This mixed-method study explored the alignment of expected student learning outcomes (SLOs) and expected student entrance skills, as stated within "course outlines of record" (CORs), for basic skills courses in one California community college district. Researchers evaluated consistencies and discrepancies in course alignment. There were…

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 paper considers noncredit instruction in the California Community College System. It identifies three related concepts: a state need for increased levels of education that noncredit instruction is well placed to supply, several changes that begin to facilitate that response, and additional changes that are needed to ensure success. The…

This catalogue of student competencies, gleaned from 10,000 competency statements developed by secondary school districts, is designed to allow flexibility at the local level. Districts are free to adopt or modify this set of graduation competencies by following a six-step process: organize, orient a task force, identify priority competency…

The Minneapolis Accountability Project represents an effort to allow the community to evaluate existing school programs which are locally funded. The project informs the community about school problems, establishes a channel for expression of community concerns, and provides findings and proposals for educational change. This report describes the…

A description is provided of Cuyahoga Community College's (CCC's) Jesse Owens Youth Development Program, a comprehensive year-round combination of courses, programs, and activities for inner city young people between the ages of 11 and 21. Following introductory comments on the program, the beginnings of CCC's youth development program are…

Lehigh County Community College (Pennsylvania) and the Lehigh County Senior Citizens' Center collaborated on a project to assess the learning needs of the senior center's 1,600 members. A needs assessment completed by 68 center members and interviews of an additional 38 center members established that senior citizens preferred short-term workshops…

This guide is designed to lead program planners through the course of building and implementing a family literacy program. It provides planning teams with an orientation to a four-component model of family literacy, community resources, planning strategies, examples of programs in Missouri, recent research findings, case study vignettes, and…

The 1970's saw considerable advancement toward fulfilling the mission of the community colleges of Hawaii. Out of the successes and unmet needs of the 1970's and based upon assumptions about future changes and constraints, 11 directions were specified for the 1980's. With regard to instructional services, the directions are: emphasize continuing…

A comprehensive student basic skills assessment program was developed at St. Louis Community College (SLCC) at Florissant Valley to appraise student readiness to take courses, gather information for counseling and advising, diagnose student problems, and evaluate program efficiency and effectiveness. The steps taken in developing the program were:…

Describes Oakton Community College's Critical Literacy Project (CLP), which includes a faculty seminar on critical thinking and analytical reading/writing, all-college staff development programming, and a national conference. Considers faculty ownership, college support, an interdisciplinary focus, and intellectual rigor among the keys to CLP…

After learning that graduating seniors at El Cajon Valley High School, California, were scoring around the 20th percentile in all the basic skills areas tested, teachers redoubled their efforts to establish proficiency standards in basic skills already identified by the community and governing board as a first priority. (Author/RK)

A framework for industry-based training in community colleges consists of nine models: three program types (standardized, personalized, and customized) that each teach three types of skills (general, generic occupational, and job specific). Administrative considerations include funding, academic credit, course location, evaluation, and liaison.…

Guidelines for implementing comprehensive career development for special needs learners are presented. They include review and evaluation of curricula for appropriateness, determination of the learner's current stage of career development, program planning, integration of career development opportunities, ongoing program implementation assistance,…

The need for colleges to develop critical thinking skills in mainstream courses is emerging as an issue of national significance. Students benefit from clearly articulated and pedagogically sound courses that directly and explicitly teach thinking skills, as well as from efforts to reinforce these abilities across the curriculum. At LaGuardia…