Revise the U 3 and 7 assignments below, integrate content from your U 5 assignment, and add 2–3 new pages according to the instructions below. Incorporate your original thinking into this assignment,

Running Head: EVOLVING NEEDS OF COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS 0

Evolving needs of Community College Students

Students Name

Institutional Affiliation

Evolving Needs of Community College Students

Historical Background

Community colleges were initially not distinctly identified on their own. Until the Clinton reforms of community colleges in the 1980s, community colleges were no different from junior colleges. The programs and organizational culture were not as developed, and the student needs were rarely attended to in the diverse way that they are today (Gavazzi et al., 2018). Students were assumed to be homogenous, with either a low economic background or substantially flat academic prowess. After the recognition and reinstatement as accredited institutions of merit, community college missions changed and became more student-centered.

The core programs were initially only vocational and for transfer to university purposes. Developmental education was not adequately developed, yet it contributed in a massive way to student retention and the student's ability to finish the program and progress to higher education. Community colleges have been very rigid in their approach to learning, governance, and even administration (Beach, 2011). Most of the changes that occur do not affect the entire institution but are marginalized to transform only a select few. These changes either influence a certain courses based on profitability or the trends in the business world, but rarely extend to other programs within the colleges.

Fiscal policies in community colleges are primarily dependent on the federal government because community college facilities are supposed to encourage the most economically disadvantaged. Tuition is very low compared to the capacity building needed to run the institutions, and the result is that the community colleges suffer from an ultimate shortage in the facility and consolidated programs that undermine the skill sets offered to the students (O'Banion, 2019). Traditionally this has been crippling the system’s ability to change the approach in which the curriculum, administration and governance is run.It creates a shortage of staff for capacity building purposes and an overall decline in the quality of education offered within the institution.

Current issues

Current issues relating to students' evolving needs include student performances that have been diverse depending on factors such as program choice. Programs in health sciences, for instance, have seen a very consistent high-performance culture that has been aided by the level of competency that the students in the courses (Fugle & Falk, 2015). About 98 percent of the students in classes such as a physician assistant, physical and occupational therapy, radiologic technicians, and nursing assistance have seen a very high return on investment in terms of their absorption into the workforce or their progression into baccalaureate degrees.

Social sciences have seen a drop in retention, although enrollment has been high. Most students in the arts and humanities suffer the same fate. The demographics for the students range in terms of age, immigration status, ethnicity, race, gender, and other social characteristics (Latiner & Valeau, 2019). These factors play a huge role in how much value they attach to their degrees, performance, and abilities to complete the programs they chose. Unfortunately, community colleges have been portrayed in the media as crisis institutions with diverse missions that are unclear and unfocused. In return, the students are unable to define their career objectives and consequently, future impact in the workforce.

Innovations and Trends

Innovations in community colleges to make it more student-centered and attend more intricately to the needs of students include the implementation of a more sophisticated method of instruction. Teaching instruction has become one of the ways that community colleges have innovated means of learning that are more applicable and, in some sense, reduce costs. Computer-based and computer-assisted instruction programs, which include online education and associated resources, have made it easier for students. Some students, who are unable to attend community colleges physically participate online and receive instruction and assessment at the same level as other students (Hovliaras, 2012). Besides, this method is reproducible and, therefore, cheaper to implement. With budget constraints in community colleges' funding, the technique has been most effective in providing quality education. Student enrollment has, therefore, increased significantly over the years.

Budgetary allocations

Student based focus in community colleges is mostly dependent on the resources available to implement the various models of instruction, curriculum implementation, as well as support. It is not an easy task to evaluate the factors associated with community college learning. The highest cost would be research and data collection for the students in all the values associated with them. The information required includes the data related to their identity, test scores, language, economic background, and state of being. To address the evolving needs of students, sophisticated methods of data collection that are holistic are necessary to allow the college to make amendments based on a specific student's needs.

For instance, most community college students are not entirely students abut are workers engaging in schooling during their free time. Most students in community colleges are already working in a job to enable them to supplement their needs. Such information is vital in designing the curriculum and identifying how the community college as an institution can provide support. Another example is the age difference in community college students. Unlike universities, community colleges have a more extensive age demographic ranging from mature adults in their 40s to young post-secondary graduates. This information is vital in determining how effective the learning instruction is to a particular student so that they are provided with good value.

Direct impacts on the comprehensive community college regarding the mission,

Community colleges have been portrayed by the media as institutions of crisis simply because they serve multiple missions within one. The numerous tasks vary from the very different caliber of students that attend the learning institutions. Traditional infrastructure and technology provided a one size fits all kind of curriculum that did not adequately meet the needs of the market. Community colleges have a wide array of missions that ultimately serve as institutions that bring equity and social justice.

The missions in the various programs identify this mission and prepare students on a level that should be on a competitive scale with other students around the world, not just America. President Obama made this clear at the Michigan Macomb Community College in July 2009 when he proposed that community colleges should credit more baccalaureate degrees and increase their merit so that the students are more able to find a place in the workforce. He also insisted on the students competing on a global market.

