A study was conducted at a community college in northeast Alabama to determine how the format of developmental English courses impacted student withdrawal rates and final grades. The two course formats examined were online/hybrid and face-to-face courses. Data were obtained from a 4-semester time frame: fall 2012, spring 2013, summer 2013, and…

This study investigates how the impact of developmental education is moderated by classroom composition. Drawing on a regression discontinuity design, we used data from 3,429 community college students, nested within 223 classrooms, to explore the extent to which classroom and instructor characteristics moderated the effect of developmental…

The primary purpose of the study was to explore the potential impact of voluntary remediation on success in gateway credit courses (ENC1101 and MAT1033) and on minority and low-income students in Florida. Mean grades and proportions of successful students were compared based on remediation policies and students' voluntary completion of a…

Using individual-level longitudinal state administrative data, this analysis examines whether English language learner (ELL) status increases the likelihood of being designated as needing college remediation. We track a cohort of ELL and non-ELL students from first grade to college entry and investigate whether there are differences in students'…

Developmental education has been cited as one of the most difficult issues facing community colleges. Despite the controversy and changes to educational policy regarding developmental education, there is a notable dearth of rigorous research measuring the causal effect of remediation on community college student outcomes. The present study uses…

While the topic of who is responsible for addressing the issue of developmental education is being discussed at the national level, it is also presently being discussed in the Alabama postsecondary arena, where committees and symposiums are forming to discuss this topic. While nothing has yet been resolved, it still bears some study since…

Recently the state of Missouri, through the Missouri Department of Higher Education, has started to work toward the goal of having 60 percent of state residents hold some type of postsecondary credential. This goal aligns with similar initiatives in other states as well as President Obama's objective for the nation. In order to reach this…

A significant challenge in higher education is to narrow the educational attainment gap between academically prepared and unprepared students. To this end, developmental or remedial education is intended to improve the academic skills and knowledge of students who are unprepared for undergraduate coursework, particularly in the areas of…

The most recent data available from the National Center for Educational Statistics (2004) estimate that 60% of community college freshmen and 25% of freshmen at 4-year public institutions nationwide complete at least one remedial course. Nationally, fewer than 40% of students who are referred to developmental education actually enroll in…

Across the country, a growing number of recent high school graduates are participating in summer bridge programs. These programs provide accelerated and focused learning opportunities in order to help students acquire the knowledge and skills needed for college success. The state of Texas has given particular attention to summer programs as a way…

The Learning Communities Demonstration is a national research project that is testing the effectiveness of learning communities in six community colleges across the United States: Merced College in California; The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) in Baltimore, Maryland; Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Florida; Houston…

The current study examined differences in student performance and retention rates for those who completed remedial reading or remedial writing courses and those who did not in a private university in South Florida. International students also were compared to non-international students on academic performance and retention rates. The conceptual…

Presents findings from a study of 134 college students to determine differences in cognitive styles between developmental and regular admission students, focusing on the concept of field dependence and independence. Finds no significant differences, with 38% of the non-developmental and 40% of the developmental students being field independent.…

Reports on a study at North Carolina State University that examined the use of electronic mail to encourage critical literacy among college developmental reading students. States that randomly selected students were paired with professionals who served as online mentors. Reports that, after one semester, this group scored higher than the control…

This article reports research involving collaboration between a developmental studies department and a mathematics department in an effort to increase the academic success of developmental students who transition into college-level math. Three separate projects were conducted with former developmental math students currently enrolled in an…