TCCTA Blog

Board Targets Developmental Education

Those in the field of developmental education are urged to pay close attention to some potential shifts in policy over the next few years. Yesterday (July 30), the Coordinating Board approved a plan to systematically examine different approaches, reportedly based on valid research and best practices. As reported here frequently, Commissioner of Higher Education Raymund Paredes has often called for a "complete overhaul" of developmental education.

The plan will utilize a recent appropriation of $5 million to fund grants for "demonstration projects that focus on broad systemic reform of developmental education in community colleges." Two-year schools will be invited to submit proposals. Also participating are Texas State University-San Marcos and the Gates Foundation.

Speaking to the Coordinating Board was staffer Tamara Clunis, who said the focus will also concentrate on faculty development, since instructors are sometimes unaware of new techniques that are currently producing results around the country. In order to qualify for funds, schools must focus on the board's stated goals. Curriculum "redesign" and a "module" approach to instruction tend to be more effective with the targeted population, Ms. Clunis stated.

Below is the background information provided by board staff for the agenda on this item:

Coordinating Board (CB) staff seek approval of a long-range plan to improve the effectiveness of developmental education in Texas. The Coordinating Board will leverage its partnership with the new doctoral program in developmental education at Texas State University-San Marcos and the recently funded Developmental Education Initiative with the Gates Foundation to help execute the proposed long-range plan. The proposed plan will focus on four strategies:

Developmental Education Demonstration Projects

The core strategy for the long-range plan is to fund several demonstration projects that focus on broad systemic reform of developmental education in community colleges. The projects will implement innovative strategies based upon best practices in developmental education to improve access, acceleration, and success of students placed into developmental education coursework. Through rigorous evaluation models,
these projects will help the CB determine the effectiveness and scalability of these initiatives around the state. The key program elements for the demonstration projects will focus on:

• Assessment and placement
• Academic advising
• Differentiated instruction
• Faculty development
• Program evaluation
• P-16 alignment

Professional Development

This strategy will focus on improving the preparedness of developmental educators. In the January 2007 report of the State P-16 Council-Developmental Education Subcommittee, recommendations were made to address the inherent weakness of the professional development delivery system for Texas developmental educators. The subcommittee reported that developmental education professional development is lacking in availability, quality, and relevance. Teacher quality has a direct impact on student outcomes.

Technical Assistance to Institutions

This strategy will work in tandem with the comprehensive demonstration projects. This effort will focus on providing professional or management advice and training provided by state and national experts in developmental education and organizational development.

Program Excellence

The CB’s Strategic Plan for Texas Public Community Colleges calls for institutions to Close the Gaps in Excellence by obtaining national recognition for programs and services. Under this strategy, community college districts will be encouraged to seek national recognition for developmental education programs.

Coordinating Board Meets Today

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board conducts its quarterly meeting today in Austin. As always the agenda is lengthy. At this particular meeting, there will be much discussion of the new laws enacted in the most recent Regular Session of the Texas Legislature, which adjourned on June 1. The Closing the Gaps initiative, enrollment statistics, and agency funding issues will also be discussed. A link to the entire agenda is provided below, but here are a few of the items that pertain to community and technical colleges:

