Adolescents today face increasing challenges, while the support systems that should help them meet and surmount those challenges are rapidly disappearing. Yearly statistics on teen substance abuse, depression, suicide, and violent crime continue to escalate. Teens with low attachments to school are most vulnerable because they are less likely to…

Community college developmental English students passed Composition I at a higher rate than did non-developmental students, confirming the effectiveness of developmental English courses. However, the lack of a significant relationship between placement test scores and students' grades in all writing-intensive courses raised concerns about…

Effective professional learning requires that staff developers thoughtfully plan to meet varying teacher needs and be responsive to differences--that they model the differentiation teachers will practice in the classroom. Staff developers must be mindful of participants' current learning needs and plan according to their readiness, interest, and…

The purpose of this study was to develop a profile of the literacy histories of developmental reading students enrolled in a South Texas college. A literacy history questionnaire was used to collect written responses regarding the students' early literacy experiences prior to entering the college setting. Analysis of the written responses…

Since the beginning of the American experience, labels have been used to describe generations. Among them are the "Puritan generation," the "greatest generation," the "baby boomer generation" and the "MTV generation." Today, people are creating a new generation--the "lost generation." The lost generation represents a large and growing population…

While the promotion of literacy is a fundamental mission for all librarians, over the past decades the definition has expanded and, paradoxically, fragmented into various multiliteracies, such as computer literacy, visual literacy, media literacy, and so forth. From these, a broader concept of student competencies, one that includes both…

One of the greatest challenges that community colleges face in their efforts to increase graduation rates is improving the success of students in their developmental, or remedial, education programs--the courses that students without adequate academic preparation must take before they can enroll in courses for college credit. Emphasizing results…

This report examines the sub-baccalaureate labor market, defined as a labor market for those with less than a baccalaureate degree but at least a high school diploma. This market constitutes about three-fifths of employment. Following an introduction, the report describes the sub-baccalaureate labor market as primarily a local labor market…

Drawn from a conference that focused on the present state and future direction of college reading and learning skills instruction, the articles in this collection are arranged into three categories: reviews, investigations and evaluations, and prescriptions and descriptions. Among the topics discussed in the 19 articles are the following: (1) the…

Educational strategies that small rural high schools can use to address important developmental needs of rural youth were explored, focusing on the importance of educational environments outside traditional high school classrooms, (i.e., work-experience programs, student exchange programs, and travel-study). Of the 92 Alaskan village high schools…

This chapter concludes the volume with resources and Web sites for the interested reader and researcher.

This monograph consists of 13 chapters featuring a diverse range of perspectives centralizing student standpoints about their experiences in higher education and access programs. Chapter 1, "Student Perspectives on College Readiness" (Jeanne L. Higbee), provides the results of a survey of developmental education students regarding college…

Since 1967, the Nevada State Legislature has mandated higher education institutions compile a comprehensive report on program plans. Therefore, this report is prepared in accordance to state law requiring the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) to prepare a biennial report for submission to the Nevada State Legislature that outlines a plan…

Using the data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, this issue of "Data Notes" is the second of a two-part series investigating the characteristics of late stop-outs--students who accumulate at least 30 credits within the first two years, only to stop out without completing credentials or transferring. The data show that male…

The purpose of this research was to examine possible outcomes of developmental students' critical thinking and motivation to read when the online learning community, WebCT, was implemented. My role, in addition to instructor, was that of participant-observer. I implemented WebCT tools, such as discussion board and chat, over a four-month period…