Reacting directly to the fact that even the best syllabus is worthless to the student who does not read it, this essay draws inspiration from research of the past decade, especially from the learning-focused syllabus concept that was introduced by three researchers at the University of Virginia, and uses a questionnaire to gauge our community…

Community colleges increasingly turn to various types of student success courses for their potential as high-impact practices to foster college completion. Despite commonly held assumptions of what characterizes these interventions, upon close inspection there is an un-scrutinized, circular confounding of their goals and means, which limits the…

The TRiO Program is not an acronym; it refers to a number (initially three, now eight) of U.S federal programs, which increase access to higher education for economically disadvantaged students. TRiO programs are designed to assist first-generation college students, persons with disabilities, and low-income persons. This qualitative research study…

Service learning has grown in popularity within higher education as a teaching pedagogy shown to foster student engagement as well as strengthen the relationships between the community and community college. Research has demonstrated that service learning places a focus on students gaining the hands-on experience tied closely to course objectives…

This research note provides some basic information about the courses that are typically offered in community colleges, and whether these courses have prerequisites. As higher education becomes more accessible to the general public, community colleges have received more students. Furthermore, an increasing number of students transfer from these…

A retired engineer and grandfather relates learning experiences at a community college. (DS)

A description is provided of the development of "The History of the Modern World," a one-semester course offered at Bronx Community College (BCC), which was designed to survey the major aspects of the significant events that are part of the political, economic, social and cultural heritage that have shaped the course of world history since 1850.…

An overview is provided of the objectives, courses, students, and faculty of Calhoun State Community College's (CSCC's) Honors Program. Introductory remarks describe the Honors Program as a way of providing gifted students with an opportunity for educational challenge and stimulation through sections of core curriculum courses specifically…

Examines the difficulty of determining sociology course objectives for the diverse student populations at community colleges. Argues that sociology instructors, in light of this diversity, should use a combination of teaching modalities and should stress content relating to college survival skills, enhanced social awareness, and increased…

There is a large body of well-conducted research that supports the value of freshmen orientation seminars in promoting the success of first-year students at community colleges. Orientation programs have been shown to improve retention, program completion, and the level of academic performance of these students. In addition to improving student…

The E-Mail (electronic mail) and BBS (electronic bulletin board systems) Course at Thomas Nelson Community College, in Hampton, Virginia is designed to provide an introduction to e-mail and BBS systems, as well as information on the installation, operation, and administration of such systems. This document describes the class and provides…

The first and last essays of 209 randomly selected students who had received a passing grade in English Composition I at Bucks County Community College during Fall, 1976, were evaluated at the end of the semester by a committee of English teachers from other institutions. The committee assessed improvement in relation to several instructional…

This report is the outcome of a project designed to study the literacy demands of selected academic, vocational/technical, and developmental studies programs and courses and of administrative tasks in relation to the literacy skills of minority and other community college students. Chapter I discusses the nature and value of literacy in modern…

Many who believe in the value of the study of the humanities are faced with the problems of how to attract vocational students to humanities courses, maintain their interest in such courses so that they fulfill the general education requirements for graduation, and, if possible, generate an ongoing interest in the humanities. In response to these…

In an attempt to meet the need for improved skills in the local workforce, San Juan College (New Mexico) made efforts to locate a target population of students and find out how successfully the courses they took met their work needs. A computer search identified a trial population of 513 students who met a set of criteria that suggested they took…