May 7, 2007

It used to be that students were guaranteed two things would happen if they enrolled in a course taught by fine arts professor Amy Stewart.
 
She'd walk into the classroom, and she'd lecture.

"I always thought, 'You either learn to get into it, or you don't and you take another class,' " said Stewart, who has taught art history, appreciation and administration at Jefferson Community and Technical College for seven years.
 
But community colleges in Kentucky and around the nation know that too many of their students aren't "getting it," because they lack the reading, writing and critical-thinking skills they need to succeed, officials say.
 
It's a big reason why community colleges struggle with low retention rates, and it's prompting educators to rethink how they teach students.
 
The Kentucky Community and Technical College System has a 56 percent retention rate compared to an average of 78 percent at the state's four-year public universities.
 
"The data really does shed light on the fact that we need to be doing things differently," said Jan Muto, assistant to the chancellor for teaching and learning at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System.
 
To that end, KCTCS started an initiative last year that targets college instructors like Stewart and teaches them how to simultaneously improve their students' thinking and literacy skills, while also covering the course material.
 
Instructors are trained to use a combination of strategies -- from group activities involving writing and drawing to note-taking tips that help students focus on main ideas.

The initial feedback looks promising, with college instructors reporting increased attendance, higher exam scores and more engaged students.

State officials say they will expand the initiative to more instructors at Jefferson Community and Technical College and Hazard Community and Technical College next year.

The two campuses were the first to start the training last year, with about 17 instructors taking part. A second group from Big Sandy Community and Technical College and Madisonville Community College were trained last summer.

This fall, KCTCS will offer a pilot course at Jefferson and Hazard for students interested in developing their critical-thinking skills. The course will eventually be offered systemwide. More than 84,000 students attend KCTCS; the number includes students working on associate's degrees as well as those in certificate and professional development programs.

Stewart said the training has radically changed her teaching style, showing her how to combine lecturing and slides with group activities and discussion. It also provided ongoing coaching that helped her implement what she learned.

As she used what she learned, Stewart noticed her students becoming more engaged and performing better on tests. The students also increased their ability to handle complex material.

"For me it has given me much more of an overview of where the students are," she said. "I just get to know them in ways I didn't before … and I think they are more engaged in their education."

And her students say they like the nontraditional approach.
 
"It gives you a reason to actually read the book and to actually care what you're reading because you have to write it down," said Ryan Smith, 23, who is working on earning an associate's degree at the college before transferring to a four-year university.

Daniele Drexler, 21, who also is working on associate's degree, said the techniques Stewart uses made her courses more fun.

"It's easier than just sitting and looking at slides all day. She's able to encompass writing techniques and she handed out a lot of handouts on more information than the book," said Drexler.

The techniques and training are provided by the Louisville-based Collaborative for Teaching and Learning. It's paid for with a $237,000 grant from the Lumina Foundation for Education, an Indianapolis-based private foundation dedicated to expanding access and success in education beyond high school.

Amy Awbrey, program design and research coordinator with the collaborative, said students come to the community colleges "unprepared for any kind of independent learning, and really accustomed to being spoon-fed information."

"They come struggling with how to answer critical questions or to think critically in the classroom, and without the independent study, independent research and independent learning skills they need to have," she said.

The problem is complicated by the fact that while community college instructors are qualified in their subject areas, they often do not have the training that is common for elementary and secondary teachers.

Stewart, for example has a doctorate in art and theater history. She had a bachelor's degree in education, but she earned it back in the 1970s before the focus was on engaging students and finding ways for all students to learn.

Pat Herald, a nursing instructor at Hazard Community and Technical College, said she and her colleagues would often talk about how lecturing was failing to reach students.

"We couldn't figure out how to do other things. We didn't have the training to do other things," Herald said.

Now her students do more writing, talking and problem solving in groups, which helps them retain information, be more creative and score better on tests and projects, she said.

"They're really taking a lot of responsibility for their own learning, and they're doing very, very well," Herald said. "It really has revolutionized my teaching."

Nancy C. Rodriguez
The Courier-Journal, Louisville KY
(Reprinted here with permission—The Courier-Journal)

For more information, contact:
Dr. Deborah Walker
502.895.9500 x328