Promoting Access To Technical Education for Non-traditional Computer Informations Systems Students

信息技术（IT）行业存在劳动力危机。由于高等教育机构受过训练的毕业生的供应不能满足工业对工人的需求，全国、区域和地方的许多工作岗位都没有人填补。这对IT专业人员和技术人员的迫切需要需要创新的教学解决方案，将扩大和多样化的IT劳动力。这个为期三年的项目的目标是保留和毕业的非传统社区学院（两年制）的IT学生谁是失去了外地，因为他们被疏远，恐吓或排斥传统的IT教学方法和文化。应用科学和工程教育学的最新研究成果，该项目创建和评估旨在为非传统IT学生工作的教学方法，而不是针对他们。该项目为学生创建教育材料，为教师创建专业发展材料。这些活动包括：-制定和实施一项新方案，评估信息技术学生的个性和学习风格，并根据评估结果提供咨询;-制定和提供新课程，将替代学习策略纳入主要的信息技术入门课程;-制定和建立针对非传统信息技术学生的特别讲习班和研究/支助小组;以及-发展及举办工作坊，协助资讯科技学院的教职员学习及推行针对目标人口的另类教学策略。非传统资讯科技学生的预期成果如下：- 提高学习成绩;-增加信息技术专业的保留率; -增加信息技术专业的人数;以及-提高毕业率。信息技术教师的预期成果是：-对各种学习方式的更积极的态度，-增加对替代学习方式的知识，以及-实施替代教学策略。该项目将在第三年在另外两个社区学院进行测试。该项目的成果包括：-两门信息技术入门课程的非传统课程; -非传统学生的学生评估/咨询方案; -非传统学生成功讲习班;以及-协助教师为非传统学生制定教学战略的讲习班。

PROJECT SUMMARYA workforce crisis exists in the Information Technology (IT) industry. Many jobs go unfilled nationally, regionally and locally because the supply of trained graduates from institutions of higher education does not meet industry's demand for workers. This urgent need for IT professionals and technicians requires innovative instructional solutions that will expand and diversify the IT workforce.The objective of this three-year project is to retain and graduate non-traditional community college (two-year) IT students who are being lost to the field because they are alienated, intimidated or excluded by traditional IT teaching methods and culture. Applying the results of recent research in science and engineering pedagogy, this project creates and evaluates instructional methods intended to work for non-traditional IT students, instead of against them. This project creates educational materials for students and professional development materials for faculty. The activities include:- developing and implementing a new program to assess personality and learning styles of IT students and a program of advising based on that assessment;- developing and delivering new curricula incorporating alternative learning strategies into key introductory IT courses;- developing and instituting special workshops and study/support groups aimed at non-traditional IT students; and- developing and delivering workshops to assist IT faculty to learn about and implement alternative teaching strategies for the target population.Expected outcomes for nontraditional IT students are: - improved academic performance;- increased retention in IT; - increased numbers of IT majors; and - improved graduation rates.Expected outcomes for IT faculty are: - a more positive attitude toward a variety of learning styles,- increased knowledge about alternative learning styles, and - implementation of alternative teaching strategies.The project will be tested at two additional community college sites in Year 3. Deliverables from this project include:- the non-traditional curricula for two introductory IT courses; - the student assessment/advising program for non-traditional students; - the non-traditional student success workshops; and - the workshops to assist faculty in developing teaching strategies for non-traditional students.