Teaching Dual Enrollment Students: A Micro-Credential For Instructor Preparation & Success

This session examines what college-level rigor truly means for dual enrollment students, moving beyond assumptions about workload and volume toward a clearer focus on learning outcomes, cognitive demand, and assessment alignment. Faculty will explore how rigor functions as intentional intellectual challenge rather than endurance, and how developmental factors intersect with expectations for reading, writing, and independent learning. The session emphasizes maintaining academic standards while avoiding unintentional gatekeeping, helping faculty distinguish between productive struggle that supports learning and barriers that disproportionately hinder dual enrollment students.

• Define college-level rigor in terms of learning outcomes rather than workload alone
• Align learning objectives, instructional activities, and assessments to support rigorous learning
• Calibrate reading and writing expectations while maintaining college-level standards
• Distinguish between productive struggle and instructional practices that function as gatekeeping

This presentation examines the developmental science behind dual enrollment learning and its implications for teaching in college classrooms. Using research from cognitive development, neuroscience, and higher education student success, the session explains how adolescent development affects executive functioning, self-regulation, and classroom behavior. Faculty will gain practical strategies for designing courses, framing expectations, and making the hidden curriculum of college explicit, while maintaining academic rigor and supporting student readiness for college-level work.

• Explain how adolescent cognitive and psychosocial development influences learning and readiness in dual enrollment students
• Identify executive functioning and self-regulation skills critical to success in college-level coursework
• Recognize developmental behaviors that may be misinterpreted as disengagement or lack of professionalism
• Integrate evidence-based instructional strategies that support planning, time management, and persistence
  Use the syllabus and course structures to clarify expectations and make the hidden curriculum of college explicit

This session focuses on pedagogical and course design strategies that effectively support dual enrollment students while preserving college-level expectations. Faculty will examine high-structure course design, active learning approaches appropriate for college classrooms, and inclusive teaching practices for mixed-status classes that include both high school and traditional college students. The session emphasizes practical instructional techniques that clarify expectations, promote engagement, and support academic skill development through explicit teaching of college norms and frequent opportunities for feedback.

• Apply high-structure course design strategies, including transparent assignments, scaffolding, and exemplars
• Implement active learning approaches that align with college-level instruction
• Use inclusive and culturally responsive teaching practices in mixed-status classrooms
• Incorporate frequent low-stakes checks for understanding to support learning and feedback
• Teach academic discourse and college norms explicitly to support student readiness

This presentation examines academic integrity through a developmental and instructional lens, with particular attention to dual enrollment students in college classrooms. Drawing on developmental theory, college adjustment research, and ethical reasoning frameworks, the session explores how differences between secondary and higher education integrity climates can contribute to unintentional misconduct. Faculty will be introduced to practical, course-level strategies for explicitly teaching academic integrity, designing assessments that reduce cheating pressure, and responding to violations in ways that support skill development, ethical reasoning, and long-term academic success, while maintaining clear standards and rigor.

• Identify developmental and transitional factors that influence dual enrollment students’ understanding of academic integrity
• Compare academic integrity norms in secondary and higher education and recognize points of misalignment
• Explain how ethical reasoning and academic integrity develop over time and why explicit instruction is often necessary
• Design courses and assessments that make academic integrity expectations transparent and reduce misconduct pressure

Apply growth-oriented responses to early academic integrity violations that emphasize learning and accountability

This session addresses the complexities of communicating with dual enrollment students and their families while maintaining legal, ethical, and professional boundaries. Faculty will examine how FERPA shapes communication in higher education, how these expectations differ from high school norms, and how to respond appropriately to parent and guardian involvement. The session also covers recognizing student warning signs and using clear referral pathways, helping faculty navigate their role responsibly when teaching students who are minors.

• Explain how FERPA governs communication with dual enrollment students and how it differs from high school norms
• Establish appropriate boundaries when interacting with parents and guardians
• Recognize warning signs related to mental health, safety, abuse, homelessness, and food insecurity
• Use referral pathways and warm handoffs to connect students to appropriate support services
• Manage ethical and professional responsibilities when teaching minors in college courses