In education, practitioners are increasingly looking for strategies to bring data and evidence into decisionmaking and to roll out programs in intentional ways that allow for ongoing improvement. This toolkit acts as a guide to improvement strategies for teams of practitioners at colleges, providing them with the knowledge and tools they need to…

Community colleges, which serve almost half of postsecondary students in the United States, are receiving ever-increasing attention from policymakers and researchers. Although these institutions have always served a wide range of people in their communities, the number of students who enter community college requiring additional preparation before…

Provides an annotated bibliography of 13 publications, released between 1960 and 1983, which have had a major influence on the field of developmental education. (AYC)

Reviews the literature on the benefits of mentor relationships for both the protege and the mentor. Suggests that experienced developmental educators mentor colleagues new to the field and that developmental students be encouraged to find and cultivate mentoring relationships. (DMM)

Considers the characteristics of developmental educators, trends and pressures for change in the field, and ways of responding to changes and possible futures. Suggests that developmental educators build on their flexibility and adaptability, work together, maintain a student orientation, and strive toward professionalism. (DMM)

Criticisms have been raised about large scale community college involvement in developmental education. A number of these criticisms seem valid, while others clearly are not. Some of the most commonly voiced concerns include the following: (1) "The community college is the wrong place to provide developmental education"; (2)…

Midlands Technical College has developed a model for a developmental science program which offers assistance to students through a three-phase "spanning for success" approach in which the transition from developmental to curriculum course work is gradual; and the developmental instructor works closely with the student from the time that s/he…

Offers a review of research conducted on reading comprehension, focusing on studies of the cognitive processes involved in the comprehension of the meaning of the microstructures and macrostructures of a text. (DMM)

Reviews four types of student retention models identified in the literature (i.e., psychological, economic, organizational, and interactional). Describes and offers examples of four levels of developmental education programs, and identifies eight critical pedagogical components of developmental education. (DMM)

Nearly 48 percent of the students in Developmental Studies Mathematics courses at a major southern university during the fall of 1983 had taken college preparatory mathematics courses in high school. Some had even taken trigonometry, pre-calculus, or calculus. Yet, they were placed in university developmental studies mathematics courses because…

Reviews the types of remedial programs offered at community colleges and the ways learning resources centers (LRCs) have been involved. Notes professional calls for more active involvement in this area. Describes a model library/developmental education program and cites examples of successful literacy programs. (DMM)

Arnold Mitchem, executive director, National Council of Educational Opportunity Associations (NCEOA), answers questions concerning key educational issues, the federal government's educational agenda, the Higher Education Act's reauthorization, federal policy influences on developmental and minority education, faculty retraining, financial…

J. Robert Hanson responds to questions concerning the "learning style" and "perceptual and judgement functions," styles common among developmental students and members of particular ethnic/social groups, the modification of teaching styles to accommodate students, coownership of the classroom, and ways teachers can facilitate…

Discusses resources accessible on the Internet, as well as providing some Internet addresses useful for developmental educators. Provides descriptions of and information on how to interact with Listservs (discussion groups), ARCHIEs (a search utility), GOPHERs (an Internet navigation system), WAISs (Wide Area Information Servers), and other…

This document presents 13 keynote addresses and major papers presented at the 1997 and 1998 conferences of the Pennsylvania Association of Developmental Educators. The papers are: (1) "Developmental Education: History of Implications" (Hunter Boylan, 1997 keynote speaker); (2) "Learning and Teaching in the 21st Century: Seven Habits of Highly…