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1、BARBARA LEIGH SMITH CREATING LEARNING COMMUNITIES It is becoming increasingly clear that effective learning environments result from the complex interplay of many factors. The overall setting in which students learn makes all the difference, and the settings, like the learners, are increasingly dive
2、rse and challenging. Alexander Astins work demonstrates that student learning is strongly affected by many of the uncontrollable features of our institutions-their size and student profile, for example.However, student learning is also strongly affected by the “implicit curriculum”-the pedagogy, val
3、ues, and culture of a place - and, most importantly, by the interactions between students and faculty. Astin suggests that these factors may, in fact, be more important than what emerges from the particularistic debates about content among the faculty. George Kuh describes the power of a “salient et
4、hos that values learning” and the kind of yeasty academic engagement that can happen at institutions like Earlham College. The work of Vincent Tinto, Pat Russo and Anne Goodsell-Love suggests that this quality of engagement can happen in more difficult educational environments as well-at very large
5、public institutions such as the University of Washington and at nonselective commuter institutions like Seattle Central Community College. All of this work pushes us toward a broader view of what matters in terms of student learning and what educational reform requires. The new research by Astin, Ku
6、h, and Tinto and his colleagues resonates with findings in more specific disciplines. Sheila Tobiass work and related work by her colleagues Nancy Hewlitt and Elaine Seymour, provide additional insight into the complex factors that shape the learning environment, as well as some of the dead ends in
7、educational reform, especially in the sciences. The research in this issue of Liberal Education compels us to ask, “How do colleges create a salient ethos that values learning? How can reform efforts find fertile ground in institutions now dominated by other value systems? Can this be accomplished w
8、hen resources are severely limited? If so, what are the critical ingredients in making this happen? And how do we get beyond piecemeal efforts to broader, more comprehensive reform paradigms? Taking structure seriously Learning communities are a purposeful attempt to create rich, challenging and nur
9、turing academic communities where they might not otherwise exist (see Gabelnick, Matthews, MacGregor, and Smith, 1990 and Smith, 1991). Proponents of this approach presume that the purposeful creation of academic community is necessary, especially in nonresidential college environments. And they see
10、 this as a complex, multifaceted challenge that requires that we rethink the way the curriculum is divided into discrete three-or four-credit classes, the connection between courses, and the way they are taught. The learning community approach fundamentally restructures the curriculum, and the time
11、and space of students. Many different curricular restructuring models are being used, but all of the learning community models intentionally link together courses or coursework to provide greater curricular coherence, more opportunities for active learning, and interaction between students and facul
12、ty. Reconfiguring time and space is absolutely essential to creating a more effective arena for learning. Moreover, learning communities also represent a different view of teaching and learning environments along a variety of different dimensions as outlined in the table on page 34. Some learning co
13、mmunity models involve team teaching and dramatically reconfigure traditional discipline-based courses; others are more modest attempts to restructure the curriculum. Linked courses, for example, may simply combine a skills course and a content course with little change in the pedagogy. The Freshman
14、 Interest Group (FIG) learning community model at the University of Washington and the University of Oregon is a relatively simple learning community of course clusters; the coordinated studies program at Seattle Central is a more radical type of learning community involving team teaching and interd
15、isciplinary study. Learning communities are usually associated with collaborative learning approaches, an emphasis on writing and critical thinking, interdisciplinary studies, and classroom-based assessment. Students are encouraged to become responsible learners, to work with the complexity of real-
16、world problems, and to develop a personal voice or point of view. While little research has been done to compare the different models, preliminary evidence suggests that the more thematically integrated and team-taught models do have higher pay-off in terms of student engagement and learning; unfort
17、unately, these models are also slightly more expensive to operate and more at variance with the way most faculty are trained. A large number of institutions are experimenting with learning communities. The largest effort is based in the state of Washington where more than thirty colleges and univers
18、ities are offering learning communities. The research by Tinto, Goodsell-Love, and Russo which is featured in this issue of Liberal Education focuses on two of the Washington campuses with the largest learning community programs-the University of Washington and Seattle Central Community College. Lea
19、rning communities: a new paradigm for education reform The learning community effort is especially important because it can provide a comprehensive context for educational reform, a practical vehicle for creating the kind of “salient ethos that values learning” that George Kuh talks about. The effor
20、t is firmly grounded in the belief that individuals have the power to transform their environment, but it also recognizes the complexities of higher education today and the powerful forces of fragmentation. The learning community movement is also based upon a more sophisticated understanding of how
21、institutions work and the recognition that creating enduring innovations is hard work that isnt accomplished in a short period of time. Enduring change requires a well articulated value system and the kind of careful ongoing attention to implementation that can truly create a learning organization.
