LBCC Automotive Technology Program Review Spring 2005

Transcription

1 LBCC Automotive Technology Program Review Spring 2005 We welcome your suggestions to help increase student learning and success. Please visit to review the many links referred to in this printed document. If you have questions about our program or this program review contact: Phil Krolick (541) Standard #1 Instruction is based on content/performance standards linked to industry requirements. a. Competencies/performance standards or content/performance standards are derived from valid and reliable information (industry standards) based on current technical requirements of the workplace. Use of "National Skills Standards" or comparable references are also used, when available. The Automotive Technology department is in the process of certifying with the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation (NATEF). It is NATEF policy that the task list developed by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) serves as the basis for the NATEF task list. Panels of technical service experts from the automotive service industry and vocational education are called upon to develop and validate the ASE and NATEF task lists. This task list was last updated in Specific details on how our classes address each NATEF competency task item is available in NATEF Standard 6.5 b. The competencies/performance standards include "workplace readiness" requirements. Students are prepared for the workplace in a variety of ways. One is through conducting our lab classes in a manner similar to what they will encounter in the workplace. Specific examples of how our lab classes prepare students for the workplace are in NATEF Standard 6.15 All of our program outcomes have been developed to answer the question "What does a person need to do to be successful in this field?". To develop these program outcomes we used a group of Automotive repair business owners and working automotive technicians. Here are details on our program outcomes. Our goal is to prepare students for success in the workplace. Students completing either the AAS degree or the 2 year Certificate will take SP100. This class covers: JOB APPLICATIONS - RESUMES - JOB SEARCH STRATEGIES AND EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOKS - COMMUNICATING IN A CULTURALLY DIVERSE WORLD AND SOCIETY - LISTENING AND CRITICAL THINKING - NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION - DEVELOPING TELEPHONE SKILLS - INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEWS - RESEARCHING A PROSPECTIVE COMPANY - CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND NEGOTIATION - ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION - INTERVIEWING SKILLS - PRACTICE EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS (ON CAMERA) - EVALUATING THE INTERVIEWS - WRITING A THANK YOU LETTER The description above was copied from the course outline for SP100

2 c. Health and safety requirements pertinent to the program are included in the content performance standards. "Practice safety precautions, to protect yourself, vehicles and the environment" is the first outcome for the Automotive Technology department. A complete description of how we address this issue is at NATEF Standard 6.8. Reviewing of any of our Course Outlines will illustrate the emphasis upon safety in our classes. Standard #2 Assessments products are used to determine student competence/proficiency. a. Assessment products (e.g., tests, checklists, work samples) are used to determine the extent to which students are achieving content/performance standards. Competence with each of the NATEF tasks are recorded for each student. The completed task sheets are available for review in the Automotive Technology program office. Sample NATEF Competency task sheet Each course has a variety of ways to assess course outcomes. This is described in each course outline or course outcome guide. We have recently begun to use the End of Year NATEF tests designed to measure each student's knowledge of course content typical for an automobile technician training program. End of Program test questions are written by technicians and secondary and post-secondary automotive instructors at workshops facilitated by NATEF. In the year our students piloted the NATEF tests with the following results: 85% success rate for Steering and Suspension 93% success rate for Brakes 100% success rate for Electrical and Electronics 91% success rate for Engine Performance 100% success rate for Engine Repair b. Student assessment products allow for modification to accommodate special population and protected class students. The Office of Disability Services is available for students with documented disabilities. Through this office students can take written tests in the Takena Support lab that is staffed to provide a variety of test accommodations appropriate for that student. With class sizes limited to 16 students per instructor there is ample opportunity for students to work with instructors to develop or modify assessment instruments appropriate for their individual needs.

