Basic Studies: A Description and Progress Report.

This is a description and a progress report of the Basic Studies Program at Tarrant County Junior College (Texas), a 1-year program in general education designed for students who rank in the lower quarter of their junior college class and who have experienced little academic success in the past. Communications, humanities, social science, natural science, career planning, and reading were the six study areas that were approached through interdisciplinary courses. Instructional teams of six (one from each study area) were responsible for a group of 100 students. Three such groups composed vertical teams; they used block scheduling. Courses emphasized the student's knowing himself, his environment, and his place in future society. Field trips, guest speakers, and team activities were facilitated by block scheduling. The program attempted to provide the student with a total environment. General conclusions show that Basic Studies students persist in college at a higher rate than do students with similar characteristics attempting the traditional remedial approach. Tables and figures are used to explain findings and reports of the three vertical teams are included. Appendices include a follow-up study of the Basic Studies experimental and control groups and a report of the student progress in the Basic Studies Program during 1968-69. (RC)