Face to Face

Described is the use of a team-based healthcare case activity in BIO205 Microbiology to strengthen student diagnostic reasoning, communication, collaboration, and evidence-based decision-making. Working in randomly assigned groups, students were tasked with diagnosing a patient case while operating within a fixed budget and justifying each selected task or test to a simulated attending provider. The activity required students to interpret emerging evidence, revise their plans, and submit a final diagnosis supported by specific findings.

This activity describes the implementation of a themed, experiential review day designed to reinforce nursing students’ knowledge and clinical skills prior to progression into the subsequent block of the nursing curriculum. Developed in response to student feedback, the review day was conducted in a laboratory setting and utilized a Harry Potter–themed framework to promote engagement, collaboration, and active learning.

Additional contributors to this include ALL volunteers across campus as well as the Open House Planning Group:

Laura Porritt

Angela Ho

Gerniah Liburd

Miyah Gaston

Nahum Cabrera Olivas

Tracy Tanner

Alissa Manzoeillo

This submission details the implementation and results of a Midterm Student Feedback (MSF) assessment conducted in Dr. Pargas' ESOL Level 2 class. The primary purpose of the assessment was to gain real-time insight into the factors that help and hinder student learning, enabling continuous pedagogical improvement within the current class term. The MSF was administered anonymously at the midpoint of the course using a three-question worksheet that focused on learning aids, barriers, and suggestions for improvement.

This assessment analyzed student mastery of three Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) across the sequential accounting courses (ACC111, ACC112, and ACC212) in the Associate of Business Administration (ABUS) program. Following new course designs and textbook adoption in Fall 2023, faculty embedded PLO assessments in Canvas to track learning progression.

The following also helped with planning and organizing this event:

Laura Porritt

Tracy Tanner

Alissa Manzoeillo

Gerniah Liburd

And the many........many.....many volunteers who participated.  Thank you!

This CATS presents an update on the implementation of Lab Write-Ups to foster and assess science literacy among lower-division chemistry students at EMCC. The Spring 2025 iteration aimed to provide structured, low-risk opportunities for students in CHM 130AA and 151AA to engage in discipline-specific writing, bridging foundational skills with expectations of upper-division coursework and professional life. Revisions included enhanced rubric criteria, clearer sentence starters aligned to learning outcomes, and refined peer review prompts.

This assessment focuses on supporting students retaking ALT 100: Academic Literacy Through Integrated Reading and Writing, a foundational course that prepares students for English 101. These students, having previously failed or withdrawn, faced a range of academic and personal barriers, including time management challenges, low confidence, limited access to technology, and gaps in literacy skills.

This study explores the implementation and impact of Objective Based Grading (OBG) in a college math classroom, inspired by insights gained from the Maricopa Student Success Conference. After adopting a structured grading approach that included two in-class Mastery Checks, a scale of 0 to 4 for individual concepts, and an emphasis on self-reflection, I observed significant improvements in student engagement and performance. Notably, the number of students seeking retakes on their own increased by nearly 300%, and average scores rose by 18% in Class 1 and 16% in Class 2.

With OPIE data from AY 22-23, MAT instructors have implemented instructional best strategies to improve student retention rates from Fall 23 to Fall 24.  To contribute to the EMCC Strategic Goal of increase college retention and persistence by reducing the within semester withdrawal rate from 16% to 14% by 2026, MAT instructors have implemented and documented (monthly) instructional best practices, as well as reported (monthly) the number of students retained in their courses.

The assessment of the game’s effectiveness was based on participant feedback, which was overwhelmingly positive. All participants rated their overall experience and engagement as excellent. Despite the high ratings for the format and interactive elements, there was variability in the perceived enhancement of knowledge regarding accreditation and assessment, suggesting areas for improvement in content delivery.

The necessity for the laptop checkout program became evident in the academic year 2019-2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic and students were required to complete the Spring 2020 semester online. The laptop checkout process was identified as a need by students who did not have the proper equipment to complete a course(s). The results indicated that the course completion rate of students who checked out a laptop is consistently close to students who did not check out a laptop.

Does additional prerequisite instructional time for the same instructional content have an effect up success in BIO201?  Do one of the four prerequisite options (BIO156 and BIO181 4 credit hours, BIO156XT and BIO181XT 5 credit hours) lead to better success in BIO201?  BIO, in conjunction with OPIE studied the results of student success when completing BIO201 and testing which of the four prerequisite options best prepared students for success.  The results of BIO201 were compared for students who successfully completed one of the four prerequisites.