Pre-Transfer Composition

The Letters Program has a long history of serving the needs of developmental students in its Reading, Writing, ESL,  and ACE classes. Beyond instructional programs, developmental students receive support from numerous campus services including the Career Center, Counseling, SAS, EOPS, Retention Services, and the Writing Center.

In an effort to serve these students even more effectively, the Letters Program formed a Developmental Skills Subcommittee in 2005 to identify and study developmental skills teaching methods and support strategies. The committee then developed a set of researched-based best practices to further support students in pre-transfer level reading and writing courses.

These twenty-one recommendations currently drive the work of the Developmental Skills committee.  Please visit the links for details of our recommendations and progress.

Portfolio Assessment

Workshop Materials

Improving Paragraph Development

Summary SLO & Strategies

Resources

Professional Journals, Organizations & Conferences

  • Journal of College Reading and Learning
  • League for Innovation in the Community Colleges

Articles, Books, & Pamphlets

  • Academic Senate for California Community Colleges. Issues in Basic Skills Assessment and Placement in California Colleges.
  • Adler, Mary and Eija Rougle. Building Literacy Through Classroom Discussion:Research-Based Strategies for Developing Critical Readers and Thoughtful Writers in Middle School.
  • Boylan, Hunter.  What works: research-based best practices in developmental education.  Boone, NC: Continuous Quality Improvement Network with the National Center for Developmental Education.
  • Bolarsky, Carolyn. Academic Literacy in the English Classroom: Helping Underprepared and Working Class Students Succeed in College. Heinemenn, 2003.
  • Bedford Bibliography for Teachers of Basic Writing
  • Intersegmental Committee of the Academic Senates of the California Community Colleges, the California State University, and the University of California.
  • Academic Literacy: A Statement of Competencies Expected of Students Entering California's Public Colleges and Universities. Sacramento: ICAS, 2002.
  • McCabe, Robert H. Yes We Can: A Community College Guide for Developing America's Underprepared. Phoenix: League for Innovation in the Community College, 2003.
  • Rouche, John E., Susan D Roueche. Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The At-Risk Student in the Open-Door College. Washington DC: Community College Press, 1994.
  • Stahl, Norman A., and Hunter R. Boylan.  Teaching developmental reading: historical, theoretical and practical background readings.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003.
  • Wilsom, Cynthia et al. Learning Outcomes for the 21st Century: Report of a Community College Study. Phoenix: League for Innovation in the Community College, 2000. 

Full-Time Faculty

Mary Gross
Office: Oceanside, Room 4608
760.757.2121 x6586

Kelly Hagen
Office: San Elijo, Room 602
760.757.2121 x7784

Luke Lambert
Office: San Elijo, Room 602
760.634.7825

Curry Mitchell
Office: Oceanside, Room T-311
760.757.2121 x6221

Tyrone Nagai
Office: Oceanside, Room T-314
760-757-2121 x6195

JahB Prescott
Office: Oceanside, Room 3618
760.757.2121 x6387

Jacob Strona
Office: Oceanside, Room T-112
760.757.2121 x6270