Improving Teaching Learning Equity And Success In Gateway Courses

"Gateway courses -- college credit-bearing and/or developmental education courses that enroll large numbers of students and have high rates of Ds, Fs, withdrawals, and incompletes -- are a ubiquitous part of the undergraduate experience in the United States. As long as there have been U.S. colleges and universities, there have been entry courses that pose difficulties for students -- courses that have served more as "weeding-out" rather than "gearing-up" experiences for undergraduates. This volume makes the case that the weed-out dynamic is no longer acceptable -- if it ever was. Contemporary postsecondary education is characterized by vastly expanded access for historically underserved populations of students, and this new level of access is coupled with increased scrutiny of retention and graduation outcomes. ... Chapters in this volume define and explore issues in gateway courses and provide various examples of how to improve teaching, learning and outcomes in these foundational components of the undergraduate experience"--Back cover.

As long as there have been U. S. colleges and universities, there have been entry courses that pose difficulties for students – courses that have served more as weeding-out rather than gearing-up experiences for undergraduates. This volume makes the case that the weed-out dynamic is no longer acceptable – if it ever was. Contemporary postsecondary education is characterized by vastly expanded access for historically underserved populations of students, and this new level of access is coupled withincreased scrutiny of retention and graduation outcomes. Chapters in this volume define and explore issues in gateway courses and provide various examples of how to improve teaching, learning and outcomes in these foundational components of the undergraduateexperience. This is the 180th volume of the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series New Directions for Higher Education. Addressed to presidents, vice presidents, deans, and other higher education decision makers on all kinds of campuses, it provides timely information and authoritative advice about major issues and administrative problems confronting every institution.

Co-published with At last there is a handbook that everyone in higher education can use to help increase transfer student success. This comprehensive resource has been brought together to meet the need for a truly holistic approach to the transfer experience. The book brings together research, theory, practical applications, programmatic illustrations, case studies, encouragement, and inspiration, and is supplemented by an online compendium for continual updates of resources, case studies, and new developments in the world of transfer.Based on a totally different way of thinking about, understanding, and acting to increase transfer student success, The Transfer Experience goes far beyond the traditional, limited view of transfer as a technical process simply about articulating credits, a stage of student development, or a novel enrollment management strategy. Rather, the book introduces a stimulating array of new perspectives, resources, options, models, and recommendations for addressing the many needs of this huge cohort – making the academic, civic, and social justice cases for improving transfer at both transfer-sending and transfer-receiving institutions.

​Talking about Leaving Revisited discusses findings from a five-year study that explores the extent, nature, and contributory causes of field-switching both from and among “STEM” majors, and what enables persistence to graduation. The book reflects on what has and has not changed since publication of Talking about Leaving: Why Undergraduates Leave the Sciences (Elaine Seymour & Nancy M. Hewitt, Westview Press, 1997). With the editors’ guidance, the authors of each chapter collaborate to address key questions, drawing on findings from each related study source: national and institutional data, interviews with faculty and students, structured observations and student assessments of teaching methods in STEM gateway courses. Pitched to a wide audience, engaging in style, and richly illustrated in the interviewees’ own words, this book affords the most comprehensive explanatory account to date of persistence, relocation and loss in undergraduate sciences. Comprehensively addresses the causes of loss from undergraduate STEM majors—an issue of ongoing national concern. Presents critical research relevant for nationwide STEM education reform efforts. Explores the reasons why talented undergraduates abandon STEM majors. Dispels popular causal myths about why students choose to leave STEM majors. This volume is based upon work supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Award No. 2012-6-05 and the National Science Foundation Award No. DUE 1224637.

Winner of the 2012 ASHE/CAHEP Barbara Townsend Lecture AwardTo prosper and thrive in an increasingly unpredictable national and global environment, U.S. higher education will need to adapt, innovate, and evolve once again, as it has during every major societal change over the past four centuries.The purpose of this new edition, published a turbulent decade after the first, is to provide institutional leaders -- from department chairs to trustees -- with a broad understanding of the academic enterprise, strategic guidance, and key principles, to assist them in navigating the future and drive the success of their institutions as they confront the unimagined.Recognizing that the hallmark of higher education in the U.S. is the diversity of institution types, each of which is affected differently by external and internal influences, the authors provide examples and ideas drawn from the spectrum of colleges and universities in the not-for-profit sector.This book covers the major functions and constituent departments and units within institutions; the stakeholders from students and faculty through the echelons of administration; the external environment of elected officials, foundations, philanthropists, and the new changing media; and innovations in teaching, technology, data analytics, legal frameworks, as well as economic, demographic, and political pressures.The book is informed by the proposition that adhering to four principles--which the authors identify as having enabled institutions of higher education to successfully navigate ever-changing and volatile pasts--will enable them to flourish in the coming decades:The four principles are:1. Be mission centric by making all key decisions based on a core mission and set of values.2. Be able to adapt to environmental change in alignment with the mission and core values.3. Be committed to democratic ideals by seeking to promote them and modeling democratic practices on and off campus.4. Be models for inclusion, equity, and positive social change.

In our digital era, harnessing innovations and emerging technologies to support teaching and learning has been an important research area in the field of education around the world. In science/STEM education, technologies can be leveraged to present and visualize scientific theories and concepts effectively, while the development of pedagogic innovations usually requires collective, inter-disciplinary research efforts. In addition, emerging technologies can better support teachers to assess students’ learning performance in STEM subjects and offer students viable virtual environments to facilitate laboratory-based learning, thereby contributing to sustainable development in both K-12 and higher education.

"Focusing on what can be done to promote equity within education systems, what the barriers to progress are and how these barriers might be overcome, this book provides detailed examples of strategies that have proved to be effective in addressing this challenge. Built on the work of the authors over the last three decades, the book presents an approach to educational change that will be relevant to different countries. The authors argue that there is untapped potential for promoting progress towards greater equity within schools and the communities they serve. They also show how this potential can be mobilised by using forms of collaborative action research to stimulate the development of more inclusive ways of working. Central to this approach is the use of evidence collected by practitioners with the support of university researchers, drawing on the human resources that are there in every school. Grounded in research, evidence and experience in the field, this book is ideal reading for a wide audience of practitioners and policy makers globally, including senior staff in schools, as well as post-graduate students, researchers and academics who are focusing on educational improvement"--

Institutions of higher learning are providing access to free and low-cost open resources to support students with prior college-level learning during every step of their educational journey. This unconventional approach to education removes traditional barriers to college credit by placing learners in an open environment, which encourages accessibility to higher education and fosters independent and critical thinking. By providing learners with free resources, more learners have the resources needed to be successful in college. Prior learning assessment is an excellent way for students to demonstrate the skills and knowledge gained throughout the course of their lives. By developing a portfolio of artifacts that support prior learning outside of the classroom, learners reduce the time and money needed to complete a degree. Open educational resources, prior learning assessment, and competency-based learning offer the potential to provide access to higher education to those who may not have the opportunity to earn a college degree. As the costs of higher education continue to rise, these flexible, open approaches to learning can bridge the equity gap and provide more opportunity to earn a college degree. Enhancing Higher Education Accessibility Through Open Education and Prior Learning provides a comprehensive resource book on open resources and prior learning in order to provide access and equity to higher education. The chapters pull together resources and case studies that exemplify alternative means to higher education. Highlighted topics within this book include remote e-learning, online fundraising, smart learning and assessments, effective learning, and faculty mentorship. This book is essential for curriculum designers; administrators; policymakers; government executives; professors and instructors in higher education; students; researchers in adult education, competency-based education, social justice, and open educational resources; and practitioners interested in open educational resources and accessibility in higher education.