• Accelerating Latino Educational Achievement
• Update on the Federal Stimulus Funds
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation for approval of nominated members of the Formula Funding Advisory Committees for 2012-2013 biennium
• Consideration of the Commissioner’s recommendation relating to adopting amendments to Chapter 13, Subchapter F, Section 13.104, of Board rules concerning the formula funding for public institutions of higher education for certain credit hours that do not count toward a degree, as required by Texas Education Code, Section 61.0595 (d) (H.B. 101 and S.B. 1343, 81st Texas Legislature)
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation relating to a request from North Central Texas College to hold a branch campus maintenance tax election in the Graham, Young County, Texas Independent School District
• Consideration of adopting the Commissioner’s recommendation relating to amendments to Chapter 4, new Subchapter M, Sections 4.215-4.218 of Board rules concerning notice of the availability of higher education textbooks through multiple retailers, as required by Texas Education Code, Section 51.9705 (H.B. 1096, 81st Texas Legislature)
• Consideration of adopting the Commissioner’s recommendation relating to the amendments to Chapter 4, Subchapter E, Section 4.105, of Board rules concerning the approval of distance education, off-campus, and extension courses and programs for public institutions and Chapter 9, Subchapter H, Section 9.144, of Board rules concerning Partnerships between Secondary Schools and Public Two-Year Colleges as required by Texas Education Code, Section 130.008(d) and (d-1) (H.B. 2480, 81st Texas Legislature)
• Summary of compliance notification resulting from institutional effectiveness evaluation of associate degree-granting institutions
• Discussion of the Quarterly Update on College Readiness Initiatives
• Consideration of adopting the staff recommendation relating to the Statewide Developmental Education Plan
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation to the Board relating to the report on Financial Aid for College Students in Texas, Fiscal Year 2008 (H.B. 1, General Appropriations Act, Rider 13, page III-49, 80th Texas Legislature) 
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation relating to amendments to Sections 21.121, 21.126, and 21.131 of Board rules, concerning the Texas B-On-Time Loan Program 
• Consideration of adopting the Commissioner’s recommendation relating to amendments to Section 21.29 of Board rules, concerning Determination of Resident Status and Waiver Programs for Certain Nonresident Persons (H.B. 4244 and S.B. 297, 81st Texas Legislature)
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation relating to the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act funds to colleges and consortia for Basic Grant, Tech-Prep, and Leadership activities for program year 2009-2010
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation for requests for applications regarding the Developmental Education Demonstration Projects, Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation to purchase services through a contract regarding the Community College Developmental Education Initiative, Fiscal Year 2009
• Consideration of adopting the Committee’s recommendation for requests for applications regarding P-16 Regional Councils, Fiscal Year 2010

Here's the full agenda, which includes some active links with more information on some of the topics listed above.

Here's the Coordinating Board Web site, which includes a link to watch and listen to the meeting. 

Deadline for Benefits Changes is Friday

The annual July benefits enrollment period is coming to a close. If you don’t need to make any changes to your state employee benefits, then it is not necessary for you to attend a fair, send in a form or call the Employees Retirement System, according to the agency in a recent post. The ERS administers the benefits plan for Texas higher education faculty and administrators. Your current elections will continue in the next plan year (September 1, 2009 - August 31, 2010). It's important to remember that co-payments, deductibles, and other cost adjustments are determined by the ERS Board, based on revenue provided by the Texas Legislature. 

If you have changes for Plan Year 2010, you have until 7:00 p.m. on Friday, July 31, to make your selections using ERS OnLine. (Your school may have a preferred method to handle changes in coverage, so before making changes online, it may be best to check with the college HR department.)

ERS has produced six online tutorials to show you how easy it is to use ERS OnLine for your Summer Enrollment changes. Click here for the lessons and step by step information.

This link provides a great overview of health benefits, life insurance, and dental coverage that is available through ERS.

Do Good Teachers Make Good Administrators?

"Not necessarily" is probably the safest answer to this question. But the subject is intriguing, since quite a few deans, presidents, and chancellors began their careers in the classroom. TCCTA recently concluded its annual "Leading from the Middle" conference, which is partly directed toward faculty members who are at least considering a move into administration. Most professionals in both categories would likely agree that teachers and administrators must be good communicators, but after that the similarities tend to dissipate. We have all known gifted instructors who became less-than-stellar supervisors, and successful administrators who have great difficulty in the classroom. There are exceptions, of course.

David D. Perlmutter, an administrator at the University of Iowa, has written a thoughtful piece on the subject, concluding essentially that teaching and administrating require discrete talents. It's in the July 24 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription), on the back cover. Some of Dr. Perlmutter's points are more applicable to research universities, but many apply to any academic setting, including a community college.

Here is his conclusion:

In sum, while a good professor and good administrator may very well inhabit the same body, the two endeavors demand different qualities, as well as similar ones. Sometimes those differences chafe: Gather together professors, and complaints about managerial boorishness, incompetence, and scheming frequently froth up. Convene administrators, and tales of lazy, irresponsible faculty members soon erupt. Both narratives have a basis in reality but can spiral into permanent suspicion and antagonism. No surprise that the mood on some campuses is one of confrontation, especially in an era of flat or falling resources and difficult fiscal choices.

