Face to Face

In Spring 2012 I participated in a district workshop on information literacy titled  "Research Assignment Handouts:  Essential Elements to Promote Student Success." I revised the handout for the group research & symposium assignment to better help students get started by suggesting resources, requiring help from a librarian, specifying which data bases to use, and providing more details about what consititutes plagiarism.  I also revised the rubric to better reflect these items.  I will qualitatively assess the quality of the student research and avoidance

By journaling my class as the students see it I am looking at the fluidity of the story from the learners perspective.  In order for students to see the world as a scientist sees it they must understand the continuity of science.  It is my goal to give a clear and concise story throughout the semester that encourages the student as well as holds them accountable for previous knowledge.  

Starting in Fall 2009, EMCC's ECN faculty (adjunct and residential) have developed and implemented the common ECN212 (Microeconomic Principles) final exam.  We first started by collaboratively identifiying what we expected all of our students to be able to do as a result of completing our courses, our Learning Objectives (LO) (see attached).  We then created multiple choice questions related to each LO (attached), and we all included the questions as part of our independent final exams.

Starting in Fall 2009, EMCC's ECN faculty have developed and implemented the common ECN211 (Macroeconomic Principles) final exam.  We first started by defining our discpline-wide Learning Objectives (LO) (see attached).  We then created multiple choice questions related to each LO (attached), and we all included the questions as part of our independent final exams.  Instructors recorded each students' response for each question in an excel spreadsheet and sent to me, who aggregated and analzed the results (See attached).

One of the keys to success in college is becoming a better reader. One challenge facing the college student in her or his forst two years is making the shift from passive reading for pleasure to active reading for learning. Further, many students do not realize that they need to improve their reading technique, especially if they have not place into a developmental reading class. My experience is that even my best students could benefit from a new perspective on how to read better. The method is familiar:SPQ3R.

Using SAAC’s EMCC General Education Abilities Matrix the residential librarians assessed 4 key Information Literacy competencies; Framing the Research Question, Accessing Sources, Evaluation of Information Resources and Create Original Work.

The librarians created a rubric  which defined each of the 4 Information Literacy competencies and rated each on a clearly defined 3 level scale. Data was collected from 13 courses for a total of  24 sections.  346 students took part in the study. 

I teach Anatomy and Physiology, a content heavy course that requires problem solving and critical thinking. Studying the material after each class and coming to class prepared is crucial to the students’ success.  My solution to this problem was to implement the use of learning journals. Learning journals have been used for a number of years by the physics faculty at our school and more recently the chemistry faculty have adopted them as well.  Last year, I used them for the first time with great success.

UPDATE:

The Counseling Division decided to collaborate to come up with one common final that we could all use to conduct a summative assessment of our students' authentic learning.  This final allows the students to reflect on what they have learned over the semester, how they have applied the information to their everyday lives and how they plan to utilize this information  in the future in an effort to maintain, and/or increase their academic success.

Entry-level biology courses, such as Bio100, serve as the first and often the only opportunity to introduce students to scientific inquiry and the use of scientific evidence in addressing personal, civic, and societal challenges.  Thus, it is essential that Bio100 provides students with a strong foundation of biological knowledge together with the integrative problem-solving skills and global perspective necessary to address relevant real world challenges.  To increase civic and social engagment, I have implemented a new curriculum that will facilitate investigation of societal ch

Librarians have been visiting CPD150 classes since Fall 2009. A librarian does a 30 minute session covering basic library information and resources. At the conclusion of each session, a short assignment is handed out and students are required to return the completed assignment in at the library. These assignments are graded by a librarian and returned to the course instructor who gives the student credit for his/her work.

Pre-post testing will be done using the FCI to look at student understanding of Newton's laws.  These will not be done for a grade as the assessment is written in common language so that it really probes student understanding.  A score above 60% is considered the threshold of Newtonian thinking.  A gain of 30% pre to post is considered a very good result from national studies done using this instrument.

Starting in Fall 2009, EMCC's ECN faculty (adjunct and residential) have developed and implemented the common ECN212 (Microeconomic Principles) final exam.  We first started by collaboratively identifiying what we expected all of our students to be able to do as a result of completing our courses, our Learning Objectives (LO) (see attached).  We then created multiple choice questions related to each LO (attached), and we all included the questions as part of our independent final exams.

Starting in Fall 2009, EMCC's ECN faculty (adjunct and residential) have developed and implemented the common ECN211 (Macroeconomic Principles) final exam.  We first started by collaboratively identifiying what we expected all of our students to be able to do as a result of completing our courses, our Learning Objectives (LO) (see attached).  We then created multiple choice questions related to each LO (attached), and we all included the questions as part of our independent final exams.

EDU112 and MAT157 joined together for a Learning Community. In meeting course competencies for both courses, instructors developed then facilitated an Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) Project. Inquiry based learning starts with a team (in our case, partners), who have a legitimate, real-life inquiry into a situation where the solution is not readily apparent. It closely follows the model of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) but with required mathematical applications.

Students in EDU 230 questioned the extent to which discrimination exists at EMCC. They unanimously suggested this should be investigated. The author facilitated the process which included: survey creation, research into discrimination on college campuses, applying for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval (and receiving it), and applying for the Student Conference (coincidentally about a month from the start of the project) and being accepted. Students went through ethical research (CITI) training.