Program Format, Objectives,
and Methodology 

Program Format  

CORD's professional development programs are customized for educational institutions and tailored to fit the needs of faculty. In addition to hybrid programs that combine face-to-face instruction with online activities, CORD offers:

• Site-Based Workshops:  Face-to-face workshops delivered on-site at your location and tailored to the needs of your district or consortium

• Online Courses:  Six-week seminars for community college faculty

Program Objectives 

During CORD professional development programs, participants learn:

• Innovative teaching strategies that blend academic concepts with workplace applications.

• Why teaching abstract concepts through concrete experiences enhances your students’ ability to learn and retain.

• How to motivate students through group learning experiences.

• Classroom management techniques that keep actively involved students on task.

• How to effectively assess and “grade” contextual learning achievement

Contextual Teaching Methodology  Read more... 

CORD's professional development programs are designed to enable participants to implement contextual teaching, a proven methodology that reaches a broad cross section of learning styles. CORD advocates the five elements of the "REACT" strategy for contextual teaching across the curriculum:

• Relating—Learning in the context of life experiences
• Experiencing—Learning through exploration, discovery, and invention
• Applying—When concepts are presented within the context of their use
• Cooperating—Learning through the context of sharing, responding,
  and interpersonal communication
• Transferring—Using knowledge in a new context or situation