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FOCUS on Community College Success, 6th Edition

Dr. Constance Staley

  • Copyright 2023
  • {{checkPublicationMessage('Published', '2022-04-22T00:00:00+0000')}}
Starting At $77.95 See pricing and ISBN options
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FOCUS on Community College Success 6th Edition by Dr. Constance Staley
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Overview

Staley's FOCUS ON COMMUNITY COLLEGE SUCCESS, 6th edition, equips students with the tools and tenacity to succeed in college and beyond, including strategies that help them break through the special challenges of juggling school, family and work. Hands-on activities empower them to build the focus they need to cut through distractions, transfer to four-year colleges and achieve career goals. Updated with the latest research from academic journals and practical career sources, the 6th edition includes cutting-edge references to recent world events, while streamlined content emphasizes the skills today's employers seek. Students gain insights for practicing mindfulness, coping with isolation and mental health issues, managing money, conducting smart research, avoiding plagiarism, recognizing the centrality of diversity, developing strategies for online classes, coping with Zoom fatigue and more. Also available: MindTap.

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Meet the Authors

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Dr. Constance Staley

Constance Staley is a professor of communication and acting dean of the Graduate School at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, where she directed the First-Year Seminar Program for nearly 25 years. An award-winning teacher, Dr. Staley designs and teaches online courses (Professional Presentations), hybrid courses (Communication, Training and Consulting) and face-to-face courses (Conflict Management). Her works include a faculty training package, TEACHING COLLEGE SUCCESS, as well as the groundbreaking resource manual 50 WAYS TO LEAVE YOUR LECTERN. She also is the author of FOCUS ON COLLEGE SUCCESS and the co-author of FOCUS ON COLLEGE AND CAREER SUCCESS with Steve Staley. A well-known name in FYE circles, Dr. Staley is a leader in faculty development nationwide. During a three-year leave from the University of Colorado, she joined an East Coast Fortune 500 company to design and deliver its management and supervisory training. In addition, she represented the university as a Fulbright Scholar, teaching in the former Soviet Union. She earned a B.S. in education, an M.A. in linguistics and a Ph.D. in communication.

What's New

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  • NEW "START WITH WHY" FEATURES use accessible charts and statistics to illustrate why each chapter's content is essential -- providing student-readers with strong reasons why the material should be front and center in their college -- and eventually career -- experience. These features are highly current with convincing and memorable lessons that clearly show students what they stand to gain.
  • INCREASED DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION. Since the 1st edition, FOCUS ON COMMUNITY COLLEGE SUCCESS has been applauded for its emphasis on diversity and inclusion, and the 6th edition is updated with even more diverse images, quotations and examples so that all readers "see themselves" throughout the text's content. Written expressly for them, FOCUS does indeed champion the cause of all community college students.
  • COVERAGE ADDRESSES STRESS, ANXIETY AND ISOLATION. The seclusion required by recent worldwide events has led to feelings of isolation and discouragement for many. While textbooks cannot solve readers' psychological problems, FOCUS offers encouragement and productive strategies to help students succeed amid the struggles of everyday life.
  • ONLINE LEARNING AND TECHNOLOGY TIPS AND STRATEGIES help students succeed in any learning environment. As the pandemic propelled all learners into remote learning environments, it revealed many students are not well versed in strategies for success in online courses. The 6th edition offers insight for mustering the motivation to persist in asynchronous classes, coping with Zoom fatigue -- a well-documented reality -- in synchronous classes, on-screen reading, writing and speaking in a digital world and more.
  • STUDENT ALSO SHARPEN THEIR SOFT SKILLS. The 6th edition zeroes in on teamwork, communication, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, time management and creative problem-solving -- the essential skills needed to get work done in every industry. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, today's workers will have 12 different jobs by the time they're 50 years old, and that number is expected to go up. An emphasis on these durable skills ensures students are well prepared for wherever their careers take them. Connecting chapter content to students' intended careers is readily apparent throughout FOCUS.
  • A FOCUS ON "LEARNING TO LEARN" empowers students to succeed in college. In a speech to the World Economic Forum, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau encapsulated a complicated problem in a memorable sentence: "The pace of change has never been this fast, yet it will never be this slow again." Toffler's FUTURE SHOCK predicted: "The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." This principle is front and center in the 6th edition, which thoroughly equips readers to learn.

Features

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  • CREATED JUST FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS, this book honors the unique lifestyles and challenges they experience every day, such as balancing family, school and work, as well as living at home or on their own instead of in a campus dorm.
  • EXTRA EMPHASIS ON STUDY SKILLS, READING, WRITING, AND TEST-TAKING -- including skills required in digital environments -- is paired with a personalized learning system that emphasizes the four C's of coursework, giving students a clear path to success in any community college course.
  • STUDENT ENTRANCE AND EXIT INTERVIEWS make it easy for instructors and college administrators to measure and celebrate student victories, while solid research drives home the fact that a college success course can accelerate progress in the classroom and beyond.
  • FOCUS CHALLENGE CASES IN EVERY CHAPTER showcase real students experiencing big issues that can derail even the best and the brightest. Each chapter then provides practical strategies to manage the issues the students are facing.