But a university divided against itself will no more prosper or even survive than a cleaved house or country. In the years to come, as higher education faces greater challenges, our two mind-sets must, if not converge, at least attempt to understand each other better. Learning about and accepting our differences, and agreeing on what constitutes excellence in our separate vocations, are good places to start.

Virtual College of Texas Profiled

Many community college faculty members are unaware of the Virtual College of Texas, a consortium of two-year schools providing distance education in all sorts of subjects. Through VCT, students may register at their local colleges to take credit and non-credit courses from other colleges throughout Texas. 

Here's the Web site.

As reported here earlier, President Obama recently proposed $500 million in spending for the development of online classes to serve more community and junior college students. Not surprisingly, VCT has taken particular interest.

Ron Thomson, director of the VCT (and a frequent presenter at TCCTA conferences), was recently interviewed by Texas Government Insider, a weekly publication of Stategic Partnerships, Inc. The article provides a good introduction to the operations of VCT.

Below is the entire article:

Students across the state are going the distance as more elementary through college-age students opt to learn from home. Distance learning has taken on more recognition in the past 10 years. President Barack Obama just last week proposed $500 million in spending for the development of online classes to serve more community and junior college students.

"Our ears perked up over that," said Ron Thomson, director of the Virtual College of Texas (VCT), a consortium of all accredited, public Texas community and technical colleges. "It's a very recent initiative," he said, "so we don't have a firm plan (to apply for any grants) yet."

The VCT, the largest collaboration of higher education institutions in the state, has revolutionized distance learning for Texas students attending two-year colleges. The program, headquartered and overseen by Thomson and an assistant at an Austin Community College campus, offers online classes utilizing a host-provider model, which other states have adopted.

"Students enroll at a local host college, but instruction will actually come from another (provider) college online," Thomson said. "In some ways it's sort of like leasing an instructor."

All accredited two-years colleges in the state are members of VCT by default, according to Thomson.

"There are 41 institutions that are eligible to host courses," he said. "Of course, the number doing it at any one time can vary."

VCT is most often sought by students who need to take a course or two to graduate on time, especially in instances when a needed class is full or cannot be offered because of scheduling conflicts. The VCT can step in to offer the course online from a different host institution.

Common core courses such as history, English and government are most often sought by students enrolled in VCT, Thomson said.

"Math and science courses are taught less frequently through distance learning. Labs present a challenge, for example."

But there are ways around those obstacles.

Thomson said he knew of an Anatomy & Physiology instructor who mailed feline cadavers to students to dissect at home for a lab assignment.

"So a student could have dissected a cat on the kitchen table."

Other students opt to take a majority or all of their classes online. The biggest user of VCT is Texas State Technical College in Harlingen.

"There are about four or five colleges that are huge users of VCT, where the program has played a major role in distance learning," Thomson said. "The remainder of the institutions use it as a pick-up program."

Conceived by the Texas Association of Community Colleges (TACC) in 1996, the VCT has expanded the means by which students learn. The program, still governed by TACC, boasts more than 34,000 course enrollments since it became operational in 1998. Host institutions are required to be accredited by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Other institutions are implementing distance learning to combat Texas' growing nursing shortage.

The University of Texas at Arlington School of Nursing has announced an innovative distance education Bachelor of Science Nursing (BSN) program, sure to expand the number of new graduate registered nurses in Texas. Classes are slated to start this fall.

Dr. Beth Mancini, School of Nursing associate dean, said the program addresses "a Texas solution for a Texas problem.

"This new approach to nursing education provides an effective strategy to produce competent new graduate registered nurses at our hospital partner sites across Texas," she said.

Distance learning isn't limited to higher education, however. It's also changing the way elementary and secondary students learn.

Texas Tech University Independent School District (TTUISD) - an accredited elementary, middle and high school diploma/distance learning program - recently celebrated a major milestone with a record number of full-time students enrolled.

