This article explores the design and implementation of the curriculum for City Seminar, an integrated course in the first-year experience at a new community college. This interdisciplinary course focuses on a critical issue that provides content and context for quantitative reasoning (QR), reading, and writing (RW) to strengthen students'…

This paper documents the perceptions and experiences of faculty members in the midst of statewide reform efforts in Virginia and North Carolina to integrate developmental reading and writing courses. Using interview and focus group data from 161 faculty and administrators in both states (combined) as well as three detailed case studies of faculty…

Interdisciplinary field study courses at 2-year colleges can provide an opportunity to enhance student learning. The authors present here an 11-day interdisciplinary field-study course designed for nonscience majors at a 2-year college. Using a theoretical learning framework that emphasizes cognitive and metacognitive gains, the field study…

Describes an interdisciplinary humanities curriculum developed by a consortium of three community colleges. The curriculum consists of a general core course based on the classical humanistic studies of history, philosophy, and the fine arts and three "optional" courses designed to appeal to special interest students. (DC)

Reviews documents from the ERIC junior colleges collection dealing with the predominant interdisciplinary teaching methods used in community colleges, and the application of interdisciplinary approaches to general, vocational, and developmental education. Suggests that interdisciplinary studies enhance the quality of community college education.…

Argues that students benefit from a combined emphasis in general education on interdisciplinarity, civic responsibility, service learning, and writing. Describes an epidemics and AIDS course as a model for students wishing to enter the discourse and debates of society. (Contains 31 references.) (AUTH/NB)

The Mexican-American Studies Curriculum at San Jose City College (California) was analyzed in order to determine appropriate means and purposes for implementing an interdisciplinary multicultural studies program for neighboring Evergreen Valley College. Results indicated that ethnic peoples face cultural conflict and isolation in contemporary…

Advocates generalized criminal justice training programs at community colleges, developed in close cooperation with police, corrections, and probation/parole agencies, that would acquaint students through internship opportunities with all criminal justice fields. (TR)

This essay argues that one of the strengths of interdisciplinary studies lies in its ability to teach higher-order thinking skills. The author cautions, however, that using a creative thinking model for interdisciplinary studies goes against the way most students have been taught to accept and process course material. (Contains 35 references.) (NB)

Traditionally, humanities instruction at two-year colleges has been identified with transfer education. Since enrollments are decreasing in humanities classes, the future viability of the humanities curriculum will depend on providing humanities instruction to vocational students. This fact sheet discusses some obstacles to changing the humanities…

This digest defines interdisciplinary courses, presents the benefits and challenges of offering them in the community college, and describes six existing interdisciplinary courses at community colleges around the country. Interdisciplinary courses are characterized by the following: they tend to be highly innovative; they incorporate concepts and…

Three contributions to a panel discussion on writing-across-the-curriculum at Kapiolani Community College (KCC) are presented. First, "Why Writing-Across-the-Curriculum: Background and Context," by Caroline Nakamura, reviews programs offered across the country, discusses the need for such programs given the decline in students' writing…

This article explores the interdisciplinary course offerings at 164 institutions that participated in a 1998 curriculum analysis by the Center for the Study of Community Colleges. It examines interdisciplinary courses in the context of the total curriculum, and discusses examples of existing interdisciplinary programs, the benefits and…

Prepared by the General Education (GE) Review Steering Committee of Massachusetts' Bunker Hill Community College in 1991, this guide presents the Committee's GE curiculum Cornerstone model. Following a short preface which discusses the goals and activities of the Steering Committee, chapter 1 presents a rationale for the model and describes its…

General education is the process of developing a framework on which to place knowledge stemming from various sources, of learning to think critically, develop values, understand traditions, and respect diverse cultures and opinions. Its rationale is the freedom enjoyed by an informed citizen. General education has had an unstable history due to…