3 Standard #3 Instructional methods and strategies selected by the program faculty are appropriate for all students. a. Instruction is adaptable to learning styles and the abilities of all students enrolled in the program. The primary factor that allows our department to adapt to individual learning styles and abilities is the student instructor ratio of 16:1. With this ratio, and the availability of an instructional assistant, we are able to provide individual instruction when necessary and remain aware of each student's progress. b. Integrated skill development is based on rigorous academic and performance standards. This is addressed and documented with our NATEF certification standard 6.7. c. Instructional materials are presented at the comprehension level for all students enrolled in the program. Instructional materials are diverse and overlapping. This link goes to a listing of the textbooks we currently use. We recognize that our textbooks may be at a level of reading comprehension that will challenge some of our students. To overcome this challenge we rely upon multimedia classroom presentations and extensive hands-on learning experiences. Each instructional classroom is equipped with a multimedia station that allows instructors to use PowerPoint presentations and video to supplement the material that is covered in the text. PowerPoint presentations are made available to students to use as a study aid either in print, copied onto a student CD, or posted on the web. The primary strategy to provide instructional material at a level accessible to all students is an emphasis upon hands on learning through extensive lab activities guided by the NATEF task list. d. Additional and supplemental services are available and provided for special population and protected class students. Any Automotive student may request a tutor through the Learning Resource Center. Automotive faculty recommend a student who demonstrated strong skills in that class to act as the tutor. We also routinely recommend note takers to help students with identified disabilities through the Office of Disability Services. Our faculty are prepared to work closely with Lynne Cox from the Office of Disability Services should we need more extensive supplemental services.

4 e. The learning environment is free of gender, racial, or other bias and stereotyping practices or barriers. Every attempt is made to provide a welcoming learning environment for all students. One option that students have should they feel uncomfortable or discriminated against is the electronic suggestion board linked to the Automotive home page as Suggestions. This allows any student to submit a completely anonymous suggestion or comment about our program. Once submitted the suggestions are routed to the department chair and discussed at department meetings. Starting this year we are working with Kelly Donegan, the Outreach & Retentions Specialist for Non-Traditional Careers. She is conducting a survey of our "non-traditional" female students to discover how we may better serve this population. This statement appears on the Automotive Technology Planning Guide that we distribute advertising our program. "It is the policy of Linn-Benton Community College that there will be no discrimination or harassment on the grounds of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital and/or parental status, religion, national origin, age, mental or physical disability, Vietnam era or veteran status in its programs, activities or employment. Employees and other people having questions about equal opportunity and non-discrimination should contact the Human Resources Office. Students who have questions should contact the Dean of Students." Standard #4 Students participate in school-to-work experiences. a. A significant portion of all students in the program participate in some form of school-to-work experiences which support students' goals related to job entry or further education. There are three avenues that students participate in school-to-work experiences. The first involves using customer vehicles for our lab-oriented classes. Classes find students repairing vehicles that must continue to perform reliably once the lab project has been completed. The value of live work, as opposed to relying upon mock-ups or trainers, is the student awareness of how their work impacts the customer. Not only are students motivated towards attention to detail and correct repair procedure, they practice the automotive technology program outcomes. Attention to safety, especially towards the vehicles that they are working on, is enhanced. Students are less likely to worry about these details when working with a training mock-up. Students are very concerned about potential damage to a customers vehicle. In addition, students must practice effective communication with team members, and customers through the preparation of repair estimates, obtaining approval for repairs, documenting the purchase of parts and repairs on work orders, and explaining to customers the nature of completed repairs. It is our philosophy that students are most likely to learn a professional manner when caring for a customer owned vehicle. The second way for students to experience realistic school-to-work experiences is in the CWE or Career Work Experience. In our program students may earn credit towards the Associates of Applied Science degree, or the Two-Year Certificate by working in the automotive industry. Typically students take advantage of this option during the summer quarter.

