Basic writing and reading students are scared. More than the unfamiliar places, faces, new methods and serious consequences of it all, they are afraid of words. Even if they successfully complete remediation, move on to English 101 and advance to upper courses in other disciplines, our students often face monstrous texts, which they have precious…

This is the second iteration of the Developmental Education Radar Screen project. As with the first iteration, in 2011, the author uses a "radar screen" metaphor to discuss trends in developmental education based on responses to a series of topics and categories provided by a group of leaders in the educational field. The purpose of this…

Describes the use of a focused learning strategy designed to help students in developing critical reading and writing skills. A major focus of the "learning to learn" strategy is decreasing student passivity through structured silent reading of relevant magazine and newspaper articles in a small group cooperative learning situation. (DMM)

A seven-credit-hour block course, which includes Public Speaking (three institutional credits), Basic Writing (three program credits), and Reading (one program credit) was created at Murray State University to give at-risk freshmen an opportunity to take a university credit course (Public Speaking) while strengthening their reading and writing…

Describes the five-week, tuition-free Prefreshman Summer Program developed by the College of Staten Island to reduce or eliminate the need for developmental courses during the academic year. The program includes intensive reading, writing, and mathematics instruction, supplemental tutoring, college orientation, counseling, and academic advising.…

In 1996, New Jersey's Hudson County Community College (HCCC) participated in the American Association of Community Colleges' Exploring America's Communities project, works to strengthen the teaching and learning of American history, literature, and culture at U.S. community colleges. The primary goal of HCCC's project was to provide reading…

Describes a revised developmental study skills course offering integrated instruction in critical thinking, reading, and writing strategies. Daily journal writing, reading lessons, library research, and a final oral and written report led to higher motivation, comprehension, and thinking levels than experienced by previous years' students. (DMM)

Describes the visual arts as a means of helping remedial reading and writing students to "see" the process of writing. Discusses the use of clay sculpting to demonstrate free-writing techniques, Venn-mobiles to demonstrate compare/contrast techniques, and wraps (felt "tortillas" and fillings) to demonstrate summary writing. (Contains 10…

Written by instructors who not only accept but also elect the challenge of teaching basic skills classes in reading and writing to freshmen at the community college and technical college level, this paper examines, first, the basis for the pedagogy employed: the theoretical concepts and the actual students on which the teaching of developmental…

In 1996, Indian Hills Community College (Iowa) participated in the American Association of Community Colleges' Exploring America's Communities project, which works to strengthen the instruction of American history, literature, and culture at U.S. community colleges. The college's action plan was initially comprised of three parts: (1) establishing…

Describes the rationale for and outcomes of La Guardia Community College's Critical Thinking Program. Considers the relationship of critical thinking to writing and reading. Evaluates the program's impact on students' reading, writing, and speaking skills; higher-order reasoning/problem-solving abilities; and critical attitudes toward their lives…

Describes how two Queensborough Community College reading faculty staged a debate for developmental students to illustrate the connections between reading, writing, and critical thinking; and to encourage students to critically question and evaluate what they read and hear. Details follow-up writing and group assignments, including a student…

Over the past several years, the preeminence of the transfer function at Arizona's Mesa Community College (MCC) has been overshadowed by the increasing demand for remedial education. In fall 1992, 65% of the students assessed for placement in English, mathematics, and reading scored below college-level in at least one of these subjects, and…

Describes a Kingsborough Community College program that pairs an experimental sociology course with a speech and English class to help ethnically diverse students develop needed reading and writing skills, while improving their self-concept by noting parallels between their cultures and the dominant culture. Reviews course content and goals. (DMM)