The purpose of this study was to identify differences in metacognitive and self-regulated learning strategies used by students in a self-paced, computer-based developmental mathematics program (DMP) and how these strategies accounted for differences in persistence and performance observed among the students. Five research questions guided the…

Developmental courses in community colleges often leave students unprepared, demeaned, and uninspired. These gatekeeper courses need reform, especially in terms of curriculum and instruction. One framework -- Dr. Gholdy Muhammed's Historically Responsive Literacy (HRL) -- could be useful for developmental courses and students. HRL is a teaching…

This study examined how community college students' reflective sentiments about learning with the Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) ALEKS evolved in three developmental pre-Algebra Mathematics courses and how students' sentiments related to their metacognitive awareness and learning performance. Thirty-nine students participated in this study.…

Student writers labeled "underprepared" by colleges often have trouble imagining themselves as scholars. Challenges these students routinely encounter include difficulty forming original insights and translating ideas to the page. Although the usage of the term "underprepared" varies across institutional contexts, the…

The purpose of this study was to determine to what extent the completion of a note taking and review intervention impacted developmental mathematics students' performance on course assessments. Note taking is a challenging skill that requires time and effort to improve (Boch & Piolat, 2005). Many developmental mathematics students struggle to…

Success in developmental education contexts requires support not just in cognitive skills, but also in affective areas. One approach showing promise in supporting students in affective areas is mindfulness training. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) can support affective needs and provide coping strategies in general as well as in some…

This quantitative study is a comparative analysis of developmental students' print and online support metacognitive strategy use. More specifically, a study was conducted utilizing the Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory (MARSI) to measure developmental college students' awareness and perceived use of support reading strategies…

This article explores how dialogue journals can lead to a transformative learning experience. Adult Latino students enrolled in a community college developmental reading class agree to speak truth to power through this critical writing process. Using Mezirow's (2002) transformational learning theory, Brookfield's (2000) concepts on teaching for…

Teaching students to think critically is one of the major goals of higher education. Many educators at the college level recognize this and expect students to demonstrate critical thinking early in their college experience, however for some students, a lack of preparation for these expectations poses an immediate and substantial challenge during…

There is an ubiquitous problem with developmental education in community colleges. In 2009-2010, the success rate for developmental English sequence completion in California Community Colleges was 45.4% (California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office, n.d.). The purpose of this project was to conduct a needs analysis of how to raise success…

Underprepared students often need assistance building writing skills and maintaining confidence in their abilities and potential. The authors share the philosophy, pedagogy, and experience of freshman developmental education and the writing center at a four-year, private, not-for-profit urban college. They describe high-impact educational…

Teachers of developmental education are familiar with non-traditional students who are balancing innumerate stressors in their lives, in addition to the overwhelming stress of college. Stress relief methods like yoga and meditation are essential life management tools in helping new college students succeed, not only in their education but also in…

Using portions of the findings of a qualitative study, this article examines how students described their writing experiences across the curriculum after completing a developmental writing class. The course was purposefully designed to help students become aware that they were developing knowledge about writing that was applicable to other…

An audit was completed at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) based on the curriculum audit model developed by Armstrong, Stahl, and Kantner (2015). The audit examined text readiness and text expectations in UAF developmental reading courses and 100-level general-education and career-technical education courses, how well these text…

The authors describe an Enhanced Formative Assessment and Self-Regulated Learning (EFA-SRL) program designed to improve the achievement of community college students enrolled in developmental mathematics courses. Their model includes the use of specially formatted quizzes designed to assess both the students' mathematics and metacognitive skill…