5 The final avenue for all students in the program to experience realistic school to work is through the Service and Repair class. The Course Outcome Guide shows how students practice a variety of live vehicle diagnostic and repair experiences with the added challenge of comparing their own performance against the industry standard flat rate repair times. b. The curriculum is based on a foundation of rigorous academic and technical competencies to meet industry standards which include real-life application and hands on experiences through clinical rotations, Cooperative Work Experiences, or similar arrangements. The explanation for standard 4a above illustrates our emphasis upon real-life and hands on experience. Academic rigor is addressed with the related instruction of writing, math, speech, cultural diversity & global awareness, and Science Technology & Society. In addition we evaluate student performance with industry standardized testing through the National Automotive Technician Education Foundation. In the year our students piloted the NATEF tests with the following results: 85% success rate for Steering and Suspension 93% success rate for Brakes 100% success rate for Electrical and Electronics 91% success rate for Engine Performance 100% success rate for Engine Repair c. Additional and supplemental services are provided for special population and protected class students pursuing a school-to-work experience. Our department is committed to the success of each student. Should we not have the resources or knowledge to create a supportive environment for a special population or protected class student we can rely upon the Office of Disability Services. Standard #5 Facilities, occupational tools, equipment, and learning materials or their representation allows all students to achieve rigorous academic and technical competencies. a. Facilities, tools, equipment, and materials are available to support achievement of rigorous academic and technical content standards or competencies. The quality of our facilities, the quantity and appropriateness of our tools, equipment, and materials are being evaluated against the industry standards set forth by NATEF. A complete evaluation of our tools, equipment and materials is available at LBCC NATEF Standard 7. Our facilities are explained in LBCC NATEF Standard 8. Facilities, occupational tools, equipment and learning materials can easily be reviewed with a tour of our department. b. Facilities, tools, equipment, and materials meet health and safety regulations. Safety is a critical concern for our program and is our #1 Program Outcome. A thorough accounting of our emphasis upon safety is available at NATEF Standard 6.8. Each year a representative of the campus safety committee completes a thorough inspection of our facilities and issues a report identifying potential hazards. Here are the Safety Inspection Reports for March 2005, March 2004, June 2003, August 2002.

6 c. Facilities, tools, equipment, and materials are or can be modified for special population and protected class students. This college, and our department, is committed to open access for all students. We have the resources of the office of disability services at our disposal and the creativity of all our staff to address the special needs of any student. d. The equipment, tools and work-related procedures and processes taught in the program are industry-current. The entire NATEF certification process is designed to ensure that we are current with the needs of the automotive service industry. This report is full of references to how we comply with the NATEF standards. We have an active Automotive Advisory Counsel that meets at least three times each year to ensure our program meets the needs of the local Automotive Service industry. In the school year we completed an extensive Employer Survey to assess our performance and identify areas for improvement. We also complete a graduate survey to assess how our program met the needs of former students and to suggest areas for improvement. This link goes to the results of our Automotive Technology Graduate Survey. e. Instructional materials in good working condition and meet industry standards. This standard is extensively reviewed in NATEF Standard 3. f. Journals/trade publications or other audio-visual materials are current and available to students in the program area or college library. This link goes to an accounting of available journals and trade publications. This link documents the availability of audio-visual materials. Standard #6 The program participates in an ongoing review process to assure industry standards are maintained. a. The program review process is planned and conducted on a regular schedule. The Automotive program is scheduled for an internal program review every three years. The NATEF certification process is on a five year cycle with and extensive review conducted by the advisory counsel half way through this 5 year cycle. b. The process seeks information from employers and occupation specific professional/ trade associations. We have an advisory counsel consisting of independent automobile repair business owners, automobile dealerships, professional automotive technicians and former students, that meets three times a year to review the automotive program. The development of our program outcomes came from members of the automobile service business community, and the Northwest Automotive Trades Association. Faculty from our department regularly attend the local chapter of the Northwest Automotive Trades Association.

7 c. Industry/business partnerships complement career awareness activities. We have recently met with representatives from Toyota Motor Sales to explore the option of incorporating the Toyota Technical Education Network (T-Ten) into our program. Randy Smith, our Advisory Counsel Chair and owner of RGS Auto and Marine, is active in speaking to high school students during career awareness activities. d. Recommendations on program content, delivery, current tools, equipment and processes and procedures are received on a regular basis from business, industry and labor representatives through advisory committees and other collaborative efforts. A review of the Advisory Counsel Minutes will address this standard. A recent Employer Survey also provided recommendations for program content. Standard #7 Qualified instructors and planned instruction/activities are available for all students to support attainment of rigorous academic and technical competencies. a. The scheduling of the program and general education courses allows students to complete the program of study in the number of quarters displayed in the current college catalog. The suggested sequence for the automotive program of study is available on-line for the AAS Degree and Certificate. This same sequence is outline in our Program Map. Students who place into the appropriate writing and math classes can complete the degree or certificate in a two-year period. Students needing pre-requisite coursework to place into the required writing and math classes may still complete the degree or certificate if they can attend summer classes. Students with lower academic skills are advised to plan on longer than the two year time frame. b. Additional and supplemental support is available for special population and protected class students. Each year, on the first day of classes, we hold an orientation for all students outlining the extensive student support services available. At this orientation each student receives a printed copy of this on-line reference to Student Services. Included in this orientation are references to the Learning Center and the Office of Disability Services. Students who are having difficulty with success in our courses are individually advised on how to best take advantage of these college services. In addition we strive to keep instructor to student ratios at 16:1. This is primarily a safety issue for the lab but also allows for individualized student support from our automotive staff. Angie Klampe, from the Career and Counseling Center is also available to help any of our students to take advantage of the many student services available at LBCC. c. The ratio of instructor(s) to students in the programs (classroom, lab, clinic, shop) is appropriate for the type of learning experiences provided. When a class involves extensive and structured lab activities the class size is limited to 16 students with the instructor having the option to overload the class by 2 students.

