While community colleges excel at expanding postsecondary enrollments, these institutions often struggle to help students succeed. A chorus of school leaders and policymakers increasingly agree that broad-based, comprehensive organizational change is needed to drastically improve community college student success and equity. The Guided Pathways…

The purpose of this case study was to examine the role of social capital in the enactment of a faculty-based initiative designed to improve student success and completion at one community college. The concept of social capital--or the actual and potential resources that are embedded in relationships--has been examined in research studies in many…

This report documents the implementation and early impacts of the Pathways to Healthcare program, operated by Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona. Pathways to Healthcare is one promising effort to help low-income, low-skilled adults access and complete occupational training that can lead to increased employment and higher earnings. It is one…

The second annual implementation report for the Accelerating Opportunity (AO) initiative in four states finds that: (1) colleges aligned pathways and supports with local needs; (2) students were satisfied with AO; (3) AO instructors grew more adept at team teaching; (4) colleges struggled to recruit adult education students; (5) states and…

This case study documents the struggles and successes encountered by a pre-calculus teacher while using Classroom Connectivity Technology (CCT) daily in her community college mathematics course. CCT refers to a wireless communication system that connects a teacher's computer with an individual student's handheld calculator and has been associated…

Middle Georgia College started the Faculty Technology Minigrant Program to prepare graduates to be successful participants in a technology-based society and to enhance student learning through instructional technologies. Developed by the Technology Roundtable Committee (TRC), the program addresses the need for faculty expertise in choosing and…

A Local History Program (LHP) was implemented at the majority of community colleges in North Carolina to assist lay involvement in research and enhance the preservation, preparation, dissemination, and use of local and family history materials in the state. The four major components of the LHP were the community colleges that volunteered to host…

Reviews current literature related to self-directed learning, highlighting six competencies important for its successful implementation. Reviews critiques of self-directed learning and describes hurdles to implementation at community colleges related to quality control, teachers' roles, and institutional image. Provides suggestions for overcoming…

The Activating Learning in the Classroom (ALC) program at Middlesex Community College (MCC) is a year-long instructional and professional development program in which eight professors representing each college division volunteer to re-develop a course that they plan to teach within a year to promote active learning. The program begins at the close…

This report describes a curriculum reform project conducted at Spokane Community College (Washington), which has extensive vocational programs and a high percentage of non-traditional students. The purpose of the project was to develop and test a series of student Learning Activity Packets (LAPs), which introduce fundamental chemistry concepts by…

The 1990s saw a significant increase in the amount of technology used in the classroom and an increased need for individuals with high-tech skills. However, while this mass technology was being integrated, the human skills of instruction and advisement were being lost. Technology seemed to be negatively influencing the learning process. As a…

Studies a California community college that is implementing the learning paradigm--shifting from simply providing instruction to actively enhancing student learning. Suggests that community colleges undergoing this shift should examine ingrained perspectives of teaching and learning, create annual growth plans, provide inservice programs, and…

Discusses the history and purpose of the case study method used to stimulate in-class discussion. Advocates the use of the guided case study method to ensure that substantive discussions take place and provides nine steps for using the method. Includes a sample case study worksheet. (11 citations) (BCY)

This document contains three issues, each containing one article, from the American Association of Community Colleges' Service Learning Resource Guide. The first article, "Service Learning and Curricular Integration" (Robert Exley), discusses service learning and curricular integration. It outlines several steps in implementing service learning…

Based on an initial phase of a study conducted in 1993 that surveyed 1,200 two-year colleges to describe the scope and character of work-based learning programs already in existence, phase 2 sought a more in-depth understanding of selected exemplary work-based learning programs. Ten programs in eight two-year colleges were identified for further…