10 Reasons to Pick a Community College

One of the fastest-growing and most important segments of the American college scene are community colleges, which enroll a 44 percent of U.S. undergraduate students. To find out what the main differences are between community colleges and four-year liberal arts institutions, Professor’s Guide blog invited George Boggs, president and CEO of the American Association of Community Colleges, to offer his thoughts. Dr. Boggs notes that with family budgets now under the microscope, community colleges have become attractive alternatives to the more expensive four-year colleges and universities, and offers the top ten reasons that nearly half of American undergraduates choose to start their higher education in a community college.

Building a High Quality Education Workforce suggests that state efforts to improve student achievement focus on workforce policies and practices, and on funding decisions that improve the quality of the education workforce. To do this, governors should consider a comprehensive human capital approach that strategically invests in teachers and principals and that, in turn, can improve student outcomes. This retooling of state and local systems for recruiting, training and retaining talent, should include setting or raising minimum-entry standards for teacher- and principal-training programs; improving such programs' emphasis on student achievement; and designing performance-based pay and professional career ladders.

According to the Data Quality Campaign’s newest report, there are ten essential elements of a longitudinal data system that can track student progress from preschool through college. The elements include a unique statewide student identifier; the ability to match individual students’ test records from year to year to measure academic growth; student-level graduation and dropout data; the ability to match student records between the P-12 and postsecondary systems; and a state data audit system assessing data quality, validity and reliability. The report reveals that only six states have all ten essential elements of a comprehensive data system, and that 48 states have at least half the elements. Despite progress, the report notes some areas where much work remains.

Fostering Learning in the Networked World, by the National Science Foundation Taskforce on Cyberlearning, argues that citizens in all fields need to understand how science and technology affect policy, business and personal decisions, and that the educational system must respond dynamically to prepare our population for the complex, evolving, global challenges of the 21st century. The report argues that cyberlearning has tremendous potential right now to meet educational demands because of powerful new technologies, increased understanding of learning and instruction, and widespread demand for solutions to educational problems. This report identifies directions for leveraging networked computing and communications technology, and calls for research to establish successful ways of using these technologies to enhance educational opportunities and strengthen proven methods of learning.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has released the third edition of Developmentally Appropriate Practice. This publication outlines NAEYC’s developmentally appropriate practice principles and guidelines for teachers and others in the field of early childhood education – that is, teaching practices that ensure that young children learn and develop to their fullest potential. The first of three distance learning programs to help early childhood educators understand and implement the new principles and guidelines is now available online.

Creativity, ingenuity and innovation are the keys to success in the evolving global economy. According to the Partnership for 21st Century Skills’ guide, many of the fastest-growing jobs and emerging industries rely on workers' ability to think unconventionally, question the herd, imagine new scenarios, and produce astonishing work. To prepare young people for work and life in the 21st century, educators must cultivate students' creativity. Students must learn how to imagine the unimaginable and hone their creative skills. According to creativity expert Robert Epstein, "creativity is at the heart of problem-solving. . . . If [teachers] help them develop creative competencies, they will be better equipped for the world."