Nursing schools face the challenge of improving student academic performance and completion rates. The current supply of newly graduated nurses fails to meet the increasing demands of society. In 2009, Cochise College responded by implementing a major change in their curriculum to improve student retention and academic performance. The problem…

Focusing on the appropriate use of prerequisite courses, this document discusses good practices for implementing prerequisites as developed by the Academic Senate of the California Community Colleges. The first section provides an introduction to the use of prerequisites, discussing the need to balance student access and success, as well as state…

A study using students' grades was conducted to examine the validity of the prerequisites for the Criminal Justice Curriculum at Kirkwood Community College (Cedar Rapids, IA). Using transcripts of all students who had enrolled in selected courses targeted as needing prerequisites, a random sample was obtained, tabulated, and analyzed. The study…

There have been broad, and effective efforts in recent years to strengthen the humanities; however, there are still many problems, questions, and disagreements--especially in the areas of standards and competencies--to be resolved. Current legislative and board attention to standards provides an impetus for a serious review of current practices to…

A study was conducted at Donnelly College, in Kansas, to determine whether taking a math course prerequisite affected students' final course grades in an introductory chemistry course. From a sample of 329 students who finished the chemistry course between fall 1985 and fall 1993, course grades were compared for 30 students who had completed the…

Designed to provide the academic departments at California's Chabot College with information on state matriculation and academic standards, this handbook provides information on procedures for establishing course prerequisites and corequisites, as well as background information on conducting content reviews, course research, and assessments of…

A "prerequisite" is a measure of readiness for a course or program that a student is required to meet as a condition of enrolling in a course or program. An "advisory" is a measure of readiness for a course or program that a student is recommended to meet in order to enroll. A prerequisite or advisory may be a course, activity,…