Finance

Per student allocations, n community colleges have been significantly low and call for action in the next twenty years. Contributions such as the Pell grant Section 101 of HR 3221 enables student allocations to increase in terms of stipends, allowances for books and supplies, and capacity building within the institution. Most community college students come from disadvantaged backgrounds whose goals are more oriented towards providing for families than educational progress. Consequently, this affects the retention rate of such students who depend on their jobs to finish their education. Whenever an opportunity for vocational work arises, such students comfortably prefer to quit school and pursue the financial benefit of employment. If such students have funds that alleviate some of the financial implications, they can be more interested in joining transfer courses and proceed to universities. Financial aid available is not enough to support such demographics, and community college fiscal policies need to reevaluate these options in their prospects.

Students

Students have many issues that dictate their ability to perform in a school environment. Many of these issues can only be addressed if the community colleges make a concerted effort to ensure that developmental education is available. Services such as counseling and crisis management should be a priority, especially with the economic crisis that is going on. Many students face an undeniable threat of dropping out due to financial distress. The value of delayed gratification that comes with an excellent educational pursuit should also be taught so that the discipline is more deeply ingrained in the students.

Teaching and learning

Teaching instruction should include specified learning outcomes and objectives. The content should be broken down into smaller, manageable dosages that are easily understood and learning tasks arrayed. Models of the presentation should also be elaborate, and feedback on understanding and performance should be engaging. Criterion tests also prove to be very central to understanding how well the instruction method has been received. Besides, a feedback survey on the methods of instruction applied is most beneficial.

In the next twenty years, student access to smartphones and personal computers will have primarily increased so that computer-assisted programs will be most effective in instruction delivery (Maneva-Sleimann & Asian Development Bank, 2015). The capacity of institutions in terms of high-speed internet and WIFI will be paramount to allow the real-time application of learning methods as well as to open up the students' minds to a vast array of knowledge accessible through internet resources. The colleges have no choice but to ensure that internet resource is continuously available, and no downtime or slow WIFI is experienced (Remington & Remington, 2012). Also, learning resource centers need to diversify their support to be useful. In class, activities will be reduced and replaced by online competent based studies that are more in learning colleges and learning communities. Student learning will need to enhance their creativity as well as involve relevant hands-on experience through programs that include actual businesses.

Governance and Administration

Governance in the next two decades will have to involve all stakeholders in the community. These include faculty staff, non-teaching staff, lecturers, parents, students, and business owners to ensure an elaborate system of all-inclusive governance. Incorporating a more organic rather than the mechanical operation of management will allow the students exposure to evidence-based learning (Gaulee, 2018). For instance, if community colleges enhance partnerships with various industry leaders in multiple fields, students have access to hands-on experience e and apprenticeship from the actual workers. This approach can expose them to a more applicable approach to learning. Also, external stakeholders such as the federal government have a role to play in accountability and providing value to students.

Controversies in the literature surrounding the comprehensive community college

Literature about the community college mission is mostly misunderstood. For instance, the media portrays community colleges as places where little real learning takes place and as a home for underachievers. Besides, community colleges are rarely acknowledged in literary forms as credible scholarly articles can be produced, and intellectual property can be patented. Student-centered community colleges are not adequately explained in literature except for a few articles. In most cases, the evolving needs of community college students have been overlooked and undermined. Fiscal policies that allocate state funds to community colleges lack credible criteria of allocation.

The community colleges' missions are not spelled out and sometimes are politicized based on the government in place. For example, the portrayal of the community colleges as institutions that offer baccalaureate degrees by President Obama in a way undermined the real mission of community colleges (Floyd, 2013). The portray of students in community colleges as post-secondary graduates are also wrong because the demographics suggest that eve adult learning occurs in community college on a very significant level.

Structural and procedural systems in many community colleges are being faced out, but this information is rarely in mainstream media. For instance, Manhattan Community College New York is one of the colleges invested in support groups that enhance developmental education in the institution. Short term programs like English teaching present the issue of comprehensive community colleges as 'shadow colleges' that have low academic merit. In this regard, comprehensive community colleges are undermined.

Conclusion

Comprehensive community colleges face a considerable challenge when it comes to the dynamics of improving the quality of education offered. Unfortunately, most of the control is not in the hands of the management of the community college. The evolving needs of students in community colleges require and elaborate strategic plan that can only be addressed by an all-inclusive approach to learning. The stakeholders’ in comprehensive community colleges need to address the circumstances that they face regularly and welcome novel ideas that move away from the status quo and revolutionize the way the community colleges are run. As a whole, the system needs to address the students' individual needs so that they can be equipped with the value that they can apply in their after school life. This move will now uphold the mission of community colleges in social justice and equitable wealth distribution.

