The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), located on the Hillsboro campus in the library, room 201, offers teaching support to faculty members interested in improving student learning by creating engaging learning environments. Please stop by to use the available technology, check out books, and share strategies and perspectives with colleagues. 

Bryan Peters is now the Interim Director of the CTL. You can reach him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or extension 3351.

Brown Bag Lunches will be held in the Spring semester, so please be thinking of exciting topics for the discussions.  

Who Should I Ask?
Bryan is your first point of contact for all things teaching related. You may also find answers to frequently asked questions helpful. 

Your Division Chair is always available to assist you:
Shirley Davenport, Division Chair - Communication & Arts, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , ext. 3333
Sandy Frey, Division Chair - Social Sciences, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , ext. 3348
Ryan Groeneman, Division Chair - Math & Science and Business, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , ext. 3321
Mary Beth Ottinger, Division Chair - Business & Technical Education, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , ext. 3467

IN THE NEWS:

President Obama Proposes Renewed Commitment to Community Colleges
In late February, at a forum held at Northern Virginia Community College, President Obama announced his new federal budget plans. Nothing is guaranteed at this time, but he hopes to channel upwards of $8 billion to job training at community colleges. He also announced plans to increase the maximum limits of Pell Grants.

Jefferson College Receives Technology Innovations Award
At the 2011 MCCA Convention, Jefferson College received one of only two Technology Innovations Awards. We were awarded this honor because of our E-Services initiative, with the JCOnline tab as the focal point of the endeavor. Allan Wamsley was instrumental in developing this initiative, receiving help from Advising, the Library, the Learning Center, and the English Department's Online Writing Lab. Congratulations to all involved in this project that firmly puts our institution and students on the cutting edge of innovation and learning.

Efforts towards a’ Seamless Transition from K-12 to Postsecondary
In June, 2010, the Missouri State Board of Education adopted national standards in English/Language Arts and mathematics that are all aligned to internationally benchmarked College and Career Ready standards. Representatives of the Missouri higher education community did an informal alignment study to ensure that these national CCR standards were also in alignment with the English and Mathematics Entry-level competencies created as part of the Curriculum Alignment Initiative.  We have done the same kind of alignment study to ensure that these CCR standards align to Missouri’s Show-Me Standards.

Missouri K-12 educators are currently using a document created by the department to begin to plan curricular changes in response to the revised standards. Notable changes include more rigorous reading levels of text at every grade level, the inclusion of non-fiction writing across the curriculum, and an emphasis on mathematics competencies through the level of Algebra II before graduation.

A part of the initiative to incorporate these more rigorous standards into our K-12 program is the work of an assessment consortium of more than 30 states—the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium. http://www.k12.wa.us/smarter/ That consortium is working to create assessments that will be used across the country to provide comparability among student scores on these common assessments.  Both the new standards and the planned assessments should be of particular interest to Colleges of Education, mathematics and English faculty.  More rigorous standards mean more demands of our graduates with goals to enter teaching. The assessment system, especially, is something that could inform all of us as we seek to ease student transition to postsecondary pursuits.  

New Cut Off Scores for Missouri Community Colleges
Missouri Community Colleges will be phasing in common standards for college readiness. The proposed minimum entry scores for college level coursework and timeline for phasing in the common cutoffs are detailed in the College Readiness Standards for the Missouri Community Colleges report.

Test Taking Helps Students Learn
New research shows that test-taking actually helps people learn, and it works better than repeated studying and creating concept maps. If you’re considering adding frequent online quizzes to your face-to-face and/or online classes, this research gives support for doing so. Here’s a link to the article that describes the research, To Really Learn, Quit Studying and Take a Test.

Decline in Student Study Time
College students today study less than students did in previous decades. So what are students doing instead? Phillip Babcock and Mindy Marks researched this question and share their findings, implications and conclusion in the article, Leisure College USA: The Decline in Student Study Time.  

The Governor’s Summit on Higher Education
The Governor’s Summit on Higher Education was held in Jefferson City on August 17th.  A video version of the summit is available. The video includes Governor Nixon’s opening remarks, as well as important presentations by Linda Luebbering, State Budget Director;  Carol Twigg, President and CEO of the National Center for Academic Transformation; and Dewayne Matthews, Vice President for Policy and Strategy for the Lumina Foundation. To link to copies of the prepared presentations, click on the green links on the MDHE website.

Common Core State Standards
The state of Missouri, along with over thirty other states, has adopted Common Core State Standards. The standards are the result of a state-led effort to ensure high school graduates are prepared for college or work. The National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers are collaborating to define the knowledge and skills students should acquire during their K-12 education so that upon graduation they are able to succeed in entry-level college credit courses and in workforce training programs. Teachers, school administrators, and other experts are involved in developing the standards. English-language arts and mathematics standards have been completed and standards for other disciplines are in the process of being developed. To learn more consider reading the answers to frequently asked questions about Common Core State Standards.

