NISOD's flagship
publication is written by community college practitioners describing
successful teaching tips, program initiatives and other best
practices. In special issues, products and/or services are showcased
by practitioners describing classroom/program/college initiatives
and strategies.
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Vol. XXX, No. 15 |
In “The Natural Athlete: A Comfortable Myth,” Suanne Roueche, currently
Editor of NISOD Publications, describes 10 strategies for improving
athletes’ performances that have proven to work equally as well for
improving academic performance. This issue, originally published in
1983, is among the most frequently requested reprints over the last
30 years of Innovation Abstracts. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 14 |
In “Teaching Evidence-Based Practice in an Associate Degree Nursing
Program,” Patricia Minton Kennedy, Professor of Nursing, at
Westmoreland County Community College (PA), describes a practical
strategy for providing instruction and practice, enhancing associate
degree students’ abilities to think critically in the clinical
setting. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 13 |
In “Tips for De-Stressing Frenzied Faculty,” Beverly Forsyth, Professor
of English, at Odessa College (TX), describes seven strategies to
help faculty get control of their personal and professional
time—avoiding stress and burn-out. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 12 |
In “Weapons of Mass Education,” Ed Penz, Director, Long Term Care
Administration, at Midland College (TX), describes valuable
strategies for breaking away from the doldrums of content and
stimulating student attention. He helps students have fun with
learning; they never know what he will do next. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 11 |
In “Essay Sniglets: Improving Essays Through Word Manipulation,“ Maria
Christian, English instructor at Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee,
describes an intriguing, innovative strategy for engaging students
in improving their compositions, as they create humorous, new words
using personal experiences and imagination!
Read about how one English instructor engages students in improving
their compositions using sniglets—humorous, invented words that
reflect the absurdity of everyday life. The activity improves their
writing and, as a bonus, enhances the benefits of their peer review
sessions.Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 10 |
In “Teaching Excellence Program,” Deborah Dunbar, Faculty Development
Advisor, at Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced
Learning, Ontario, Canada, describes a new-faculty training program
designed to bring new hires up to speed and make them more familiar
with student populations, institutional expectations, and
instructional initiatives, beginning before their first semester
teaching in the college classroom and continuing through their first
teaching year. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 9 |
First published as a Celebrations, “NISOD’s Middle Name—Staff!”
described one college’s initiative to include staff personnel in its
more traditional faculty and administrator conference participants.
Mary Retterer, then President of Pima Community College (AZ),
encouraged other colleges to include staff members among their NISOD
attendees, educate them about the culture of community colleges and
their service to their communities, and further recognize the
tremendous contributions they make as a strong support base to the
college. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 8 |
In “An Enrollment Bar—A Solution for Your Campus?” authors Brenda
Hellyer, Vice Chancellor; Bill Raffetto, Vice President of
Enrollment Services; and Brook Zemel, Vice President of Student
Development, at San Jacinto College (TX), describe an innovative
approach to ensuring that prospective students are made
enrollment-ready in an impeccable customer-service initiative. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 7 |
In 1991, in “Celebrating Teaching Excellence: An SPJC Perspective,”
Jack Crocker, then Associate Vice President of Educational and
Student Services, at St. Petersburg Junior College (FL), wrote about
NISOD’s annual conference and the investment in professional
development the college made by sending hundreds of faculty and
administrators to Austin each May. Crocker observed that the
investment paid dividends back to SPJC and that the conference
continues to be one of the “best investments in faculty and staff
development in America.” Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 6 |
In "Learning From Ourselves," Rebecca Kamm, Communications Faculty, at
Northeast Iowa Community College, describes a strategy for helping
students help themselves as they write their compositions and learn
to self-correct as they go.
In "Redesigning Class Structure: Addressing Needs of Young Adult
Learners," Phillip Johnson, Site Coordinator for Adult Education
Program; Fran Turner, Adult Education program Director; and Thomas
Taylor, Dean of Student Services, at Shelton State Community College
(AL) describe a strategy for getting younger students more engaged
in a developmental sequence at their more appropriate levels and
moving on toward enrolling in regular academic courses.Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 5 |
In “Infusing Learning Into the Physical Environment,” Brent Knight,
President at Morton College (IL), and Jason Kovac, Doctoral Student
in the Community College Leadership Program at The University of
Texas at Austin, describe a successful strategic for teaching
history about the college and the community, and beautifying the
campus simultaneously. Learning improves as students become more
engaged with their physical surroundings. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 4 |
In “Going the Distance: Designing and Delivering a Simulated Clinical
Experience,” Barb Morrison, Lynne Thibeault, and Debra Walker,
Professors of School of Health and Community Services, Confederation
College (Ontario, Canada), describe a successful strategy for
supplementing the learning process for practical nursing students
who pursue the curriculum from a distance, facing limited lab and
clinical opportunities. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 3 |
In “Performance in the Cooperative Learning Classroom,” Jeannine W.
