| The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a community college's transfer and articulation protocols and transfer students' knowledge of and access to such protocols. This study examined the transfer experiences of 10 students who exited from a community college in a large urban city in the south and subsequently transferred to a mid-size, urban university in the south in 2005. Participants were preservice teacher education majors, who had completed at least one semester at the four-year institution. The methodologies used in this study included individual interviews and focus groups.; The major findings from the study indicate that six critical themes characterized the transfer process for preservice teacher education majors. They are: (1) preservice teachers had varied, specific goals and intentions for enrolling at the community college; (2) relationships with academic advisors seriously impacted preservice teachers' familiarity with the community college's transfer and articulation protocols; (3) preservice teachers credited the nurturing environment of the community college as adequately preparing them for the academic rigor at the four-year university; (4) preservice teachers possessed negative pre-transfer perceptions of the four-year university, which led to feelings of fear and intimidation; (5) preservice teachers developed coping skills and assumed a more self-assertive, self-directed posture in order to succeed at the four-year university; and (6) preservice teachers expressed regrets concerning relationships with academic advisors and not following through on the recommendations of advisors and instructors who encouraged them to take the Praxis I exam prior to transfer. The results of this study suggest that there are many nuances associated with becoming a full-time elementary or high school teacher, especially if one begins her/his educational journey at the community college. In recognition of this, community colleges should rethink and rework how the community college assigns academic advisors to preservice teacher education majors, the level of support it provides through efficient student services offices, and trained and knowledgeable faculty members and academic advisors. |
