Community college students: part-timers are less engaged.

RESEARCH AND COMMON KNOWLEDGE SAY THAT STUDENTS who are engaged with their school have a better chance at success. This is especially important at the community college level, where students are more likely to be juggling work and family along with their courseload. The Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) helps institutions track progress and evaluate and target areas for improvement.

"That's the major purpose of the survey," says Kay McClenney, CCSSE director. The survey focuses on engagement in the five areas of active and collaborative learning, student/faculty interaction, academic challenge, student effort, and support for learners. This year's survey shows a difference in the experiences between part-time and full-time students. Part-time students are less likely than full-time students to discuss grades or assignments with an instructor (40 percent vs. 51 percent), use email to communicate with an instructor (34 percent vs. 47 percent), or talk about career plans with an instructor or advisor (19 percent vs. 30 percent). McClenney points out the purpose of the survey is for individual schools to track their progress, because to see trends at the national level would take major changes at several colleges. "The usefulness of it depends on each individual school and how much they want to do," she says.

Bill Law, president of Tallahassee Community College (Fla.) and a firm believer in CCSSE, was part of the pilot program when he was in Texas in 2004. TCC used the survey results as part of its self-assessment during the accreditation process, he says. Law adds that the survey can help create "deep seated changes" in an institution. As an example, Law relates that TCC faculty were surprised when they scored low in classes requiring critical thinking. Over the course of the last two years 95 percent of the syllabi have been revised to highlight critical thinking. Law was pleased the project was faculty driven. He says one of the benefits of the CCSSE is that it provides faculty a tool to gauge student learning without judging any particular faculty member. Community colleges have to work hard to differentiate themselves and to engage students who lead "very busy lives," Law says. The CCSSE is a useful tool to help achieve those goals.