Ed Lab Solutions

***HOLD FOR PATRICK SISON, EDUCATIONAL TEAM PROJECT***
Ricki Lee Korba, 23, is a chemistry and music major shown in her lab at CSU Bakersfield where she didn’t get credit for some of the community college classes she took because the university didn’t think they were comparable as lab aid Katie Nguyen works in Bakersfield, Calif. Friday, April 14, 2023. Korba has to retake all the lower-level chemistry classes she’s already took including an organic chemistry class that uses the same textbook. (AP Photo/Gary Kazanjian) CAGK110

May 1, 2023 at 6:00 am

‘Waste of time’: Community college transfers derail students

For community college students across the nation, the process of transferring credits to a university can be so daunting that many fail to ever earn...

Education Lab

Students Siari Rodriguez, left, and Crystal Baker use a pH strip to test the pH of common substances in their Chemistry 121 class at Everett Community College on Friday, March 10, 2023. A program called I-BEST that helps students who come into college lacking basic skills (science, math) learn those skills in conjunction with a degree program; without this, they’d have to go into some sort of remedial program before taking the degree-granting class.

April 24, 2023 at 6:00 am

How 2 instructors are proving better than 1 in a WA community college class VIEW

I-BEST, a community college program that pairs two teachers in the classroom to help students master basic skills while training for a job, has a...

Education Lab

Tennessee College of Applied Technology Nashville student Robert Nivyayo hammers repairs to his car during auto collision repair class Wednesday, April 13, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. While almost every sector of higher education is seeing fewer students registering for classes, many trade school programs are booming with young people who are choosing trade school over a traditional four-year degree. (AP Photo/John Amis)

April 17, 2023 at 6:00 am

Programs that train students in the trades are booming

Many young people choose to pursue short-term credentials over traditional college because they see them as a quicker and more affordable path to a good...

Education Lab

Oryanan Lewis heads to a class at Chattahoochee Valley Community College in Phenix City, Alabama, Feb. 23, 2023. She has an autoimmune disease and nearly had to drop out of community college due to sickness, but, through support, got back on track and is now finishing her second year of a medical assisting degree.

April 10, 2023 at 6:00 am

Academic coaches help students finish community college

Some Alabama community colleges are beefing up the number of counselors and advisors they employ to help more students finish their degrees.

Education Lab

HOLD FOR STORY Santos Enrique Camara, who dropped out of Shoreline Community College at age 19 in 2015 after completing one semester studying audio engineering, poses for a portrait outside his home Friday, March 24, 2023, in Marysville, Wash. Camara, now 27, had difficulty paying tuition and finding time to do schoolwork while caring for his younger sister. “I seriously tried,” he said. “I gave it my all.” For now, Camara is happy working as a sous-chef and cook at a local restaurant while planning a tour with one of his two bands. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) WALW118

April 3, 2023 at 6:00 am

‘The reckoning is here’: More than a third of community college students have vanished WATCH

Among those who do enroll in a community college, red tape and a lack of support are crushing their ambitions.

Education Lab

Whittier Elementary School teacher Kayla Cowen interacts with students, Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022 in Mesa, Ariz. Like many school districts across the country, Mesa has a teacher shortage due in part due to low morale and declining interest in the profession. Five years ago, Mesa allowed Whittier to participate in a program making it easier for the district to fill staffing gaps, grant educators greater agency over their work and make teaching a more attractive career. The model, known as team teaching, allows teachers to combine classes and grades rotating between big group instruction, one-on-one interventions, small study groups or whatever the team agrees is a priority each day. (AP Photo/Matt York)

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November 6, 2022 at 7:00 am

In one giant classroom, four teachers manage 135 kids — and love it VIEW

Schools in Mesa, Arizona, piloted a team teaching model to combat declining enrollment and teacher shortages. Now the approach is spreading.

Education Lab

Fatima Nunez Ardon, a teacher in training, teaches Spanish to second graders at Madrona Elementary School in SeaTac Wednesday, September 28, 2022.

Fatima went through a program at Highline College, a community college, to train to be a teacher. Having teachers do their coursework at a community college is relatively new and Washington is one of only a handful of states that allows it. The idea is to diversify the teacher workforce (community colleges serve more students of color), and train up more teachers. Fatima is working in the class as part of the program to finish her degree.

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October 6, 2022 at 5:00 am

WA community colleges helping solve teacher shortage by dramatically cutting cost of a degree

Prospective teachers can earn teaching degrees at nine Washington community colleges. The programs, all new, aim to solve a shortage of teachers in the state.