CERRITOS COLLEGE

First issue free, additional copies $1

WEDNESDAY

FEBRUARY 8 , 2012

WWW.TALONMARKS.COM

VOLUME 56, NO. 14

iTunes U helping Cerritos students

Enrique Rivera
News Editor news@talonmarks.com

Cerritos College, along with other colleges, has become a part of iTunes U. iTunes U is a service delivered by Apple that will facilitate the school to allocate digital videos and audio recording into the Internet or Apple products. This means that students can sync course content into their iPads or iPhones and look over a professors lecture over their devices. Dean of Academic Affairs Nick Real explained that he used iTunes U while he was instructing a class about computerassisted inspection using Verisure. iTunes was there to help us publish the videos we created for the class, he said. Real mentioned that some of his students were not actually able to use iTunes U. One thing that we did because not every student was able to connect to iTunes U, we also posted them [the videos] on YouTube. Theyre still on YouTube right now, he explained.

He also mentioned that some students It might hinder the students, they didnt like logging in to iTunes U because might not show up knowing that they they werent comfortable with setting up could possibly just go online and listen to an account, which is why he also moved it [the lectures], he said. some of his videos to YouTube. Lamas explains why going to class is They were supplements so that stu- more beneficial than just going over lecdents can watch it over and over again to tures on your own time and device. help them learn, he said. He said, There are some things that Students like Manuel Rodriguez, elec- you cover in class that you just cant learn trical engineering just by just hearing it major, thinks iTunes on your iPod. U is a good idea for C ommunications when hes on the go. major Samantha CarIf I had no way dona agrees with Lato get into a computer mas about class attenat the moment, Ill be dance. Scan to listen to an interable to download [the Going to class is lecture] pretty quickly still a big part of being view with Dean of Acaonto my phone, he a student, but it will demic Affairs Nick Real said. still be beneficial to be The iTunes U able to have it on your tool was designed to iPod for in some cases lengthen facultys inwhen youre not able to structional presence. make it to class, CarEnglish major dona said. Alonso Lamas sees a Real explained that negative side effect as his class didnt have http://bit.ly/wVTZsy far as class attendance much of an impact as to the iTunes U app. far as attendance.

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It didnt really affect attendance because my class was a night class and most of them commute from work since its a technical class, but for day classes, those students might be affected, he said. Assistant professor in the English Department Kolleen Higgins also thinks that the attendance subject would always be a big impact. I dont really think you can replace the classroom face-to-face experience, which is one of the problems we have with online courses, she said. Higgins continued with, the online classes are only as successful as the students want to be. Higgins doesnt think iTunes U is right for her class but thinks it would be good for a lecture based class. The iTunes U is just one of the ways that Apple is trying to benefit people in the educational side and not just for entertainment. iBooks is a similar app that some colleges started using to make textbooks easier to get and less heavier to carry for students. See iTunes U Page 2

Cerritos ready for student success plan set to take effect

Victor Diaz
Editor-in-Chief editor@talonmarks.com

Cerritos College is ahead of the curve in implementing upcoming statewide student success reforms, according to Dean of Academic Success and Institutional Effectiveness Bryan Reece. A reform package was adopted by the California Community Colleges Board of Governors on Jan. 9, which will implement changes to all community colleges in the state in regard to student success. Some of the plans that are to be put in place have already been implemented by Cerritos College, according to Reece. I think some colleges are going to be in a spot where they now look at the plan and now they start thinking about how to implement it; we have mature activities and projects that meet many of the goals in the success plan, he said. Statistics released by the college on Sept. 15 showed that student success rates have risen over the course of three years, ranging from 2008 to 2011. Student success increased by 3.9 percent, starting at 66.48 percent in 2008-09 to 70.4 percent in 2010-11. Retention rates also increased during the same timespan, beginning at 81.76 percent in 2008-09 to

84.07 percent in 2010-11, an improvement of 2.3 percent. The Counseling, Fine Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences Divisions were part of the increase in student success, increasing their success rates by 5.4 percent, 7.6 percent and 6.6 percent, respectively. One of the recommendations put in place by the task force is to increase college and career readiness within the K-12 educational system, with emphasis on helping high school juniors and seniors. According to Reece, Cerritos College is currently working with the ABC Unified School District in creating a system to prepare students for the colleges assessment tests. We did a pilot [program] last fall and students that took this course got higher scores on the assessment tests, on average, they jumped an entire course. For example, before, if they were assessing into Math 20, they were now assessing into Math 40. One recommendation that Cerritos is currently in progress of meeting is to require incoming students to declare a major at the time of enrollment. Reece said, The main idea here is to have every student make an educational plan, and with developing an ed plan, you have to declare a major. Instead of coming in here with no idea of what you want to do, come in See Student Success Page 2

Staff and alumni chosen for inaugural hall of fame class

John Gonzalez
Staff Writer john.gonzalez@talonmarks.com

Falcons enshrined: The logo for the Cerritos College Hall of Fame has been created. Six former members of the Cerritos College community will be induced on Apr. 12.

Courtesy of cerritos.edu

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Scan to listen to an interScan to view the final view with Bryan Reece report of the task force about student success rates

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Cerritos College will induct six members into the first-ever class of its Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame members include notable alumni and faculty members such as Ron Yary, Edward Bloomfield, Barbara Reinalda, Wally Kincaid, Jerry Roodzant and John Gallant. Multiple committees nominated and voted for who they thought was most qualified from a strict list of criteria. Inductees had to have been enrolled or working at the school, had to be retired, and had to have given back their time and services substantially to the school. After his professional football career ended, Yary

opened up a photography business with his brother and has taken pictures for multiple professional and collegiate teams. He has given back to the Cerritos College community by taking photos for all of the faculty and photos for the sports teams. Roozant has given back to the school, including a time when he gave one student a dental makeover so she could have a more professional look when she goes out to try and find a job. Bloomfield helps with tutoring and scholarships for all of the students on the Cerritos campus. He also donated some equipment and held a fundraiser after a faculty member got into an accident and his family couldnt pay for the medical bills. See Hall of Fame Page 2