuses. The goals of these initiatives are similar: helping students make connections to faculty and other students, improving academic performance, and increasing persistence and graduation. As such, it is not surprising that many institutions choose to embed first-year seminars in learning communities. This volume explores the merger of these two high-impact practices. In particular, it offers insight into how institutions connect them and the impact of those combined structures on student learning and success. In addition to chapters highlighting strategies for designing, teaching in, and assessing combined programs, case studies offer practical insights into the structures of these programs in a variety of campus settings.

Download or read book Promising and High Impact Practices Student Success Programs in the Community College Context written by Gloria Crisp and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-09-21 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With calls for community colleges to play a greater role in increasing college completion, promising or high-impact practices (HIPs) are receiving attention as means to foster persistence, degree completion, and other desired academic outcomes. These include learning communities, orientation, first-year seminars, and supplemental instruction, among many others. This volume explores the latest research on: how student success program research is conceptualized and operationalized, evidence for ways in which interventions foster positive student outcomes, critical inquiry of how students themselves experience them, and challenges and guidance regarding program design, implementation and evaluation. This is the 175th volume of this Jossey-Bass quarterly report series. Essential to the professional libraries of presidents, vice presidents, deans, and other leaders in today's open-door institutions, New Directions for Community Colleges provides expert guidance in meeting the challenges of their distinctive and expanding educational mission.

Download or read book Powerful Learning Communities written by Oscar T. Lenning and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-07-03 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learning communities have been demonstrated to dramatically improve student outcomes by engaging students in their learning.This book constitutes a comprehensive guide for readers who want a broad strategic view of learning communities, enabling them to identify which type of LC best meets the learning needs of their students, and the context and mission of their institution. It also provides the tools for planning, designing and implementing what the authors define as “powerful” LCs, and for understanding the assessment implications of their decisions.The potential power of LCs is realized through effective facilitation, appropriate team-building activities, linkages, planning, and active collaboration that promotes learning of the group and the individual group members – all of which topics are covered in this volume.This book is organized around the three themes of setting the stage, designing an LC, and building or enhancing a powerful LC, and covers three types of learning communities – student, professional (faculty, staff), and institutional LCs concerned with student learning – providing a range of tools and forms to facilitate planning. The authors also address designing and maintaining hybrid and virtual LCs. This book is intended as a practical resource for anyone at any level in higher education who wants to champion, develop or redesign student or professional LCs, or even explore broader initiatives to develop their institution into a “learning organization”. Administrators in academic and student affairs will find guidance for setting appropriate policies and allocating resources. The book may also serve as a textbook for graduate courses in institutional leadership and policy studies, curriculum and instruction, student affairs, or assessment/evaluation.

Download or read book Building Learning Communities for New College Students written by and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 38 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Experimental College written by Alexander Meiklejohn and published by . This book was released on 1928 with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Learning Communities In Practice written by Anastasia Samaras and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2008-10-26 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most would agree that a learning community of practice cultivates social and intellectual development in educational settings but what are the other benefits and what does a learning community actually look like in practice? This book explores such questions as: “Are learning communities essential in education?” “How are they designed and developed?” “What difference do they make in learning?” The book contains contributions of educators who share their research and practice in designing and implementing learning communities in school, university, and professional network settings. It presents their experiences, and the “how to” of these educators who are passionate about building and sustaining learning communities to make a real difference for students, teachers, faculty, and communities. Combining scholarly and practitioner research, the book offers practical information to teachers, school and university administrators, teacher educators, and community educators.

Download or read book Exploring Learning Communities in an Urban Community College written by Margaret Bivins Brown and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learning communities purportedly show promise of alleviating the downward spiral of low academic achievement, rapid attrition, and student discomfort with the educational environment (Gabelnick, MacGregor, Matthews & Smith, 1990; Jacoby, 2000; Lenning & Ebbers, 1999). The purpose of this study was to explore factors present in a learning community that may have contributed to the increased academic achievement and retention of predominantly African American students in an urban community college developmental education program. The learning community was designed to restructure teaching and learning, to provide academic support, and to improve the success rates of entering students as suggested by state, local, and college reformers. This one-time study was conducted over a period of eight months using a qualitative research approach including interviews, observations, and examination of documents and reflective and field-notes. Data were analyzed using frequency counts, content analyses, and constant comparative analysis through the lens of Clark's (1996) model of synergistic community and Vygotsky's (1978) social constructivism theory. The findings suggested that the learning community model, structure, and practices assisted at-risk, low-achieving students in removing barriers to academic and personal success through the use of a cohort model linking developmental courses with a College Success Seminar. A curriculum centered on eight Success Principles created community, provided support, and engaged students and faculty in alternative instructional delivery in a variety of learning styles and teaching modalities. Major conclusions drawn from the findings in this study suggested that the learning community experience benefited the students, faculty, and institution through increased academic achievement and success rates and greater satisfaction with the learning community experience; and that implementing and sustaining learning communities was a challenging process that required committed administrative leadership and advocacy and the involvement of the total campus in order to become institutionalized into the college community. The conclusions drawn imply that community college students can and do succeed if provided supportive, academic environments in an institutional climate that fosters diverse and collaborative practices and policies. Recommendations for policy, practice, and future research included gathering multiple measures of data upon which to base future decisions regarding the purpose and direction of communal learning environments. -- Abstract.

