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This is the seventh in a series of briefings on the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE). As previously reported, CCSSE, through the use of five benchmarks of effective educational practice, measures the level of student engagement in the learning process. The five benchmarks are: active and collaborative learning, student effort, academic challenge, student-faculty interaction, and support for learners.
In this issue we would like to highlight twelve ideas to help you create your individual or division CCSSE Action Plan.
A Dozen Easy to Implement CCSSE Plans for Faculty
1
Scheduling Appointments with Students: Palo Alto College (TX) is a writing-intensive campus where papers are required in most classes. To promote success with the college’s rigorous curriculum, many professors schedule appointments with each student to allow one-on-one interaction. Students who have missed several classes also are referred to appropriate student services through an Early Alert program. Palo Alto College also has a “mastery of learning” program in reading, English for Speakers of Other Languages, and math, in which students navigate courses at their own pace. Results show improved course completion and progression using this approach.
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Required Internship Experiences: Students at F.H. LaGuardia Community College (NY) apply their learning through required internship experiences, tutoring, mentoring new students, and participation in the college’s leadership and diversity program. For faculty, professional development focuses on developing pedagogies that foster inquiry, synthesis, and problem-solving. The college’s Writing in the Disciplines program assists faculty in incorporating writing-to-learn approaches in all majors.
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In-Class Review Sessions: The effects of in-class review questions were compared with and without student response cards on learning and participation in a community college classroom using an alternating treatments design. In addition, students completed consumer satisfaction questionnaires at three points throughout the course. A higher percentage of students earned an A on their end of class quiz during classes with response cards than during those without. The use of response cards also resulted in greater student participation compared to classes in which response cards were not used. The consumer satisfaction questionnaire indicated favorable student evaluation of the response card method of instruction. We discuss these results in the context of extending the research on active student responding in college classrooms.
Kellum, K. K., Carr, J. E., & Dozier, C. L. (2001). Response-card instruction and student learning in a college classroom. Teaching of Psychology, 28(2). 101-104.
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Enhanced Lecture: For teachers who are committed to the idea of lecturing but for some reason—perhaps student dissatisfaction, or because they recognize what research has amply proven, that students cannot and do not stay attentive for 50 consecutive minutes--want to incorporate some active learning principles in their teaching. The following active learning devices can enhance lecture: the pause procedure; short writes; think-pair-share; formative quizzes (an interesting way of looking at ungraded but quiz-like exercises); lecture summaries; and other classroom assessment techniques such as those recommended by Angelo and Cross’s crucial 1993 volume.
Moseley, M. [review] (1996). Bonwell, C. C. & Sutherland, T. E. (Editors) Using active learning in college classes: A range of options for faculty. New Directions for Teaching and Learning #67 San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
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Cooperative Learning Groups: The effects of student participation in cooperative learning groups are well known. Researchers commonly report student gains in problem solving skills, more favorable attitudes toward education, increased willingness to try new and difficult tasks, an enhanced sense of belonging, greater appreciation for persons of other ethnic backgrounds, reduction of misbehavior, and better relationships with classmates. Students also grow from listening to the viewpoints of others, encouraging teammates, showing empathy, negotiating conflict, and making an effort to help peers understand lessons (p. 315-316).
Strom, P.S., & Strom, R.D. (2002). Overcoming limitations of cooperative learning among community college students. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 26(4), 315-331.
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Problem-Based Learning: Review of experimental evidence concerning the effectiveness of problem-based learning suggests that the approach may not improve content-free problem solving; may initially reduce learning levels but fosters long-term retention; may enhance transfer of concepts and integration of concepts into clinical problems; enhances intrinsic interest of subject matter; and enhances self-directed learning.
Norman, G. R. & Schmidt, H. G. (1992). The psychological basis of problem-based learning: A review of the evidence. Academic Medicine, 67(9). 557-565.
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Student Self-Assessment: A study focusing on student self-assessment and self-grading of examinations that test higher-order cognitive skills supposed that by evaluating their own performance, students could not only enhance academic strengths and reduce weaknesses but also learn material in greater depth and further develop critical thinking skills. Findings suggest a potential for student self-assessment.
Zoller, U., Tsaparlis, G., Fatsow, M., & Lubezky, A. (1997). Student self-assessment of higher-order cognitive skills in college science teaching. Journal of College Science Teaching, 27(2). 99-101.
