Wayne Community College has been recognized for extraordinary participation in a pilot adult learner mobile application program.
The college’s Transitional Programs for College and Career (TPCC) was awarded $1,000 for the highest total of learner hours in the fall 2018 semester using an innovative Learning Upgrade mobile application.
WCC TPCC was one of 50 programs across the country to take advantage of a no-cost license that the Coalition on Adult Basic Education provided to its members. That license allowed WCC students to be enrolled in courses using the new apps.
“English as a Second Language Coordinator Maria Abalo-Zarate introduced it to our English Language Learner students and it was a huge success,” said Lynn Rabhan, TPCC director. “It allows the students to work on assignments whenever they have the time.”
Rabhan reported that the college won the “Learning Upgrade Launch” competition due to its 5,399 total lessons completed and 1,653 total learner hours on the app. Seventy WCC students completed app lessons and earned 39 certificates.
Consensus among the students who used the app was that it made their studies more interesting and easier and they want to continue using it. One student noted that “because of my work schedule, I can only attend class one day a week. This program helped me practice my English in my free time.” Another said that she liked that “the lessons are built in the form of a game and there is a lot of visual material.”
The Learning Upgrade mobile app features 960 lessons which learners can use on any device, including phones and tablets. Each of the lessons includes detailed instruction, rigorous practice activities, and remediation through spoken voice, animation, and text.
The Coalition on Adult Basic Education represents the system of 55,000 adult educators in the United States. One of its purposes is to advocate the development and dissemination of resources and programs in adult education and literacy.
Wayne Community College is a public, learning-centered institution with an open-door admission policy located in Goldsboro, N.C. As it works to develop a highly skilled and competitive workforce, the college serves 13,000 individuals annually as well as businesses, industry, and community organizations with high quality, affordable, accessible learning opportunities, including more than 70 college credit programs. WCC’s mission is to meet the educational, training, and cultural needs of the communities it serves.