Download or read book The Impact of Learning Communities on Student and Faculty Engagement written by Mary Beth Boylan and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Community College Learning Communities written by Randall A Barnes and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Learning Communities written by Faith G. Gabelnick and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learning communities are curricular structures that link different disciplines around a common theme or question. They give greater coherence to the curriculum and provide students and faculty with a vital sense of shared inquiry. This volume of New Directions for Teaching and Learning places learning communities within the framework of twentieth-century educational theory and reform. The authors provide comprehensive, detailed descriptions of how to design, maintain, and evaluate learning communities and include firsthand accounts from students and faculty in learning communities across the nation. At a time when higher education seeks a sense of shared purpose, learning communities offer an approach that balances the demands of individualism with those of contributing to the common good. Solutions to the problems we confront require multiple points of view, a variety of competencies, and an acknowledgment of interdepAndence and mutual respect. Learning communities are one way we may build the commonalities and connections so essential to our education and our society. This is the 41st issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Teaching and Learning. For more information on the series, please see the Journals and Periodicals page.

Download or read book Mixed Results from Six Large Randomized Controlled Trials of Learning Communities in Community Colleges written by Alexander K. Mayer and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 16 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper presents research that explores similarities and differences across six randomized controlled trials of learning communities in community colleges that were conducted by MDRC and the National Center for Postsecondary Research. Five of these studies track students' progress in the program semester and two follow-up semesters, and one study follows students for six years. These studies provide the most extensive evidence available on the promise and limitations of learning communities for improving the academic outcomes of students in community colleges. The present research examines several competing explanations for mixed findings and draws lessons to inform further research in the field. The following six community colleges were involved in the studies: (1) Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) in suburban Maryland; (2) Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida; (3) Houston Community College in Houston, Texas; (4) Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn, New York; (5) Merced College in Merced, California; and (6) Queensborough Community College in Queens, New York. The learning communities each lasted for one semester, and consisted of four key components, although there was variation in their emphasis and implementation: (1) linked courses and student cohorts; (2) faculty collaboration; (3) instructional practices; and (4) student supports. More than 7,000 students were randomly assigned to either the program group or the control group. The researchers used several data sources: (1) the baseline information form; (2) operational site visits, field research, and instructor survey; and (3) student records. Results from the studies suggest the following: (1) One-semester learning communities can have a long-term impact and even boost graduation, as shown in the study of the Kingsborough program; and (2) The combined results of all six trials suggest that, on average, learning communities for developmental education students produce only a modest impact on credits earned in the targeted subject of English or mathematics. The research provides good tests of learning communities as they appear to be typically enacted, but not a test of the "ideal" or "advanced" learning communities described in the literature. Tables and figures are appended. [This report was written with Kelley Fong, Hannah Fresques, and Jedediah Teres.].

Download or read book Building Online Learning Communities written by Rena M. Palloff and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-12-30 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Building Online Learning Communities further explores the development of virtual classroom environments that foster a sense of community and empower students to take charge of their learning to successfully achieve learning outcomes. This is the second edition of the groundbreaking book by Rena Palloff and Keith Pratt and has been completely updated and expanded to include the most current information on effective online course development and delivery. A practical, hands-on guide, this resource is filled with illustrative case studies, vignettes, and examples from a wide variety of successful online courses. The authors offer proven strategies for handling challenges that include: Engaging students in the formation of an online learning community. Establishing a sense of presence online. Maximizing participation. Developing effective courses that include collaboration and reflection. Assessing student performance. Written for faculty in any distance learning environment, this revised edition is based on the authors many years of work in faculty development for online teaching as well as their extensive personal experience as faculty in online distance education. Rena M. Palloff and Keith Pratt share insights designed to guide readers through the steps of online course design and delivery.

Download or read book The State of College Access and Completion written by Laura W. Perna and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-07-18 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite decades of substantial investments by the federal government, state governments, colleges and universities, and private foundations, students from low-income families as well as racial and ethnic minority groups continue to have substantially lower levels of postsecondary educational attainment than individuals from other groups. The State of College Access and Completion draws together leading researchers nationwide to summarize the state of college access and success and to provide recommendations for how institutional leaders and policymakers can effectively improve the entire spectrum of college access and completion. Springboarding from a seminar series organized by the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, chapter authors explore what is known and not known from existing research about how to improve student success. This much-needed book calls explicit attention to the state of college access and success not only for traditional college-age students, but also for the substantial and growing number of "nontraditional" students. Describing trends in various outcomes along the pathway from college access to completion, this volume documents persisting gaps in outcomes based on students’ demographic characteristics and offers recommendations for strategies to raise student attainment. Graduate students, scholars, and researchers in higher education will find The State of College Access and Completion to be an important and timely resource.

Download or read book Effects of Learning Communities on Community College Students Success written by Keith Wurtz and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The American Community College written by Arthur M. Cohen and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2013-08-27 with total page 594 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For more than thirty years, The American Community College has been the go-to reference for faculty, administrators, trustees, state-level officials, and researchers concerned with the role of community colleges in the American educational system, the services they provide, and their effects on students and surrounding communities. Now in its sixth edition, The American Community College includes a new chapter on student outcomes and accountability; a case for reconceptualizing general education around critical thinking, civic engagement, and sustainable development; and an appendix examining the ascendant for-profit sector. The sixth edition also incorporates expanded analyses of recent trends within the community colleges, including vertical expansion; cross-sector collaboration; student and faculty characteristics; enrollment patterns; revenue generation and state allocation patterns, including performance-based funding; distance learning; and statewide efforts to improve transfer and articulation. In addition, the authors include a response to contemporary criticisms of the institution. Comprehensive in scope, the sixth edition of The American Community College is designed for anyone concerned with the role and purpose of community institutions in American higher education. The descriptions and analyses of each of the institution’s functions can be used by administrators who want to learn about practices that have proven successful at other colleges, curriculum planners involved in program revisions, faculty members seeking ideas for modifying their courses, students preparing for careers in community colleges, and trustees and officials concerned with college policies and student progress and outcomes. Each chapter of the book includes guiding questions for reflection and discussion.