This overview introduces "Right from the Start: An Institutional Perspective on Developmental Education Reform," a series of three practitioner briefs on developmental education. Created by Achieving the Dream and MDC, the briefs spotlight successful reform efforts in developmental education at seven Achieving the Dream colleges. [The…

Presents seven statements synthesizing the literature on the relationship between educational advising and student retention. Provides an advisement model designed to increase institutional holding power through ethical recruitment, honest orientation, continuous dissemination of information, and a developmental approach to the advising process.…

Reports findings on the continued positive effect of remedial/developmental programs on both retention and academic performance of skills deficient students who entered both public and private higher education institutions in New Jersey. (Author/DMM)

Unless questions about student performance and student retention can be answered and unless educators are proactive in finding and publicizing such information, basic writing programs cannot determine if what they are doing is working. Hard data, especially from underrepresented groups, is needed to support these programs. At Arizona State…

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)

This examination of the issues of reform pertinent to adult and developmental education focuses largely on the activities and recommendations of the Learning, Assessment, Retention Consortium (LARC) of California with respect to these concerns. The first sections of the paper address the problem of underprepared college students, and the policy…

Enumerates teaching strategies designed to promote high student retention in developmental courses, which: (1) help develop effective working relationships between student and teacher; (2) assure effective classroom management; (3) promote student involvement in the learning process; and (4) help the instructor recognize his/her own professional…

California State University's Summer Bridge program, a preenrollment course for underprepared freshmen that focuses on improving basic skills and familiarizing students with the university environment, has been successful in increasing first- and second-year retention rates for its first three student cohorts. (Author/MSE)

This report, an early component of a forthcoming set of publications intended to assist colleges and universities in building more effective programs for minority undergraduate and graduate students, provides short descriptions of 18 exemplary efforts to enhance the participation and success of minority students in higher education (including the…

A study of a summer bridge program's effects on low-income and minority groups students during their first year at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that such programs can facilitate transition and adjustment to university or college life and improve academic performance and persistence rates. (Author/MSE)

In July 1986, a colloquium was convened to develop a position paper on access, assessment, and developmental education. This colloquium report contains the keynote speeches presented at the event, along with a statement developed by the participants regarding the issues. First, introductory material describes the purposes, sponsorship, and group…

The 115 African-American and other nontraditional medical students attending a summer program in study skills and academic preparation to promote achievement and retention were compared with 82 nonattendees on demographic and academic measures. Little difference was found in the groups, except that attendees felt the program helped them adjust to…

Focusing on the problems of attrition and retention in community colleges, this paper reviews the literature dealing with the causes of attrition, describes promising practices which attempt to deal with the problem, and offers recommendations to enhance retention. First, the characteristics of students likely to drop out of college are described…

After studying national literature and local needs, Kutztown University (Pennsylvania) created the Student Support Services Freshman Year Program to help at-risk freshmen acclimate to the campus environment and succeed in college. The program consists of five components: academic advising/counseling; a freshman colloquium; a student-mentor…

This instructional booklet presents an overview of the Developmental Education Student Retention Tracking System (DESRTS), developed by the South Carolina State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education to make information available on the retention and graduation of developmental students in the state's technical colleges. Following an…