Morgan, professor of Communications, St. Johns River Community
College (FL), describing a cooperative model for student work and
progress that can work in any discipline. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 2 |
In “Pop Tests: Valuable Instructional Tools,” William Lay, Instructor
of Natural Sciences, Itawamba Community College (MS), describes an
old idea applied to current classroom situations, all with
successful results. This issue is another in our “Showcasing Popular
Issues Series,” originally published in 2002, Vol. XXIV, No. 8. Back to top |
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Vol. XXX, No. 1 |
In “Who’s Your Audience?” Stuart Tichenor, Instructor, Arts and
Sciences, Oklahoma State University, describes writing assignments
that provide meaningful relevance to the world in which his students
live, from history to local perspectives.
In “Acclimating First-Year Students to College Coursework
Expectations,” Michael Latza, Instructor of English, and Editor,
“Willow Review,” at College of Lake County, (IL), describes a
strategy for moving from basic, skill-building writing assignments
to the more involved, helping students build a better foundation for
improving writing skills.Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 29 |
In “Pop Tests: Valuable Instructional Tools,” William Lay, Instructor
of Natural Sciences, at Itawamba Community College (MS), describes a
traditional testing procedure that still works to keep students
on-target and current with their assignments and class
participation. This issue was first published in March 2002, and is
being disseminated again as part of our “Showcasing Popular Issues
Series.” Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 28 |
In “The Self-Help Book Paper: Getting Students to Read and Think,” Lora
Cohn, Assistant Professor, Communication Arts, and Director,
Master’s in Communication and Leadership, Park University (MO)
describes a strategy for getting students learn how to use
information that they glean from reading materials. Students must
visit bookstores and browse! Back to top
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Vol. XXIX, No. 27 |
In Fun Projects Generating Interest in a Diverse Classroom, Julie
Luscomb, Instructor in Computer Science, at Tulsa Community College
(OK), describes strategies for incorporating fun projects into
course activities that help computer-savvy students increase their
knowledge and skills while helping not-so-savvy students develop
skills at their own levels. Back to top
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Vol. XXIX, No. 26 |
In Practicing What You Teach, Stephen Calatrello, English instructor at
Calhoun Community College (AL), describes how working alongside
students on select assignments increases their interest in the
effort, gives them a new view of the teachers role, and changes the
instructors perceptions of the students tasks and assignments
challenges. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 25 |
In “Fun-damentals of an Introductory Course,” John Thomas, Associate
Professor of Business Law and Paralegal Studies, at Northampton
Community College (PA), describes FUN assignments that turn students
on to higher levels of interest and an improved grasp of
content-rich material in an introductory course. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 24 |
A reprint of the popular “Music Ensembles: Meeting Musical, Social, and
Health Needs,” by Kerry Hart, now Alpine Campus Dean, Colorado
Mountain College, this article describes a college attraction for
all ages. This musical offering enriched and enhanced students’
total college experience, as it rekindled long-lost interests and
provided a risk-free venue for musical expression. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 23 |
In “Study Skills Marathon Fair,” Janie Pellish, Coordinator of Tutorial
Services, at Berkshire Community College (MA), describes a unique
approach to teaching study skills—a “course” that participants
follow, winding through a room of 12 booths, representing skills and
disciplines and tended by faculty, staff, and other experts. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 22 |
In “Becoming an Academic Farmer: Cultivating a Culture for Student
Success,” Raphael Turner, Assistant Dean of Enrollment Services, at
Tomball College (TX), describes a template for promoting student
engagement with the college and for a college’s maintaining its
fingers on the pulse of the institution.
Read this overview of keeping apprised of how the college best
serves its students, by being tuned into the features and services
that matter and keep students engaged.
