Discusses the special challenges to community college assessment programs posed by linguistic, cultural, religious, and ethnic diversity in student populations. Provides an overview of important considerations for developing assessment activities. Describes the efforts of North Seattle Community College to address these considerations. (MAB)

This paper describes Miami-Dade Community College's (MDCC's) Academic Alert and Advisement System (AAAS), which uses a powerful and sophisticated computer system called Response System with Variable Prescriptions (RSVP) to provide students with information about their progress in a course midway through the term. The paper begins by outlining the…

Presents a model for an instructional system for low-achieving students, including such elements as proactive preenrollment, entry-level assessment and mandatory placement, basic skill development, articulation with subsequent courses, instructional prescriptions based on assessment, content-based instruction, exit testing, and student behavior…

Describes a microcomputer-based program of assessment and instruction in language arts incorporated into the developmental curriculum at four colleges. Discusses the instructional value of assessment. Describes three different implementation modes. Finds a climate for experimentation, a program champion, an implementation team, and organizational…

In 1983, Cuyahoga Community College (CCC), Cleveland, Ohio, initiated a project to improve the rates of persistence, retention, and success of minority students in completing a two-year academic program and transferring to a four-year college. The project addressed four factors contributing to low rates of educational persistence and transfer: (1)…

This paper describes the structure and operation of an evaluation system for the developmental education program at Dalton Junior College (Georgia). All applicants for admission to the college who score below 330 on either section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test are required to take the Comparative Guidance and Placement (CGP) test to determine…

Discusses community colleges' multiple roles and the impact of declining elementary-secondary performance on higher education. Offers examples of changing relations with secondary education; community college programs for immigrants, minorities, and educationally disadvantaged; a continuum of occupational programs; diversity in transfer education;…

In 1988, the American College Testing Program, together with the National Council of Instructional Administrators and the National Council for Student Development, initiated Project Cooperation (PC) to examine outcomes assessment strategies and measures of institutional effectiveness among two-year colleges. The first initiative of PC was a survey…

The chief advantage of the use of a computer in a basic reading and writing class is that it helps the instructor do more with greater ease and comfort in less time. Initial problems associated with the use of a mainframe computer for instruction were: few programs which met the needs of community college students; lack of knowledge on how to…

This sourcebook is intended for postsecondary educators seeking to develop a system that will acknowledge, validate and credit prior learning at their institutions. It provides a systematic, organized approach to the major issues surrounding the implementation of experiential learning assessment. Chapters include: Institutional Philosophy,…

This assessment of the developmental education program at the City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) was conducted by the CCC's Center for the Improvement of Teaching and Learning (CITL). Part 1 describes the evolution of developmental programs in the CCC, focusing on the success of Loop College's Individual Needs Program in the 1970s, the decision to…

Designed to facilitate implementation of outcomes assessments at other colleges, this manual describes the activities and techniques developed by North Hennepin Community College in its Student Outcomes Pilot Project (SOPP) of 1988-89. Following introductory material, the manual describes the college's Research and Planning Office, and its survey…

In 1977, Saint Mary's Junior College initiated a project to determine the feasibility of educating and placing blind persons as occupational therapy assistants and physical therapy assistants. Faculty and project staff worked together to develop tactile models and diagrams, enriched verbal descriptions, and supplementary audiotapes to be added to…

To reduce duplication of instruction in educational programs and to encourage faculty to cooperate in the smooth transition of students from secondary to post-secondary programs, Hagerstown Junior College and the Washington County Board of Education developed model articulation agreements between secondary and post-secondary programs in the areas…

The vocational counseling and training process described in this manual has been used successfully with disabled students at Vista College. As prefatory material notes the Vista College model is exceptional in that it begins with conditional job offers from a specific private employer and then works backward to establish the necessary training…