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CONCURRENT SESSION I - Thursday, October 16, 2008 (11:30am - 12:30pm)

A1. Snaring the Gryphon: Creating the Prep Reading Hybrid
What strategies can you use to incorporate an online component into a typical, classroom-formatted reading class?  This workshop considers how to structure a hybrid prep reading class that addresses the common challenges faced by under-prepared students.  Participants will learn ways of activating what students already know, how to facilitate active learning, and to then synthesize what students have learned.  Attendees will also learn how to reconnect learning with a sense of play.

Presenter(s): Jean Marie Fuhrman, Professor, Valencia Community College

A2. Motivation “Got Salt?”
I hate math.  I’ll never be able to do this.  I don’t have time to study and do homework.  I did not cover that in my last class.  Sound familiar?  Then this session is for you.  This interactive session encourages participants to identify and share Strategies And Learning Techniques that motivate students - SALT.  The four critical elements that must be addressed to ensure that students learn are considered:  motivation, reinforcement, retention, and transference will be addressed. 

Presenter(s): Vanetta Grier-Felix, Professor, Mathematics, Seminole Community College; Barbara Lott, Professor, Mathematics, Seminole Community College

A3. Butterflies in My Classroom: Student Anxiety
While many students experience some degree of anxiety, the developmental student is especially at risk.  Panelists from a variety of backgrounds will engage the audience in a discussion that explores student anxiety associated with communication, math, and academic support services and consider its effects on the learning process.  Tools tools and strategies to help students manage anxiety will be shared.

Presenter(s): Anna Butler, Professor, Mathematics, Polk Community College; Richard Decker, Professor, Mathematics, Polk Community College; Donald Painter Jr., Professor, Speech/English and Department Coordinator, Polk Community College; Courtlann Thomas, Director, Academic and Student Support, Polk Community College; Lynda Wolverton, Professor, Reading and Education Developmental, Polk Community College

A4. Discover the Benefits of Using Interactive Software in Teaching and Learning Mathematics
Hawkes Learning Systems promotes grade improvement and motivates students to learn by providing tutorials, unlimited practice, helpful feedback given by artificial intelligence, and mastery-based homework.  Attend this workshop to discover the benefits of using interactive software in teaching and learning mathematics and view a demonstration of our state-of-the-art test generator, online gradebook and student courseware!

Presenter(s): Jordan Enzor, Technical Sales Rep, Hawkes Learning Systems

CONCURRENT SESSION II - Thursday, October 16, 2008 (2:30pm - 3:30pm)

A5. Bookmarks – Power – Making Connections with a Slip of Paper
Discover the unexpected power of throwaway bookmarks and learn how they can be used to inspire and assist struggling students towards success.  Discussion will focus on the research and learning theory behind “bookmark-power” and share unusual alternatives for building relationships with hard-to-reach students.  Examples of bookmark construction will be provided.

Presenter(s): Julia Erben, Assistant Professor, Reading, Gulf Coast Community College

A6. The Four Faces of Knowledge
The purpose of this workshop is to “get to the heart of the matter” with students who struggle in math.  This can be accomplished by first addressing the four major obstacles to mastery: poor study habits, lack of attention to details, presumptive understandings, and 'going blank'.

Presenter(s): Justus Frazier Jr., Professor, Mathematics, Valencia Community College

A7. Learning Communities for Students in Developmental Education: Research and Practice
Since 1995, Learning Communities (LCs) have been successfully implemented at Kingsborough Community College where s a national model for students with developmental skills needs has been developed.  During this session, the progression of LCs at Kingsborough will be reviewed.  Presenters will examine and address the data and findings from a MDRC study that demonstrates success on a number of indicators.  Participants will be encouraged to engage in a discussion to consider how this model might be adapted for their own institutions.

