Dissatisfaction with student success has caused a crisis in developmental education. Critics from both inside and outside the field question whether remedial courses really prepare students for future college work or even if they are properly part of the college mission. In this article, we review research and present information that suggests…

Exploiting a statewide cutoff point on the placement examination used to assign students to remedial courses in Tennessee, this study employs a regression discontinuity research design to provide causal estimates of the effects on student outcomes of recently redesigned remedial courses at three Tennessee colleges. Moreover, using data on student…

One of the greatest challenges that community colleges face in their efforts to increase graduation rates is improving the success of students in their developmental, or remedial, education programs. This literature review seeks to examine research on developmental education strategies and reforms and identify the most promising approaches for…

Some of the attitudes, expectations, and techniques of the English as a second language (ESL) teacher and the ESL student may be profitably applied in the developmental composition classroom. Although developmental students are native English speakers, many of them react to formal, written English as if it were a foreign language. Fostering ESL…

Presents the theory that rhetorical modes taught in developmental writing courses parallel the process of human cognitive development. Describes the teaching strategies and competencies incorporated in a developmental writing course which proceeds sequentially from description through analysis, comparison, classification, and cause and effect. (JP)

Describes the Foundations Program at Mohegan Community College, an interdisciplinary program providing individualized instruction in English, reading, and mathematics. It is team taught and designed to be developmental and corrective as well as remedial. (DC)

Discusses the Gateway Program at New Jersey's Rutgers University, in which departments administer their own developmental classes. Describes reasons for the program's success, including small class sizes, providing students with gradual increases in autonomy, frequent assessment and feedback, and teaching strategies that require participation.…

Ways in which the study of discourse analysis can aid the teacher of basic writing in helping their students to express themselves fluently are explored in this paper. It is noted that remedial writers need to learn to relate abstract ideas to concrete examples and that they seem unable to supply the connections between ideas, especially those of…

Presents a model designed to integrate curricula of a content course with a study skills course. Describes logistics and methods used to implement the model in the Department of Biology at Metropolitan State College, Colorado. Presents program results based on pre- and post-instruction tests. (DR)

Argues that there is a need for more research on the effectiveness of instructional methods in developmental education, but acknowledges that standard experimental procedures are not appropriate for developmental classrooms. Describes Simulation Implementations of Peripatetic Learning Environments (SIMPLE), a computer-based tool for creating…

Reviews six principles for effective developmental education teaching, including commitment to teaching underprepared students, command of the subject matter, and ability to teach a diverse student population. Integrates research findings from successful developmental education programs and general principles for effective teaching in…

The first portion of this paper discusses the procedure for placing freshmen in a remedial composition course at a small liberal arts college. The design of the basic skills test used for placement is criticized on the basis of the inappropriateness of both content and format (multiple choice) in determining which students required remedial…

Describes a teaching approach used in introductory classes in literature and political science based on the assumption that technical academic skills must be developed simultaneously with the processes of critical thinking. Course content and methods of presenting and analyzing material for each course are described. (DR)

This proceedings document provides one to two page versions of papers presented on the theme of celebrating diversity in developmental education, focusing on the areas of research, administration and learning assistance, writing, reading, and mathematics. Papers include, among others: "Gender Differences in Variables Related to Academic…

This proceedings document focuses on research and program development in developmental education and instruction in mathematics, reading, and writing. Papers are: "Down in the Trenches: Tutors Learning about Learning" (Jace Condravy); "Expanding the Role of Developmental Education in Research Institutions" (Patricia Dwinell and others);…