22、Learning communities are a realistic response to hard times. Their success demonstrates that we can create successful academic communities, even in difficult places, because they rely more upon the development of communities of people than the massive infusion of new resources. Where they have had m
23、ost impact, the learning community effort is a comprehensive reform effort, not simply an individually based innovation in teaching and learning. As the institutional case studies that follow indicate, the scale and purpose behind these efforts vary, but learning communities are finding fertile grou
24、nd and firm footing in diverse institutional settings. These examples provide practical tips about the life cycle of educational reform, and ways to make reform a reality. REFERENCES Gabelnick, F., R. Matthews, J. MacGregor, and B.L. Smith. 1990. Learning communities: Creating connections among stud
25、ents , faculty and disciplines. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Smith, B.L. 1991. Taking structure seriously: The learning community model. Liberal Education 77( 2): 42 - 48. Tobias, S. 1992. Revitalizing Undergraduate Science Education: Why Some Things Work and Most Dont. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Th
26、e Evergreen State College Can the rate of innovation and learning be increased between our institutions? The Evergreen State College approach to learning communities is called “coordinated studies.” The team-taught curriculum is organized around year-long thematic programs rather than traditional th
27、ree or four credit courses. In addition to a freshman Core of nine or ten full-time programs, the upper division curriculum is organized around interdisciplinary specialty areas such as Political Economy, the Expressive Arts, and Science, Technology and Health-loose curriculum building groups rather
28、 than departments. The College curriculum has four major foci: collaborative learning, full time interdisciplinary study, working with significant differences, and bridging theory and practice. A variety of pedagogical and structural features such as team teaching, an emphasis on seminars, group pro
29、jects, narrative evaluations, and writing-across-the-curriculum promote collaboration. Evergreen, an innovative four-year public liberal arts college of 3,200 students, was established as an alternative institution in 1970. It was one of the institutions in Alexander Astins sample of “colleges that
30、make a difference” and was described in George Kuhs recent work as one of the “involving colleges.” Evergreen has a highly self-selecting student body. So the question has arisen whether significant features of Evergreen could be adapted to traditional institutions. In the mid- 1980s Evergreen began
31、 to engage this question seriously. In 1985, with support from the Exxon Foundation and the Ford Foundation, the college established the Washington Center for Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Education, a unique statewide public service initiative. The Washington Center grew out of Seattle Cen
32、tral Community Colleges successful effort to initiate learning communities in 1984. With forty-four affiliated colleges, the Washington Center serves as a statewide support system for learning communities. It provides a wide variety of activities including faculty exchanges, conferences, assessment,
33、 and print resources. With more than thirty Washington colleges now offering learning communities, the question about whether significant features of the Evergreen experience are transferable has been answered. The substantial level of statewide innovation now extends beyond learning communities. Th
34、e Washington Center initiative suggests that a third party organization can bridge institutional boundaries to create and nurture a larger community committed to educational reform. It offers a provocative example of what a similar consortium could accomplish elsewhere. For further information, call
35、 or write Barbara Leigh Smith, Academic Dean, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA 98505; tel. 206/866-6000, ext. 6863. North Seattle and Seattle Central Community Colleges Key to cultivating an ethos of learning is an educational philosophy which views students as whole persons and communicates
36、 high expectations for student performance. - George Kuh Two of the Seattle community colleges have been pioneers in learning community work in Washington state. Over the past ten years, they have created a palpable “ethos of learning that permeates both campuses. A multicultural urban campus of mor
37、e than 3,500 students, Seattle Central Community College led the way in establishing learning communities initially, gaining experience through their partnership with Evergreen. The collaboration took the form of faculty exchanges between the two institutions. These exchanges, now spanning nine year
38、s, have been a highly effective way of transferring the knowledge of faculty experienced in collaborative teaching and learning to others. Exchange faculty always rotate into team teaching environments, creating a rich venue for day-to-day learning from one-another and a natural multiplier effect. S
39、eattle Central has developed a rich and growing repertoire of learning communities in virtually all teaching and learning in many different formats - through eighteen-credit coordinated studies programs, linked classes, intensive classes, and various other models. With nearly half of the full-time f
40、aculty now involved, collaborative teaching has had a substantial “trickle down” effect as teachers take new approaches back to their traditional classes. While learning communities began in the liberal arts, they now permeate developmental education, English as a second language, and vocational are
41、as such as business, video production and nursing. Two programs have won awards from the Department of Education: “The Televised Mind,” a coordinated studies vocational program in communications; and the other coordinated studies programs called “Our Ways of Knowing: The Black Experience and Social
42、Change” and “Speaking for Ourselves: Cross Cultural Visions and Connections.” The latter programs were specifically developed to reach out to Seattle Central students of color who had not previously enrolled in learning communities in significant numbers. Since 1986, North Seattle Community College
43、has offered learning communities with an emphasis on linked courses and coordinated studies programs. Like Seattle central, North Seattle found that first quarter learning communities are especially effective since they set the tone for entering freshmen. Many of its programs have a classical “great
44、 books” flavor with a heavy infusion of new scholarship in ethnic studies. North Seattle is experimenting with learning communities linking vocational and general education courses, attempting to create a bridge over what is a chasm in many institutions. North now offers as many as eight learning co
45、mmunities each quarter for more than 400 students. A five-year study ( 1986-1989) indicates that students in learning communities at North Seattle Community College have higher retention, persistence, and graduation rates than students in traditional courses, a finding that is generally consistent i
46、n learning communities throughout the state. What are the lessons from these two colleges? An ongoing commitment to faculty development has certainly proven to be critical in sustaining learning communities. Keeping it lively, new, and faculty-owned has been key. Team-teaching provides an obvious “b
47、uilt-in” kind of faculty development, with other forms of support available through the district and the individual colleges. Seattle Central offered a year-long series of monthly all-day workshops on “alternative pedagogies” that explored topics including collaborative teaching and learning and stu
48、dent intellectual development, assessment, and syllabus design. Many faculty are also involved in other statewide work focusing on teaching, learning, and assessment. Both colleges have been heavily involved with statewide efforts in cultural pluralism and calculus reform. Ongoing administrative lea
49、dership and explicit outreach to new faculty have both been critical in maintaining and expanding the learning community effort. Taking advantage of the natural overlap with other agendas such as general education reform, multicultural education, and assessment has broadened and deepened the base of support for learning communities. Because the effort goes against the grain of established procedures, careful attention to details of implementation has been