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Reading Interest: In order to get some idea of how 18- to 25-year-olds felt about some of their reading moments in school, a reading interest survey was given to 189 college students at the University of Wisconsin, Lacrosse. Females reacted more positively to questions about the impact of teachers, home life, and methods on their feelings for reading. Oral reading was disliked by these students when they were in elementary school, and assigned readings were disliked most in high school. The factor listed most often as influencing the development of a real love of reading was caring teachers who were models of reading to their classes, and whose love for reading was apparent. Recommendations based on the survey include:
(1) reading materials need to be interesting and life-like;
(2) reading groups should be modified and possibly changed frequently enough so that a student is not stigmatized;
(3) oral reading should be carefully watched and purposefully used;
(4) an attempt should be made to promote reading in the home;
(5) teachers must care about students and show that they care; and
(6) teachers need to be models of reading.
Nelson, R. L (1989). College students’ views of reading. U.S., Wisconsin. 15 p.
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Faculty Attitude: College students at a large Western university (N=729) were surveyed about 19 potential faculty attitude and behavior items and the items relative impact on student’s thoughts about leaving the university. Three issues have a significant impact on predicting student thoughts about leaving the university: faculty members being supportive of student needs, returning telephone calls and e-mails in a timely fashion, and being approachable. The magnitude of the impact of these items on student retention also varies as a function of gender and year in school. Faculty members need to be aware of the impact their attitudes and behaviors have in students’ decisions to leave the university.
Lundquist, C., Spalding, R.J., & Landrum, R.E. (2003). College student’s thoughts about leaving the university: the impact of faculty attitudes and behaviors. College Student Retention Research, Theory & Practice, 4(2), 123-133.
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Gender and Online Courses: There has been considerable scholarly interest in issues related to gender and the online classroom. Some evidence suggests that male and female college students experience the online environment differently. The study reported here was designed to gather information regarding this matter. The Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium (CTDLC) included two open-ended questions on their CT’s standard course evaluation form for the fall 2000 semester. These questions invited students to comment on their experiences as learners in the online classroom in as much length and detail as they wished. This report is based on an analysis of the 195 responses to these two questions. Significant differences were found between the way male and female students identified the strengths and weaknesses of the online environment on a range of questions regarding flexibility, face-to-face interaction, shy and quiet students, self-discipline, and self-motivation. The data provide compelling evidence that online courses are of great value to nontraditional students, particularly female adult learners with children or family responsibilities. Because this is a primary demographic profile for community colleges, these data should be of special interest to community faculty and administrators.
Sullivan, P. (2001). Gender differences and the online classroom: male and female college students evaluate their experiences. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 25(10), 805-818.
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Learning Communities: The authors of this study investigated if participation in Learning Community (LC) programs had an impact on the academic success and satisfaction of freshmen who attend a primarily commuter metropolitan university. The LC model used in this study clustered three courses together without thematic linkage or integration. A variety of methodologies were used to assess program impact, including matching learning community students to a control group on the basis of demographic information, academic information, major, and course-taking patterns. Some of the significant differences between the LC and non-LC students were that students who enrolled in LCs had higher grade point averages, earned more hours, were more satisfied with their college experiences, and were less likely to be placed on academic probation. This research demonstrates that LC programs which simply cluster courses can make significant differences in the lives of students who attend commuter campuses.
Baker, S., & Pomerantz, N. (2001). Impact of learning communities on retention at a metropolitan university. College Student Retention Research, Theory & Practice, 2(2), 115-140
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Democratic Outcomes: This study focuses on how students’ precollege experiences predisposed them to three democratic outcomes: (a) ability to see the world from someone else’s perspective; (b) beliefs that conflict enhances democracy; and (c) views about the importance of engaging in social action activities. We analyzed data from three flagship universities as part of a nationally funded research project and found first-year females are more likely than males to report values and beliefs consistent with democratic outcomes. Participation in race/ethnic discussions, students clubs, and volunteer work, as well as studying with students of different groups and discussing controversial issues are significant predictors in each model. Results also indicate that students might be unprepared to negotiate conflict in a diverse democracy, suggesting that college engagement will play a key role in fostering the development of democratic citizenship. This study also provides new measures of democratic outcomes to assess the impact of diversity and service learning initiatives.
Hurtado, S., Engberg, M.E., Ponjuan, L., & Landreman, L. (2002). Students’ precollege preparation for participation in a diverse democracy. Research in Higher Education, 43(2), 163-186.
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