In “Malapropism Madness,” Peg Ehlen, Professor of English, at Ivy
Tech Community College (IN), describes the sometimes-hilarious
outcomes of spell-check mania. She tunes students into checking
their auditory discrimination and reading skills in order to help
avoid usage and spelling devils.Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 21 |
In “A New Faculty Orientation,” Eric Wildman, Associate Dean and
Director, Willow Chase Center, at Tomball College (TX), describes an
orientation that was so successful for new faculty that returning,
veteran faculty demanded one of their own. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 20 |
In “Encouraging Creativity,” Richard Marranca, Assistant Professor of
English, and Sumalee Mahanarongchai, Lecturer in Philosophy and
Liberal Arts, Thammasat University in Bangkok, describe the powers
and the pay-offs to opening students up to being more creative in
and with assignments that require more “brainwork.” Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 19 |
In "A Strategy for Improving Composition," Sheryl Donovan, Instructor
of Sociology, at Tri-County Technical College (SC) describes a
successful in-class experiment to improve students’ writing.
Jerry Clavner, Professor of Social Sciences, at Cuyahoga Community
College (OH), describes seven strategies that have helped students
improve their study and learning skills, and improve his instruction
along the way, as well, in “Stopping the Revolving Door: ‘Should’ve’
Doesn’t Help.”Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 18 |
In “A Non-Western Culture—A Hit in the Midwest,” Edwina Jordan,
Professor of English and Language Studies, describes an
international course, team taught by social science and English
instructors. Students participate in the course via traditional
classroom and Blackboard sites, as well as in an international fair
day—with native dress, food, and culture—to which the public is
invited. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 17 |
In “A Pile of Rocks,” Carol G. Gomez, Professor Fine Art, at the
University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College,
describes a student project—students assisted by visiting artists,
collaboratively working to design and construct a unique
serpent-shaped piece in the Rancho del Cielo to help interest the
public in works of art. What the teachers and students took away
from that project was unexpected with important lessons learned. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No. 16 |
In “College 101: Making the Greatest First Impression” Felipe H. Chia,
Professor of Management and Marking at Harrisburg Area Community
College (PA), shares the advice he gives to students at the
beginning of each term. Making great first impressions is important,
and students appreciate learning firsthand what is expected and
rewarded. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
15 |
In “Challenging the Myths About Online Learning,” Robert Mendenhall,
President, Western Governors University (UT), and Mark David
Milliron, NISOD Director, at The University of Texas at Austin,
discuss 10 of the most common myths that faculty believe about this
developing instructional phenomenon. Their challenges will help
allay some fears and provide new directions for faculty looking to
“blend” online learning with their traditional classroom teaching. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
14 |
In “Advice From an Internship Veteran,” Scott Newman,
Division Chair of Information Technologies, at Oklahoma State
University—Okmulgee, shares advice to any program looking to
initiate or develop a successful internship experience for its
students. Benefits to students, to the program, and to the college
are described.
In “Be A Scholar, Too,” Jerry Clavner, Professor of Social Sciences,
at Cuyahoga Community College (OH), reminds us to refuel the “thirst
for knowledge” that put us in the classroom in the first place and
will keep us enthusiastic about teaching.
In “Challenging the Myths About Online Learning,” Robert Mendenhall,
President, Western Governors University (UT), and Mark David
Milliron, NISOD Director, at The University of Texas at Austin,
discuss 10 of the most common myths that faculty believe about this
developing instructional phenomenon. Their challenges will help
allay some fears and provide new directions for faculty looking to
“blend” online learning with their traditional classroom teaching.
Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
13 |
In “Impromptu Speaking for a Purpose,” Gretchen Aggertt Weber,
Professor Speech, at Horry-Georgetown Technical College (SC),
describes a strategy for choosing speech topics and creating speech
prompts with action verbs to help improve students’ skills in public
speaking.
In “A New Advising Strategy,” Teresa Ray-Connell, Instructor in
Dental Hygiene and Assisting Department, at Wallace State Community
College (AL), describes a successful strategy for improving student
performance in clinic and classroom—“advisory” groups of first- and
second-year students. Students are more willing to ask questions and
share experiences in these small-group sessions than in larger
classes; students are more collaborative. Other benefits to students
and the program are described.
Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
12 |
This issue is the third reprint in the Showcasing Popular Issues Series
of favorite Innovation Abstracts. In “How to Favorably Impress the
Instructor,” Jerry Clavner, Professor Social Sciences at Cuyahoga
Community College (OH), shares tips he offers his
students—explaining “good student” strategies to every new class.
