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Appendix D

Learning center Activities

While the Learning Center (and the adjacent Writing Center) is not a division in the same category as those previously discussed, the Learning Center is involved with every division. Many of the changes made as a result of the assessment effort have been in the Learning Center. Some programs were in existence prior to the Assessment of Student Learning process, but they strengthen the students’ opportunity to succeed at Trinidad State Junior College and should be noted. The following is a summary of these activities:

Learning Center

The Learning Center, which is responsible for one-to-one tutoring on campus, was moved from a back room of a building at the edge of campus to the second floor of the library in the center of campus and considered a primary student thoroughfare. As a result, use of tutoring increased by 40% from Fall 1998 to Fall 1999. The adjacent Writing Center shares a receptionist, allowing the computer labs to be available to students even when a tutor is not on duty. All services of the Learning Center continue to be available to all TSJC students free of charge.

Writing Center

The Writing Center is staffed by the coordinator who supervises approximately eight part-time tutors and attends to all matters related to the running of the facility. The staff of the Writing Center developed the following mission statement to reflect their commitment to the Center and to the writing process:

"Our mission is to provide an environment in which students can work individually or with a tutor to improve their skills in, and enhance their appreciation of, the writing process; to maintain open communication with faculty and staff in order to foster excellence in writing; and to keep abreast of all aspects of writing including research, documentation, and new ideas."

The Writing Center is committed to working for TSJC’s students, faculty, and staff. The Writing Center’s goal is to provide access to skilled tutoring for writing assignments, Internet research, research and documentation aids, computers for writing drafts and revising, and referrals to specialized tutoring services.

Many of the tutors are retired professionals, while others are students who have demonstrated writing ability through coursework or publication. All tutors are expected to work during their assigned times. They are to tutor students on any type of writing assignment, maintain the quiet, informal, and helpful atmosphere of the center, perform basic housekeeping duties, participate in scheduled staff meetings and training sessions, and communicate openly and responsibly about any problems, concerns, ideas for improvement, and changes in scheduling. All staff actively participates in designing handouts, creating and revising policies, initiating projects that will benefit tutors, faculty, and students, and taking responsibility for the overall operation of the facility. The facility is open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Drop-in tutoring is available during all these hours with the exception of 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday.

A grant and institutional funds were acquired to hire a Writing Center Coordinator. Previously, the Writing Center Coordinator had been an English department faculty member with one course per semester release-time. Since then, the use of the Writing Center has increased by 32% in drop-in tutoring and 56% in computer use.

The Writing Center is equipped with eight computers from which the students can access word-processing and the Internet, as well as other programs such as Office Wizard, Discover, Daedalus, Keyboarding Pro, etc. A printer is available for students to print drafts and Internet articles. Four tables act as tutoring stations, study areas, and testing areas. Each tutoring station is equipped with a dictionary, a thesaurus, a writing handbook, pencils, highlighters, bookmarks showing basic research sites, and scrap paper. Comfortable, adjustable chairs are located at all tables and computer stations. A staff desk is available for tutors and the coordinator, and provides room for personal files, supplies, time sheets, and other forms used in the center. A large file cabinet contains critique sheets, masters for handouts, and other information. One drawer is available for instructors to use for files in which they can place tests, return papers, and leave guidelines for student papers. Miscellaneous writing and Internet handbooks, study skill handbooks, and literature books are also available. There are two bulletin boards, one for college announcements, and another for tutor information. An erasable calendar board allows staff to have a large visual of upcoming activities and appointments. A pamphlet holder contains handouts on discipline-specific Internet sites, cover letter and resume information, college catalogs and schedules, and writing center brochures. A logbook allows all staff to communicate ideas, concerns, problems, and suggestions on an ongoing basis.

