Volume XXXIV, No. 7 | March 2, 2012 Student Writing: Developing “Journal Quality” Outcomes The Skills Gap The American Society of Training and Development (ASTD) identified, then studied, the skills gap phenomenon. They defined the skills gap as the significant difference between the organization’s current operational capabilities and the actual employee skills it [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 6 | February 24, 2012 Play? Are You Serious? When the hands are engaged, so goes the mind. A recent innovation in business and industry is now making its way into American classrooms. Based on research findings relative to the psychology of learning, LEGO Serious Play® is a methodology that [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 5 | February 17, 2012 An Ounce of Prevention: Improving College Readiness as a Strategy Toward College Completion Since President Obama’s 2009 challenge to “Once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world,” American colleges have been challenged to turn college access into college completion. Enrollment in [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 4 | February 10, 2012 University Mentoring Program Responds to Novice Teacher SOS One contract, one year as an educator, and a teaching career for Elise was a rap! As she reflected on her first assignment, she thought to herself, “I was the best in my class, but I felt [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 3 | February 3, 2012 Statement of Teaching Philosophy As a young scholar, embarking on a career of teaching and scholarship, I have thought much about what kind of an educator I want to be. I have been privileged to observe and engage with many brilliant teachers, and have tried [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 2 | January 27, 2012 LEAVING A LEGACY [Inspired by the author’s presentation to recognize outstanding faculty members at one of the nation’s largest and best community colleges.] How many of you were hired during the first five years your college was open? The next five? The next five? How [...]

Volume XXXIV, No. 1 | January 20, 2012 SOFTENING STUDENT STRESS As an in-tune community college instructor, I am familiar with the stresses associated with going to college. In fact, it was not that long ago that I sweated over student loans, essays, and the uncertainty of the job market. But given the [...]

Volume XXXIII, No. 29 | December 2, 2011 GIVING SHY SPEAKERS THE STRENGTH TO GET UP AND DO WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE A Problem I have taught introductory public speaking to 1,979 students at my college since 2003. Most of these students came to class with some performance anxiety but eventually sailed [...]

Volume XXXIII, No. 28 | November 18, 2011 Budget-Friendly Outreaching Strategies for Academic Libraries The late 2000’s brought serious financial challenges to academic libraries with budget cuts in education throughout different states. Many libraries have been unable to hire new librarians and created extra work for librarians on duty. A normal workday for [...]

Volume XXXIII, No. 27 | November 11, 2011 Leapfrog: Integrating Revision and Research into College Writing To integrate revision and research into English Composition, I experimented with a “leapfrog” approach that involves assigning five papers, two of which asked students to revise a previous paper and to incorporate research into it. Assignment Three [...]