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Building Communities of Active Learners
Southwest Regional Learning Communities Conference
February
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Mission College
Peggy Messerschmidt, Carol Beck, Dianne McKay, Ray Charland, Christy Brown, Myo Myint
Mission College is one of 12 community colleges participating in a Regional Community College Consortium for Model Learning Communities, initially sponsored by a grant from the Packard Foundation and led by a team from De Anza College in Cupertino, CA. This fall a six-member team of two English teachers, two counselors, an ESL teacher, and a reading teacher offered Mission's first two learning communities with about 20 students each. Each community was team-taught and involved a reading, writing, and counseling course. "Fulfilling Your American Dreams" connected an ESL reading course, a developmental level writing course, and a study skills course, and served as a bridge for students moving from the ESL to the English curriculum, a transition many students struggle with. "Survival on Success Island" combined developmental reading and writing and a Master Student course, and explored the issue of success from different angles. This spring, we plan to offer two more communities, one a repeat of "American Dream" and one new, "California Myths and Realities," the latter linking English, reading, and counseling courses at the AA/AS degree or transfer levels. Our poster will highlight the major events and challenges involved in planning and implementing these first two learning communities as well as our successes. Presenters will discuss the training we received based on the Washington Center model, recruitment, and team teaching as well as issues related to combining reading/writing skills courses with counseling, assessment techniques, strategies for building community, and faculty rejuvenation.
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