The Writing Center has made a number of positive changes in the past year, these include:

Developed a pleasant, open atmosphere and decorated with framed posters with nature scenes and apt quotes. Live plants add color and texture.
Revised the expectations and demands for the tutors. Tutors were encouraged to take ownership of the running of the center as opposed to simply waiting for a tutee to show up and request assistance. Tutors became responsible for maintaining the basic physical aspects of the center, brainstorming on ways to improve services, and designing forms, handouts, brochures, etc. They also were asked to accept their duties as part of a "real job." They were required to attend meetings and training. The result has been performance excellence, a sense of camaraderie and pride, and virtually no absenteeism.
Initiated outreach to instructors to make them aware of the equipment and services available to them and their students by presenting the information at in-service training sessions and visitation.
Established a tutor log as a way to encourage and maintain communication between all Writing Center staff. This overcame the previous year’s problems of lost messages, missed meetings, and lack of guidance. The tutors were able to communicate ideas and concerns on a daily basis and the coordinator was able to set up meetings, assign tasks, and ask for feedback without having to contact each student.
Organized brief orientation sessions about the Writing Center for classes so students would get registration completed and would overcome the first-visit jitters early on. This resulted in an increased number of visits within the first two weeks of each semester (which is traditionally the Writing Center’s least busy time) and an overall increase of over 50% during each semester.
Created new Writing Center brochures that encouraged student use of the center and defined available services (see enclosed document).
Designed colorful bookmarks listing "Hot Links for Writers" to aid the students in research and documentation.
Designed tutor nametags so students could identify the staff easily.
Promoted the Writing Center campus-wide through colorful posters, e-mails to instructors, one-on-one contact with instructors, in-service presentations, advertisements in the student newspaper, and classroom visits.
Proposed that the Writing Center act as a link for introducing, facilitating, and assessing basic writing skills for Occupational Education students as part of the Perkins plan for introducing academic skills into occupational programs.
Established files for instructors to use for returning papers to students, submitting guidelines for critiquing papers, leaving make-up exams and other materials.
Assisted instructors in developing critique sheets for class assignments to create an understanding and common expectations for student, tutor, and instructor (see attached document).
Developed a test proctoring system so that students taking make-up exams could be supervised at times convenient for them and so that instructors were not taken from other duties.
Created "10 Most Wanted Internet Sites" for each of the following areas/disciplines: Psychology, Sociology/Anthropology, History, Current Events, APA/MLA Documentation, Literature, Geology, Medical Science, Criminal Justice/Criminology, Gerontology, and for creating Resumes and Cover Letters (see attached document). The staff recognized the frustration that many students had in trying to access information from general Internet search engines and started searching the Web for sites that would help narrow the search for information. Some of the criteria for placing a site on the "Most Wanted" list included easy access, a clear menu, links to other good sites, and access to magazine and journal articles. The student response has been tremendous; many saying they wish they had had this kind of help all along.
Developed ongoing tutor training sessions. Tutors meet to discuss Writing Center issues every four to six weeks. Training has included sessions on:

how to work effectively with ESL students,
how to manage hostile students,
how to narrow tutoring sessions to the most important issues,
how to deal with students who want the tutor to correct the paper, and
how to access writing exercises, templates, and research information through the computers.

Upgraded handbooks and other learning tools so that students and tutors had the most recent information on concerns such as documenting electronic sources.
Conducted tutor evaluations. The tutor was allowed to do a self-evaluation to be able to acknowledge what they saw as their strengths and weaknesses. The coordinator positively reinforced their efforts and made suggestions for improvements. All tutors expressed great satisfaction with the job and enthusiasm to continue the efforts of the Center.
Designed a Writing Center web page and set it up within the larger framework of the college’s homepage. The Writing Center mission statement, hours, services, location, etc. were included, as were photos of staff and the facility. Students can link to the "10 Most Wanted Internet Sites" from this page (see attached document).
Worked with a member of Student Support Services and a member of Occupational Education to develop a workshop and centralize resources for writing cover letters and resumes. The workshop was presented to interested students during the spring semester.
Initiated and distributed a student survey during the spring of 2000. Preliminary reports show extraordinary satisfaction among the students surveyed. Responding students, with only a couple of exceptions, noted satisfaction in the 4 to 5 range with all services. Five indicated a high degree of satisfaction, and zero indicated no satisfaction. Most students took a moment to thank the staff for their services and to comment on how much their writing has improved as a result of the Writing Center. The only concerns voiced were in one case that the noise level had gone beyond an acceptable level for a couple of minutes and another in which a student was unhappy with the brusqueness of a tutor.

