In response to legislative mandate and pressure from its accrediting agency, Blue Ridge Community College (BRCC) began to develop a system to measure the effectiveness of its instructional programs. The system was designed to improve curricula, be managed by faculty, be inexpensive and uncomplicated, and focus on qualitative rather than…

Experiments at three community colleges were conducted to examine the relationships among anxiety, performance, and two different methods of informing students of their instructor's evaluation of in-class speeches. Subjects were 77 students in six speech classes. The three teachers of the classes gave traditional letter grades and comments on the…

While the concept of the teaching portfolio is variously defined, portfolios generally provide the opportunity to display teaching abilities and accomplishments, as well as reflect on one's teaching. In using teaching portfolios, the departmental chairperson must create a climate in which faculty understand that putting together a portfolio will…

Impelled by students' difficulties to learn new concepts from assigned readings, this paper examines effective literacy instruction in their respective classrooms. By targeting three linked areas of concern: students' motivation to read assigned texts, the learning strategies students bring to their reading experiences, and students' abilities to…