Ongoing action research at the University of Pretoria investigates first-year students' preparedness for a study in calculus. In 2005 first-year engineering students completed a mathematics diagnostic survey at the beginning and end of the year. In this article the results of the 2005 survey are compared with the students' final school marks in…

Supports the use of the Testing T as an organizational tool to help students anticipate exam questions based on notes from lectures and prepare sample answers. Answers students' common questions about the method, such as "How many questions should I write?" and "How long should it take?" (DMM)

Advocates the elimination of remedial education from four-year institutions of higher education. Data are provided on the numbers of students enrolled in remedial courses at different types of institutions and the associated costs. The consequences of remedial education on academic standards are addressed. Efforts in Massachusetts to shift…

This digest is drawn from the spring 2002 issue of New Directions for Community Colleges, titled "Next Steps for the Community College." It summarizes three overlapping challenges facing colleges in the coming decade: educating a more diverse student body, assessing student outcomes, and maintaining the educated workforce needed to meet…

Describes the developmental studies program at Prince George's County Community College, a successful effort to improve retention rates and graduate students with high levels of academic competence. Stresses the importance of testing and remediation in reading, English, and mathematics; coordination with high schools; the learning community…

Presents a report of 21 developmental college students speaking out about their success or failure in college. Discusses students' explanations of why they feel they were either successful or unsuccessful in obtaining high grades and/or honors in their pursuit of a higher degree. (SC)

Comprehensive programs to enable students to acquire skills necessary for college work are discussed. It is suggested that developmental courses be supplements to regular academic courses. In starting a new developmental program, three factors are important: commitment of the school's faculty and administration to the program's success, adequate…

The National Association for Developmental Education (NADE) has developed a strategic plan for guiding its members into the next century. The plan takes into account political, institutional, economic, and instructional trends predicted to have an effect on the course of developmental education. Developmental educators also must plan for the…

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…

Special admissions programs may offer access into higher education for students who, for various reasons, do not meet the institutions' standard admissions criteria. Once the special admissions status has been granted, these programs provide support to these students. This paper is not a critique of special admissions programs in general or…

This examination of remedial instruction in institutions of higher education provides an analysis of the functions and purposes of remediation; a discussion of the types of remediation, who participates, and how well it serves them; an examination of the financial costs of remediation; an appraisal of the economic and social consequences of not…

Describes how the college-preparation program Upward Bound, in a bruising battle with GEAR UP for federal funds, is being closely scrutinized by the Bush administration. (EV)

Asserts that almost all U.S. colleges and universities offer some form of developmental education, if one considers tutorial and learning assistance programs in addition to formal courses. Presents an historical analysis of developmental programs, stating that they, in some form, have been a part of postsecondary education since Harvard was…

Examined the effects of goal instability on performance of students enrolled in learning skills courses (N=60). Results showed students with high goal instability had lower grade point averages than students with low goal instability. (BH)

Describes a philosophy course offered at East Carolina University through the Special Studies Program for marginally-admissable students. The program uses selected readings from Russell, James, Sartre, and others and the Personalized System of Instruction to build critical thinking, reading, and study skills, while introducing students to the…