How Important is Quality Teaching and Learning within the Community College System and What Supports are Available and Effective in Promoting Quality Teaching?

Date
2017
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Abstract
The interconnection between teaching and learning in higher education has been the subject of academic investigation for some time. However, within the community college context, the efficacy of pedagogically trained instructors on student learning has remained an under-examined area of scholarly research. This study advances greater understanding regarding the importance of quality teaching within the community college system in Ontario and endeavours to explore how institutional policy and practices support or impede the promotion of quality teaching. A mixed methods sequential explanatory design was employed at a Toronto college in order to gauge the perspectives of participants in three sub-groups of the College strata: administrators, instructors, and students. A pragmatic approach was utilised from which multiple methods of data collection (i.e., semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and online questionnaires) were selected to exhaustively address the primary research question. Key findings revealed that formal instructor pedagogical education was perceived by the majority of participants as foundational to effective teaching practice, and that more comprehensive academic development was needed to improve both current practice and student academic achievement. Most instructors and students concurred that learner-centred approaches, both in class and in field placements, led to a deeper level of learning. From an institutional standpoint, participants also believed that college policy and practice were misaligned with respect to promoting quality instruction, and that greater strides towards this end were necessary. This study adds to the current instructor education discourse by providing impetus for institutional change towards the professionalisation of college instructors and also recognises the inextricable tie between instructor education and student learning.
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Education--Higher
Citation
Itwaru, S. (2017). How Important is Quality Teaching and Learning within the Community College System and What Supports are Available and Effective in Promoting Quality Teaching? (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/26391