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Changes in educational practices: A multiple case study investigating faculty implemented changes in educational practices designed to meet the academic needs of the contemporary student at a southwestern community college
Abstract
For the past few decades, the trend of first generation low-economic status community college students, considerably comprised of immigrants, has continued to grow at a significant rate (Connell, 2008; Ray, 2013; Kim & Diaz, 2013c; Kim, 2014). Community colleges are encountering challenges that were previously viewed as minimal or secondary to the vision, but now are proverbial game changers in identifying optimal educational practices essential for student success. The purpose of this multiple case study is to qualitatively examine how seasoned faculty at a Southwestern community college have changed their educational practices to effectively address the academic needs of the contemporary student. While research exists that examines the academic needs of the immigrant population, there is a considerable lack of study on how faculty have adjusted their educational practices to meet those needs. Doron (1995) researched faculty attitudes toward Russian immigrants to Israel who studied at Israeli universities. Using Eisikovitz and Beck’s (1991) two models of absorption, Doron (1995) examined whether Israeli faculty believed that immigrant students needed academic accommodations, or if they should take the same courses at the same pace as the Israeli nationals. Using Doron’s study (1995) and Eisikovitz and Beck’s (1991) two models of immigrant absorption as a conceptual framework, this multiple case study focuses on the changes in instructional practices that faculty, who lean more toward absorption as a process of integration, have made. Ten instructors, who met the requirements for participation, responded to the invitation to participate in this study. Interviews were conducted and six themes were identified. The six themes are: traditional educational practices, changes in pedagogy, the importance of technology, individualized instruction and support, barriers that affect instruction and learning, and measures of student success. The findings in this study discovered that the majority of the faculty abandoned former traditional lecture-based and publisher-based educational practices in favor of new ones. These new practices promote greater student engagement with the curricula, peers, and faculty, and employ high impact strategies encompassing increased group work and interactive assignments, differentiated and individualized instruction via technology and tutoring labs, and increased student accountability.
Subject Area
Community college education|Instructional Design|Higher education
Recommended Citation
Tompkins, David K, "Changes in educational practices: A multiple case study investigating faculty implemented changes in educational practices designed to meet the academic needs of the contemporary student at a southwestern community college" (2017). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI10260160.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI10260160