This Pioneer Post (also known as Pioneer Press) edition contains articles about student life, local performances, and sports scores. Articles of note include:
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<li>An editorial, produced by a former IRJC student, tackles a conspiracy theory regarding Paul McCartney. Rumors circling his death have incited an investigation to determine if The Beatles member is still alive. Due to the immense following The Beatles have acquired during this time period, many young adults have devoted their time to coming up with conclusions. In the 1960s, The Beatles became an international sensation that appealed to young Americans (particularly young women). Their fame led to many obsessive followers creating rumors about their personal lives. One rumor in particular circled around the possible death of Paul McCartney. People began to vigorously search for clues that could indicate a “deceased Paul” in The Beatle’s music, causing a frenzy. Multiple conspiracy theories emerged including hidden messages in songs played backwards, symbolism in their album artwork, etc. This popularity reflected how influential The Beatles were during this time period where young Americans were rebellious towards traditional authority. This also shows how it is human nature to want simplistic answers that match our own worldviews.</li>
<li>An opinion editorial, written by former IRJC student, Cary Brunswick, discusses a debate between the use of alcohol and marijuana during this time. Alcohol was widely accepted on college campuses, while marijuana use created controversy. Brunswick also talks about the effects each substance has on the human body, and calls for an "evaluation of judgement". Throughout the 1960s, many Americans began to experiment with new drugs such as marijuana and hallucinogens. Marijuana use was heavily criticized for its effects on the human body (and on human behavior). Since the 1960s was a time when young Americans rebelled against authority and the Vietnam War, marijuana use became more popular. The debate, which still stands today, poses the question: is marijuana really that much worse than alcohol?</li>
<li>"Are You a Hippie?" An opinion editorial, written by former IRJC student Cary Brunswick, discusses what it means to be a "beatnik hippie". The article attempts to identify the difference between hippie behavior and hippie style. In the 1960s, the “hippie movement” emerged as a result of rebellion against social norms (especially due to American involvement in Vietnam). Hippies followed their own beliefs and ideals. Some of these ideals included shifting the media’s focus from “minute” issues (such as cleanliness and personal hygiene) to larger societal problems (including poverty, racial discrimination, law enforcement, etc.). Hippies were nonconformists in their thinking, their “free” and often rebellious lifestyles, and their protests against traditional American culture.
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Summary and historical context written by Marie Grandguillotte, in Dr. Carrigan's AMH 2020 H2SL (Honors/Service Learning).

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools awarded Indian River Junior College with full membership. This accreditation gives recognition to the college for its efforts to provide quality education. Receiving this honor elevated the status of obtaining a degree from the institution. Accreditation for an institution indicates that the institution provides quality education to its students and maintains standards of education that allow their graduates to progress to other reputable institutions of higher learning. The goal of the accreditation process is to ensure that institutions provide education at acceptable levels of quality. Receiving accreditation is an honor for an institution as it gives them acceptance into the broader academic community.

Summary written by Rebecca Sills, in Dr. Carrigan's AMH 2020 H2SL (Honors/Service Learning).

This Pioneer Post (also known as Pioneer Press) edition contains many articles about student life, local performances, and sports scores. One interesting article is "First Marriage, Then Family." In the Spring semester of 1966, the course "Marriage and the Family" is introduced to IRJC. Taught by James Williams, the class focuses on dating, preparing for marriage, sex, family life, etc. The elective will also have medical professionals discussing reproduction. Summary written by Marie Grandguillotte, in Dr. Carrigan's AMH 2020 H2SL (Honors/Service Learning).

In the fall of 1965, IRJC offers a Nursing Degree program comprised of 65-70 credit hours. The Associate's Degree (which can be completed in two years) will have a curriculum that is split evenly between general education courses and nursing courses. Classes will not only be taught on campus, but may also take place at the Fort Pierce Memorial Hospital. The IRSC Nursing program was inaugurated in 1965, in the midst of the Vietnam War. Since women were often associated with nursing careers, this gave them the opportunity to obtain an education and receive a college degree.

Summary written by Marie Grandguillotte, in Dr. Carrigan's AMH 2020 H2SL (Honors/Service Learning).

Through a series of workshops and incentives faculty will learn the benefits of adopting open educational resources (OER) in their classroom in place of costly publisher provided textbooks. Participants will commit to adopting OER in their course for at least three semesters. Indian River State College librarians know the value of OER having only taught credit courses using OER materials. Furthermore, librarians specialize in collecting, storing, describing, and evaluating information. Knowledge of OER and access to over one million library licensed scholarly materials makes a librarian the best person to implement college-wide, innovative OER adoption. This application was successful in receiving the Gladys Williams Wolf Endowed Teaching Chair in Communications on Monday, April 4, 2016.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of four instructional methods - context clues, definition, elaboration technique, or word parts and word families on the vocabulary growth and acquisition of adults enrolled in a community college developmental reading course. The study investigated whether performance in any or all of the four instructional methods was moderated by age or language. Seventy three respondents participated in the study. Participants were enrolled in one of five sections of College Reading Preparatory II (REA0002) offered in the Spring of 2009 at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Florida. All five sections of REA0002 were taught by the same professor, a tenured faculty member, chair of the developmental reading department and Associate Professor of Developmental Reading at Indian River State College. The instruction and tests in all five sections of REA0002 were consistent with the research design which insured continuity and consistency in the use of the four instructional methods. All participants received the same treatment and quizzes. During the course of the study, participants first received a pretest, then the treatment or instruction, followed by an instructional quiz, and a delayed post-test was administered at the end of the study. An analysis of the data, which included the pretest, instructional quizzes with four quizzes independently and then combined for an aggregate score for an immediate post-test, and the delayed post-test, yielded mixed results. The four instructional quizzes independently showed definition instruction to have the highest positive impact on student learning. In a measure of gains from pretest to instructional quizzes immediately after treatment, significant improvement in student learning was found only with word parts instruction. In a measure of performance from pretest to immediate post-test (aggregate score of instructional quizzes) there was a significant gain in students’ vocabulary competence, and from pretest to delayed post-test there was a significant decrement in students’ vocabulary competence. Age and language moderated vocabulary competence. Further tests of equivalency were mixed and should be interpreted cautiously, as there were a very small number of students in the group of 25 years or older and non-native English speakers.

IRSC student assignment by Allen Saenz.