The aim of this dissertation was to analyze efforts at the time of this study to vertically align curricula between secondary and post-secondary institutions and then analyze how much needs to be done to close the gap in curricular and performance expectations as students transition to higher education. To narrow the focus, this dissertation…

Higher education persistence and retention rates have been scrutinized more than ever before, at both the state and national levels. Student success and completion rates are central to funding formulas, and this is specifically true for community colleges in Texas. This study examined the role of library instruction on community college student…

What has it meant to produce knowledge and to teach at the intersection of English literature and Black Studies? This dissertation asks after the history and function of Black literary studies as it emerged as an academic discipline in the late 20th century U.S. academy. I propose that Black literary studies' institutional knowledge project is…

This research study focuses on evaluating the effectiveness of improvement efforts made for ENG 111 online courses at Brunswick Community College (BCC). The primary goal is to enhance student satisfaction, increase course completion rates, and improve course success rates. The study assesses the strategic redesign of ENG 111 courses and aims to…

This dissertation was a study of the efficacy of incorporating a creative writing-based curriculum into English Composition I courses. The goal of this study was to determine whether students learning with this style of curriculum could meet the student learning outcomes and master the core competencies for this course as effectively as students…

This three-article dissertation examines the role of comics as a medium for developing anti-oppressive pedagogies with teacher educators and teacher candidates in English language Arts (ELA) and literacy education. Using methods of critical content analysis (Johnson et al, 2016), descriptive qualitative research (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), and…

The purpose of this action research study was to investigate the perceived status of adjunct faculty and improve their sense of belonging and organizational inclusion in a community college English department. Adjunct faculty are the majority in public two-year campuses, yet they are not fully included in college activities or organizational…

California Assembly Bill 705 (AB 705) began full implementation in fall of 2020 for California community college English departments. This Bill requires schools to reconsider developmental education saying that students can no longer be required to take classes below transfer-level in English unless the school can show a student would not be able…

In the United States from 1941-1945, wartime teachers of English faced public and institutional pressure to evaluate, prioritize, and demonstrate the value of English education to the war effort and to higher education's commitment to the nation's defense program. During this time, college English teachers published hundreds of articles that…

This dissertation is a qualitative study of a curriculum I designed for composition students in the Fall of 2012. The curriculum I created is informed by the Freirean edict that a self-generated desire to "create knowledge" is far more likely to result in meaningful, holistic learning than simply "banking" information. In the…

International students, a growing population in US universities, need to possess excellent reading skills in order to succeed. American universities also benefit from admitting students who do not require remedial English classes. Reading online has become an integrated part of college education, which requires students to have additional skills.…

A study was conducted to determine the extent to which high school and college/university Advanced Placement English Language and Composition readers value and implement the curricular requirements of Advanced Placement English Language and Composition. The participants were 158 readers of the 2010 Advanced Placement English Language and…

The purpose of this study was threefold: (a) to describe the impact the SLS courses had on the retention and success rates of students who were taking developmental English courses at FSCJ-Kent Campus, (b) to explain how students taking developmental English felt the SLS courses impacted them, and (c) to find out what elements of the SLS program…

The language shortcuts used in text messages are becoming evident in students' academic writing assignments. This qualitative study sought to determine if the use of the shortcuts has an adverse impact on developmental students' spelling and grammar skills. This research was based on the constructivist theory, which rationalizes that students use…