Guided pathways is arguably the most widespread whole-college community college reform movement in decades. In this report, the authors present findings from a study on the scale of adoption of guided pathways practices across community and technical colleges in three states--Ohio, Tennessee, and Washington--where there are state-level efforts to…

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruption to education around the world. There is much to learn from this period, to better understand what happened, to provide support to those affected, and to inform future responses to disruption. This research aimed to contribute to this field by recording teachers' experiences of teaching in the…

Transfer from California's community colleges to its public universities has long been central to the state's higher education system. Though most of the 2.2 million community college students intend to transfer, fewer than half do so within six years of their initial enrollment. A low transfer rate is bad news for California. The state's economy…

This report presents the findings from an external evaluation of Project COMPASS, an effort by Wake Technical Community College to redesign community college online courses to improve outcomes, particularly for students of color. The evaluation used a randomized controlled trial in which students were randomly assigned to course sections taught by…

In 2019, Child Trends partnered with the Institute for Health Research and Policy of the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC-IHRP), EMT Associates, Inc., and the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) to publish the first comprehensive policy analysis (see ED613844) to explore codified state statutes and regulations covering…

Until recently, the vast majority of students, entering California community colleges were placed in developmental courses, and relatively few went on to complete transfer-level courses in English and math. Several colleges responded to this longstanding challenge by experimenting with placement and curricular reforms. In 2017, new legislation (AB…

Until recently, the vast majority of California's community college students--hundreds of thousands of students each year--started in remedial courses that slowed down or halted their academic progress. Attrition was high, particularly for Latino and African American students. After years of important but piecemeal reforms, in 2017 a landmark law…

Americans' opinions about higher education are complex. Understanding this complexity is important for learning how to talk about the value of educational pathways after high school and crafting thoughtful policy solutions to meet the needs of today's students. This is the reason we engage Americans every year, asking questions other surveys do…

While New America's second annual survey about perceptions on higher education shows that Americans believe pursuing education beyond high school is important for career growth and economic security, they still feel that higher education is not fine the way it is, and that government should do more to make it affordable. "Varying Degrees…

The Community College Pathways initiative consists of two pathways, Statway® and Quantway®, that accelerate post-secondary students' progress through their developmental mathematics sequence and a college-level course for credit. Launched in 2011, the Pathways have been remarkably successful, helping thousands of students achieve success in…

Twenty years ago, a report by the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future (NCTAF) changed the national discussion about what must be done to improve America's schools so that all students experience success. The Commission drew attention to the overlooked fact that the most important school variable affecting student achievement is…

In its current form, developmental education may be one of the largest impediments to success in California's community colleges. Each year, hundreds of thousands of students are deemed underprepared for college and placed into developmental (also known as remedial or basic-skills) courses. Yet most never earn a degree or certificate, or transfer…

This document presents the technical appendix that accompanies the full report, "Preparing Students for Success in California's Community Colleges." The appendix includes Data and Methods. [Supported with funding from the Sutton Family Fund. For the full report, see ED570976.]

In 2001, the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) was created to provide information about student engagement, a key indicator of learning and, therefore, of the quality of community colleges. The focus was helping colleges use survey data to guide efforts to improve student learning and retention. In 2003, to further assist…

This interim progress report provides a look at Turnaround Arts schools in their first year, including: (1) a summary of the evaluation design and research questions; (2) a preliminary description of strategies used to introduce the arts in Turnaround Arts schools; and (3) a summary of school reform indicators and student achievement data at…