Lists the instructional features of the Personalized System of Instruction (PSI)--self-pacing, mastery of material, student proctors, motivational devices, stress upon written and spoken work--and describes their use in an introductory psychology course at Black Hawk College. Points out higher level of achievement and higher dropout rate as…

Miami-Dade Community College has developed a computer-based instructional management system called Response System with Variable Prescriptions (RSVP) that is faculty programmed and can cater to any mode of instruction. Uses include prescriptive reading instruction, mathematics instruction, speech instruction, feedback on composition errors, and…

A survey of relevant research strongly suggests that the Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) offers considerable potential for community college instruction. It has five main features: students move at their own rates of speed, utilize written study guides, demonstrate mastery of each unit before continuing, meet with proctors for periodic…

Cognitive mapping, one of the Educational Sciences developed by Joseph Hill, makes individualized mastery learning programs possible. This article reviews the cognitive mapping method of determining individual cognitive styles, discusses methods used to cater to these styles, and defines the seven Educational Sciences. (DC)

According to Benjamin Bloom's (1981) concept of of mastery learning, most students--given the appropriate instruction and learning resources, adequate time spent learning, and perseverance--can learn a particular academic skill. Because a classroom often does not provide enough time or resources for developmental students to master necessary basic…

Mastery learning has been called cold and impersonal. On the contrary, it is humane because it allows for individual differences, emphasizes each student's ability to master the subject at hand, and provides honest and opencommunication between students and instructors. (DC)

The audio-tutorial systems in earth science was developed at St. Petersburg Junior College in response to an unacceptable but not atypical student failure rate at the community college level. This description of the program includes: (1) history of program development, (2) use of student tutors, (3) experimentation with a student paced, mastery…

This document records the procedures followed by the South Carolina State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education in developing a two-year curriculum for civil engineering technology with a learner-oriented, open-entry/open-ended individualized format relying heavily on the use of audiovisual aids and hands-on experience with software and…

This paper describes the development and implementation of an individualized instruction-evaluation system used in a third-quarter chemistry course at Cuyahoga Community College (Ohio). The system included: (1) 20 performance objectives covering the three modules in the course; (2) an instructional sequence for each objective composed of a variety…

Looks at the Central Technical Community College (CTCC) in Hastings, Nebraska which has developed institutionwide individualized instruction, utilizing a self-paced, competency-based modular approach, and an open entry/exit system that allows students to enroll and graduate any working day during the school year. (TP)

A description is provided of a project that was conducted to design, implement, and evaluate traditional and guided-practice instructional modules for independent learning of word processing skills. After an overview of the project, the report outlines the following steps in module development: identifying an instructional goal, conducting an…

The components that one midwest community college uses in its remedial English composition program reflect applications of behavioral theory and include an explicit course goal; twelve small, sequential, cumulative instructional steps; explicitly stated behavioral objectives (based on Bloom's taxonomy in the cognitive domain); three forms of…

This article compares the findings of two administrations of a questionnaire designed to determine how community colleges were responding in terms of attitudes and methods to the flood of poorly prepared students entering under open admissions policies. The questionnaire was sent to a 20 percent random sample of two-year colleges nationwide;…

Haskell Indian Junior College's computer-managed instruction (CMI) reading program uses the computer to maintain records of student achievement; schedule student assignments and tests; provide students, teachers, and administrators with student progress reports; and compile, retrieve, and analyze data. Using classroom instruction and a mastery…

The four components of quality instruction identified by Benjamin Bloom in "Human Characteristics and School Learning" (1976) form the basis of a remedial composition program designed for disadvantaged junior college students. The first component, cues for learning, is programed into the packets of student materials. These cues include identifying…