For the evolving needs of the students to be met, a student centered approach must be encouraged. This survey will include diversified and intricate feedback from the students themselves. In addition, alumni students, already in the workforce should aid in providing feedback when it comes to how effective the teaching policies and instruction are. The instruction methods should continuously undergo reevaluation and updating to ensure that they are responding to the emerging needs of the versatile business world. Skills should also be modified accordingly.

Part 2

Discuss the progress of your topic, which areas did you feel that you needed more information

In the evolving needs of students, I lacked a distinct and elaborate system of determining the business world's needs in many subjects. I also had a difficult time packaging the recommendations on how to improve a very mechanical system. Most suggestions seem far-fetched because of the status quo. My difficulty arose from realizing how inflexible a system like a comprehensive community college is. In literature, opinions about community colleges are very diverse and confuse the audience. Most people generally have low regard for community colleges, which is evident in their writing, even if they are credible scholars.

The areas of my study that required more information include the actual data on the students that attend community college, which is unclear. In my topic, it was straightforward to identify the needs of college institutions, but a more compelling method of addressing the concerns is lacking. The evolving needs of students require a great deal of research into their behavioral tendencies, habits, and preferences. The institution's infrastructure largely groups the students into similar characters but does not identify and address the unique needs of students in community colleges.

Secondly, poor planning of the community college instruction was an issue and made it challenging to understand procedures that went into student-focused learning. Most colleges have a very rigid structure of governance that affects curriculum designs and makes it difficult for students to learn instruction to be more engaging and fun. Budgetary constraints also undermine the quality of capacity building within the institution. The level of progress to student-based instruction is not possible.

Thirdly, I realized that fundamental research on community college demographics is heavily flawed. The misrepresentation of students attending community college made it difficult for me to tell the students' exact needs. Very few articles paint the actual picture of the fiscal policy that is implemented in community colleges. Also, the budgetary funds allocated to community colleges are hard to follow due to the complex nature of the allocation budgets. The community college always had debts carried over that needed to be addressed, and maintenance and operational costs took such a considerable budget that there is very little to work within the end.

Part 3

What have you learned that you can apply immediately, personally, or professionally? What, if anything, is missing from this course to get the relevant experiences you are looking for?

I have learned that the inadequacies I see in community colleges are not really in my control but are complicated in their magnitude and dynamism. Therefore as a student, I must identify my personal goals and forge meaning in them. I have learned that the needs in that community can only drive a community, and innovation arises from the gaps created therein. The business community is facing new challenges in marketing and infrastructure. Therefore I need to be adaptable in such an economy so that I remain relevant. What this entails is an inbuilt thirst for knowledge and an expansion of my skill set to suit the needs of a changing world.

I have learned that most of the learning will only occur to the extent that I push myself in understanding as well as performance. I have learned that I have to ensure that all my learning objectives are achieved in a good time. I have learned that I have a personal mission to succeed regardless of the situation I am placed in life. Professionally I have learned that it does not only take an excellent education but also developmental learning is keen to retention in the workforce and for me to grow in my career. Cognitively, I need to understand the skills and apply them to real-life situations that will enable me to thrive.

From this cause, I would have loved to have an experience with other students in my course, in different institutions so that we can share notes on how inclusive or exclusive our learning culture is. I would have loved to encounter a more evidence-based practice of my study, as well. I firmly believe that it is essential to share ideas in an open forum so that the improvements can be made where necessary. I have also learned that personal dedication to a course always produces results, no matter how challenging the course is. I am grateful to my instructor for all the positive and negative feedback and look forward to applying my skill set in the real world. When all is said and done, I am grateful to be part of such a great endeavor.

References

Beach, J. M. (2011). Gateway to opportunity? A history of the community college in the United States. Sterling, Va: Stylus Pub.

Floyd,. (2013). Applied and workforce baccalaureates: New directions for community colleges, number 158. San Francisco, Calif: Jossey-Bass.

Fugle, G. N., & Falk, D. R. (2015). Laying Down Arms to Heal the Creation-Evolution Divide. La Vergne: Wipf and Stock Publishers.

Gaulee, U. (2018). Global adaptations of community college infrastructure.

Gavazzi, S. M., Gee, E. G., & Magrath, C. P. (2018). Land-grant universities for the future: Higher education for the public good.

Hovliaras, C. A. (2012). Savvy Success : Achieving Professional Excellence And Career Satisfaction In The Dental Hyg. Authorhouse.

Latiner, R. R., & Valeau, E. J. (2019). Handbook of Comparative Studies on Community Colleges and Global Counterparts. Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Maneva-Sleimann, B., & Asian Development Bank,. (2015). The role of community colleges in skills development: Lessons from the Canadian experience for developing Asia.

O'Banion, T. (2019). 13 ideas that are transforming the community college world.

Remington, N., & Remington, R. (2012). Alternative Pathways to the Baccalaureate: Do Community Colleges Offer a Viable Solution to the Nation's Knowledge Deficit?. Sterling: Stylus Pub.