Active learning increases student learning, engagement, and interest in STEM and subsequently, the number and diversity of graduates. Yet, its adoption has been slow, partially due to instructors' concerns about student resistance. Consequently, researchers proposed explanation and facilitation instructional strategies designed to reduce this…

Community colleges have teaching faculty whose primary focus is educating their students and providing service to their institution. Community college teaching research has focused on innovation, students' expectations, and the use of active learning techniques to foster student success. Research on blended courses has focused on instructional…

This study explored the influence of prosocial concepts in a community college learning environment. This dissertation's aim supports community college educators through a developed training to help educators recover from emotional episodes in the classroom. Twelve Midwestern community college instructors participated in this study. This research…

In this study, I examined adult learners' experiences and perceptions of barriers to interactions and engagement in online community college courses. Adult learners enrollment in online courses in postsecondary institutions continues to grow due to the flexibility and convenience they offer to learners who often have to juggle multiple…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological research was to better understand the lived experiences of faculty teaching in a community college setting who have addressed behavioral concerns related to students with disabilities (SWDs). Much of the existing research is focused on the experiences of the students, not the faculty. Research is…

In the spring of 2020, many colleges and universities had to move their classes online due to COVID-19. This move to the virtual environment highlighted a growing problem in higher education, being increase failure rates for online students. This study addressed two research questions: 1) To what extent does the use of short lectures and small…

Community colleges are viewed as essential in the preparation of skilled science professionals in the U.S., and research regarding instructor impacts on student attitudes toward science are timely and relevant. This study explored specific instructor characteristics and pedagogical behaviors and their influence student engagement, confidence, and…

Objective/Research Question: This paper reports on data collected in a multi-year National Science Foundation grant project involving a professional development (PD) model built to support community college faculty as change agents (CAs). The research question was: How do disciplinary communities of practice (CoP) emerge among community college…

Promoting online academic success is complex for underserved, unprepared, educationally marginalized students who display lower engagement. Instructors typically suggest tutoring or generic resources, but two factors found to influence online success are engagement and self-regulated learning (SRL). We embedded then evaluated (a) the GAME plan for…

This dissertation study was guided by two research questions: (1) What shapes community college mathematics faculty members' set of racialized ideologies, beliefs, and attitudes that inform their behaviors and teaching practices in the virtual classroom?; and (2) How do the racial and virtual classroom dynamics shape the ways mathematics faculty…

This dissertation examines the pedagogical beliefs and instructional practices of community college faculty members. The dissertation uses a qualitative interpretive inquiry approach to explore the contextual understanding of pedagogy and teaching of community college. Drawing from the theoretical framework of pedagogy, teaching and beliefs, this…

On the first day of class, what should an instructor do? What do the students expect? What might ruin the first day of class? The author asked 270 students these questions, and their answers apply to any class's first day.

Incivility is currently a topic of concern in nursing and higher education. There is a serious and growing concern on college campuses across the United States as many forms of incivility are occurring, ranging from offensive language and rude behavior to hostility and violent behavior. The problem this study addresses is the need for specific…

In this article, we discuss how our analysis of several popular culture artifacts featuring "super" women characters (superheroes and supernatural) provided the foundation for a media discussion group for female college students with learning exceptionalities. We explore the use of popular culture in discussion groups as well as discuss…

Incorporating spirituality and religious themes in environmental education is a way to link learners to their meaning systems. Research has shown that incorporation of a spiritual element in education provides a way for students to have authentic learning experiences and make meaning of the knowledge they acquire in the classroom. This mixed…