Presenter(s): Janine Graziano-King, Professor, English, Kingsborough Community College ; Rachel Singer, Director, Academic Affairs, Kingsborough Community College

A8. Using Campus-Wide Professional Development Research to Improve Student Success
The Academic Success Press, Inc. Consulting Team can bring professional development to your campus.  The Team consists of experts in the reading, writing and math, as well as placement, advising, counseling, and evaluation.   Attend this session to learn about workshops covering psychosocial attributes and learning behaviors linked to student success, learning strategies, coaching strategies, evaluation, curriculum design, and teaching and learning techniques to promote deeper learning in the classroom and independent learning out of the classroom.   Participants will receive a literature review of the research and review samples of reports completed by the Consulting Team.

CONCURRENT SESSION III - Thursday, October 16, 2008 (4:00pm - 5:00pm)

A9. Fun with Dick and Jane and Fibonacci: Critical Thinking in Developmental Math through Reflective Journals and Problem-Based Learning.
The importance of a strong writing component in a developmental mathcourse is critical to student success. Journals are one way that students can provide input on how well they understand the material,whether they are struggling with the concepts, and provide insights into students’ attitudes that plays an important role in their success.  Learn how instructors can read journals and give immediate feedback to students regarding attitudes and comprehension.

Presenter(s): Lynn Grinnell, QEP, Director, St. Petersburg College; Sandy Lofstock, Assistant Professor, Mathematics, St. Petersburg College

A10. Alive, Alert, Awake, Enthusiastic Learners
Alive, Alert, Awake, and Enthusiastic Learners!  Do you want to have alive, alert, awake, enthusiastic learners?  Have your lesson plans lost their zip?  Presenters will introduce and demonstrate different strategies to make areas of instruction come alive.  They will also demonstrate the benefits of using multiple intelligences in the content area that address all learning styles and modalities.  Hands-on strategies that help with paragraph division, general to specific sentences, jig sawing, and implied and stated main ideas will be presented.

Presenter(s): Sylvia Orozco, Professor, Reading Miami Dade College; Michael Vensel, Professor, Reading, Miami Dade College

A11. Reach Out and Teach Someone 2: Reinventing Feedback
Ever wonder if students really pay attention to/learn fromthe feedback we give? Can they decode it? Do they even look at it? RO, CS, Frag, and a variety of other codes are simply tools of our trade, but it is high time we traded themin on a technique that can reach out and teach this new generation. Learn to use FREE screen casting software to reinvent the way you communicate with students.Why give static, encrypted feedback when you could give dynamic, contextualized, audiovisual feedback that can be replayed on computers, cell phones, or iPods?

Presenter(s): James May, EAP/ESL Communications, Valencia Community College

A12. Reinventing Reading Courses with Newspaper-Based Instruction
In this interactive session instructors will learn how to reinvent their reading courses by using the newspaper to advance students' literacy and prepare them for state basic skills exit exams. Participants will use a number of innovative, active reading strategies with the newspaper to improve reading comprehension, support analytical thinking skills, and transfer these skills to content area materials. This newspaper-based reading instruction promotes and facilitates the transfer of comprehension skills to content-area texts, supporting the successful transition to college level courses. All comprehension strategies are research based and founded on the recommendations made by Reading Next and the report by the National Reading Panel.

Presenter(s): Debby Dodge, Director, Education; Julie Parslow, National Account Manager, USA Today

CONCURRENT SESSION IV - Friday, October 17, 2008 (8:15am - 9:15am)

B1. Engaging Students with Texts and Tests
In this workshop a variety of reading materials (articles, poems famous quotations, a course outline, bumper stickers and excepts from television) will be used to integrate several important goals of any college reading course: 1) to encourage students to read on their own for pleasure and to enhance their reading skills and vocabularies; 2) to stimulate critical thinking about what they are reading; and, 3) to prepare them for passing the final reading exam.  Discussion will focus on strategies to create the delicate balance between voluntary reading for pleasure and required academic reading, and how to experience the benefits of both.

Presenter(s): Gary Kay, Instructor, Reading, Broward Community College

B2. Technology, Student Engagement & Learning Styles
The presentation will consider learning styles, math anxiety, and how we can use technology to improve student enthusiasm and success in Intermediate Algebra courses.  Using technology, we will illustrate how software lends itself to various learning styles and facilitates the learning of masster concepts, addresses confidence issues and, in turn, lessens math anxiety.  