8 d. The ratio of instructors (and instructional assistants where appropriate) to students in the lab, clinic and/or shop is appropriate for safety considerations. A full time instructional assistant is available for all lab classes. This effectively lowers the instructor to student ratio. A typical day in the lab will find 32 students working with 2 instructors and 1 instructional assistant. This works out to a student:instructor ratio of about 11:1. e. Instructors are qualified to teach the courses assigned and have the necessary program-related education, training, skills and experience for those courses. The qualifications of our instructors and instructional assistant are detailed in NATEF Standard 9. f. Faculty regularly participate in professional development activities to maintain and enhance their knowledge, skill and teaching effectiveness. Details on technical professional development are available in NATEF Standard 9.3. Each of the Automotive faculty are members of the North American Council of Automotive Teachers and have attend their annual conference, on average, every two years. This week-long NACAT conference focuses upon advancing effective instructional practices in the field of Automotive Technology. In 2004, Phil Krolick completed a Master of Education in Adult Education from OSU. Standard #8 An agreement is in place between the college program and area high schools to support and maintain 2+2 articulated programs. (COLLEGE NOW). A. In support of the K-12 education reform, the program faculty meet regularly with area high school representatives to develop and maintain 2 articulation agreements which allow high school students to learn college credit in program courses (college now) leading to the certificate or AAS degree. We have articulation agreements with Lebanon High School, South Albany High School and West Albany High School. R J Ehlers, and more recently Bryan Schieldler maintain contact with the local high schools. Bryan Schiedler worked with the NATA, Crescent Valley, Corvallis and Philomath High Schools to open a regional automotive training center at Corvallis High School. This involved many meetings over the course of last school year and the program is up and running for the school year. B. The programs participate in high-school career awareness activities and/or other related events (skills contests, campus/program tours, VICA competition). We host an annual automotive skills competition involving written and hands on skills testing. This year we had 18 students from 3 high schools participating. In 2002 and again in 2003 we hosted the state VICA competition for high schools and community college participants. Randy Smith, our Advisory Counsel Chair and owner of RGS Auto and Marine, is active in speaking to local high school students during their career awareness activities.

9 We participate each year in the High School Youth Job Fair and the High School Counselor Workshop. In addition we offer an Automotive Tech Academy that is a one-credit class for high school students interested in a career in Automotive Technology. In the past this has been in the summer. This year it will be held on Saturday mornings through the month of April. Standard #9 Programs are offered based on local, regional, state labor market statistics and forecasts demonstrating employment demand. A. The program faculty is knowledgeable of current local, regional and state labor market demands for graduates of the program and of forecasts of future demands for graduates. Official statistics on the labor market are available through the Oregon Labor Market Information System. This link demonstrates the strong labor market specific to automotive technology in Benton, Lincoln,and Linn counties. On-line support for finding employment is made available to our students through this Employment Opportunities link on the Automotive Technology website. For the "total job openings are projected to be much higher than average". B. Procedures and processes are in place involving business, industry and labor representatives to identify emerging labor market skill needs and modify programs to meet those needs. Regular meetings of the Automotive Advisory Counsel is one procedure we use. An Employer Survey is a second process to identify emerging labor market skill needs and provide some guidance to modify our program to meet those needs. Our Graduate Follow-Up Survey is also helpful in identifying the needs of those recently employed in this field.