Learning Communities (LC) in higher education can serve as powerful connectors among individuals, particularly when integrating minority and White students. We conducted 24 in-depth interviews, using qualitative research methodology, with the 2004 cohort of LC students from a private, selective, Midwest university. Seniors at the time of…

Have you ever watched a televised college football or basketball game where they show the starting lineup's academic majors? If so, you may have noticed that many of the student athletes have the same academic majors, be it communications, criminal justice, sociology, etc. Nevertheless, many have taken notice and labeled this phenomenon as…

This annual report describes self-reported attitudes and motivations of today's first-year college students throughout the nation, based on survey responses from a sizable sample of freshmen attending college during the current academic year, 2011-2012. Among the highlights: (1) Compared to their female counterparts, many more incoming first-year…

The discussion about rigor is not new. Ever since the release of A Nation at Risk (1983) the debate about the quality of American schools has continued. Adoption of No Child Left Behind (2001) raised the debate to a new level. For the first time schools were held accountable for the achievement of every child, not just the most capable. Across the…

In response to perceived academic unpreparedness on the part of first year students, in the second semester of 2010 a number of departments in the Faculties of Arts, Commerce, Administration and Law (CAL), and Science at the University of Zululand (Unizulu) opted to use the Department of Higher Education and Training's Teaching Development Grant…

Research suggests a compelling correlation between teacher behavior and effective learning environments. Focusing on the evidence-based teaching skill of offering behavior-specific praise (BSP), the researchers worked with three elementary-level general educators in a tiered model of training generally known as response to intervention (RtI).…

This paper utilises the theories of Archer to explore the impact of student "internal conversations" upon the development of reflexive approaches employed by work-based students (WBS). The study informing this paper draws on the voices of a range of WBS on a Foundation Degree in Educational Support within a new university. A range of reflexivities…

More than five million U.S. students are English language learners (ELLs), or 57% more than a decade ago. If that growth continues, sooner or later, all teachers will teach ELLs. But many teachers are unprepared for this challenge. They might presume that "good teaching" helps ELLs learn content (de Jong and Harper 2008) or that an English-only…

School districts across the U.S. are experimenting with various reforms in an attempt to bridge the gap between secondary and postsecondary education and create greater access to postsecondary education for all students. One such reform initiative is the Early College High School (ECHS) model, which allows high school students to earn a diploma…

Almost one in four (3.9 million) students who are enrolled in postsecondary education programs in the United States are also raising a dependent child (Miller, Gault, and Thorman, 2011). These parents are preparing themselves to compete in an American economy in which high skill levels are required to earn a wage sufficient to support a family…

The need for higher enrollment, along with a greater focus on educational access and making college more accessible has created an urgent need for community colleges and universities to develop retention and persistence strategies for students who are not prepared academically and may lack the resources to be successful in college (Bailey &…

The present phenomenological study was designed to explore the perceived influence of mentorship relationships on the career aspirations of Hispanic students attending a community college in Central Texas. Semistructured one-on-one interviews focused on gaining an insight into the influence that 10 Hispanic students perceived mentoring had on…

Doctoral education is an aspect of higher education that can be both rewarding and challenging for anyone who attempts the journey. Thelin (2004) stated many graduate students obtain the necessary skills that their individual fields of study require in their master's and doctoral programs of study. Levine (2005), however, has found that the…

Over the past thirty-five years, the rates of retention and graduation among African American males attending colleges and universities in the U.S. have declined. Many institutions of higher education have responded to this problem by reexamining their efforts at retaining and graduating Black males. Interventions are being created across the…

As entering students begin their college careers, they have been exposed to many mixed messages about whether college is "worth it"--from the media and public figures, to parents, to peers. There have also been significant changes in demographics, economics, college preparedness, and other key areas that may be influencing how freshmen…