Students: English 100 class at WNC offers support, more credits

Are you thinking about enrolling in college for the first time or returning to school after many years but are afraid to take the leap? You are not alone. English 100 is ideal for students just starting college or returning to school.

The class offered by Western Nevada College is designed to boost success and provides students with additional classroom time, supplemental instruction, access to instructors and tutors, and small class sizes for an ideal learning environment!

In the past, English classes that required more instructional support for students took a lot of time and cost a lot of money that didn’t count toward your overall degree and didn’t transfer to another college or university.

That’s not the case anymore for students enrolling in English 100. English 100 is English 101 with embedded support. Because of the extra time and support embedded into English 100, it is worth 4 1/2 transferable credits (1 1/2 more credits than students taking English 101), and students who pass the class can go straight to English 102. Moreover, English 100 will provide students with additional 1-to-1 teacher-to-student instruction and support to maximize student success.

“To me, it’s an obvious choice for any student who wants to give themselves a boost,” said Adult College Career Education and Literacy (ACCEL) Director Angela Holt. “It’s essentially the same as English 101, but with the tutoring and support built in. We all have different needs and different learning curves and everybody benefits from extra time and extra support.”

Added ACCEL Instructional Specialist Jody Coxon, “English 100 is the better choice for students if they are feeling they are going to need help in their first English course. Students will have more time in the classroom and with their instructors."

The supplemental instruction students receive will be directly aligned to what they are doing in the class instead of the students needing to seek out a tutor for supplemental instruction outside of class.

WNC offers the same model of instruction for students who believe they need supplemental support in mathematics. The college’s Math 120 and 124 classes have labs for those classes so students can receive extra help outside of the classroom. However, only 3 of the 4 ½ credits for these classes can be used for electives or to transfer.

Students can either enroll in those beginning English and Math classes the traditional way through Counseling Services or they can meet with the adult learning team to plan their schedules.

“They can come to us first and we can provide that layer of assistance,” Holt said. “If they fit our criteria, we can manage their enrollment, but if they don’t, we can direct them to Counseling Services. I’d really like to have that first conversation with students to see what we can do for them.”

Students who haven’t taken the Accuplacer exam to assess their English class level can be tested by ACCEL.
Corequisite English 100 classes are offered on all three WNC campuses, online and with a flex option. WNC’s long list of esteemed English professors are teaching the class, including Angeline Vogl, Jessica Rowe, Emily King, Karen Heine, Mary Gillespie, Geri Pope and Jody Coxon.

The class emphasizes revising and editing essays for development, coherence, style and correctness, as well as investigative, reasoning and organizational skills necessary to create successful research papers. Students will also receive extra assistance in English writing skills, grammar, sentence structure, usage and punctuation.

WNC’s ACCEL College and Career Readiness program helps individuals boost reading, writing, and math skills so that each individual may reach their personal and professional goals. Whether students want to earn a high school equivalency diploma, increase English language proficiency, increase basic skills for college classes or receive additional training for a job or a promotion, ACCEL helps students define their goals and then offers the necessary learning opportunities.

Learn more about English 100 and the ACCEL program by phoning 775-445-4452 or email accel@wnc.edu.