Students taking developmental mathematics courses resist attempting word problems when they are presented to them. Although word problems can help students contextualize learning, develop better understanding of the concepts and apply world knowledge, they constitute an impediment to students' progress in developmental mathematics courses. A…

This qualitative research study was aimed at examining the experiences and perceptions of students at a four-year college in New York City who were enrolled in an integrated reading and writing course designed to help students connect the literacy skills learned in the course to other contexts. Focusing on three students enrolled in the course,…

Community college leaders are using many strategies to improve their students' ability to complete their studies, particularly their academically underprepared students. In recent years, these strategies have included adaptations of an approach long used in four-year colleges known as "learning communities," in which groups of students…

The Learning Communities Demonstration is a large-scale, random assignment evaluation of learning community programs at six community colleges. During the first year of the demonstration, all six colleges expanded their learning community programs and, in the process, faced similar challenges in selecting courses to link, recruiting and supporting…