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course. The instructor’s sense of humor comes through
in this brief introduction, and you may feel a personal
connection to the teacher standing in front of you.

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The ALC Program is designed with an appreciation
for the individual teaching style of each faculty mem-
ber. Research and practice have provided educators
with evidence of indicators and characteristics of
effective teaching; but individual teachers translate
what they know about good teaching into their own
course content, their own style, and their own class-
rooms of students.

The ALC Program attempts to help instructors with
this translation by bringing together a supportive
group of peers to discuss ideas for the classroom and
materials for the Course Guide. Faculty members in the
ALC Program come from different disciplines at the
college, and the sharing of perspectives among the
faculty members provides insight into how a similar
problem is solved across disciplines. Through lively
discussion and group projects, faculty members begin
to consider new possibilities for engaging students in
the course content and for understanding the process
of learning from a student’s point of view.

Offered as a yearlong instructional development
program, ALC began with eight instructors from each
of the divisions of the college and has now, as a result
of their request, added a ninth member from adminis-
tration and staff. The ALC nine meet in seminars with
the two Faculty Coordinators to redevelop courses that
they plan to teach within a year’s time.

The ALC seminar begins at the close of the spring
semester with a four-day session introducing and
discussing the classroom equation, continues through
the summer with the preparation of Course Guide
materials, and resumes with the weekly seminars in the
fall. The fall seminars cover many areas of the class-
room experience. They provide a lively forum for
discussing teaching styles, learning styles, and critical
thinking skills; the rhythms of the semester and the use
of space within the classroom; the incorporation of
writing, collaborative learning, and interdisciplinary
and global issues; as well as time for sharing and group
critiquing of work in progress. By December, the
Course Guide is completed. The seminar reconvenes for
Occasional meetings during the spring semester as each
instructor pilots the Course Guide and the multitudi-
nous ideas that have evolved throughout the fall.

Donna K. Duffy, Associate Professor, Psychology
Janet W. Jones, Associate Professor, Humanities

For further information, contact the authors at
Middlesex Community College, Springs Road,
Bedford, MA 01730.

 

Suanne D. Roueche, Editor
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November 8, 1991, Vol. Xl, No. 27 INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),
©The University of Texas at Austin, 1991 Department of Educational Administration, College of Education, EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Further duplication is permitted by MEMBER 78712, (512) 471-7545. Funding in part by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W. Richardson Foundation. Issued weekly

institutions for their own personnel. when classes are in session during fall and spring terms. ISSN 0199-106X.

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