The Curriculum Alignment Inititative (CAI)

The Missouri Department of Higher Education (MDHE) continues its work on the Curriculum Alignment Initiative (CAI) to identify minimum competencies for entry into collegiate-level coursework and for exit from beginning general education coursework. The MDHE recognizes the need to identify cross-cultural or global competencies as part of the basic competencies that students need for success in an increasingly global society and workplace.

CAI entry- , optimal- and exit- competencies already approved by the Coordinating Board for Higher Education are currently being packaged for dissemination to various target audiences and stakeholders for their use as a guide in curriculum review and development. A timeline has been established to move forward with the following projects:

• Revising the Cross-Disciplinary competencies, including the addition of cultural/global awareness and creativity competencies;
• Developing  exit-level competencies for seven additional general education courses (Art History, Introduction to Music, Economics, Physics for non-majors, Trigonometry, World History, and third-semester Foreign Language);
•  Cooperating with the Learning Assessment in Missouri Postsecondary Education (LAMP) Advisory Council to identify potential pilot projects; and
•  Developing recommendations for ongoing evaluation and periodic update of CBHE-approved competency guidelines.

“Exit-level competencies focus on content knowledge that should be mastered at the end of the first college-level courses in key disciplines to ensure transferability of credit for these courses among institutions, as mandated by Senate Bill 389.”  Exit level competencies have already been finalized for 13 courses. All faculty members are encouraged to view the exit competencies for courses they teach.

The Lamp group is working to find ways to "evaluate the effectiveness of specific assessment instruments in measuring CAI [Curriculum Alignment Initiative] entry-level competencies [what students should know and be able to do before entering college level courses].  In addition, LAMP will continue to work on its review and recommendations concerning assessment at other points," such as the completion of general education. Learn more about the work (LAMP) committee and subcommittees by reading the September 2009 Lamp Newsletter, May 2009 LAMP newsletter and the December 2008 LAMP newsletter.

"In Missouri and throughout the Nation, it has become increasingly clear that many high school students lack the preparation necessary for a successful transition from secondary to postsecondary education." To learn about the progress being made in addressing this problem, please visit the LAMP website.

Senate Bill 389
Missouri law SB 389 went into effect in August 2007. The Missouri Department of Higher Education provides an Implementation Matrix which lists items requiring MDHE action. Among other things, the bill requires Missouri public colleges and universities to put student reviews of instructors online. 

Is Online Education Effective?
What's best, online or face-to-face instruction? Consider reading the Inside Higher Ed article, The Evidence on Online Education.  

Increasing Retention through Non-traditional Financial Assistance
At Central New Mexico Community College, the initial four-year pilot of an emergency fund resulted in an 85% retention rate for students who received money from the fund. To learn more about using an emergency fund to increase retention, please read the Inside Higher Ed article, Emergency Fund Proves Worth. 

Award Winning Assessment Effort
The winners of the 2009 CHEA Award for Institutional Progress in Student Learning Outcomes are named in the latest issue of the CHEA (Council for Higher Education) Chronicle. To learn more about the CHEA Award and assessment at Delaware Technical & Community College, one of the winners, read the CHEA Chronicle.  

Student Success
Does the federal government’s graduation rate formula accurately measure student success at community colleges? To learn about other measures of student success, read the Inside Higher Ed article, Different Measures of Community College Outcomes.

Preventing Suicide
According to the APA, six percent of undergraduates seriously considered suicide within the last year. To learn about a new approach to campus suicide prevention, read the Inside Higher Ed article, Redefining Suicide Risk — and Prevention Strategy.

The Definition of an Educated Person 
What is higher education trying to accomplish? Is there an updated version of the "educated person?" Consider reading Shaping a Life of the Mind for Practice.

Utilizing Technology to Respond to the Changing Higher Ed Environment
New technological means are available to enhance communication with students. What are they and do they increase student learning? To learn more, consider reading Crossing the (Digital) Line by Julie Frechette.

Student Conduct and Academic Freedom
Have you ever objected to what students are saying about you? Read A Professor Sues His Students to learn about the possible ramifications of involving courts in matters of free expression on college campuses.

Keeping the Classroom Civil
Pier M. Forni, a professor of Italian literature, is the author of The Civility Solution: What to Do When People Are Rude, scheduled to be published this June.  Learn about his approach to responding to rude students by reading the short Chronicle article, Civil Engineering.  Forni’s book will be available for checkout from the Jefferson College library later this summer.

Global Education at Community Colleges
American community colleges are increasingly adding international components to courses. But, did you know that American Community Colleges serve as models of workforce development for developing countries? To learn more, read Community Colleges Take On Global Challenges or contact Lisa Hollander, Jefferson College Professor of Geography. 

Underprepared College Freshmen

How can we help underprepared students succeed in college? Kingsborough Community College used learning communities “to significantly improve students’ performance in remedial courses and ability to advance to college-level work.” To learn more, consider reading the Inside Higher Ed article, Promising Path on Remediation.

In the Associated Press article, Southwest Missouri Students Having More Trouble Passing College Courses, dated 12-17-07, Missouri leaders in higher education comment on the epidemic of unprepared college freshman. Jim Kellerman, Executive Director of the Missouri Community College Association, comments on the connection between the A+ Program and the increase in unprepared students. Kent Farnsworth, author of several books on higher education and the UMSL Endowed Professor of Community College Leadership, suggests collaboration between high schools and colleges as a solution to the problem of unprepared students. Thanks to Lisa Hollander for sharing this article. 

