Learning Communities: Reforming Undergraduate Education, Smith, B.L, MacGregor, J., Matthews, R.S., Gabelnick, Jossey-Bass, 2004
Reviewed by Judy Patton, Portland State University

This second book by Barbara Leigh Smith, Jean MacGregor, Roberta Mathews and Faith Gabelnick, the four Grand Dames of the learning community movement, has been eagerly anticipated. Those already involved in the work of learning communities have had high expectations for the quality and usefulness of the text, and the authors have not disappointed. Undoubtedly, this book will be a classic in the undergraduate education reform field. It not only addresses what has been learned about learning communities in the last decade but places that learning in the context of undergraduate reform, making it a landmark text. In its entirety, the book is rich and useful, but each chapter can be read and used independently. This flexibility gives the volume value for a variety of situations. As a faculty development resource, it provides a history, summary and practical application of current teaching and learning theory and research. For students, it updates the understanding of what creates an excellent undergraduate education.

The first chapter, a summary of the pressures on higher education today and the studies that have shaped the national conversation, is a primer for those who have not participated in reform efforts. It provides the history and background of issues and pressures that have brought us to the present moment. The review of research that has guided change in current higher education also provides resources that can lead to further investigation. The book is not just useful for administrators and faculty; selected chapters could be assigned in courses such as freshman seminars or education classes to help students understand the issues currently affecting their institutions as well. On a practical level, the authors provide a variety of charts, lists and schema that help the reader locate and understand the particular set of concepts or information under discussion. Those visuals can be very useful in classes, meetings or workshops as a means of sharing material with others in a quick and compelling manner.

The second chapter on the history of learning communities tells the story of their development, but the real brilliance of the text is that as those stories about who did what and who influenced whom treat issues that are as real today as they were then. The tensions that shortened the programs at Wisconsin and Berkeley are those we wrestle with now as well. Their stories give validation to potential solutions and bring critical issues into the current change conversation. This layering of past and present brings a depth and contemporary interest to the discussion.

Chapters three and four offer the basics of learning communities as a strategy to improve undergraduate education. It makes a case for learning community programs as the "skunk works" of the university where risks can be taken and the learning shared across the institution. "When appropriately designed, learning communities become spaces to bring together the theory and practice of student development and diversity, of active inclusive pedagogies, and of reflective assessment. All of these areas have been the subject of much research, foundation support, and classroom experimentation" (97).

The authors show how learning communities can function as an organizing site where various practices, shown to enhance student learning, can be brought together for maximum effect. The expanded view of learning communities presented allows institutions to consider specific needs, issues and contexts and provides descriptions of existing models from across the nation to help others think through possible program designs. The generous use of examples —including specific applications in general and developmental education— shows how learning communities can be broadly applied to diverse settings to achieve various goals. 

The authors identify five core practices of learning communities and explore each using practical examples that can be replicated or used to begin the planning of a new effort. A key practice of learning communities is the integration of assessment and this chapter is particularly important because of the current intense interest in accountability.

This text is such a striking and strong addition to the existing understanding of advances in education because it establishes the philosophical basis for undergraduate education reform, ties the history of reform to current day practices, and at the same time gives practical, logistical information for the implementation of new or the improvement of existing learning community programs. As the text states, "It is clear that we are on the edge of nearly universal higher education while we are still operating with an infrastructure built for a more selective, homogeneous student body and more generous financial resources. Furthermore, we know a great deal more about what promotes student learning:  if widely adopted these new practices could significantly raise levels of student achievement" (9). This is the first book I have read that puts the learning from the research and experience of the last ten years of reform effort into one volume that is both readable and well founded. Because it discusses key strategies for enhancing student learning, it serves those thinking, generally, about deepening the undergraduate experience while also making the case for learning community programs, and it clearly states the most important issues and questions that we will need to answer if we want to continue to have quality higher education relevant to contemporary societal needs.