For over a decade at the University of Minnesota, I have used social media tools in my introductory global history course to improve engagement and final grades. Students and I work as partners in using the tools to engage them more in the class, prepare for exams, and develop these skills for other courses. Our approach is guided by principles of…

Guttman Community College (GCC), a newly-established, urban community college, part of the City University of New York (CUNY), enrolls a largely traditional student body which is also predominantly minority. Students enter the college with an average high-school grade-point average of 75% (C average), and are required to enroll in three first-year…

Teachers of developmental education are familiar with non-traditional students who are balancing innumerate stressors in their lives, in addition to the overwhelming stress of college. Stress relief methods like yoga and meditation are essential life management tools in helping new college students succeed, not only in their education but also in…

When evaluating the effectiveness of their program, members of the Brooklyn College SEEK Department, a higher education opportunity program, decided to make their pedagogy more student-centered. They created a method of reading instruction, which they named critical inquiry. Its goals are to build community through teaching students to annotate,…

Because students starting college are not always prepared to succeed, colleges and universities frequently offer courses designed to help students who need remediation in mathematics, reading, and writing. At Utah Valley University (UVU), peer mentors are integrated into the University Student Success course to help first-year students learn the…

Developmental educators are often familiar with the benefits of learning communities and with the importance of incorporating research-based best practices into their developmental studies courses. Faculty may be less familiar with the educational applications based on the concepts of emotional intelligence (EI). Faculty at College of the Mainland…

Newspapers are an effective educational and motivational tool in developmental reading classes. However, many students are unfamiliar with newspapers and read them infrequently. In order to foster newspaper reading and familiarize the college freshmen enrolled in their developmental reading classes with newspapers, the writers of this article…

Described as "tough love," Louisiana State University at Eunice's "Pathways to Success" program experienced success in its first two years by implementing mandatory placement, attendance, tutoring, and advising policies. Selected student successes and retention data are discussed, along with policies and some practical advice…

The process of transitioning from secondary to postsecondary education can be very complex and challenging. Many freshmen students are coming to college underprepared and in need of developmental education. The role of student services is to assist these students and their families with this important transition to postsecondary education by…

One challenge faced by many writing teachers is meeting the needs of students with varying skill and confidence levels. This article describes strategies used in a Composition and Rhetoric I course to meet the needs of basic and college-level writers. Sample assignments focusing on the theme of literacy and learning are provided, including an…

The author, a student adviser in a Student Support Services (TRIO) program, took an introductory psychology course in order to study students' note-taking behaviors. The most important finding was that students copied the terminology the instructor wrote on the board, but failed to take notes on the examples he used to clarify the terms.…

The relevant literature reveals a concerted effort by academics to adjust their thinking regarding teaching methodologies, the need for students to acquire critical thinking skills, and the desire to nurture undergraduate success. Interdisciplinary or team teaching is often cited as a progressive model, as are learning communities and the…

NCES (1996) reported that almost one-third of all students entering colleges and universities are unprepared for college coursework and therefore required to enroll in developmental courses. This study focused on developmental and regular mathematics courses at the University of Arkansas at Monticello. Using final mathematics grades from the…