Established by the State Board of Education in 1993, TTUISD's current enrollment reached a record high of 1,796 students this year, marking a 29 percent increase from the previous school year. The district comprises 1,447 high school students, 230 middle school students and 119 elementary school students.

So as distance learning increases in stature and scope, it will be sure to serve working students and those with special needs.

"I got a phone call from a student, a single mom, who had completed all but one class she needed to go into the health science field," Thomson said. "She told me there was no way possible she could have graduated on time without VCT.

"She felt like she got a good deal."

TRS Explains Prospective Contribution Rate

Active members of the Texas Teacher Retirement System are urged to read the July Newsletter, "TRS News," which has recently been distributed by the System office. A link is provided below. The front page contains an explanation of the impact of SB 1, the General Appropriations Bill passed by the recent Regular Session, upon the state contribution rate for TRS members. 

It's complicated, and related to a prospective "13th check" for current TRS retirees and the potential outcome of a ruling from the Texas Attorney General. Bottom line: The rate was lowered to 6.4 percent for the next biennium, but could go up to 6.644 percent if the AG rules that the "13th check" is unconstitutional. The rate is currently 6.58 percent.

The legal issue is whether the supplemental payment can come from General Revenue rather than the System fund. Presumably the fund is not allowed to enhance retiree benefits unless it is actuarially sound, which it is not. As noted earlier, it may be a long time until the fund is healthy enough to consider any enhancements.  

Here's the germane language directly from the newsletter:

If the attorney general rules favorably, a one-time supplemental payment will be paid to TRS retirees who retired on or before December 31, 2008 and who are eligible for a December 2009 annuity payment. The supplemental payment would also be payable to certain beneficiaries receiving continuing payments and certain other annuitants (e.g., an alternative payee under Section 804.005, Government Code). The supplemental payment would be equal to the lesser of the gross amount of the annuitant’s December 2009 annuity or $500.

According to the legislation, the supplemental payment would be paid from the State General Revenue fund rather than from the TRS pension trust. Because of the source of funding, the supplemental payment is contingent “upon issuance of an attorney general opinion that indicates that the payment is constitutionally and statutorily permissible.” If the attorney general concludes that the payment is permissible, TRS would assist the Comptroller to issue the supplemental payment in early January 2010.

In addition to the above-mentioned supplemental payment, Senate Bill 1 provided for a 6.4% state contribution rate to the TRS pension trust and a 1% state contribution rate to TRS-Care, the TRS retiree health care program. If the attorney general concludes that the one-time supplemental payment to eligible annuitants is found not to be permissible under Texas law, then the general revenue funds approved by the legislature for that purpose will instead be deposited into the TRS pension fund, effectively raising the state contribution rate from 6.4% to 6.644%.

The entire newsletter is available online from TRS here.

An earlier post introduced this topic as well as recent changes in the Optional Retirement Program. Here's the link. 

Comparative Funding Data Available

If you want to know how your school will fare regarding appropriations for the 2010-11 biennium, a couple of updated charts are available, courtesy of the Texas Association of Community Colleges. The numbers are the result the most recent Regular Session of the Legislature and based on the contact hours generated during the most recent "base year." Funding is determined by enrollment and aggregate costs of specific programs. Links are provided below.

Formula funding for community and technical colleges for the next biennium rose significantly to $1.84 billion. Not surprisingly, the relative results can be interpreted using at least two valid measurement tools. For instance, the appropriation per contact hour for 2010-11 is $7.11. In 2008-09 (funding for the current biennium) the rate was $7.05. However, the new instructional formula amount represents 48 percent of the “full formula.” In 2008-09 it was 51 percent.

The state budget was helped considerably this year by the infusion of federal stimulus funds to all states. Although Congress enacted restrictions on how the money can be used, the boost relieved financial stress in all areas of the budget. Presumably this “cushion” will not be available in future Sessions, causing concern among Capitol observers about the outlook for 2011.

Here's a chart on community college appropriations. Each school is listed.

Here's the updated chart on contact hours.  

