Innovation Abstracts: Volume XI, Numbers 1-30. TNSTTTUTION Toxc Univ
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 314 116 JC 900 032 AU1HOR Roueche, Suanne D., Ed. TITLE Innovation Abstracts: Volume XI, Numbers 1-30. TNSTTTUTION Toxc Univ. , National Inst. for Staff and Organizational Development. SPONS AGENCY Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek, Mich.; Richardson (Sid W.) Foundation, Fort Worth, Tex. PUB DATE 89 NOTE 62p. PUB TYPE Collected Works Serials (022) -- Reports - Descriptive (141 JOURNAL CIT Innovation Abstracts; vii n1-30 EDRS PRICE MF01/PC03 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Abstracts; Classroom Communication; Community Colleges; Critical Thinking; *Ins*ructional Innovation; *Learning Strategies; Personnel Selection; Scholarship; *Teacher Role; *Teacher Student Relationship; *Teaching Methods; Two Year Colleges ABSTRACT This serles of one- to two-page abstracts highlights a variety of innovative approaches to teaching and learning in the community college. Topics covered in the abstracts include: (1) cooperative planning for institutional excellence;(2) rewarding s;holarship among community college faculty;(3) in-class debates as a learning strategy;(4) instructional approaches for remedial mathematics d English composition;(5) providing incentives fr. faculty publishing; (6) creating supportive environments for change and for effective adult learning;(7) strategies for helping students with declining grade point averages;(8) using a lottery approach to get students to "volunteer" to answer review questions; (9) study groups and study partners;(10) motivating adult basic education students;(11) helping students prepare for biology exams; (12) goal-setting and goal-using as learning strategies; (13) survival strategies for nursing students; (14) faculty hiring practices; (15) using desktop computers and combined auditory, kinesthetic, and visual learning methods in auto shop; and using computers to recruit students for the program; (16) enhancing critical thinking;(17) an experiment with freshman education majors in a college mathematics course; (18) formal program review of student services programs; (19) faculty taking classes from colleagues in other departments; (20) techniques to help instructors remember names and faces; (21) enhancing teacher enthusiasm;(22) selecting a chief instructional officer; (23) freshman orientation; (24) humor in instruction; (25) critical thinking and collaborative learning; (26) a review of the movie "Dead Poets Society";(27) "Podium," a journal designed to promote educational research in the community college; (28) improving classroom communication; (29) staff development through a wilderness program; (30) employee orientation; (31) a common-sense approach to good teaching; and (32) the future of writing-across-the-curriculum programs. (JMC) INNOVATION ABSTRACTS VOLUME XI, NUMBERS 1-30 1989 Editor, Suanne D. Roueche 0 Published by the National Instute for Staff and Organizational Development, The University of Texas at Austin with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W. Richardson Foundation. "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE TN"; U S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY Office or Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES SINFORMATION S. Roue?.he CENTEER ) C This document nas been reproduced as received from the perSon or organization BEST COPY AVAILABLE riginating Meier changes have been made to improve reproduction quality TO fHE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES e Rolmsot view or opm,ons staled en Pus (loco- INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." ment do not necessar,ty repreSent official OERI position or policy VOLUME XI, NUMBER 1 .0 INNOVATIONABSTRACTS : /: I' . I I' . II . 1 4. e ..I.I I I '.Il I.I.. Energizing an Institution for Excellence In the spring of 1984, the president of Riverside It was our original intention to change the personnel Community College formed the Strategic Planning and leadership of the CAN Groups about every four Advisory Committee, PSPAC (pronounced pizz-pack). weeks. When we brought it up with the leaders, they Fifty-eight faculty, managers and support staff gathered all said, "No way!" Their groups were just beginning to together to try to answer such questions as: "Who are jell, and they didn't want to repeat the courtship period. we? What's our purpose? Why do we exist? What do Gradually, an extremely strong spirit of trust and we do well? What is our business?" camaraderie had quietly developed among the mem- The group met each Friday afternoon (yes, Friday bers of each CAN Group, including the president's. afternoons 'o discuss case studies of successful and While the CAN Groups were expected to discuss unsuccessful businesses. We read John Naisbitt's ideas and look at concepts from evety possible angle Megatrends, George Keller's Academic Strategy and a (we called it "looking at the fish" from an article which history of our college, written by two Riverside profes- described 19th century Harvard professor Louis sors. Agassiz's habit of making his students study a