Years of experience tell him that students often need some guidance
about “student behaviors” that reflect their instructors’
expectations and help them navigate college classrooms better. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
11 |
In “Using Blogs as Writing Journals,” Maria Johnson, English
Instructor, at DeKalb Technical College (GA), describes a successful
strategy for maintaining a true writing forum. Moving students from
text-messaging on their phones and checking their emails in the
college computer lab to writing in response to posted questions
(along with their classmates) proved to be a positive challenge and
a confidence-building technique. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
10 |
In “Unique Student-Teaching Assignments,” John Bertalan, Retired
Professor of Education and Political Science, at Hillsborough
Community College (FL), describes creative student presentations
that “taught” a chapter in the assigned textbook. Each student was
permitted to use any creative, unusual, thought-provoking strategies
to grab the attention and interest of their classmates (their
“students”) and “teach” the chapter well. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
9 |
In “Reaching,” Leonard Goodisman, Science/Math Faculty, at Cascadia
Community College (WA), describes a strategy for helping students
reach beyond what they might consider their “final answer” or “all
they can say about the subject.” Students should be encouraged to
think about what else they might investigate or what more they could
include in their work before calling it a finished product. Students
can be taught how to develop their “reaching skills” in a wide array
of discipline areas. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
8 |
In “Course Assessment and Student Learning Objectives: A Guide for
Faculty,” Katherine Simpson, Associate Professor English and
Assessment Coordinator, at Lord Fairfax Community College (VA),
describes LFCC faculty’s journey toward documenting student
learning. The results have included better accounting for student
learning, shared best practices, and improved collegiality across
disciplines and campus. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
7 |
In “Dead Languages—Latin and Ancient Greek—Alive and Kicking in a
Science Curriculum,” Claudio Mazzatenta, Assistance Professor in the
Department of Biology and Medical Laboratory Technology, at Bronx
Community College (NY), describes the importance of designing
strategies for encouraging and developing students’ knowledge and
appreciation of other cultures and languages—no matter their
programs of study and areas of interest. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
6 |
The second in the Popular Issues Series, “Why Students Must Be Held
Accountable for Their Writing,” Sherry Sherrill, then English
Instructor at Forsyth Technical Community College (NC), now
President of Sherrill Communications, Inc., describes strategies for
helping students become more competent writers, preparing themselves
for workplace experiences. She tells us now: “I have NOT changed my
mind about what I wrote over a decade ago. I am now a corporate
trainer and consultant…and the level of knowledge young people bring
to the work place is stunningly weak.” Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
5 |
“You Can Quote Me on That!” by Rebecca Borton, Adjunct Professor of
Arts and Sciences at Northwest State Community College (OH),
describes a tradition of sharing quotes to seize students’ interest
and attention quickly at the beginning of every class session. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
4 |
This issue is the first in a series of occasional reprints of
previously published Innovation Abstracts. Outside sources seeking
permission to reprint Abstracts have identified some of the most
popular issues over the last 25+ years. “Showcasing Popular Issues
Series” will feature some of those issues. “30 Things We Know for
Sure About Adult Learning,” by Ron and Susan Zemke, is the most
requested issue of all times. It is as timely today as it was in
1984. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
3 |
In “Advising Adult Learners Cross-Country Style,” Joan Ladik, Director
of Continuing Education, College Coach (MA), describes services to
employers seeking to help keep their employees well trained, viable,
and valuable members of their company’s teams by advising and
assisting them in pursuing programs and degrees in higher education. Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
2 |
In “Using an Interactive Multimedia Classroom: Making a Connection,”
Beth Bownes Johnson, Instructor and Department Chair, English, at
Wallace State Community College (AL), describes her “visual”
approach to instruction—engaging students in their own presentations
that require creative uses of technology, dress, food, design, and
speech Back to top |
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Vol. XXIX, No.
1 |
In “Alleviating Anxiety for Nontraditional Students,”
Elizabeth Padden, Assistant Professor, Modern Languages, at Lord
Fairfax Community College (VA), describes instructional strategies
for engaging students who too often seek the nearest exit and never
return to class. Study sessions, problem-solving activities,
technology, positive feedback, and sessions scheduled in both
traditional and nontraditional settings and at convenient times for
adult, working students combine to keep them upbeat and focused on
success in this Spanish immersion class.
Back to top |
Back issues can be found
here.
Last updated:
May 09, 2008
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