Physical and geographical distance have long existed as factors that may impact student success in online learning. Now, in the age of a global pandemic, these factors have coalesced with social distance to intensify feelings of isolation that online students may experience. The deliberate use of social and emotional learning (SEL) strategies…

This research project addresses the decline in student engagement, retention, and academic performance in a college Reading 100 course at a local community college in Arizona over a threeyear period. Catering to students with low reading proficiency, including international students learning English, the course faced new challenges brought on by…

This study examines the student experience in the online classroom at a small, Northern California college during the COVID-19 pandemic, using a survey administered online and in person to students enrolled in targeted sections of general education courses at the college. By exploring student responses to specific instructional and support…

Building community is essential to achieving optimal learning conditions. Failure to build community in online courses is linked to higher drop-out rates, feelings of isolation, and lower academic success rate (Adams & Wilson, 2020). Although there is research on building a sense of community in online course settings, much of this work has…

Faculty preparedness is a crucial parameter that influences students with learning disabilities' success. With limited research on faculty preparedness to teach students with learning disabilities in community colleges, this qualitative study took on a crucial and often overlooked area of inclusive education. The study focused on faculty…

Working through the COVID-19 pandemic, many community colleges were driven to continue operations in a time of extreme uncertainty, all while dealing with enrollment declines, helping those already marginalized through wrap around services, and transforming educational service delivery in an online environment. Throughout rapidly changing…

This qualitative study examines open pedagogy as a critical instructional strategy in online community college settings to increase opportunities for authentic interactions that support student persistence. Discourse analysis was used to understand how community college students (n=78) perceive and connect with different aspects of open pedagogy…

Transparency in learning and teaching (TILT) is a framework designed to enhance student engagement, learning, and overall success. The efficacy of TILT has been demonstrated through positive data, making it a promising method for higher education institutions to implement and adapt. In addition to increasing traditional students' mastery of…

Reading skills are critical for English as a Second Language (ESL) students in higher education to achieve academic success. However, effective ways to promote student success in ESL reading courses are under-researched. Identifying factors that may enhance the quality and outcomes of learning ESL reading is essential. One such factor identified…

While community colleges have traditionally been the leading providers of adult learner programs and the entry point for many minority students into higher education, very few English language learners (ELLs) transition to higher education. This qualitative gap analysis of the systems in place at a large urban public community college in the…

Purpose. The first purpose of this study was to identify and describe what actions faculty experts recommend for California Community Colleges to ensure maximum effectiveness of instructional strategies and related academic support programs in developmental mathematics by the year 2020. The second purpose of the study was to identify and describe…

Many students who begin their higher education journey at community colleges are academically underprepared and lack the skills necessary to begin college-level courses. As a result, underprepared students are required to begin a remedial course sequence designated as "learning support". The purpose of this qualitative narrative inquiry…

Community colleges are tasked with juggling multiple missions. They provide open access to education for adults in their community, work with industry partners to educate the local workforce, and provide relevant programming to the communities they serve. When compared with students at four-year institutions, community college students are older,…

LaGuardia Community College is pursuing a sustained, multi-layered strategy to place learning, teaching, and cohesive curriculum at the center of a guided learning pathway. Implemented in both general education and disciplinary majors collegewide, our Learning Matters core competencies offer faculty powerful tools they use to design, enact,…

With the rapid growth of online learning at community colleges and the low course completion and performance associated with it, there has been increasing need to identify effective ways to address the challenges in online teaching and learning at this setting. Based on open-ended survey responses from 105 instructors and 365 students from…