Pressure on the HLC: The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity is pushing accreditors, including The Higher Learning Commission, to demand evidence of student-performance assessments from colleges. To learn more, read the Chronicle article, U.S. Review of Accreditors May Produce a Showdown.

Frustrated with Assessment Mandates? Read Getting the Government’s Attention (in a Good Way) and faculty members' responses that follow. The article begins as follows, "College leaders and Education Department officials have spent much of the last two years talking past each other on the subject of measuring student learning. Critics have accused..."

The Odyssey Years
Is it hard for your students to get serious about school? Scott Holzer believes the article, The Odyssey Years, explains why. Read it to see if you recognize any of your students.

Technology in the Classroom
"Most students (60.9 percent) believe it [technology in the classroom] improves their learning." What are the implications for the college classroom? Read more about Students’ ‘Evolving’ Use of Technology.

What Happened to Learning for Learning's Sake? “Although 'learning for learning’s sake' will still be possible, the greatest increase will come in arenas that are able to demonstrate clear, demonstrable learning objectives and outcomes.” According to the article, New Players, Different Game, public colleges and for-profits "will see sector differentiation where different institutional types will create a niche for themselves (or die).” Thanks to all the faculty and staff at Jefferson College who are working to create a niche for Jefferson College in this new postsecondary environment.  

Teaching Success
Thanks to all the instructors of COL 101 who are working to ensure Jefferson College students succeed. Do your efforts really make a difference? Read "Teaching Success" which documents the effectiveness of student success courses.

Ranking Community Colleges
Should community colleges be ranked? "George Boggs, president of the American Association of Community Colleges, said that while it was 'good that people are paying attention to community colleges,' he did not see the need for rankings and questioned the use of graduation rates for comparisons." Read more in the article, New Rankings Controversy — Over Community Colleges.

What can the CTL do for me?
What is a CTL and why should I spend my time there? Read Support Your Local Teaching Center to learn about five categories of services for both new faculty and more experienced professors who want to continue their growth as teachers.

Does business have a legitimate role in higher education? Do you agree with Henry A. Giroux? He states: "As universities adopt the ideology of the corporation and become subordinated to the needs of capital they are less concerned about how they might educate students in the ideology and practice of governance, the political importance of democratic values, and the necessity of using knowledge to address the challenges of public life, focusing instead on increasing profits and market values, identities, and social relations.” Read The University in Chains to learn more.

Addressing the Crisis: Limits on Drops
In an effort to better use tax dollars, limits are being placed on the number of courses that a student can drop. It is hoped the limits will also encourage students to take their courses more seriously. Read Discouraging ‘Course Fishing’ to learn more about the new Texas policy.

Camaraderie Among Colleagues
Collegiality is alive and well at Jefferson College. Dedric Lee and Blake Carroll share a friendly moment in AS110. Collegiality vs. Autonomy; What’s more important to you?

Research “results suggest that today's young professors differ markedly from previous generations, whose single most important concern was autonomy in the workplace.” To learn more, read the article: Young Ph.D.'s Say Collegiality Matters More Than Salary.

Decrease in Lecture Time
Craig Bell, chair of the business management department at BYU-Idaho, believes “teachers reading from PowerPoint to students is ineffective, and that the quicker we can get away from that the better.” He believes the “case-study method shouldn’t be limited to students in top graduate schools — that freshmen and sophomores are capable of high-level discussions.” Read “A Case Study in Case Studies” to learn more.

Students' Use of Wikipedia
Should students be allowed to use Wikipedia as a source? If so, do limits need to be placed on how students use Wikipedia? Some professors believe so. To learn more, read, "Middlebury College History Department Limits Students' Use of Wikipedia."

Retention of Underprepared Students
Did you know...? "Students who participate in collaborative learning and educational activities outside the classroom and who interact more with faculty members get better grades, are more satisfied with their education, and are more likely to remain in college. But the gains from those practices are even greater for students from underrepresented racial and ethnic backgrounds, or who come to college less prepared than their peers." Read more in the Chronicle article, Underrepresented Students Benefit Most From 'Engagement'

Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP)
Click on the following link to learn about your students. The Higher Education Research Institute provides a picture of college freshmen.

Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE)
What are the key findings of the 2008 CCSSE survey? CCSSE identifies five benchmarks of effective educational practice in community colleges; active and collaborative learning, student effort, academic challenge, student-faculty interaction, and support for learners. Click on the above link to learn more.

Spellings Report
The Commission on the Future of Higher Education, appointed by Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, states that some college students “never complete their degrees at all, at least in part because most colleges and universities don’t accept responsibility for making sure that those they admit actually succeed.” The commission wants higher education to “adapt to a world altered by technology, changing demographics and globalization…”  Are you up to the challenge? Do you agree with the commission’s findings? Click on the following link to read the report: A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U.S. Higher Education