Table of Contents

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Entrance Interview.
1. STARTING STRONG, BUILDING RESILIENCE.
Earning a Two-Year Degree. Academic Professionalism: What Instructors Will Expect from You. How to Help Yourself Succeed. Toughing It Out: What College Takes.
2. BECOMING MINDFUL, SETTING GOALS.
The "Three Ms" of College Success: Mindfulness, Mindset, and Motivation. Adjust Your Attitude. What Drives You? Values, Dreams, and Goals. How FOCUS Will Help.
3. LEARNING STYLES AND STUDYING.
Learning and the Brain. Take Charge and Create the Best Conditions for Learning. Multiple Intelligences: How Are You Smart? How Do You Perceive Information? What Role Does Your Personality Play? Metacognition: Take Charge of How You Study. Apply Your Learning Style to Your Study Style.
4. MANAGING YOUR TIME, MONEY, AND STRESS.
Time Management Requires Focus. I'll Study in My Free Time (and When Is That?). Schedule Your Way to Success. How Time Flies! The P Word. Read This Section Now! (or Maybe Tomorrow). Beyond Juggling: Realistically Manage Work, School, and Personal Life. Time Is Money! Choose Safe Stress.
5. THINKING CRITICALLY AND CREATIVELY.
Rethinking Thinking. What Is Critical Thinking? A Four-Part Model of Critical Thinking. Becoming a Better Critical Thinker. Creativity: "Thinking Outside the … Book".
6. LEARNING ONLINE.
The Basics of Online Learning. Research Skills and Your College Success. Information Literacy and Your College Success. Downloading Your Workload: The Easy Way Out?
7. ENGAGING, LISTENING, AND NOTE-TAKING IN CLASS.
Listening with Focus. Turn Listening Skills into Note-Taking Skills. Different Strokes for Different Folks: Note-Taking by the System and Subject. Ask and You Shall Receive. Using Lecture Notes.
8. READING, WRITING, AND PRESENTING.
Build Your Reading Skills. Read Right! Write Right! Writing As a Process. Deliver a Better Presentation: The Seven P's of Speaking.
9. MEMORY SKILLS AND TAKING TESTS.
The Three R's of Remembering: Record, Retain, Retrieve. Testing 1, 2, 3. Show What You Know. Before the Test: Prepare Carefully. During the Test: Focus and Work Hard. Don't Cheat Yourself! After the Test: Continue to Learn.
10. COMMUNICATING IN GROUPS, VALUING DIVERSITY.
What Is Emotional Intelligence? Communicating in Groups: Soft Skills Are Hard! Communicating in Important Relationships. Managing Conflict: Life Is Not a Sitcom. Diversity Makes a Difference.
11. CHOOSING A COLLEGE MAJOR AND CAREER.
What's the Connection? How to Choose a Major and a Career.
12. CREATING YOUR FUTURE.
Launching a Career: Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan. Continuing Your Education. Put What You've Learned to Good Use: Ten Things Employers Hope You Will Learn in College. What Ifs.
Exit Interview.

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Each MindTap product offers the full, mobile-ready textbook combined with superior and proven learning tools at one affordable price. Students who purchase digital access can add a print option at any time when a print option is available for their course.

This Cengage solution can be seamlessly integrated into most Learning Management Systems (Blackboard, Brightspace by D2L, Canvas, Moodle, and more) but does require a different ISBN for access codes. Please work with your Cengage Learning Consultant to ensure the proper course set up and ordering information. For additional information, please visit the LMS Integration site.

Standalone Digital Access — Ultimate Value

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  • ISBN-10: 0357792068
  • ISBN-13: 9780357792063
  • RETAIL $99.95
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Textbook Only Options

Traditional eBook and Print Options

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  • ISBN-10: 0357792114
  • ISBN-13: 9780357792117
  • RETAIL $77.95

  • ISBN-10: 0357792025
  • ISBN-13: 9780357792025
  • RETAIL $149.95
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Supplements

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Cengage provides a range of supplements that are updated in coordination with the main title selection. For more information about these supplements, contact your Learning Consultant.

FOR STUDENTS

MindTap for Staley's FOCUS on Community College Success, 1 term Instant Access

ISBN: 9780357792063
MindTap for Staley's FOCUS on Community College Success, 6th Edition, is the digital learning solution that powers students from memorization to mastery. It gives you complete control of your course -- to provide engaging content, to challenge every individual and to build their confidence. Empower students to accelerate their progress with MindTap. MindTap: Powered by You. MindTap gives you complete ownership of your content and learning experience. Customize the interactive syllabi, emphasize the most important topics and add your own material or notes in the eBook.