Wednesday America’s Perfect Storm: The Challenge to Higher Education and California Community Colleges Irwin S. Kirsch, ETS Dr. Kirsch will discuss ETS’ recent report America's Perfect Storm: Three Forces Changing Our Nation's Future, which examines the convergence of three powerful sociological and economical forces that are changing our nation's future: substantial disparities in skill levels, seismic economic changes in the form of widening wage gaps, and sweeping demographic shifts with primary growth among groups that have traditionally attained lower educational levels. Dr. Kirsch will address the role that U.S. education can play in responding to this crisis. Note: to download right (or apple) click and go to "save target as.." Thursday Counting and Recounting II Lee Shulman, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching How do individuals learn? How do institutions learn? And what is the relationship between these two? Numbers and narratives intertwine in ways that help us understand how a learning institution can support the learning of all involved-- students, teachers, administrators, staff—so that it can do its work more effectively in the world. Note: to download right (or apple) click and go to "save target as.." Terms of Engagement: Understanding and Achieving Student Engagement in the Community College Classroom Elizabeth Barkley, Foothill College w/ a special introduction by K. Patricia Cross Concern over student engagement has become central to conversations regarding quality in higher education. But what does ‘student engagement’ mean in community colleges? And once we know, how do we achieve it? This classroom-based perspective offers analysis and strategies drawn from Barkley and Cross’ forthcoming book, Student Engagement Techniques: A Handbook for College Faculty Part 2 Note: to download right (or apple) click and go to "save target as.." Friday Access Without Support is Not Opportunity Vincent Tinto, Syracuse University Innovative two and four year higher education institutions have modified their practices to better serve their students. Tinto will share the results of a four-year study that focuses on nineteen of these innovative institutions. The findings shed light on the types of academic and support services students need to be successful in college and by extension the types of practices colleges need to adopt to provide opportunity to the academically under-prepared students they serve. Part 2 Note: to download right (or apple) click and go to "save target as.."