Students practice important skills such as note taking, test taking, critical thinking, and time management, in the context of the other discipline-based courses in the community. In the seminar, students are also introduced to the technology skills and resources, such as e-mail, that they need to succeed in college and beyond. Other campuses look to learning communities to change students' attitudes toward the university community and the learning experience. On some campuses the work is connected to faculty development and efforts to change the way we teach undergraduates, particularly first-year students. Learning communities allow us to reorganize the college classroom to promote student learning.
Students learn best when they can make sense of what they are learning.
Taken as discrete courses, the only connection between college math and introduction to psychology is that both courses satisfy graduation requirements. But when the courses are linked as a learning community, the math teacher can use psychology journals as the context for studying statistical applications. Students gain a deeper understanding of the relationship of math to other disciplines and both the math and psychology instructors cover important units of instruction. Learning Communities, by providing for greater interaction among students, their peers and teachers, allow students to build the support relationships that they need to succeed in college. A critical relationship is the one forged between students and their teachers.