Presenter(s): Eva Allen, Assistant Professor, Mathematics, Indian River Community College; Bobbi Parrino Cook, Full Professor, Indian River Community College

B3. Tutoring the ESL Writer: Tools & Practices
This interactive workshop will demonstrate techniques, strategies, and various educational technologies that can be used to facilitate learning for ESL writers.  Practical strategies and techniques to be presented include assignment analysis, process modeling, and elaboration on patterns in the sentence, paragraph, and essay levels.  Participants will be encouraged to practice the strategies and interact with each other during this session.

Presenter(s): Iris Strunc, Coordinator, Educational Support Services, Okaloosa-Walton College

B4. Modeling Developmental Mathematics
Learn how to model developmental mathematics.  In this proposed and experimental approach, a pre-designed application is introduced to students and solved in stages of in-class activities and out-of-class projects with emphases on modeling, problem solving, critical thinking, collaborative group work, and communication using multiple representations.  By integrating such an approach, students’ appreciation of the relevance of mathematics, students’ understanding and transferability of concepts, success and retention rates are increased.

Presenter(s): Candy Hodges, Instructor Mathematics, Bethune Cookman College ; Rachid Ait Maalem Lahcen, Instructor, Mathematics, Bethune Cookman College

CONCURRENT SESSION V - Friday, October 17, 2008 (9:30am - 10:30am)

B5. Implementing Vocabulary Strategies Before, During and After Reading
During this interactive presentation, instructors will learn how to implement vocabulary strategies before, during, and after reading.  Various vocabulary strategies involving group work, visuals, and even the use of math to self-check answers, will be presented for each step in the reading process and the strengths and weaknesses of each approach considered.  Participants will have a chance to practice the strategies through group work and video demonstration and receive materials to use in their classroom.

Presenter(s): Sarah Ramirez, Instructor, Reading, Hillsborough Community College

B6. Start Right: Closing the Achievement Gaps
This session will describe how Valencia Community College used data focused on First Time in College (FTIC) students to develop a strategic plan for Valencia students to “Start Right”.  Information will be presented on the process for choosing to target developmental mathematics (pre-algebra, beginning algebra and intermediate algebra) gateway courses (Composition I, US Government and College Algebra) and strategies (Supplemental Learning (SL), Learning in Community (LinC) and Student Success Course Expansion) to close achievement gaps.

Presenter(s): Shelby Ballenger, Coordinator, Supplemental Learning, Valencia Community College; Christy Cheney, Coordinator, Communities LinC, Valencia Community College; Julie Phelps, Project Director, Achieve the Dream and Professor, Valencia Community College

B7. The Power of Play
Playing games encourages students to practice and master course material while physical activity provides students of all learning styles -- but especially kinesthetic learners -- a chance to absorb and retain knowledge in non-traditional ways which are optimal for active learning and retention.  Learn how a fun class can improve attendance and academic success and how making mistakes can be beneficial in a supportive learning atmosphere that encourages engagement, peer-camaraderie, and thinking on one’s feet (literally).  This workshop presents 5 easy-to-implement fun, interactive teaching methods which are rewarding for teacher and learner alike.

Presenter(s): Amy Baskin, Professor, English, Florida Community College at Jacksonville

B8. Stop! Calm Down! Think! Emotional Intelligence
Once the student is enrolled in our classes, which area predicts their success more, cognitive intelligence or emotional intelligence?  One school of thought rests with the Emotional Intelligence (EI) as having the greater influence. Although we know that emotions have an unmistakable impact on our students and on our classrooms, how to manage emotions is seldom discussed.  Understanding the components of EL must be central to our ability to manage a host of student behaviors.  This session will engage participants as they define EL and its components, measure their own EL levels, and discover tools and strategies that address student EL needs.

Presenter(s): Patricia Hare, Academic Dean, Brevard Community College