Published in partnership with the Washington Center for Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Education

First-year seminars and learning communities are two of the most commonly offered high-impact practices on U.S. campuses. The goals of these initiatives are similar: helping students make connections to faculty and other students, improving academic performance, and increasing persistence and graduation. As such, it is not surprising that many institutions choose to embed first-year seminars in learning communities.

This volume explores the merger of these two high-impact practices. In particular, it offers insight into how institutions connect them and the impact of those combined structures on student learning and success. In addition to chapters highlighting strategies for designing, teaching in, and assessing combined programs, case studies offer practical insights into the structures of these programs in a variety of campus settings.

The volume opens by defining common seminar configurations, goals, and course topics, drawing on national studies and institutional research reports. It also offers guidance in selecting a seminar model. The authors also address strategies for launching and administering the seminar and successfully managing change within the course. Broadly conceived, this first volume in the five-volume series lays the ground work for more in-depth coverage to follow.

Other volumes in the series:
Volume II: Instructor Training and Development
Volume III: Teaching in the First-Year Seminar
Volume IV: Using Peers in the Classroom
Volume V: Assessing the First-Year Seminar is out of print, but the publisher anticipates creating an eBook of the 5 Volume Set in late 2023.

Published in partnership with the Office of Student Engagement, University of South Carolina

For more than a decade, educators have focused on illustrating the effectiveness of educational interventions by measuring changes in grade point averages, retention, satisfaction, and participation. What such measures don't tell us is what students know or are able to do as a result of their educational experiences. Yet, this is the kind of data colleges and universities are increasingly asked to report by state legislatures, regional accrediting agencies, and a number of other stakeholders. Responding to this call requires new assessment vehicles that report success through the eyes of students using measurable learning outcomes for courses, programs of study, and cocurricular experiences. A Faculty and Staff Guide to Creating Learning Outcomes presents a framework for developing and assessing student learning outcomes in a brief, accessible format.