By Laura Castillo
Pulse Staff Reporter

Palo Alto College students are doing just that in a "Learning Community," which combines World Literature I and World Civilization to the Fifteenth Century into a mega class.

Professor Karen Marcotte, History, Humanities and Interdisciplinary Studies professor, and Dr. Mary-Ellen Jacobs, English instructor, are team-teaching this first-time effort. The idea of a Learning Community was discovered at a conference meeting two years ago. "The idea was sort of gleaned off of other colleagues," said Marcotte.

"The material taught flows together," said Yvette Vasquez, sophomore Education major at Palo Alto. "The literature relates to the history."

Vasquez is one of seventeen students who meet every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for two hours. The class is arranged in a circle to maximize communication. Students have bonded and one of the reasons for this is keeping a journal, which students exchange with each other. This helps students get to know each other and feel comfortable during discussion.

Raymond Haley, a sophomore Environmental Engineering major, described the Learning Community's method as "interaction and entertainment." The main goal of starting the program is to "enhance student learning and the connection of both subjects," said Marcotte.

Amalia Martinez, sophomore Education major, said that she is able to communicate with her children better over material that her kids are covering in school. "It enriches you to know who you are and where you came from," said Martinez.

Another student, Chuck Charles Teas, a sophomore Education major, described the class as being "a different learning situation with two professors, interaction, and a fresher view." The teachers also benefit from the Learning Community, because they have the chance to learn with the students.

Students in the Learning Community go on field trips that serve as visual components to the texts being taught. The class recently visited the San Antonio Museum of Art after finishing Egyptian history and literature and Meso-American text. Aside from the trips, the students participate in other school activities and will have an end-of- the-semester activity.

Marcotte and Jacobs said that they are "still feeling our way." They are looking to find the right amount of structure without having the teacher as the lead figure at all times. For more information, contact Jacobs at 921-5046 or Marcotte at 921-5035.