dead fish President Chuck Kane was the "teacher of record" at by the hour, day and week), they were not expected to the Friday meetings. His presentations included produce any product. To produce a product, we different audiovisual media: videotape, overhead devc,uped "Action Groups." Action Groups were transparencies, biackboard, sound/slide, flip charts. made up of representatives from each of the six CAN Other presenters were expected to follow suit, and most Groups. They operated on Friday afternoons and had sessions were exemplars of good teaching. to work within very limited and rigid time limits. The president usually opened the Friday meetings While philosophical discussions were held in the CAN with, "Name one good thing." This created a positive, Groups, Action Groups were to quickly create some- healthy, upbeat atmosphere. There were some surpris- thing of substance and to explain and defend it. For ing reports, things most people wouldn't have known. example, they could be assigned to rank the top five The "good thing" accounts often brought spontaneous things the college does best (from a list of 100 devel- applause and encouragement. There was also lots of oped by the large group), or list three of the most humor, with the president often laughing at himself. important things we must do to become a quality Through the process, new and hidden talent appeared, college (again from a long list). frequently from surprising sources. Some participants didn't want themselves and the Smaller groups of nine or ten, which we called CAN college to be compared with businesses. They said a Groups (named for a can-do attitude), met for an hour "business mentality" was hostile to academe. "We're between the large-group meetings on Fridays to mull not a business!" they exclaimed. But the complaints over the discuss on questions on the week's case study became less frequent when we got into our own busi- or current topic. Each CAN Group had a CAN Leader, ness. Almost subconsciously, some newly-learned and the CAN Lcaders met with the president on business and marketing principles were applied to Thursday afternoons as his CAN Group. The CAN RCC. We brought in former faculty members who had Leaders informed the president about how things were taught in the '20s, '30s and '40s, and they shared stories going in each of the groups. What was said, rather than of what this college was like in its early years. We who said it, was stressed. Individuals' nameswere not invited some community leaders who had done infor- to be used. Of course, not everything went smoothly; mal surveys of what the "man on the street" thought of some CAN Leaders were having a tough time with a our college. We had graduating high school seniors tell few individuals in their groups, so other Leaders the group why they would no be attending RCC and pitched in with suggestions to alleviate tensions and what made another college or university more attrac- avoid potential problems. tive.Some of their reasons were not flattering, but we THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD) Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin ED8 348, Austin, Texas 78712 3 needed to hear them. Another group of our own There was a kind of euphoria that gripped that first students told us why they had selected RCC. group. We were giant killers. There was nothing that The college had gone through its ten-year regional we couldn't do if we put our minds to it and worked accreditation process the preceding year. Most of us together! We had a vision; we knew what our business were weary of writing mission statements and goals was. And our four valuesstudent centeredness, and objectives. So when the president badgered us, teaching excellence, learning environment, tradi tion week after week, with "What business are we in?", the would keep us on track! group decided that a one sentence statement about our * business would be far more effective than a paragraph Examples of PSPAC's outcomes, listed under the on our mission. four values, follow: Once we decided what business we were in, we Student Centeredness Our class schedules and other started talking about values. One of the intriguing publications no longer have pictures of buildings on discussion questions about the three businesses we their covers. The pictures (in color) are of students and studied was, "What does this company value?" One faculty working together, illustrating each of our four value was profit, one was quality, and the other was values. service. What were Riverside Community College's Teaching Excellence(i) Faculty members were en- values? Not surprisingly, the committee discovered couraged to use media in their class presentations. A that everyor 2 wanted to do a good job. Groundsmen media specialist was hired to work with individual wanted the lawns to be green, mowed and trimmed faculty members. with neat shrubbery and fresh, colorful flowers grown (2) As a result of mixing disciplines within CAN in season. Faculty members wanted to be excellent Groups, members grew to recognize the expertise of teachers, lucid and able to get their subjects across in faculty in other areas.