HCC Profiled on NPR for Global Outreach

It's getting hard to keep track of all the national publicity about community colleges these days. As noted in previous posts, the media has started paying attention to two-year schools. Mostly it's driven by the recession and the need for workforce training to help those who are newly unemployed. Also, the proposal of the Obama Administration for new programs directed toward community colleges has generated a great deal of coverage.

Recently on NPR's "Morning Edition," the program profiled the increased enrollment by students from foreign countries at Houston Community College. The school has the highest percentage of international students of any community college in the U.S., according to the segment. Students in India, for instance, hear about HCC from friends and relatives and often go to great sacrifice to get there, navigating the immigration laws, and finding a way to come up with the money. According to the piece, "foreign students pay Houston Community College three times as much as local residents." Viet Nam is another important source of students at the school. 

Here are a couple of passages from the NRP Web site:

Even if there were ivy on the walls of Houston Community College, it would wither in the Texas heat. The drab buildings of the school's Gulfton neighborhood campus are typical community college architecture, but that doesn't scare anyone away.

And: 

The school does not recruit directly overseas, officials say. But the school ensures word of mouth will spread the school's name, thanks to the development of Saigon Tech in Vietnam. This privately run school is the brainchild of a former student who returned home with the dream of starting a community college-style school for his countrymen.

Houston Community College helped the school develop an approved curriculum, and today, it is "the only Vietnamese school that is fully affiliated with an American community college, fully accredited," says Gigi Do, who is in charge of HCC's international efforts.

Try Teaching Naked!

Well…without computers. It's the title of an article profiling José A. Bowen, a dean at Southern Methodist University, who has challenged his colleagues to teach without the aid of machines. Professors who remove high-tech gear from their classrooms stand the best chance of keeping students engaged, he believes.

Dr. Bowen is especially critical of PowerPoint, which, he says, students find boring, based on a number of surveys. He maintains that the classroom should be a place for discussion and collaboration. Students can get the customary (and often dreary) information that is normally presented in PowerPoint slides online in outside assignments. He says colleges should focus on the pedagogical advantages of personal contact with students, or they will lose the competition with online schools, which offer such material conveniently.

Here's a passage on Dr. Bowen from the July 24 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education by Jeffrey R. Young:

He's not the only one raising questions about PowerPoint, which on many campuses is the state of the art in classroom teaching. A study published in the April issue of British Educational Research Journal found that 59 percent of students in a new survey reported that at least half of their lectures were boring, and that PowerPoint was one of the dullest methods they saw. The survey consisted of 211 students at a university in England and was conducted by researchers at the University of Central Lancashire.

Students in the survey gave low marks not just to PowerPoint, but also to all kinds of computer-assisted classroom activities, even interactive exercises in computer labs. "The least boring teaching methods were found to be seminars, practical sessions, and group discussions," said the report. In other words, tech-free classrooms were the most engaging.

Dr. Bowen also has a video. Here's the link.

For background on the controversy surrounding PowerPoint as a tool of instruction, visit this site. 

Saying "Maybe" to New Technology

Faculty members must make tough decisions on when to include new technology in their syllabi and course presentations. Questions abound about whether a new device or software program will work the way it is supposed to. Experienced instructors often have a low-tech backup plan, in case of an unforeseen problem. Then there is the matter of cost—to the institution and to students.

Rob Weir, in the "Instant Mentor" section of Inside Higher Ed., has some practical advice for those in the classroom, to help avoid buying a "pig in a poke." He points out examples of past advances in technology (CD-ROMs, for instance) that haven't proved as beneficial as advertised, and urges teachers to stay somewhat behind the curve when a new development hits the market. The advice is worth a look, as we get ready for a new academic year. Mr. Weir is a history instructor.

An interesting passage:

I like gadgets, so I probably use more technology than most history professors. I travel with a mini laptop, illustrate all of my lectures with photos, use Web pages and clips, create video lessons, set up blogs, have robust Web sites for my classes, and have worn out scanners and digital cameras. But some of the most dynamic teachers in my department seldom get more high tech than using an overhead projector. At the end of the day, good teaching is about the person, not the delivery system.

Here's the entire essay, available for free.