Lake Washington Institute of Technology (LWTech) is a public technical institute in Kirkland, Washington. LWTech is a member of the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and offers bachelor's degrees, associate degrees, and professional certificates in more than 40 areas of study.In addition to regular enrollment, LWTech offers a Technical Academy, a full-time special purpose high school program giving qualifying students, ages 16 to 20, an opportunity to complete their high school diploma and to earn a two-year college technical degree at the same time. Other high school programs include, Running Start, Open Doors, Tech Prep, Adult High School Completion, and WANIC. In addition to high school diplomas, these students can also earn associate degrees.LWTech has one of the highest completion rates in the State of Washington.
This work-in-progress describes a study comparing assessment formats developed using multiple-choice questions (MCQs) with open-ended assessments assisted by a custom AI chat tool. Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) have been widely used across engineering education for several reasons, including their scalability and efficiency. However, it is argued that they merely allow for answer recognition rather than knowledge construction. Preliminary findings from a survey of students in an introductory Software Engineering course found that they valued both approaches. Still, in different ways, multiple-choice questions were favoured for their ease of use and reduced effort. However, AI chatbot-based assessments were preferred for their support for learning, stimulation of interest, and encouragement of participation. These contrasting preferences highlight how each assessment method aligns with students' different perspectives and suggest that they can be considered complementary.
From the 1950s to mid-1970s social work educators in the United States considered developing a multi-level continuum of social work education including associate degrees. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) added baccalaureate degree programs only. By 1979 the idea of including associate degrees in this continuum disappeared from the scholarly conversation. This qualitative historical research explores factors that led to the exclusion of community colleges from CSWE membership and prevented accreditation of associate degree programs. Using archival evidence, it synthesizes primary and secondary sources and applies a critical pedagogy framework to highlight concerns. Findings suggest that distrust, the pace of change, professionalization, BSW program development, cultural differences, resistance to change, and a lack of external pressure coalesced to rebuff recognition of community colleges as an alternate pathway for social work education in the U.S.
Lake Washington Institute of Technology (LWTech) is a publicly-funded workforce college located in Kirkland, WA. The newest addition to the college’s programs list is a two year (AAS) degree in Lasers and Optical Technology which was recently approved. The program is designed for students who desire an entry-level job as a Photonics System Technician or a Specialist in one of the many Photonics companies located in the Seattle Area. In this paper, the authors outline briefly the new program’s key elements including the motivation behind selecting this project, the degree pathway, methods of instructions, preparation progress, and the current recruitment activities.