The Writing Center staff looks forward to developing the following improvements for the next year:

Create more tutor training to continue the development of excellent skills.
Continue outreach to all staff and solicit for campus-wide feedback and participation in the developing role of the Writing Center.
Help implement Writing Across the Curriculum, particularly as it applies to portfolio development as a means of introducing and assessing academic skills in the Occupational Education certificate programs.
Increase student visitation.
Establish an online tutoring system for distance learners and for satellite campuses.
Create "10 Most Wanted Internet Sites" handouts for at least ten more disciplines.
Expand and update the Writing Center website.
Encourage all instructors to be specific in their instructions for research papers.
Conduct in-service training for instructors on Writing Center use, APA/MLA documentation, and avoiding sexist language in academic papers.
Conduct student workshops on resumes and cover letters, research and documentation, and other workplace-related writing.
Develop a tutor handbook so tutors have ongoing access to policies and procedures.
Update the Writing Center’s APA/MLA manual to include clear examples of the myriad of electronic citations now available.
Maintain the clear sense of purpose, enthusiasm, professionalism, and campus spirit currently embodied in the Writing Center.

Student Support Services

The SSS project is a grant-funded program that provides at-risk (low-income, first-generation, and disabled) students with a variety of services to increase their chance for success. These include tutoring, advising, developmental classes, cultural trips, and transfer assistance. Research on this program has consistently demonstrated that at-risk participants did as well as non at-risk students enrolled at TSJC.

Supplemental Instruction

SI is an innovative program at Trinidad State Junior College that helps students succeed in class by forming "a community of learners." We schedule regular, out-of-class, informal seminars in which students compare notes, discuss readings, develop organizational tools and predict test items. Student-led review sessions model "how to learn" as well as "what to learn." Students develop essential study skills using the content and materials from courses. The program has more than proved itself in some of the most difficult courses on campus including Calculus, College Algebra, Chemistry, and Statistics. Research on student achievement in these courses show that students in Supplemental Instruction achieved significantly higher test scores and grades than their classmates who did not participate. Not only were the grades significantly higher, but also the SI participants were more satisfied with the class, sat more towards the front of the room, were more likely to participate in discussion, and were more assertive about having their needs met.

Inside Track Opportunity Program

ITOP is supported through institutional and grant funds, and is operated through the collaboration of TSJC’s Learning Center and the Survival Skills Office. Inside Track is an innovative concept in higher education, featuring the integration of College Survival Skills and the Freshmen Year Experience directly into college-level classes. The goal is to create communities of learners that significantly increase the chances of student success. Inside Track provides students with the key resources and support they need to succeed in higher education. These services include:

comprehensive orientation;
early alert tracking of student progress;
the combination of the freshmen year experience and college-level classes;
fostering learning communities; and
multifaceted academic support.

Introduced in the fall semester of 1999, we are closely monitoring the effectiveness of ITOP on selected TSJC students. If successful, we will expand the program with at-risk students in the fall semester of 2001.

Mentoring

To increase retention at TSJC, we have introduced two kinds of mentoring: student and advanced. Student Mentors are assigned to at-risk students by the Survival Skills Coordinator. All student mentors have been academically successful and are recommended by a faculty member. Their primary role is to lead by example and promote the development of a learning community. Student mentors receive training in team building, supplemental instruction and how to be an effective mentor and role model.

Alumni and faculty mentors are used for advanced mentoring. As the students master the classroom skills and meet academic challenges, they are introduced to Advanced Mentors to assist in the decision-making process for building a future in education and careers. Advanced Mentors are used in labs as guest speakers and to assist in special projects. They are also called upon to meet individually with students with special interests or needs. Introduced this academic year, we are just obtaining data on this important program’s impact on the retention and success of at-risk students.

Colorado Alliance for Minority Participation

Co-AMP is designed to encourage minority students to pursue a major in math and/or science and apply that degree to transfer and their career. Presently, we have 35 students in the program. The program helps to fund tutoring for minority math/science students, as well as cultural trips, university visits, research opportunities and presentations, and scholarship searches. Retention and graduation rates for Co-AMP students are significantly greater that students not in the program.

Assessment Alternatives

To help students improve their assessment and placement in college courses, we have introduced several alternatives to the developmental sequence:

Students can use a computer-based program to review their skills in the assessment areas of reading, writing, and math. For students who tested into developmental courses, almost two-thirds improved their placement by at least one level after completing the computer-based review.

Students can choose to enter the Inside Track Opportunity Program, and by agreeing to take a Supplemental Instruction Lab, can enter a higher level math and/or English class than their scores indicate. Preliminary data on the spring semester of 2000, shows that ITOP students are being successful in their college-level classes at a rate equal to non-developmental students placed in those same classes.